Auditing and Consulting in Accounting Firms Research Paper

Auditing and Consulting in Accounting Firms - Research Paper Example The concept of moral hazard originated in the insurance business when the insured party exhibits immoral behavior by giving out wrong information, implying an outright fraud, but this definition has since been used in economics, in a situation where there is asymmetry in the information available. One party has more relevant information or data than the other party and is therefore in a better position to take action that will insulate itself from risks, while the other party unknowingly bears the negative consequences if things go wrong or not as expected. Previously, external auditing firms were hired for their accounting and auditing skills for expertise in these matters. However, the past few decades saw the rise of many independent smaller accounting firms, causing an intense rivalry or competition for new accounting clients. A response by the big global accounting and auditing firms was to branch out into a new service, in which they profess to have management expertise, and this is in the consultancy business. In the auditing market, there was saturation and maturity, hence accounting and auditing firms started to offer integrated auditing, consultancy, and advisory services (The Economist, 2012, p. 1). This situation has an inherent moral hazard in it, because accounting and auditing firms should not provide consultancy services to the same firms that they are auditing. There is a good tendency to manipulate the books (window dressing) to enhance assets, profits, or credit rating to justify the huge consultancy fees, which is a very lucrative revenue stream for these firms. Some regulators and policymakers have doubts whether it is possible to maintain accounting integrity or professional independence in these kind of situations. This is clearly an anomaly, similar to the fox guarding the chicken coop; it has been demonstrated by the corporate

Discussion M4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Discussion M4 - Essay Example Alternatively, they liaise up with a re-known grocery store in the neighborhood and make direct orders should they require food supply. Most airline companies like designing containers that carry the foodstuffs with their own specifications. Therefore, this influence the warehouse requirements in that they have to locate it near or in the airport for easy packaging, branding, and reduce labor and transportation costs. Demand-facing warehouse requirements is a primarily dependant on customer preferences and tastes. The airline company will be tasked to construct a warehouse and store relevant food stuffs in accordance to demand so that it avoids running out stock. Alternatively, it can link up with suppliers to make sure there is a fresh delivery each time there is need. Through Just-In-Time approach, the company can avoid piling up inventory that can go to waste or lead to high storage costs. Foodstuffs meant for human consumption should be delivered fresh and of right quality. This is a standard requirement by the public health departments to avoid chances of food poisoning. In addition, since it is not the main business for airline companies, avoiding keeping food stock can be important in reducing storage costs and creating space for other important

Analysis of Ryanairs Strategy

Analysis of Ryanairs Strategy Business Environment:- Strategy is the Scope and Direction of an organization over the long term: Which achieves advantages for the organization through its configuration of resources â€Å"Challenging Business Environment†, to meet the needs of market and Stakeholders expectations. Definition: Business Strategy is a long term plan of action designed to achieve a particular goal or set of goals or objectives www.rapid-intelligence-business-sucess.com Or A course of action including the specification of resources required, to achieve a specific objective http://dictionery.bent.com Strategic management or business strategy is a level of managerial activity under setting goals and over Tactics. It provides overall direction to the business enterprise and is related to the field of organizational studies. Strategic Strategic management or business strategy includes Formulation Evaluation Strategic Formulation:- Evaluation:- Evaluation is divided into 3 parts It is important to conduct a SWOT analysis to find out the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. SWOT analysis may require taking certain precautions needed. suitability Feasibility Acceptability www.en.wikipedia.org Strategies exist at different levels in any organization. Corporate Strategy Business unit strategy Operational strategy Corporate Strategy:- It is concerned with the overall purpose and scope of the business to meet stake holders expectations. This is the crucial level since it is heavily influenced by the investors in the business and acts to guide strategic decision making. Example of corporate strategy:- Lets take an example of GE. To make this clear, GEs corporate strategy is of inter relating business units. Consumer electrics, submarines, locomotives, light bulbs etc share some synergies and each part is a separate business unit. This is what corporate strategy about. Business Strategy:- This is concerned more with how a business competes successfully in a business market. It concerns strategic decisions about choice of products, meeting needs of customers, gaining advantage over competitors, exploiting or creating new opportunities etc. Example of Business strategy:- For example, here I am taking Tesco supermarkets business strategy. Tesco is a UKs largest retailer and one of the top supermarket operators in the world plans to open a thousand strong chains of discount stores in the US. This expansion plan and strategy places it directly against the competitor retail giant Wal Mart. The US retail market is most competitive in the world. This is a fact well known to British retailers Sainsburys and marks Spencer which failed to attract US customers. Tescos Business Strategy in the US Healthy food, no waiting:- Fresh Easy stores: Tesco Started operations in the US by opening its Fresh Easy stores in Las Vegas, Los angels, San Diego and Phoenix. By 2010 Tesco plans to open 200 more outlets to expand the retail network. Tescos basic US stores will be similar to Europeans Discounters ASDA and LIDL though Tesco stores will be 75% smaller than most American super markets. Fresh Easy stores are about 10000 square feet are one third the size of a typical super market, but four times that of a convenience store. Tesco is adopting a hard discount model in the US. Tescos convenience stores modeled on the Tesco Express blueprint target US Grocers 7-Eleven and locallyrun stores. This case study covers the following issues. Asses Tescos globalization strategies Examine and analyze the entry and expansion strategies of Tesco in US Study how Tesco localized its retail practices in US Understand Tescos efforts to integrate its global best practices with local Strategies in US. Operational strategy:- Operational strategy is concerned with how each part of the business is organized to the deliver the corporate and business level strategic direction. Operational strategy focuses on resources, processes, people etc. Example:- Here I am giving the example of Ryan air, which is a biggest low cost European air line. Ryanair was the first low budget airline in Europe, modeled after the successful U.S. low cost carrier, Southwest airlines. Ryanair is one of the oldest and most successful low cost airlines of Europe. This case study on Ryanair highlights its low fares business model, its business strategies and operations. The case further incorporates the history and business description of Ryanair, its operations and challenges as a budget airline. Features and benefits of the low cost business model are also discussed. Ryanair won, the ‘Southwest of European Airlines in 2007. A year earlier, Ryanair hedged fuel and a performance to envy. Ryan airs passenger Grown in Millions. History of Ryanair:- Ryan airs initial efforts as a low cost carrier 1990 Restructuring at Ryanair The growth of Ryanair Analyzing the low cost business model Ryanair low fares strategy and standardized Operational model Advantages of using secondary or airports located outside city Low wage bills Ryanair.com and online bookings of tickets The easy jet challenge Ryanair failed merger bid and other controversies Ryanair/Aerlingus merger failure Ryanair and EU Some low fare carriers around the world Exhibit 1: Features and benefits of low fares business model Exhibit 2: Oil prices comparison, 1994 2009 Exhibit 3: List of approved and prohibited merges by the EU in the airline industry Exhibit 4: Comparative performance data of some major European LFA Exhibit 5: Map of the European Union Introduction to Ryanair: The ‘southwest of European airlines in 2007 Ryanair, Europes biggest low fares airline (LFA) reported its third quarter results for 2007 with net profits dropping 27 percent compared to a net profit of 48 million a year earlier. Ryanair cited poor market conditions, fuel costs and concerns on recession in the UK and many other European economies for its current performance and not so strong future profit expectations. With average winter fares dropping almost 5 percent its underlying net profit in the three moths to end December fell to 35 million Euros. Ryanair net profit figure excluded a one off gain of 12.1 million Euros arising from the disposal of 5 Boeing 737- 800 aircraft. History of Ryanair Ryanair was set up in 1985 and is one of the oldest and most successful low cost airlines of Europe. In fact, Ryanair was one of the first independent airlines in Ireland. Ryanair transformed the Irish air services market where other airlines like Avair failed to compete with the more powerful national carrier Aerlingus. Ryan airs initial efforts as a low cost carrier Ryan air began by offering low cost no frills services between Ireland and London. Ryan brothers Catlan, Declan and Shane Ryan were the founding share holders of Ryanair. Ryanair was set up with a share capital of just  £1, and a staff of 25. Tony Ryan, their father and the chairmen of Guinness Peat Aviation (GPA), an aircraft leasing company lent Ryanair its first airplane, a fifteen seater turbo prop commuter plane. Ryan airs first cabin crew recruits had to be less than 5ft 2ins. tall so as to be able to operate in the tiny cabin of aircraft Strategic Analysis:- Strategic analysis is all about the analyzing strength of business position and understanding the important external factors that may influence that position. The process of strategic analysis can be assisted by a number of tools, including: Scenario Planning: This technique that builds various plausible views of possible futures for a business. Scenario Planning or scenario thinking is a strategic planning tool used to make flexible long term plans. It is a method for learning about the future by understanding the nature and impact of the most uncertain and important driving forces affecting our world. Many of the regular methods for strategy development assume that the world in three to ten years time will not significantly differ from that of today and that an organization will have a large impact on its environment. Although the method is most widely used as a strategic management tool, it can also be used for enabling other types of group discussion about a common future. The thought process involved in getting to the scenarios have the dual purpose of increasing knowledge of the environment in which you operate and widening the participants perception of appropriate action plans can be considered. www.jisinfonet.ac.uk www.en.wikipedia.org Pest analysis: This is a technique for understanding business environment. Pest analysis stands for â€Å"Political, Economic, social and Technological analysis† and describes as a frame work of macro environmental factors used in the environmental scanning component of strategic management. Some analysts added Legal and rearranged the mnemonic to SLEPT. Inserting Environmental factors expanded it to PESTLE or PESTEL, which is popular in the UK. The growing importance of environmental or ecological factors in the first decade of the 21st century have given rise to green business and encouraged widespread use of an updated version of the PEST framework. Political factors are how and to what degree a government intervenes in the economy. Specially, political factors include areas such as tax policy, labor law, environmental law, trade restrictions, traffics, and political stability. Economic factors include economic growth, interest rates, exchange rates and inflation rate. Social factors include the crucial aspects and include health consciousness, population growth rate, age distribution, career attitudes and emphasis on safety. Technological factors include ecological and environmental aspects. Environmental factors include weather, climate and climate change, which may affect industries such as tourism, farming, and insurance. Legal factors include discrimination law, consumer law, antitrust law, employment law, and health and safety law. Market segmentation: A technique which seeks to identify similarities and differences between groups of customers or users. A market segment is a group of people or organizations sharing one or more characteristics that cause them to have similar product and/or service needs. The purpose for segmenting a market is to allow your marketing program to focus on the subset of prospects that are most likely to purchase your offering. When numerous variables are combined to give an in depth understanding of a segment, this is referred to as depth segmentation. When enough information is combined to create a clear picture of a typical member of a segment, this is referred to as a buyer profile. A statistical technique commonly used in determining a profile is cluster analysis. Once a market segment has been identified and targeted, the segment is then subject to positioning. Positioning involves ascertaining how a product is perceived in the minds of consumers. www.businessplans.org Five forces analysis: A technique for identifying the forces which affect the level of competition in an industry. This analysis helps the marketer to contrast a competitive environment. It has similarities with other tools for environmental audit, such as PEST analysis, but tends to focus on the single, stand alone, business or SBU (Strategic Business Unit) rather than a single product or range of products. Five force analyses looks at five key areas namely the threat of entry, the power of buyers, the power of suppliers, the threat of substitutes, and competitive rivalry. Threat of entry: Economies of scale. Ex: the benefits associated with bulk purchasing 2) The high or low cost of entry Cost advantages not related to the size of the company Government action The power of buyers:- This is high where there a few, large players in a market Cost of switching between suppliers is low The power of suppliers:- Where the switching costs are high Power is high where the brand is powerful Customers are fragmented The threat of substitutes:- Where there is generic substitution Where there is product for product substitution Competitive Rivalry:- This is most likely to be high where entry is likely www.mareketingteacher.com Competitor analysis: a wide range of techniques and analysis that seeks to summarize a businesses overall competitive position. Competitor analysis is an important part of the strategic planning process. Competitor analysis in marketing and strategic management is an assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of current and potential competitors. This analysis has several important roles in strategic planning. To help management understand their competitive advantages or disadvantages relative to competitors. To generate understanding of competitors past, present and future strategies. To provide an informed basis to develop strategies to achieve competitive advantage in the future To help forecast the returns that may be made from future investments Competitor analysis is an essential component of corporate strategy; it is argued that most firms do not conduct this type of analysis systematically enough. Instead, many enterprises operate on what is called informal impressions. A common technique is to create detailed profiles on each of your major competitors. These profiles give an in depth description of the competitors background, finances, products, markets, facilities, personnel and strategies. Directional policy matrix: A technique which summarizes the competitive strength of a businesses operation in specific markets. This matrix measures the health of the market and your strength to pursue it. The result indicates the direction for future investment. The recommendation may be to invest, grow, harvest or divest. Most businesses have more than one product and operate in several markets. One effective approach to ensuring that objectivity has an input into such prioritization is the directional policy matrix (DPM). www.brs-inc.com Critical success factor analysis: A technique to identify those areas in which a business must outperform the competition in order to succeed. Critical success factors are the critical factors or activities required for ensuring the success your business. The term was initially used in the world of data analysis, and business analysis. Critical success Factor is the term of an element that is necessary for an organization or project to achieve its mission. It is a critical factor or activity required for ensuring the success of your business. A critical success factor is not a key performance indicator. CSFs are elements that are vital for a strategy to be successful. KPIs are measures that quantify management objectives and enable the measurement of strategic performance. The term was initially used in the world of data analysis, and business analysis. Critical success factors (CSFs) are tailored to a firms or managers particular situation as different situations to different critical success factors. Five key sources of CSFs The industry Competitive strategy and industry position Environmental factors Temporal factors Managerial position www.rapidbi.com SWOT analysis: This is a useful summary technique for summarizing the key issues arising from an assessment of a business â€Å"internal† position and external environmental influences. SWOT analysis is a strategic planning method used to evaluate the strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats involved in a project or in a business venture. It involves specifying the objective of the business venture or project identifying the internal and external factors that are the favorable and unfavorable to a convention at Stanford University in the 1960s and 1970s using data from fortune 500 companies. A SWOT analysis must first start with defining a desired end state or objective. A SWOT analysis may be incorporated into the strategic planning model. An example of a strategic planning technique that incorporates an objective driven SWOT analysis is ‘Strategic Creative Analysis (SCAN). Strategic planning, including SWOT and SCAN analysis, has been the subject of much research. Strengths: attributes of the person or company that are helpful to achieving the objective. Weakness: Attributes of the person or company that are harmful to achieving the objective Opportunities: External conditions that are helpful to achieving the objective. Threats: External conditions which could do damage to the objective. Identification of SWOTs is essential because subsequent steps in the process of planning for achievement of the selected objective may be derived from the SWOTs. The SWOT analysis is often used in academia to highlight and identify strengths, weaknesses. Opportunities and threats. It is particularly helpful in identifying areas for development. Another way of utilizing SWOT is ‘matching and ‘converting. Matching is used to find competitive advantages by matching the strengths to opportunities. Converting is to apply conversion strategies to convert threats or weaknesses into strengths or opportunities. An example of conversion strategy is to find new markets. If the threats or weaknesses cannot be converted a company should try to minimize or avoid them. Evidence on the use of SWOT SWOT analysis may limit the strategies considered in the evaluation. J.Scott Armstrong notes that â€Å"people who use SWOT might conclude that they have done an adequate job of planning and ignore such sensible things as defining the firms objectives or calculating ROI for alternative strategies. As an alternative to SWOT, Armstrong described a 5 step approach alternative that leads to better corporate performance. These criticisms are addressed to an old version of SWOT analysis that precedes the SWOT analysis described above under the heading â€Å"Strategic and Creative use of SWOT analysis†. This old version did not require that SWOTs be derived from an agreed upon objective. Example of SWOT analyses that do not state an objective are provided below under â€Å"Human Resource† and â€Å"Marketing.† Internal and external factors The aim of any SWOT analysis is to identify the key internal and external factors that are important to achieving the objective. These come from within the companys unique value chain. SWOT analysis groups key pieces of information into two main categories. Internal factors: The strengths and weaknesses internal to the organization. External factors: The opportunities and threats presented by the external environment to the organization. Use a PEST or PESTLE analysis to help identify factors. The internal facts may be viewed as strengths or weaknesses depending upon their impact on the organizations objectives. What may represent strengths with respect to one objective may be weakness for another objective. The factors may include all of the 4Ps; as well as personnel, finance, manufacturing capabilities, and so on. The external factors may include macroeconomic matters, technological change, legislation, and socio results are often presented in the form of a matrix. SWOT analysis is just one method of categorization and has its own weaknesses. For example, it may tend to persuade companies to compile lists rather than thinking about what is actually important in achieving objectives. It also presents the resulting lists uncritically and without clear prioritization so that, for example, weak opportunities may appear to balance strong threats. It is prudent not to eliminate too quickly any candidates SWOT entry. The importance of individual SWOTs will be revealed by the value of the strategies it generates. A SWOT item that produces valuable strategies is important. A SWOT item that generates no strategies is not important. Conclusion:- Here I am concluding that my assignment was completed. Strategy at different levels of management was explained including different methods like SWOT analysis, CSF, DPM, etc. I have tried my best to compete this assignment with the help of some online resources.

Dr. Seuss The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins Essay -- Dr. Seuss The

Narrative Style and Structure of Dr. Seuss'The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins, told in folktale style, was written by Dr. Seuss in 1938. According to Charity Belle Mays, â€Å"Folktales deal with adventures both plausible and implausible wrapped in the forms of human or animal abilities. They are the simple tales that have truly evil people or animals, and truly good people or animals, and the good always wins out in the end in these stories, giving way to the child's version of fairness.† This story recounts young Bartholomew Cubbin’s misadventures while going to market in town. Bartholomew, a paragon of politeness and obedience, unwittingly finds trouble when he is unable to keep a hat off his head and offends King Derwin. The folktale begins with introductions to Bartholomew and King Derwin, the potential â€Å"hero† and â€Å"villain.† The first several pages emphasize the great contrasts between their lives; Bartholomew is poor and feels insignificant versus the King’s wealth and mighty self-image. With such opposite lifestyles, Seuss must create a...

Of Plymouth Plantation Essay

â€Å"Of Plymouth Plantation† is a manuscript of Bradford’s history starting in 1620. The first book was copied into the church records and preserved, but unfortunately the second part was presumably lost. The manuscripts were found in the residence of the Bishop of London and were published together for the first time in 1856. There seems to be immeasurable history in these books. William Bradford, the author of â€Å"Of Plymouth Plantation† gives a narrative of the voyage to Cape Cod. In the beginning of chapter 9, Bradford starts with a story of a young sailor whom had cursed and slighted the pilgrims for their weakness and constant sickness. However, that same sailor died from an unstated disease, giving the pilgrims peace as they no longer had persecution from any sailor. Bradford also mentions that young John Howland had fallen into the sea. Howland was under the water for a long time and as he held on to a topsail halyard, a rope that hangs overboard, he was pulled down to a deep level while the ship moved at a steady pace. After he was rescued Howland was sick for a long time, but survived in spite of his experience. As the Pilgrims finally reach Cape Code, Bradford explains the problems of the voyage which were part of the reason they had not made it all the way to Jamestown. The Pilgrims were elated to see land however they were also troubled because they had arrived during winter. Not only were land  conditions poor for farming at this time, but the ground was also hard. The few provisions they brought had been mostly for the journey, and not necessarily for the winter. Yet, due to the condition of the ship, the general consensus was to stay at Cape Cod. The Pilgrims arrived at Cape Cod aboard the Mayflower on November 11th, 1620. When they arrived, sixteen men, lead by Miles Standish, went on an exploration hoping to find a nearby river. In the process, they stumbled upon a small group of natives. However, the natives ran away when they caught sight of the Pilgrims. The Pilgrims followed the natives and consequently came across a former village where they took some of the provisions that were left there. They also came upon two more dwellings where they found some seeds, which they were thankful for. On December 6th, the Pilgrims set out in a shallop to explore further. As they were approaching land, they spotted a group of ten to twelve natives. The day was coming to an end, so the Pilgrims set up a barricade in case of attack. The next morning they set out to find the natives. They came upon the group of natives and saw that they were cleaning a fish. As the sun set, the Pilgrims set up another barricade for protection. As they were going to sleep they could hear wolves in the night, and they fired off their muskets to scare the wolves away. At day break, the Pilgrims found themselves under attack by the natives, which caused them to retreat from the area. However, the winter weather had gotten bad, and they had to spend some time on an island before heading back to the ship. On Monday, they were able to return to the ship. The party subsequently anchored in Plymouth where they began to build the colony’s first house. When reading these two chapters of Bradford’s manuscript, one would begin to appreciate the value of history. America’s possession of the first accounts, from Bradford’s perspective, of the Mayflower’s voyage to Plymouth is invaluable. In _American Historical Review_ David Read said, â€Å"William Bradford’s Of Plymouth Plantation could easily be categorized as yet another largely unread, dry-as-toast document from the days before things got really interesting in this country (p512).† Any reader would realize the piece of history which makes this logic absurd, nevertheless understanding that it is dry and very difficult to read. Bradford seems to ramble on about significant details; however this is a manuscript and not a professionally written book. One of the best-known sections of Bradford’s manuscript is chapter nine, which details the arrival to Cape Cod. The Pilgrims are struck by what they perceive as a desolate wilderness, utterly hostile and without comforts. Bradford emphasizes the tribulation they endured in sailing to this new land, and in his writings, Bradford wants the reader to understand that things did not get any better. Continuing in chapter ten, readers can see Indians being more problematic and viewed as a hostile force of nature to be reckoned with, ready to destroy the Pilgrims. In conclusion, the point of these chapters in â€Å"Of Plymouth Plantation† is to emphasize the struggles, hardships, and privations suffered by the Pilgrims in an attempt to show that they had been chosen for success by divine Providence. As David Partenheimer said in _Explicator_, â€Å"In any case, it is a remarkable moment in American literature when the New World is typologically conceptualized as the Promised Land for a chosen people despite a landscape of hell (p121).† Works Cited Bradford, William. â€Å"Of Plymouth Plantation.† _The Norton Anthology of American Literature_. 7th ed. Vol. A. Ed. Nina Baym. New York: W. W. Norton, 2007. 105-120. Print. Partenheimer, David. â€Å"Bradford’s Of Plymouth Plantation: 1620-1647.† _Explicator_ 56.3 (1998): 121. _Academic Search Elite_. Web. 17 Oct. 2014 Read, David. â€Å"William Bradford’s Books: Of Plymouth Plantation And The Printed Word (Book).† _American Historical Review_ 109.2 (2004): 512-513. _Academic Search Elite_. Web. 17 Oct. 2014.

Motorcycle and financial services Essay

Abstract The strength of Harley-Davidson’s brand and dominant market position give the firm a wide moat, in our opinion. However, weaker consumer spending and tight credit markets are presenting the firm with some significant near-term challenges. In addition, we believe the firm must carefully broaden the appeal of its brand to secure its long-term success. Harley-Davidson is a cult brand that resonates around the world. There are more than 1 million members of the Harley Owners Group, and every year several hundred thousand Harley fans attend biking events at Daytona, Fla. , and Sturgis, S. D. It’s no wonder that over 50% of Harley’s revenues are generated from repeat sales and these sales are at premium prices to other motorcycle brands. In addition, with almost a 50% share of the U. S. market, Harley also achieves economies of scale greater than most of its competitors. A Harley is not just a bike it is an investment. brand loyalty, its economies of scale, and its network of mostly exclusive dealers have created significant barriers to entry, and as a result, Harley has achieved historical operating margins of over 20% and returns on invested capital of over 40%, excluding the financial services segment. JIT Principles JIT is an operational strategy which helps in making inventory levels lean. An organisation which goes for synchronous manufacturing incorporates JIT to have lower inventory levels. Synchronous manufacturing encompasses techniques of JIT to achieve the target. Organisations which have implemented JIT and are using synchronous manufacturing have a very lean system. It has minimum wastage and the highest possible quality. These organisations are cost effective and generally have higher margins than their competitors. This results in higher level of efficiency in the organisation and a better work environment. BPI helps in management of inventory and related operations. It is very important that organisation understand the importance of new methods and reengineer their processes in line with the requirements. The minimum level of inventory which is required as WIP is determined by the organization and then control efforts are put in so that there is always the minimum level available and it would never cross the maximum level. This is done because one cannot hold high levels of inventory because it comes at a very high cost and is an occupational and can be a operation hazard. The strength of Harley-Davidson’s brand and dominant market position give the firm a wide moat, in our opinion. However, weaker consumer spending and tight credit markets are presenting the firm with some significant challenges and we believe the firm must carefully expand the appeal of its brand to secure its long term success. Harley-Davidson is a cult brand that resonates around the world. There are more than 1 million members of the Harley Owners Group, and every year several hundred thousand Harley fans attend biking events at Daytona, Fla. , and Sturgis, S. D. It’s no wonder that over 50% of Harley’s revenues are generated from repeat sales and these sales are at premium prices to other motorcycle brands. In addition, with almost a 50% share of the U. S. market, Harley also achieves economies of scale greater than most of its competitors. The intensity of the firm’s brand loyalty, its economies of scale, and its network of mostly exclusive dealers have created significant barriers to entry, and as a result, Harley has achieved historical operating margins of over 20% and returns on invested capital of over 40%, excluding the financial services segment. Despite its strong brand, sagging consumer spending on high-ticket items is likely to continue to depress volumes in the near term, and we expect the economic downturn to prolong the period of failing sales through 2010/11. The firm has already cut production in an attempt to trim costs in line with faling demand. in addition, just over half of Harley’s motorcycle revenues are derived from retail sales made on credit. We think that the lack of available funds on the wholesale markets and the shrinking of the number of qualifying customers will make it difficult for the company’s financial services division to continue to support retail sales by providing credit to customers. Harley must address some long-term challenges. The firm has been focused on a narrow demographic group (around 89% of customers are male) and the median age of Harley’s customers has been on a long-term upward trend. We believe that the firm must find ways to broaden the appeal of its brand without alienating its core customer base. Harley has grown in recent years in the international market , and revenues generated abroad have risen to 25% of total revenues in 2007 from 19% in 2004. Although the firm has recently introduced a performance motorcycle for the European market, I think that it may find it difficult to deliver customized products for overseas markets while supporting its brand franchise. Risk Harley’s revenues could be severely hurt by a further weakening of the global economy and increased reductions in consumer spending on high-ticket discretionary items, and the firm may not be able to securitize its receivables if the asset-backed security market is slow to recover. Harley’s sales are focused on a thin demographic segment: 35- to 54-year-old males. In our opinion, the firm must broaden its appeal in order to secure its long-term profitability, but any missteps in marketing its products to other demographic segments could damage the brand. Harley-Davidson’s brand resonates around the world, and it has particular strength in its key target market of 35- to 54-year-olds.   Historically, Harley has generated free cash flow at around 15% of revenues, allowing the firm to develop a strong track record of returning cash to shareholders through dividends and stock repurchases.   Through the downturn, Harley’s management has been careful to maintain spending on research and development and marketing, important steps in maintaining the strength of the brand, in our opinion. The firm has worked successfully with its network of dealers to significantly reduce dealer inventory over the last 12 months.   Harley’s core demographic, the baby boomer generation, is aging, and that’s likely to reduce demand for Harley’s products in the future. In order to mitigate the negative impact on revenues, the firm must improve its penetration in other segments. * Harley is likely to continue to face some severe short-term head winds, with anemic consumer spending likely to hurt revenues through 2010. The large inventory of used Harley motorcycles is likely to contribute to Harley’s near-term challenges, as a greater number of under-pressure consumers may opt for a cheaper used model in the secondary market.   The turmoil in the credit markets is likely to raise the cost of the short-term capital required to fund HDFS.   Despite raising the retail rate on its loans, I expect the operating margins of HDFS to come under severe pressure through 2009. HDFS may also find it difficult to raise financing for retail credit in the wholesale markets. This could restrict the number of loans the firm can make to customers and thwart the firm’s attempts to support retail sales volumes. Inventory Management in Harley Davidson Growth: Historically, the strong spending power of the baby boomers, Harley’s core demographic, has been favourable for the motorbike manufacturer. As the baby boomers age, however, I expect slowing domestic revenue growth to be only partially mitigated by international expansion. Profile: Harley-Davidson is the world’s leading manufacturer of heavyweight motorcycles, parts, and accessories. It sells the Softail, Sportster, Dyna, Touring, and VRSC models under the Harley-Davidson name, and it also manufactures the Buell brand. Harley-Davidson Financial Services provides wholesale financing to dealers and retail financing and insurance brokerage services to customers. Strategy: Harley leverages its strong brand to sell a broad range of motorcycling-related products. The firm is attempting to broaden its appeal to more demographic groups by expanding its product line-up. It is also focused on international expansion, and it has introduced a new performance-based bike in an attempt to increase its share in overseas markets. Management: I think the quality of corporate governance at Harley-Davidson is above average. I applaud the firm for splitting the chairman and CEO roles between two individuals, although I am concerned that the relationship between the two individuals serving in these roles may weaken the chairman’s ability to provide independent oversight. CEO James Ziemer’s career at Harley blossomed under the leadership of former CEO and current Chairman Jeffrey L. Bluestein. In addition, although nine of the firm’s 12 directors meet the NYSE definition of â€Å"independent,† a total of six of them have served on the board for over a decade, and I believe that their long-term relationships with management, together with some related-party transactions, may further compromise their independence. Having said that, the Harley-Davidson board does contain a solid range of legal, accounting, and executive experience. Management compensation is skewed to long-term incentive components, and I think that this aligns the interests of the management team with those of shareholders. The firm has a strong track record of returning cash to shareholders, both through dividend disbursements and share buyback programs. Harley Reports Lower 3Q Earnings I am leaving our fair value estimate for Harley-Davidson in place following the release of third-quarter earnings, which were in line with our expectations. Revenue fell 8% year over year, to $1. 42 billion, as the economic downturn hurt retail sales volume, which declined 14%. The bright spot was international sales, but only a small part of the 11. 3% rise in international revenues was attributable to volume increases; most of the increase was caused by favourable currency movements. At Harley-Davidson Financial Services, the customer finance division, third-quarter earnings fell 28% from the same period last year, to $35. 6 million, because of lower securitization income and the write-down of some finance receivables held for sale. I was pleased to note that the firm is being proactive in securing alternative sources of funding for the finance division, in the event that it cannot raise funds in the unsecured debt market. However, we expect that Harley’s funding requirements would be met comfortably by its bank credit facility, if required. Supply side & Economic Scenario Given the continued macroeconomic deterioration and tightness in credit markets, I am raising our fair value uncertainty rating for Harley-Davidson. The company’s growth has decelerated during the last three years, and year-over-year shipments were down 15% last quarter. In addition, we see significant downside risks to the contribution from Harley-Davidson Financial Services. Last quarter, financial services income was down 43% because of a $20 million reduction in securitization gains. Financial income was also affected by a $6 million write-down in retained securitization interests. Since that time credit markets have seized up, and it’s likely the firm will report increasing charge-offs on consumer loans in the coming quarters. Summary Business process reengineering is very critical for companies and industries which survive on innovation. Sometimes there are cases when old processes in the company are dying and their is a pressing need to rejuvenate then. This process of is known as business process reengineering. A company that does not innovate dies out in the market. Old operations over time die down and new process needs to be rebuilt into the system. This is where the concept of business processes engineering is very critical. The objective of the paper is to critically evaluate symptoms which suggests organisation to go for business process reengineering & then come up with one of those symptoms and write a detailed analysis of it. References: http://www. emeraldinsight. com. / Gao, F, Li, M.& Clarke, S. (2008). Knowledge, management, and knowledge management in business operations. Nonaka, I. (2005). Knowledge Management: Critical Perspectives on Business and Management. Taylor & Francis. Tait, A & Richardson, K. A. (2010). Complexity and Knowledge Management Understanding the Role of Knowledge in the Management of Social Networks. IAP Goldman, A. (n. d. ). Eliminating Bottlenecks. Retrieved 28th March, 2011, from http://www. gaebler. com (n. d. ). Retrieved Mar 27th, 2011, from Customer Relationship MAnagement: http://www. customerthink.com (n. d. ). Retrieved Mar 27th, 2011, from More is not value Proposition: http://sinekpartners. typepad. com Auction site. (n. d. ). Retrieved MAr 27th, 2011, from Harley Davidson Value: http://harleyauctionsite. com Harley Davidson USA. (2011, MAr 27). Retrieved Mar 17, 2011, from Harley Davidson: http://www. harley-davidson. com Impact Factory. (2010, Feb 2nd). Retrieved mar 27th, 2011, from http://www. impactfactory. com http://www. h-dsn. com/genbus/links. jsp Management Research Review. (2000) Johan Van Nimwegen, Brian H. Kleiner, Volume 23 issue 7/8.

Action Planning Template Essays - Free Essays, Term Papers

Action Planning Template Essays - Free Essays, Term Papers Action Planning Template Project title Vegetable Farm Project leader Headmaster/Principal Participants Four Uniform Units ( 125 pupils ) 8 Uniform Units Coordinators Project goal The goal of this project is to introduce to pupils the usage of recycleade thing for Planting vgetables Focus The core skills this project focuses on are all skills in in conducting the project. Rationale Tthis project will familiarise the teachers and pupils with the score skills and will Enhance the pupils knowledge the imporetance Outcomes What will the outcome of the project be? How will you know the outcome has been achieved? Outcome 1 All coordinators and partcipnts invle in the project.get to know about this project Briefing conducted for all coordinators and pupils Outcome 2 Participants know the to plant the vegetable with the coordinators help Vegetables are planted in the chosen recyclable items Outcome 3 Outcome 4 Working group formed identifying and collecting recyclealde items to be used in the project Planting and taking care of the vegetable farn 8 coodinators are appointed form 4 uniform units.8 groups with 15 participants are formed Work scheduler are formed for the coordinators and the groups Overview of steps of process Step 1 Design school vision for the project Step 2 Identify and appoint coordinators,who will be the leaders of their groups for the project. Step 3 Dividing the members of the 4 uniform units into 8 group for the project Step 4 The coordinators and the participants write and dessiminate a plan to carry at the project' Detailed breakdown of steps to achieve the project goal Step Brief description (from previous page) Who is involved? When? Deadlines? What resources are required? Notes Step achieved? Yes/No 1 Meeting, discussion and briefing the project to the teachers and staffs All teachers and staffs 19 Sept 2017 Principal's knowledge Meeting room 2 Meet and discuss on ideas for the pupils to present All Level 2 students 21 Sept 2017 Access to computer and internet Computer labs can be used for the discussion and sourcing for information 3 Practising cleanliness in school All Level 2 students 25 - 29 Sept 2017 Resources can be obtained from school 4 Prepare materials for exhibition corner and 3R Bin (3 bins) All Level 2 students 26 - 29 Sept 2017 Exhibition: Materials for setting up exhibition 3R Bins: Boxes and labels Exhibition set up in classrooms; manned by the group of selected students Students provide boxes for the bins 5 Setting up the exhibition All Level 2 students 2 Oct - end of school term 2017 Periodical 6 Students' Journal All Level 2 students 6 - 9 Oct 2017 Journal Share the journal in the school FrogVle site for the community to access.

Georgia OKeefe essays

Georgia OKeefe essays * Georgia O'Keeffe is one of the most influential artists there is today. Her works are valued highly and are quite beautiful and unique. As a prominent American artist, Georgia O'Keeffe is famous for her images of gigantic flowers, city-scapes and distinctive desert scenes. All of these different phases represent times in her life. Throughout the seventy years of her creative career, Georgia O'Keeffe continually made some of the most original contributions to the art of our time. As Georgia O'Keeffe's awareness of her sexuality heightened, she started to paint marvelous original abstractions in exuberant rainbows or colors. These colors seemed to celebrate her happiness. One of her paintings MusicPink and Blue I, she encircles a "blue vaginal void with pulsating waves of rippling pink and white." There is always so much that you can get from a picture. Everyone that looks at it will definitely have a different interpretation of what they see in it. The white sizing under the smooth surface makes the colors luminate in MusicPink and Blue I. The two oval shapes bring out the sea, sky, and other images. The central form is a little more complex. The left archway uses blues and pinks alternately. On the inner edge of the arch, pink hues mix in to rose with gray edges. The warm colors and lines are controlled yet fluid. As the title tells, an inner and outer harmony is reached. Georgia O'Keeffe's Black Iris is noted for its sensual suggestiveness, but she insisted that she was representing the flower itself. She even flatly denied that the flower was a metaphor for female genitalia. O'Keeffe's flowers were painted frontally and revealingly had the effect of making the human beings who stood in front of them become smaller. "The observer feels like Alice after she had imbibed the 'Drink Me' phial" wrote a reviewer in amusement. The size of the bloom relative to a human really reflected the relative importance of nature and mankind in th...

Bloodlines Chapter Thirteen

I answered and found Eddie on the other end of the line. â€Å"I’m downstairs,† he said. â€Å"Ready to practice some self-defense before it gets too hot.† â€Å"You’re going to have to do it without me,† I said. I had a feeling Eddie was taking his promise to Clarence about training us very seriously. I felt no such obligation. â€Å"I’ve got a ton of homework to do. That, and I’m sure Ms. Terwilliger’s going to make me do a coffee run today.† â€Å"Well, then send Jill down,† said Eddie. I glanced over to the cocoon of blankets on her bed. â€Å"That might be easier said than done.† Surprisingly, she managed to rouse herself enough to brush her teeth, take aspirin for a headache, and throw on some workout clothes. She bid me farewell, and I promised to check on them later. Not long after that, Ms. Terwilliger called with her coffee demand, and I prepared myself for another day of trying to fit in my own work with hers. I drove over to Spencer’s and didn’t even notice Trey until I was standing right in front of him. â€Å"Ms. Terwilliger’s?† he asked, pointing to the caramel sauce cappuccino. â€Å"Huh?† I looked up. Trey was my cashier. â€Å"You work here?† He nodded. â€Å"Gotta make spending money somehow.† I handed him some cash, noting that he’d charged me half price. â€Å"Don’t take this the wrong way, but you don’t look so great,† I told him. He looked tired and worn out around the edges. Closer inspection showed bruises and cuts as well. â€Å"Yeah, well, I had kind of a rough day yesterday.† I hesitated. That was a leading comment, but there was no one in line behind me. â€Å"What happened?† I asked, knowing it was expected. Trey scowled. â€Å"That asshole Greg Slade wreaked havoc in football tryouts yesterday. I mean, the results aren’t up yet, but it’s pretty obvious he’s going to get quarterback. He was like a machine, just plowing guys over.† He extended his left hand, which had some bandage-wrapped fingers. â€Å"He stepped on my hand too.† I winced, remembering Slade’s out-of-control athleticism in PE. The politics of high school football and who was quarterback weren’t that important to me. True, I felt sorry for Trey, but it was the source behind the tattoos that intrigued me. Keith’s warnings about not causing trouble rang back to me, but I was unable to stop myself. â€Å"I know about the tattoos,† I said. â€Å"Julia and Kristin told me about them. And I get now why you were suspicious of mine – but it’s not what you think. Really.† â€Å"That’s not what I’ve heard. Most people think you’re just saying that because you don’t want to tell where you got it.† I was a little taken aback by that. I was pretty sure Julia and Kristin had believed me. Were they actually spreading around the opposite? â€Å"I had no idea.† He shrugged, a small smile on his lips. â€Å"Don’t worry. I believe you. There’s something kind of naively charming about you. You don’t seem like the cheating type.† â€Å"Hey,† I scolded. â€Å"I’m not naive.† â€Å"It was a compliment.† â€Å"How long have these tattoos been around?† I asked, deciding it was best to move in. â€Å"I heard since last year.† He handed me my coffee, thinking. â€Å"Yeah, but it was the end of last year. School year, I mean.† â€Å"And they come from a placed called Nevermore?† â€Å"As far as I know.† Trey eyed me suspiciously. â€Å"Why?† â€Å"Just curious,† I said sweetly. A couple of college kids dressed like rich hobos got in line behind me and regarded us impatiently. â€Å"Can we get some service here?† Trey gave them a stiff smile and then rolled his eyes at me as I moved away. â€Å"See you around, Melbourne.† I headed back to Amberwood and delivered Ms. Terwilliger’s coffee. I wasn’t in the mood to stay leashed to her all day, so I asked if I could go elsewhere if I kept my cell phone handy. She agreed. The library had too much activity and – ironically – noise for me today. I wanted the solitude of my room. As I was cutting across the lawn to catch the shuttle, I spotted some familiar figures behind a cluster of trees. I changed direction and found Jill and Eddie squaring off in a small clearing. Micah sat cross-legged on the ground, watching avidly. He waved at me as I approached. â€Å"I didn’t realize your brother was a kung-fu master,† he remarked. â€Å"It’s not kung fu,† said Eddie gruffly, never taking his eyes off Jill. â€Å"Same difference,† said Micah. â€Å"It’s still pretty badass.† Eddie feinted, like he was going to strike at Jill’s side. She responded fairly quickly with a block, though not quite fast enough to match him. Had he been serious, he would have hit her. Still, he seemed pleased with her response time. â€Å"Good. That would deflect part of a hit, though you’d still feel it. Best is if you can duck and dodge altogether, but that takes a little more work.† Jill nodded obediently. â€Å"When can we work on that?† Eddie regarded her with pride. That expression softened after a few moments of study. â€Å"Not today. Too much sun.† Jill started to protest and then stopped herself. She had that worn-out-from-the-light look again and was sweating heavily. She glanced up at the sky for a moment, as though begging it to give us some cloud cover. It remained unresponsive, so she nodded at Eddie. â€Å"All right. But we’re doing this tomorrow at the same time? Or earlier maybe. Or maybe tonight! Could we do both? Practice tonight when the sun’s going down and then again in the morning? Would you mind?† Eddie grinned, amused at her enthusiasm. â€Å"Whatever you want.† Smiling back, Jill sat down beside me, getting into as much shade as possible. Eddie regarded me expectantly. â€Å"What?† I asked. â€Å"Aren’t you supposed to learn to throw a punch?† I scoffed. â€Å"No. When would I ever need to do that?† Jill nudged me. â€Å"Do it, Sydney!† Reluctantly, I allowed Eddie to give me a quick lesson on throwing a punch without injuring my hand in the process. I barely paid attention and felt like I was mostly providing entertainment for the others. When Eddie finished with me, Micah asked, â€Å"Hey, would you mind showing me some ninja moves too?† â€Å"They have nothing to do with ninjas,† protested Eddie, still smiling. â€Å"Come on up.† Micah leapt to his feet, and Eddie walked him through some rudimentary steps. More than anything, it seemed like Eddie was sizing up Micah and his capabilities. After a while, Eddie grew comfortable and let Micah practice some offensive moves to get rid of an attacker. â€Å"Hey,† protested Jill when Eddie landed a kick on Micah. Micah shrugged it off in a guy kind of way. â€Å"No fair. You wouldn’t hit me when we were practicing.† Eddie was caught off guard enough that Micah actually got a hit in. Eddie gave him a look of grudging respect and then said to Jill, â€Å"That was different.† â€Å"Because I’m a girl?† she demanded. â€Å"You never held back with Rose.† â€Å"Who’s Rose?† asked Micah. â€Å"Another friend,† explained Eddie. To Jill, he said: â€Å"And Rose has had years more experience than you.† â€Å"She’s had more than Micah too. You were going easy on me.† Eddie flushed and kept his eyes on Micah. â€Å"Was not,† he said. â€Å"Were too,† she muttered. As the boys sparred again, she said quietly to me, â€Å"How am I ever going to learn if he’s afraid of breaking me?† I watched the guys, analyzing what I knew of Eddie so far. â€Å"I think it’s more complicated than that. I think he also just believes you shouldn’t have to take the risk – that if he’s doing a good enough job, you shouldn’t have to defend yourself.† â€Å"He’s doing a great job. You should have seen him at the attack.† Her face got that haunted look it did whenever the attack that had driven her into hiding was mentioned. â€Å"But I still need to learn.† She lowered her voice even more. â€Å"I really want to learn to use my magic to fight too, not that I’ll get much practice in this desert.† I shuddered, recalling her display from the night before. â€Å"There’ll be time,† I said vaguely. I stood up, saying I had to go get some work done. Micah asked Eddie and Jill if they wanted to get lunch. Eddie said yes immediately. Jill looked to me for help. â€Å"It’s just lunch,† said Eddie meaningfully. I knew he still thought Micah was harmless. I didn’t know, but after seeing how infatuated Jill was with Lee, I figured Micah would have to make some pretty aggressive moves to get anywhere. â€Å"I’m sure it’s fine,† I said. Jill looked relieved, and the group headed off. I spent the day finishing off that miserable book for Ms. Terwilliger. I still thought having to copy the archaic spells and rituals verbatim was a waste of time. The only point I could see for it was that if she ever did need to reference them for her research, she would have an easy computer file to check and not risk damage to the ancient book. It was evening by the time I finished that and my other homework. Jill still wasn’t back, and I decided to use the opportunity to check on something that had been bothering me. Earlier in the day, Jill had mentioned Eddie defending her in the attack. I’d felt from the beginning that there was something strange about that initial attack, something that they weren’t telling me. So, I logged onto the Alchemists’ network and pulled up everything we had on the Moroi rebels. Naturally, it was all documented. We had to keep track of important events among the Moroi, and this ranked pretty high. Somehow, the Alchemists had gotten pictures of the Moroi Court, with protesters lined up outside one of the administrative buildings. Dhampir guardians were easy to pick out as they mingled and kept order. To my surprise, I recognized Dimitri Belikov – Rose’s boyfriend – among those doing crowd control. He was easy to spot since he was almost always taller than everyone around him. Dhampirs look very human, and even I could admit that he was pretty good-looking. There was a rugged handsomeness to him, and even in a still photograph, I could see a fierceness as he watched the crowd. Other protest pictures confirmed what I knew. By far, most people supported the young queen. Those against her were a minority – but a loud and dangerous one. A video from a human news show in Denver showed two Moroi guys nearly getting in a bar fight. They were shouting about queens and justice, most of which wouldn’t make sense to a human observer. What made this video special was that the guy who’d filmed it – some random human with a cell phone camera – claimed he’d seen fangs on both men in the argument. The videographer had submitted his recording claiming he’d witnessed a vampire fight, but no one gave it much credibility. It was too grainy for anything to show up. Still, it was a reminder of what could happen if the Moroi situation spun out of control. A status check showed me that Queen Vasilisa was indeed trying to get a law passed so that her rule was no longer dependent on there being at least one other person in her royal family. Alchemist experts guessed it would take three months, which was about what Rose had said. The number loomed in my head like a ticking time bomb. We needed to keep Jill safe for three months. And for three months, Vasilisa’s enemies would be trying harder than ever to get to Jill. If Jill died, Vasilisa’s rule would end – along with her attempts to fix the system. Yet none of this was what had really driven me to research. I wanted to know about Jill’s initial attack, the one that no one talked about. What I found wasn’t much help. No Alchemists had been there at the time, of course, so our information was based on what Moroi sources had reported. All we knew was that â€Å"the queen’s sister had been viciously and severely attacked – but had made a full recovery.† From what I’d observed, that was certainly true. Jill showed no signs of injury, and the attack had occurred a week before she came to Palm Springs. Was that enough time to heal from a â€Å"vicious and severe† attack? And was an attack like that enough to make her wake screaming? I didn’t know but still couldn’t shake my suspicions. When Jill came home later, she was in such a good mood that I couldn’t bear to interrogate her. I also remembered too late that I’d meant to research the case of Clarence’s niece and her bizarre death by throat-slitting. Jill’s situation had distracted me. I let the matter go and called it an early night. Tomorrow, I thought drowsily. I’ll do it all tomorrow. Tomorrow came much more quickly than I expected. I was woken out of a heavy sleep by someone shaking me, and for a split second, the old nightmare was there, the one about Alchemists carrying me away in the night. Recognizing Jill, I just barely stopped myself from screaming. â€Å"Hey, hey,† I scolded. There was light outside, but it was purplish. Barely after sunrise. â€Å"What’s going on? What’s the matter?† Jill looked at me, face grim and eyes wide with fear. â€Å"It’s Adrian. You have to rescue him.† Bloodlines Chapter Thirteen I answered and found Eddie on the other end of the line. â€Å"I’m downstairs,† he said. â€Å"Ready to practice some self-defense before it gets too hot.† â€Å"You’re going to have to do it without me,† I said. I had a feeling Eddie was taking his promise to Clarence about training us very seriously. I felt no such obligation. â€Å"I’ve got a ton of homework to do. That, and I’m sure Ms. Terwilliger’s going to make me do a coffee run today.† â€Å"Well, then send Jill down,† said Eddie. I glanced over to the cocoon of blankets on her bed. â€Å"That might be easier said than done.† Surprisingly, she managed to rouse herself enough to brush her teeth, take aspirin for a headache, and throw on some workout clothes. She bid me farewell, and I promised to check on them later. Not long after that, Ms. Terwilliger called with her coffee demand, and I prepared myself for another day of trying to fit in my own work with hers. I drove over to Spencer’s and didn’t even notice Trey until I was standing right in front of him. â€Å"Ms. Terwilliger’s?† he asked, pointing to the caramel sauce cappuccino. â€Å"Huh?† I looked up. Trey was my cashier. â€Å"You work here?† He nodded. â€Å"Gotta make spending money somehow.† I handed him some cash, noting that he’d charged me half price. â€Å"Don’t take this the wrong way, but you don’t look so great,† I told him. He looked tired and worn out around the edges. Closer inspection showed bruises and cuts as well. â€Å"Yeah, well, I had kind of a rough day yesterday.† I hesitated. That was a leading comment, but there was no one in line behind me. â€Å"What happened?† I asked, knowing it was expected. Trey scowled. â€Å"That asshole Greg Slade wreaked havoc in football tryouts yesterday. I mean, the results aren’t up yet, but it’s pretty obvious he’s going to get quarterback. He was like a machine, just plowing guys over.† He extended his left hand, which had some bandage-wrapped fingers. â€Å"He stepped on my hand too.† I winced, remembering Slade’s out-of-control athleticism in PE. The politics of high school football and who was quarterback weren’t that important to me. True, I felt sorry for Trey, but it was the source behind the tattoos that intrigued me. Keith’s warnings about not causing trouble rang back to me, but I was unable to stop myself. â€Å"I know about the tattoos,† I said. â€Å"Julia and Kristin told me about them. And I get now why you were suspicious of mine – but it’s not what you think. Really.† â€Å"That’s not what I’ve heard. Most people think you’re just saying that because you don’t want to tell where you got it.† I was a little taken aback by that. I was pretty sure Julia and Kristin had believed me. Were they actually spreading around the opposite? â€Å"I had no idea.† He shrugged, a small smile on his lips. â€Å"Don’t worry. I believe you. There’s something kind of naively charming about you. You don’t seem like the cheating type.† â€Å"Hey,† I scolded. â€Å"I’m not naive.† â€Å"It was a compliment.† â€Å"How long have these tattoos been around?† I asked, deciding it was best to move in. â€Å"I heard since last year.† He handed me my coffee, thinking. â€Å"Yeah, but it was the end of last year. School year, I mean.† â€Å"And they come from a placed called Nevermore?† â€Å"As far as I know.† Trey eyed me suspiciously. â€Å"Why?† â€Å"Just curious,† I said sweetly. A couple of college kids dressed like rich hobos got in line behind me and regarded us impatiently. â€Å"Can we get some service here?† Trey gave them a stiff smile and then rolled his eyes at me as I moved away. â€Å"See you around, Melbourne.† I headed back to Amberwood and delivered Ms. Terwilliger’s coffee. I wasn’t in the mood to stay leashed to her all day, so I asked if I could go elsewhere if I kept my cell phone handy. She agreed. The library had too much activity and – ironically – noise for me today. I wanted the solitude of my room. As I was cutting across the lawn to catch the shuttle, I spotted some familiar figures behind a cluster of trees. I changed direction and found Jill and Eddie squaring off in a small clearing. Micah sat cross-legged on the ground, watching avidly. He waved at me as I approached. â€Å"I didn’t realize your brother was a kung-fu master,† he remarked. â€Å"It’s not kung fu,† said Eddie gruffly, never taking his eyes off Jill. â€Å"Same difference,† said Micah. â€Å"It’s still pretty badass.† Eddie feinted, like he was going to strike at Jill’s side. She responded fairly quickly with a block, though not quite fast enough to match him. Had he been serious, he would have hit her. Still, he seemed pleased with her response time. â€Å"Good. That would deflect part of a hit, though you’d still feel it. Best is if you can duck and dodge altogether, but that takes a little more work.† Jill nodded obediently. â€Å"When can we work on that?† Eddie regarded her with pride. That expression softened after a few moments of study. â€Å"Not today. Too much sun.† Jill started to protest and then stopped herself. She had that worn-out-from-the-light look again and was sweating heavily. She glanced up at the sky for a moment, as though begging it to give us some cloud cover. It remained unresponsive, so she nodded at Eddie. â€Å"All right. But we’re doing this tomorrow at the same time? Or earlier maybe. Or maybe tonight! Could we do both? Practice tonight when the sun’s going down and then again in the morning? Would you mind?† Eddie grinned, amused at her enthusiasm. â€Å"Whatever you want.† Smiling back, Jill sat down beside me, getting into as much shade as possible. Eddie regarded me expectantly. â€Å"What?† I asked. â€Å"Aren’t you supposed to learn to throw a punch?† I scoffed. â€Å"No. When would I ever need to do that?† Jill nudged me. â€Å"Do it, Sydney!† Reluctantly, I allowed Eddie to give me a quick lesson on throwing a punch without injuring my hand in the process. I barely paid attention and felt like I was mostly providing entertainment for the others. When Eddie finished with me, Micah asked, â€Å"Hey, would you mind showing me some ninja moves too?† â€Å"They have nothing to do with ninjas,† protested Eddie, still smiling. â€Å"Come on up.† Micah leapt to his feet, and Eddie walked him through some rudimentary steps. More than anything, it seemed like Eddie was sizing up Micah and his capabilities. After a while, Eddie grew comfortable and let Micah practice some offensive moves to get rid of an attacker. â€Å"Hey,† protested Jill when Eddie landed a kick on Micah. Micah shrugged it off in a guy kind of way. â€Å"No fair. You wouldn’t hit me when we were practicing.† Eddie was caught off guard enough that Micah actually got a hit in. Eddie gave him a look of grudging respect and then said to Jill, â€Å"That was different.† â€Å"Because I’m a girl?† she demanded. â€Å"You never held back with Rose.† â€Å"Who’s Rose?† asked Micah. â€Å"Another friend,† explained Eddie. To Jill, he said: â€Å"And Rose has had years more experience than you.† â€Å"She’s had more than Micah too. You were going easy on me.† Eddie flushed and kept his eyes on Micah. â€Å"Was not,† he said. â€Å"Were too,† she muttered. As the boys sparred again, she said quietly to me, â€Å"How am I ever going to learn if he’s afraid of breaking me?† I watched the guys, analyzing what I knew of Eddie so far. â€Å"I think it’s more complicated than that. I think he also just believes you shouldn’t have to take the risk – that if he’s doing a good enough job, you shouldn’t have to defend yourself.† â€Å"He’s doing a great job. You should have seen him at the attack.† Her face got that haunted look it did whenever the attack that had driven her into hiding was mentioned. â€Å"But I still need to learn.† She lowered her voice even more. â€Å"I really want to learn to use my magic to fight too, not that I’ll get much practice in this desert.† I shuddered, recalling her display from the night before. â€Å"There’ll be time,† I said vaguely. I stood up, saying I had to go get some work done. Micah asked Eddie and Jill if they wanted to get lunch. Eddie said yes immediately. Jill looked to me for help. â€Å"It’s just lunch,† said Eddie meaningfully. I knew he still thought Micah was harmless. I didn’t know, but after seeing how infatuated Jill was with Lee, I figured Micah would have to make some pretty aggressive moves to get anywhere. â€Å"I’m sure it’s fine,† I said. Jill looked relieved, and the group headed off. I spent the day finishing off that miserable book for Ms. Terwilliger. I still thought having to copy the archaic spells and rituals verbatim was a waste of time. The only point I could see for it was that if she ever did need to reference them for her research, she would have an easy computer file to check and not risk damage to the ancient book. It was evening by the time I finished that and my other homework. Jill still wasn’t back, and I decided to use the opportunity to check on something that had been bothering me. Earlier in the day, Jill had mentioned Eddie defending her in the attack. I’d felt from the beginning that there was something strange about that initial attack, something that they weren’t telling me. So, I logged onto the Alchemists’ network and pulled up everything we had on the Moroi rebels. Naturally, it was all documented. We had to keep track of important events among the Moroi, and this ranked pretty high. Somehow, the Alchemists had gotten pictures of the Moroi Court, with protesters lined up outside one of the administrative buildings. Dhampir guardians were easy to pick out as they mingled and kept order. To my surprise, I recognized Dimitri Belikov – Rose’s boyfriend – among those doing crowd control. He was easy to spot since he was almost always taller than everyone around him. Dhampirs look very human, and even I could admit that he was pretty good-looking. There was a rugged handsomeness to him, and even in a still photograph, I could see a fierceness as he watched the crowd. Other protest pictures confirmed what I knew. By far, most people supported the young queen. Those against her were a minority – but a loud and dangerous one. A video from a human news show in Denver showed two Moroi guys nearly getting in a bar fight. They were shouting about queens and justice, most of which wouldn’t make sense to a human observer. What made this video special was that the guy who’d filmed it – some random human with a cell phone camera – claimed he’d seen fangs on both men in the argument. The videographer had submitted his recording claiming he’d witnessed a vampire fight, but no one gave it much credibility. It was too grainy for anything to show up. Still, it was a reminder of what could happen if the Moroi situation spun out of control. A status check showed me that Queen Vasilisa was indeed trying to get a law passed so that her rule was no longer dependent on there being at least one other person in her royal family. Alchemist experts guessed it would take three months, which was about what Rose had said. The number loomed in my head like a ticking time bomb. We needed to keep Jill safe for three months. And for three months, Vasilisa’s enemies would be trying harder than ever to get to Jill. If Jill died, Vasilisa’s rule would end – along with her attempts to fix the system. Yet none of this was what had really driven me to research. I wanted to know about Jill’s initial attack, the one that no one talked about. What I found wasn’t much help. No Alchemists had been there at the time, of course, so our information was based on what Moroi sources had reported. All we knew was that â€Å"the queen’s sister had been viciously and severely attacked – but had made a full recovery.† From what I’d observed, that was certainly true. Jill showed no signs of injury, and the attack had occurred a week before she came to Palm Springs. Was that enough time to heal from a â€Å"vicious and severe† attack? And was an attack like that enough to make her wake screaming? I didn’t know but still couldn’t shake my suspicions. When Jill came home later, she was in such a good mood that I couldn’t bear to interrogate her. I also remembered too late that I’d meant to research the case of Clarence’s niece and her bizarre death by throat-slitting. Jill’s situation had distracted me. I let the matter go and called it an early night. Tomorrow, I thought drowsily. I’ll do it all tomorrow. Tomorrow came much more quickly than I expected. I was woken out of a heavy sleep by someone shaking me, and for a split second, the old nightmare was there, the one about Alchemists carrying me away in the night. Recognizing Jill, I just barely stopped myself from screaming. â€Å"Hey, hey,† I scolded. There was light outside, but it was purplish. Barely after sunrise. â€Å"What’s going on? What’s the matter?† Jill looked at me, face grim and eyes wide with fear. â€Å"It’s Adrian. You have to rescue him.†

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Operation and Strategy management for Ryanair Essay Example for Free

Operation and Strategy management for Ryanair Essay Introduction The company chosen in this report is Ryanair in the airline industry. Ryanair is a low cost budget airline travelling across 1600 routes from 57 bases connecting 180 destinations in 29 different countries (Ryanair.com). Ryanair first started its operations in 1985 between Ireland and London. The first year it commuted around 5000 customers but the company really took off in 1990 when Michael O’ Leary was appointed the CEO of the company. The company was envisaged by its CEO Michael O’ Leary and adapted the Southwest airline model from America and brought it to Europe and since then the company has also embraced a no frills, low cost model where it plans to get their customers from A to B at the cheapest rate possible. This has revolutionised the travel industry and made travel cheaper and reliable within Europe. 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In 1978 the United States removed government control over many aspects of air travel, including fares and routes, in the Airline Deregulation Act (Liberty of Economics and Liberty). This shifted the power to the market sphere. Following the success of this, Europe completed their own faze of deregulation by April 1997. This allowed passenger planes to fly between member states freely. Ryanair added several new routes to their repertoire after deregulation, taking the opportunity to add routes to new parts of Europe and Scandinavia. A further form of deregulation came in March of 2008 when the EU and United States agreed to let any city within each other’s territory fly between each other. This was called the Open Skies Agreement. Although Ryanair have still to take full advantage of this, they have announced their desire to start transatlantic flights at a very low cost to the consumer (RTE, 2007). This unprecedented step could shake the air flight market, increasing the volume of passengers able to fly more freely across the Atlantic and could have a knock on effect with Ryanair’s transatlantic competitors, forcing a change in the market. In 2012 a new law was introduced where all flights coming to and from the EU had to buy their CO2 emission allowances, whereas before they were exempt from the Emissions Trading Scheme. Many airlines have expressed their anger at their inclusion in the scheme, pointing to the fact that only 2% of global CO2 emissions are caused directly by air traffic. Many airlines have increased ticket prices to cope with the extra costs incurred. Ryanair have passed on the cost to customers in the form of a 25c charge (Irishtimes.com) Economical: During a deep recession Ryanair has flourished, recording a +18.71% 1 year return in 2012 ( Bloomberg, 2014) and announcing that it is Europe’s leading scheduled airline. In comparison to other airlines that are cutting jobs and have planes grounded, Ryanair are experiencing high demand and adding extra flights, creating new jobs for many sectors in their business, from pilots to sales and marketing people (RTE, 2007) One of the upmost problems facing the airline industry is the fluctuating oil prices. To compensate the rising oil prices most airlines have to put ticket prices up, which directly affects their customers. However, under the exceptional leadership of Michael O’Leary, Ryanair has addressed the problem through hedging. Hedging could be termed as an agreement between the oil companies and the airlines where oil prices are agreed in advance. In Ryanair’s case they have increased its fuel hedging capacity to 90% of its requirements (Centre of Aviation). This exceptional thinking by Ryanair gives them a cost cutting advantage over its competitors and thus still being able to offer its customers the same low fares which have been Ryanair’s forte. Social: The airline industry as per any other industry has to comply with the customer’s requirement to sustain in the market. A very god example that could be stated in this case is that of Ryanair, whereby, during the recession times when the unemployment grew to almost 15% and thus people did not have much money to spend, Ryanair gave its customers cheap flights to commute from one place to another taking away all the inflight luxuries. This has helped the airline grow even in the toughest times the economy has faced and thus also creating new jobs. But also to with stand the competition by other luxury airliners, Ryanair would offer its customers to book their cars and train tickets while booking their flights as it mostly flies to secondary airports. This, therefore not only attracted middle class customers but also people on business. The airline industry especially in Europe has had a last few troublesome years due to natural disasters that have cost the company extensive amoun ts. To point out a few, the ash cloud in 2010 cost the company 29.7 million Euros (Irish times, 2011) and these are huge costs for the airline to bear and thus, to compensate these compensation chargers Ryanair now chargers a â‚ ¬2 levy to compensate these claims in the future (Irish times, 2011). Technological: In the current climate technology plays an important part in the airline industry. Firstly, with the increasing fuels costs, fuel efficient aircrafts can save the companies a substantial amount of money. Another way is the internet; with the growth of internet all the companies’ use online advertising to push the sales and television advertising is also second to none. The internet is also a medium where people look for cheap airline tickets. In the case of Ryanair, the company makes the utmost use of technology to cut the human involvement out and thus keeping the costs down. It has a very good online ticket booking system where 85% of its tickets are booked (Ryanair.com). In 2009, Ryanair introduces the self-service kiosks whereby the passengers can check in using the machine and thus taking the human element out of the equation. This service was already available for passengers travelling without luggage but it was now developed for the customers travelling with check-in lu ggage. This was a chip and pin service developed in collaboration with Ingenico and thus gave the company a competitive advantage over its competitors and thus delivering low price flights for its customers (BBC News, 2009). Value Chain Analysis: A firm’s competitive advantage could be determined by the value chain analysis. The value chain consists of primary and support activities. Understanding the company’s linkage between the primary and secondary activities gives the company’s business model and helps one understand the secret of withstanding the competitive advantage. Figure 2: Value Chain Analysis model In the case of Ryanair, a clear linkage could be made between the inbound and outbound logistics in the primary activities to the Technology development in the support activity. Now, to obtain a clear understanding of this model, inbound logistics are the deals that the company is able to acquire from its suppliers on the promise of higher volumes. These include food, drinks, duty free goods, fuel which have to be delivered, stored and controlled on time as to avoid any delays for the aircraft. Ryanair, also puts a great deal of  effort in its operations as it promises its customers a 25 minute turnaround period which could be one of its core competencies and for the company to do so all the inbound logistics should be delivered on time. This 25 minute turnaround period also, gives the company the advantage of flying two extra flights on the same route compared to its competitors and enables high aircraft utilisation. The company also offers nonstop direct services to its destinati ons and does not link with any other airline, thus giving them a timely departure from the airport and also avoiding the costs for through services for its passengers and does not have to rely on other flights coming on time to schedule their departures. This has helped them gain a competitive advantage over its competitors as 95% of Ryanair’s flights are on time compared to 88% that of EasyJet. Ryanair also uses the standard Boeing 737 model of aircraft and thus, the company manages to get maintenance services and spares at a very minimum cost. This also reduces the cost of staff training and offers flexibility in scheduling aircrafts and crew assignments. On the outbound logistics, Ryanair operates to the secondary airports and thus have to arrange onward journey for their customers. They have teamed up with certain vehicle companies to give its business customers the advantage of that service however some of the routes are so obscure that these services cannot be provided constantly, a prime example are some of the Scandinavian routes. Thus, Ryanair has certain limits when acquiring the market share. On the contrary, Ryanair’s competitor EasyJet does the opposite and flies to major airports and cities and thus paying higher landing charges which are then reflected in the fares for their customers. The advantage of flying to secondary airports is that Ryanair pay fewer chargers and they are also in a position to bargain with the airport authority and get a deal that favours them and the secondary airports are less congested and thus turnaround times are much faster (Centre of Aviation), 2014). The inbound and the outbound logistics are coupled nicely with the technology to gain a competitive advantage over its competitors. Ryanair has tried to eliminate the human element as much as they can. They have introduced kiosks at the check-in desks for customers to check-in themselves at their own leisure. Thus, reducing staffing costs which is then reflected in the prices they charge their customers. The company doe s not invest much in advertising as well, the main advertising is  done through its very own website and 90% of the tickets are booked through the website as well( Ryanair.com). It only uses ticketing agents when they’re opening new routes and trying to venture into unknown markets; otherwise it is the website that people book their tickets through. The company constantly monitors its planes minute by minute through its own website and thus, keeping the human element out and using its website for mainly everything saves them on an average â‚ ¬6 million a year (BBC news, 2014). Amongst all the competitive advantage the company have, the one that has not been mentioned is the good leadership of Michael O’ Leary and his ability to create a vision for the company. He has successfully managed to adapt to the change as and when required and adopt different model to envisage the change for the betterment of the company which has helped the business to grow. Conclusion: To conclude this report, Ryanair has emerged as a successful company since it was established in 1985. It had a few hiccups on the way for the first 5 years but since Michael O’ Leary took the reigns over in 1990 as the CEO the company has gone from strength to strength. Its success has been helped by the conducive nature of the industry and the external elements within the airline industry. This industry has its threats but since the de regulation act and the expansion of EU, there have been a lot of commuters within these countries for business and leisure, thus this higher demand and low costs have helped Ryanair emerge as a low cost budget airline. Just because the company operates all its routes within the EU, it does not really have to deal with changing political factors and that it has always used them to their advantage. Ex. De regulation act and the open skies act even though the company has not started its flights to the US as of yet. The changing oil prices are a c oncern for every airliner but Ryanair counteracts through a process call hedging and uses the most advanced technology to remove the human element to curb the costs down for its customers and another reason for its success even during recession is because it gave the customers cheap flights to commute taking the luxuries out which were the demands at that time. Ryanair has a competitive advantage by the virtue of its inbound activities and the outbound activities combined with the technological  aspect of it. It uses the same standard Boeing so the costs are less and also, flying at secondary airports mean less landing charges and they’re also in a position to get a favourable deal for themselves from the airport authorities. The turnaround time is only 25 minutes as well and thus giving their customers more daily flights from the same destinations compared to its competitors. Refrences: Belobaba, P., Odoni, A., Barnhart, C. (2009). The global airline industry. Hoboken: AIAA, Inc Helm, C., Jones, R. (2010). Extending the value chain: A conceptual framework for managing the governance of co-created brand equity. The Journal of Brand Management, 17(8), 579-589. McCormick, T. (2010). Understanding costs using the value chain a ryanair example. Dublin: Institute of Chartered Accountants In Ireland. Research and markets: European low cost airline industry continues to prosper.(2004, Business Wire, pp. 1. Research and markets: European low cost airline industry continues to prosper.(2004, Business Wire, pp. 1. Research and markets: PEST analysis.(2003, M2 Presswire, pp. 1. RTE 2007. http://www.ryanair.com/doc/investor/2012/q1_2012_doc.pdf[Accessed 20 March 2014]. http://www.ryanair.com/en/about/ryanair-and-the-environment[Accessed 20 March 2014]. Aviation, C. C. (2011, May 25). CAPA Centre for Aviation. Retrieved March 20, 2014, from Ryanairearnings up 26% but change in tack for 2012: http://www.centreforaviation.com/analysis/ryanair-earnings-up-26-but-change-in-tack-for-2012- http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2012/0112/breaking26.htmlEdwards, N. (2012). http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=27620789 accessed on 2/04/14. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-22659822 accessed on 1/04/2014 http://www.air-passenger-rights.co.uk/tag/the-irish-times/ accessed on 5/04/14 http://wwwnews.live.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23487106 accessed on 10/04/14