Human Resources: Training and Development Essay

First, training programs that serve employees are beneficial because they have a proven value and added significance to companies. Employee orientation is one type of training. It is absolutely necessary for new employees in any organization. Without the orientation/training process many things can and do take place that are a risk and have negative impact to a company and to the new hire employee as well. In orientation type training, employees learn of benefit entitlements and the expectations that the company and departments set for their position. It gives the new hire employee a sense of pride in their work and in the organization as a whole. Informing an employee of the expectations in performance allows the employee to be successful in their position. There are various state and federal regulations that all companies must adhere to and remain in compliance with in order to remain lawsuit free. Sexual harassment is one negative behavior that is currently costing companies a lot of money in lost lawsuits. Training programs annually keep a constant reminder of the ways that this type of harassment can be avoided. Hiring discrimination is another form of training that can reduce lawsuits from a State and Federal level. Government contracted companies must maintain a documented Affirmative Action Program that ensures their hiring practices are equal and fair to all applicants. All managers within a company should receive this training in order to prevent and avoid the wrongdoing and negligence that could cause good companies to lose creditability and be sued. Skill based training or Developmental training is another form of training that a company provides to their employees. Training increases employee productivity. They learn different ways to complete tasks take on more responsibility and eventually grow as leaders within the company. Employees who do not receive guidance or have difficulty learning the ropes are much more likely to leave the company. Investing time and money in employees’ skills makes them feel valued and appreciated, and it also challenges them to learn more and get involved in their job. How does this benefit the company? Training reduces the need for employees’ supervision. Not only does skill-based training teach employees to do their jobs better, but it also helps them work more independently and develop a can-do attitude. A famous saying is, â€Å"People quit people and not companies. † – Author Unknown. To me this quote means that if your supervisor has been trained to show appreciation, develop his work force, motivate employees and are fair and just in their treatment of all employees, most employees will find job satisfaction on that team. Successful employee training delivers improvements in employee performance which, in turn, creates a better performing business and improves the bottom line product. Good training programs improved quality and productivity, accuracy and efficiency, good work and safety practices. The result of these benefits is in reducing costs by decreasing wasted time and materials. Maintenance costs of machinery and equipment and by reducing workplace injuries help to manage overhead expenses for the organization. In closing, it is clear to see that training people in the culture of the company through a sound orientation process can earn huge results through employee motivation and satisfaction. Furthermore, using a skill-based training program can reduce costs to the company in compliance issues, quality and cost of scrap and repairs, as well as increasing productivity through having a skilled work force.

The Expansion of Europe and China in the 15th Century

In the 15th century, the western and eastern sail technology was comparable. The mariner's compass, so crucial to navigation out of sight of land, was developed from the Chinese magnetized needle of the 8th century, and it traveled via land route to the Mediterranean where about the 12th century the Europeans or the Arabs developed the true mariner's compass (floating), but China soon received the improved model. 27 So both East and West had the mariner's compass in the 15th century.Stern post rudders, which are a significant advantage over steering oars in steering larger ships in tumultuous seas, were utilized in China as early as the 1st century A. D. These were not developed until about the 14th century in Europe, but stern post rudders were available to both East and West in the 15th century. Knowledge of wind and sea currents was considerably more advanced in the West by the Portuguese and Dutch than by the Chinese in the 15th century. 8 The West also had superior knowledge of celestial navigation, that advantage being shared by the Arabs; the Chinese were reduced to utilizing Islamic astronomers and mathematicians at the Imperial Observatory, but had not extended celestial work to the practical work of navigating as of yet. The Arab and the Portuguese cross-staff or balestilha developed in the 14th century, and the astrolabe for even better measurement of the angle of celestial objects in the early 15th century. 29 In military technology, both East and West had cannon, armor and horses.In summary, before the 15th century, the Chinese were ahead in oceangoing ship technology, with larger compartmented ships and efficient fore-and-aft lugsails on multiple masts. In the 15th century, the Chinese and the Europeans were in rough overall parity. The Chinese were ahead in ship size and hull construction, and the Portuguese were ahead in the arts of navigation, and there was parity in sail technology (the Chinese with battened lugsails, the Portuguese with latee n sails). Neither had a distinct overall advantage.Both were technologically capable of great voyages of discovery, mercantile enterprise, and colonization. In tracing the developments, what is distinctive is that the rate of progress in nautical technology of the West was considerably faster than that of the East. By the 16th century, the West was clearly superior in ocean-going maritime technology (especially considering the regression that occurred in China due to policy influences). During the fifteenth century, Europe began a process of nprecedented expansion that by 1650 had affected all areas of the world. This was actually part of a global tendency towards complexity among many human societies. Matching the empires of the Aztecs, the Inca, and the West Africans were rising states on the Eurasian fringes such as Japan or the European monarchies in England, France, Spain, and Portugal. In Eurasia, developing navigational technology, along with expanding trade, encouraged long sea voyages by Arabs, Japanese, Chinese, and Europeans.But only the Europeans linked up all the continents in a new global age, when sea power, rather than land-based armies, was the main force in empire-building. Overseas expansion was obviously related – both as cause and effect – to the European transition from medievalism. The Crusades and the Renaissance stimulated European curiosity; the Reformation produced thousands of zealous religious missionaries seeking foreign converts and refugees seeking religious freedom; and the monarchs of emerging sovereign states sought revenues, first from trade with the Orient and later by exploiting a new world.Perhaps the most permeating influence was the rise of European capitalism, with its monetary values, profit-seeking motivations, investment institutions, and constant impulse toward economic expansion. Some historians have labeled this whole economic transformation â€Å"the Commercial Revolution. † Others have used the phrase in a narrower sense, referring to the shift in trade routes from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic. Interpreted either way, the Commercial Revolution and its accompanying European expansion helped usher in the modern era.

Chinese Nationalist Party Essay

On 1 October 1949, Mao Zedong, leader of the Chinese Communist Party declared victory over the Nationalist Party (Guomindang) and brought an end to four brutally long years of Civil War. The Communist victory in the Civil War has however, created significant debate among historians, namely: was a Communist victory inevitable and if so is it more sensible to see the Chinese Civil War as a Communist victory or as a Nationalist defeat?When researching these questions it becomes blatantly obvious that the Guomindang government led by Chiang Kai-Shek was riddled with problems and they are very much the cause of their own downfall. Widespread government corruption, spiraling inflation, loss of public confidence and intractable poverty are just a few of the failings the Guomindang afflicted upon the Chinese people. These monumental failings make a Communist victory seem almost inevitable, in that they just happened to be there to assume power as the Nationalists lost support and drowned in their own mistakes. In this sense it is more sensible to view the Civil War as a Nationalist defeat, rather than a Communist victory. On the other hand, the Communists were able to turn dismal rural poverty and the Japanese invasion into assets, using them to convince villagers that radical change was imperative and that the Communist Party was best qualified to bring about this change. Seen in this light, superior strategy and organisational methods allowed the Communists to achieve victory and not just â€Å"move into a vacuum† as suggested by Barnett (Barnett, 1965: 1). There is certainly an element of inevitability with regard to the Communist victory, however, in this essay I will argue that not only was the outcome of the Chinese Civil War not preordained, but I will also critically evaluate the reasons the Guomindang lost the Civil War and explain that given their policy mistakes, the Civil War should be seen as a Nationalist defeat rather than a Communist victory. If the Nationalists had been willing to adapt and had they initiated some changes in their strategies, the Communist Party, no matter what its internal organisation or external strategies, would not have been able to bring revolution to China. This theory is not supported by Kubek, who argues that the cause of the  Nationalist defeat was due to a lack of aid from the United States, declaring â€Å"sovietisation of China and Manchuria could be the only logical outcome of post-war United States policy in China† (Kubek, 1965: 62). This view point is unduly simplistic and overvalues America’s role in China, an opinion supported by Chang, who believes the Guomindang government’s â€Å"failure was due not so much to lack of American support, but to its inherent defects† (Chang, 1965: 40). Before analysing these inherent defects and the reasons that the Nationalist Party lost the Civil War, it is important to understand the fundamentals of the situation in China at the end of World War Two; specifically the consequences of the eight year war with Japan that totally exhausted the Guomindang militarily, economically and spiritually. Hsu argues that the war with Japan is the â€Å"single most important cause for the downfall of the Nationalists† and â€Å"had there been no Japanese war, the situation in China would have been very different† (Hsu, 1990: 734). Many of the Guomindang’s problems such as factionalism, corruption and leadership were prevalent prior to the Sino-Japanese War; however it was during the last phases of the Sino-Japanese War that these problems reached crisis proportions and in hindsight it seems impossible that the Guomindang could have overcome these problems to defeat the Communists (Service, 1965: 29). Chang also believes that the Guomindang faced insurmountable problems prior to the Civil War, stating that â€Å"the government of Chiang Kai-Shek was built on quicksand and clay. How can it stand? Is it any wonder that it fell like a house of cards when it had to face the Communist crisis?† (Chang, C. 1965: 41). Westad, (2003: 7) however argues that â€Å"in spite of the Guomindang’s weaknesses, the outcome of the post-war conflict with the Communists was no way predetermined in 1945†. At the end of the Sino-Japanese War the Guomindang held significant advantages over the Communists, with its widely recognised legitimate government controlling China, giving it the power to tax and conscript. On the other hand, the Communists could not match the Guomindang’s troops in terms of training and equipment and could be  Ã¢â‚¬Å"outgunned and outmanoeuvred in all major regions of the country† (Westad, 2003: 8). Furthermore, the Communist party was hardly represented in the cities at all, which of course was the power base of the Guomindang. However, the Communists also had successes resulting from the war with Japan including increasing their area of control and practiced evolving their strategies of protracted guerrilla warfare against the Japanese which in turn generated public support. Despite this the party’s main forces were still located in North-west China and they were not in such a powerful position that a civil war with the Guomindang would be a mere formality in securing control of the country. The Civil War is therefore simply not a case of the imminent decline of the Guomindang and the Communists’ irresistible rise. Rather the Sino-Japanese War provided the framework for the decisions and strategies that would ultimately lead to Nationalist defeat. The war with Japan left the Guomindang decimated and they did need to undergo reform in order to survive; however the factionalism and corruption within the Guomindang resulted in increasingly repressive controls being implemented upon the war weary Chinese people. At a time when new strategies were needed, the government instead continued its repressive controls and when war again broke out, the government lost even more support and collapsed with cataclysmic speed. This was due in no small part to the leadership of the Guomindang, whose perpetuation of their own power dominated over all other considerations (Service, 1965: 28). The arrogance and mismanagement of the Guomindang alienated the Chinese people and caused a loss of public confidence and respect. This loss of respect not only resulted in the Nationalists losing influence in their own power bases, but made it easier for the Communists to exploit this public disharmony and encourage the Chinese people to think that a change in administration would bring about a change in their fortunes. An example of the Guomindang’s poor leadership strategies can be seen in their occupation of former Japanese colonies (Service, 1965: 29). The Chinese citizens within these Japanese occupied territories had waited eight  years for the return of Nationalist rule, but instead of being treated as victims of war, they were exploited. The Guomindang leaders did not return their land but acquired it as their own property; moreover, they virtually eliminated the monetary assets of these people. This was caused by the currency in the occupied territories going through extreme inflation as the government only offered the exorbitant exchange rate of two hundred to one; when a more reasonable rate would have been half that much (Phillips, 1996: 158). Furthermore, the puppet leaders that had been installed by the Japanese often kept their positions or became members of the Guomindang. Poor policy decisions such as this would lead to the downfall of the Guomindang, as it is impossible to fight an effective war without the support of the people and the economic policies of the government alienated millions of suffering people. The Guomindang’s economic problems were not limited to the territories formerly occupied by the Japanese. All over China inflation was an exceptionally large problem, for as the increases seen during the Japanese War were allowed to spiral out of control during the Civil War. Service, (1965: 29) argues that this is a direct result of corruption within the Guomindang, and that they refused to take any effective steps to check inflation or implement agricultural reforms for fear of losing the support of the landlord class in China. In view of this, the Guomindang developed urban industry at the expense of agricultural and financed this by simply printing more bank notes. Their economic mismanagement was disastrous for the majority of the Chinese people and meant that by 1948 government expenditure had become thirty times larger when compared to its pre-war level; the budget deficit had also blown out to thirty times it pre-war level and inflation was increasing at the rate of thirty per cent a month (Chang, K. 1965: 23). The Nationalist government faced imminent financial doom and the Chinese people were becoming aware of the selfish nature of their government whose economic policies and financial mismanagement destroyed the livelihood of hundreds of millions of Chinese. The failings of the Guomindang would provide the Communist party with ample opportunities to exploit the discontent of the Chinese people. This was one of the reasons for the Communist victory in that they were able to gain the support of people from the rural areas who the Guomindang had alienated. An example of this can be seen in the rural land reforms implemented in newly gained territories. In these areas the Communists promoted production and ensured supplies by creating a self-sufficient economy. To rouse the productive enthusiasm of the peasants, they launched a campaign to reduce rent and interest. Peasant associations and other organisations were urged to demand and enforce a 25 percent rent reduction, with a rent ceiling set at 37.5 percent of the crops. The interest rate on loans was limited to 1.5 percent a month, or 18 percent a year, much lower that the excessive rate formerly charged by the landlords (Westad, 2003: 11 and Fielding, 1999: 134). They were able to achieve these reforms without confiscating large amounts of land, as considerable redistribution of land to the peasants was accomplished by impo sing graduated taxes in such a way that larger landholders voluntarily sold land because it was no longer profitable. It is arguable that the Communists had no intention of eliminating the economic power of the landlords, but instead they showed the peasants that they could exercise their power locally and play an active role in the war against a government that some had come to despise. The Communists gave the peasants what they wanted: an army of friendly troops who not only did not steal their crops but helped them bring in the harvest and who implemented popular but gradual economic reforms (Ebrey, 1996: 289). This is in stark contrast to the Guomindang who did not understand the peasants and showed no interest in aiding them. They failed to see the revolutionary potential of the peasant masses and unlike the Communist Party never attempted to organise them. This situation was best summarised by Hsu: â€Å"the stone that one builder had rejected became the cornerstone of the other’s house† (Hsu, 1990: 738). However, many of the most important cause of the Nationalist defeat during the Civil War were military ones. Despite emerging from the Japanese War better equipped and trained, the Nationalist Army was a tired force (Hsu, 1990: 734). This war-weariness was felt throughout China and there was  widespread recognition that full scale civil war would be a tragedy for the country. It is therefore, not surprising that the Guomindang’s persistence in military aggression towards the Communists, who were Chinese after all, failed to arouse the same patriotic loyalty as when the enemies were Japanese (Stuart, 1965: 19). Given this situation the Nationalist Army needed good leadership and to gain the support of the people; they were unsuccessful on both counts. This was largely due to the leadership system created by Chiang Kai-Shek that was â€Å"a congerie of conservative political cliques† concerned primarily with maintaining their own power (Service, 1965: 30). Furthermore, the highest military posts were reserved for those who like Chiang Kai-Shek had graduated from the Whampoa military academy and this often meant that more talented officers were turned away. General Barr of the United States said of the Guomindang leadership in 1949 that, â€Å"their military debacles in my opinion can all be attributed to the world’s worst leadership and many other morale destroying factors that lead to a complete loss of will to fight† (Barr, 1949: x quoted in Bianco, 1971: 180). In fact, many battles were lost by the Nationalists without a fight, as hundreds of thousands of troops simply defected or surrendered to the Communists (Barnett, 1965: 5). An example of this may be seen during the Huai-Huai Campaign, where poor military leadership caused the Nationalist troops to become surrounded and resulted in an irreparable loss of manpower without a fight (Phillips, 1996: 158). Rather than undertaking offensives to seek out and destroy the main mobile guerrilla units of the Communists, they holed up for the most part in isolated, vulnerable, defensive positions allowing the Communists to concentrate their forces and attack and overwhelm Nationalists’ positions one by one (Barnett, 1965: 5). This strategy played into the hands of the Communists whose primary goal was to reduce the numbers of the Nationalist army. They were not concerned with holding specific geographic areas and this allowed them to be a lot more flexible in their attacks. Moreover, the Communist troops were ordered to avoid large battles and to engage the enemy only when there was a high probability of victory. Mao Zedong argued that the only way guerrilla warfare could succeed  is if the army had the support of the people, and the Communists certainly had this (Mao Zedong, 1940: x cited in Bianco, 1971: 184). The Communists successfully achieved this through the use of propaganda. They portrayed themselves as defenders of the nation and the Guomindang as enemies of all levels of society, from peasant to scholar (Chang, C. 1965: 40). Chiang Kai-shek himself admitted that the Nationalists failure in propaganda â€Å"was a major defect in our struggle against Communism† (Kai-shek, 1965: 77). Despite this, the Nationalist army had many opportunities to seriously weaken the Communists. However, their leadership too often committed crucial tactical mistakes, which were the result of lack of communication and disputes within the party caused by the factionalism that riddled the Guomindang leadership (Westad, 2003: 11). Clique politics and factionalism would eventually lead to the situation where unified action to either solve the problems in Nationalist held territory or to fight against the Communists became virtually impossible (Barnett, 1965: 6). This is in stark contrast to the leadership of the Communist armies, whose generals were not concerned with personal gain, but instead co-operated with each other and gained the support of the Chinese people and worked towards a united goal (Westad, 2003: 9). These superior military tactics and aforementioned economic reforms brought the Communists wide spread support and ultimately victory. However, this victory would never have been achievable were it not for the military, economic and social failings of the Guomindang. Chiang Kai-Shek himself admitted major defects in organisation and technique in the Nationalists’ war against Communism, however he argued that these defects were remediable, â€Å"so long as our strategy and policy were correct, I believe we still could have won† (Kai-Shek, 1965: 82). It is in this light that the Chinese Civil War should be viewed not as a Communist victory, but as a Nationalist defeat. There is no doubt that the war against Japan was a crushing blow to the Nationalists economic and military power, however it was not fatal. The  Nationalist government could have continued to consolidate its power and authority by the sheer weight of its military strength and financial resources (Tsou, 1965: 28). Even though the Nationalist government was far from popular, it was the most powerful military and economic force in China and could have survived if it had been willing to regain the support of the people. Defeat to the Communists was therefore, far from inevitable, and the Nationalists were very much the engineers of their own demise. BIBLIOGRAPHY Barnett, A. (1965), ‘Multiple factors’, in Pichon Loh (ed.) ‘The Kuomintang Debacle of 1949: Conquest or Collapse?’ D.C. Heath & Company, BostonBianco, Lucien. (1971), ‘Origins of the Chinese Revolution, 1915-1949’ Stanford University Press, StanfordChang, Carsun. (1965), ‘Chiang Kai-shek and Kuomintang dictatorship’, in PichonLoh (ed.) ‘The Kuomintang Debacle of 1949: Conquest or Collapse?’ D.C. Heath& Company, BostonChang, Kia-Ngua. (1965) ‘War and Inflation’ in Pichon Loh (ed.) ‘The Kuomintang Debacle of 1949: Conquest or Collapse?’ D.C. Heath & Company, BostonEbrey, Patricia. (1996), Cambridge Illustrated History: China, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, EnglandFielding, Mark & Morcombe, Margot. (1999), ‘The Spirit of Change – China in Revolution’ McGraw Hill Book Company, Roseville, NSWHsu, Immanuel C.Y. (1990), ‘The Rise of Modern China’ Oxford Univer sity Press, New YorkKai-shek, Chiang 1965, ‘Communist designs and Kuomintang blunders’, inPichon Loh (ed.) The Kuomintang Debacle of 1949: Conquest or Collapse?, D.C. Heath & Company, BostonKubek, Anthony 1965, ‘Communist subversion and American appeasement’, inPichon Loh (ed.) The Kuomintang Debacle of 1949: Conquest or Collapse?, D.C. Heath & Company, BostonPhillips, Richard. (1996) ‘China since 1911’ St Martin’s Press, New York. Service, John S. 1965, ‘The enthronement of reaction’, in Pichon Loh (ed.)The Kuomintang Debacle of 1949: Conquest or Collapse?, D.C. Heath & Company,BostonStuart, John L. (1965), ‘Popular Discontent and Creeping Paralysis’, in Pichon Loh (ed.)The Kuomintang Debacle of 1949: Conquest or Collapse?, D.C. Heath & Company,BostonTsou, Tang 1965, ‘Contradictions between program and practise’, in PichonLoh (ed.) The Kuomintang Debacle of 1949: Conquest or Collapse?, D.C. Heath& Company, BostonWestad, Odd Arne 2003, Decisive Encounters: the Chinese Civil War 1946 -1950, Stanford University Press, California

Alcohol Is the Worst Drug in the United States

A 2010 study by the Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs ranked alcohol as â€Å"most harmful† drug on a list of 20 drugs. Alcohol ranked higher than crack and heroin when the potential harm to individuals and others was examined. Alcohol causes physical, psychological and social problems. Alcohol is a depressant that affects every part of the human body. Alcohol affects the part of the brain that controls coordination, memory, judgment and decision-making. Each year, more than 5,000 people under the age of 21 die from underage drinking. Another 1,900 die from car accidents. And still more people die from alcohol-related homicides, suicides and other alcohol-induced accidents. Alcohol costs the U. S. over 184. 6 billion dollars in 1998, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. This cost was more than the estimated cost of all other illegal substances put together-$143. billion-during 1998. Although alcohol has been dubbed the most harmful drug, it is not the drug that does the most harm to an individual. In fact, alcohol earned this dubious honor because of the effect that alcohol has on the people around the alcoholic. Herion, crack cocain and metamfetamine are much more harmful to a person’s body than alcohol is. In a later study in the British Medical Journal, alcohol was found to be the fourth most dangerous drug after heroin, crack and crystal meth. This same study deemed alcohol to be the second most dangerous drug to society. Some people say that alcohol should be banned. Despite the overwhelming evidence that alchol is very bad for indivduals and their loved ones, alcohol remains legal in the U. S. During the 1920’s the US banned alcohol during a time called Prohibition. This policy is considered to have been a failure because it lead to more organized crime, increased alcoholics and negatively impacted the economy. Alcohol continues to be advertised on television and radio, apparently enticing people to continue to buy and drink alchol. Alcohol will always be legal. Alcohol is a big part of our American culture. It is embraced and celebrated by people of all ages every day. Our country is not prepared to make the consumption of alcohol illegal. Doing so would clog the court systems, lead to corruption of officials and cripple the U. S. econmy due to the lost tax money generated by the sale of alcohol. People do need to be educated on the dangers of alcohol so each person can make the best decision for themselves and their family, which would be to avoid alcohol alcohol all together. References Alaraki, M. (2010). Alcohol is society’s most dangerous drug. Retrieved from http://www. dailyfinance. om/2010/11/01/alcohol-is-societys-most-dangerous-drug/ Nutt, D. J. , (2010). Drugs harms in the UK: a multicriteria decision analysis. The Lancet 376(9752), 1558-1565. Doi: 10. 1016/50140-6736(10)61462-6 Grohol, J. M. (2010). Alcohol the Most Dangerous Drug? Probably not. Retrieved from http://psychcentral. com/blog/archives/2010/11/01/alcohol-the-most-dangerous-drug-probably-not/ Neurobonnkers . (2012). The largest ever study in to drug harms places alcohol in the top four. Retrieved from http://neurobonkers. com/2012/08/06/the-largest-ever-study-in-to-drug-harms-places-alcohol-in-the-top-four/ Alcohol Is the Worst Drug in the United States A 2010 study by the Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs ranked alcohol as â€Å"most harmful† drug on a list of 20 drugs. Alcohol ranked higher than crack and heroin when the potential harm to individuals and others was examined. Alcohol causes physical, psychological and social problems. Alcohol is a depressant that affects every part of the human body. Alcohol affects the part of the brain that controls coordination, memory, judgment and decision-making. Each year, more than 5,000 people under the age of 21 die from underage drinking. Another 1,900 die from car accidents. And still more people die from alcohol-related homicides, suicides and other alcohol-induced accidents. Alcohol costs the U. S. over 184. 6 billion dollars in 1998, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. This cost was more than the estimated cost of all other illegal substances put together-$143. billion-during 1998. Although alcohol has been dubbed the most harmful drug, it is not the drug that does the most harm to an individual. In fact, alcohol earned this dubious honor because of the effect that alcohol has on the people around the alcoholic. Herion, crack cocain and metamfetamine are much more harmful to a person’s body than alcohol is. In a later study in the British Medical Journal, alcohol was found to be the fourth most dangerous drug after heroin, crack and crystal meth. This same study deemed alcohol to be the second most dangerous drug to society. Some people say that alcohol should be banned. Despite the overwhelming evidence that alchol is very bad for indivduals and their loved ones, alcohol remains legal in the U. S. During the 1920’s the US banned alcohol during a time called Prohibition. This policy is considered to have been a failure because it lead to more organized crime, increased alcoholics and negatively impacted the economy. Alcohol continues to be advertised on television and radio, apparently enticing people to continue to buy and drink alchol. Alcohol will always be legal. Alcohol is a big part of our American culture. It is embraced and celebrated by people of all ages every day. Our country is not prepared to make the consumption of alcohol illegal. Doing so would clog the court systems, lead to corruption of officials and cripple the U. S. econmy due to the lost tax money generated by the sale of alcohol. People do need to be educated on the dangers of alcohol so each person can make the best decision for themselves and their family, which would be to avoid alcohol alcohol all together. References Alaraki, M. (2010). Alcohol is society’s most dangerous drug. Retrieved from http://www. dailyfinance. om/2010/11/01/alcohol-is-societys-most-dangerous-drug/ Nutt, D. J. , (2010). Drugs harms in the UK: a multicriteria decision analysis. The Lancet 376(9752), 1558-1565. Doi: 10. 1016/50140-6736(10)61462-6 Grohol, J. M. (2010). Alcohol the Most Dangerous Drug? Probably not. Retrieved from http://psychcentral. com/blog/archives/2010/11/01/alcohol-the-most-dangerous-drug-probably-not/ Neurobonnkers . (2012). The largest ever study in to drug harms places alcohol in the top four. Retrieved from http://neurobonkers. com/2012/08/06/the-largest-ever-study-in-to-drug-harms-places-alcohol-in-the-top-four/

Impact of Technology on Sales Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Impact of Technology on Sales - Essay Example W. Pergault. The company spent $20 million upgrading its website but this change did not have a great impact on sales and profitability. Managers are not interested in website and online sales because they "don't earn any commission". On the other hand, customer did not like the new website because of "distracting graphics", "the bells and whistles" (Spiro et al 2004). Resistance comes from the customer since they are not the beneficiary of organizational changes. Some of the reasons for resistance to change are; excessive focus on cost, failure to recognize benefits, lack of organizational synchronization, and individual uncertainty denial and fear of loss. In order to improve the e-commerce plan, Celia Fiorni, the company president, should restructure current compensation system and reward those managers who use the website and sell products through the Internet. Also, Celia Fiorni should encourage and motivate sales representatives to use the Internet and sell products through the Internet. Training programs will help to improve skills and knowledge of employees and reduce resistance to change. Salespeople will accept the new initiative ensured in fair compensation and computer skills. Technology can create new design options for various processes because it can be used to challenge longstanding as assumptions about work arrangements that used to inhibit organizations. Good understanding of end-user needs by system developers is another important factor, as are mechanisms for communication with the business users of the system. Senior management sponsorship and commitment is another success factor, but dependent also on the existence of a champion. Technically, the requirements of the system change to include reliability and its delivery to users in a suitable form. This process of continual selection and rejection of potential projects contrasts strongly with the tendency in many companies towards early formal approval of information technology projects whose costs and benefits are assumed to be certain. The results from the research broadly confirm that the factors identified for technical innovation also apply to information systems projects. For G. W. Pergault, CRM plays a crucial role helping to improve customer service and meet customers' needs and expectations. "G. W. Pergault offers more than 500,000 different products, which can be overwhelming to sort through. Sutton believes that some of his reps may have trouble finding specific products on the website" (Spiro et al 2004). An established information technology infrastructure obviously helps provide a base for delivery as well as making it clearer when new hardware and system software will be needed. Personnel should be connected directly to the concept of CRM, an approach that stresses the importance of developing long-term partnerships with customers. In developing personal and relationship strategies on an international level, the representative is wise to take a step back and understand how CRM strategies will likely fit in the environment. CRM requires an organization to first develop a transformation system that

Discussion about the Product Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Discussion about the Product - Essay Example In 1991, Pixar contracted with Disney to product three computer-animated feature films which started with Toy Story.2 The partnership evolved until the current amalgamation. Pixar’s claim to fame is its revolutionary method of producing animated feature films and is the basis of its success. The animated feature film produced by Pixar departs from the traditional method of painting and drawing its shots. Instead, by virtue of its RenderMan and other software products, Pixar choreographs its movements and facial expressions via its computer software.3 Pixar’s greatest contribution to the film industry is its â€Å"three-dimensional-looking animation.†4Pixar, since its inception has â€Å"accounted for† approximately one quarter â€Å"of the animation box office.†5 Pixar competes primarily in the Motion Picture Production and Distribution industry although it does compete in Media and Video productions as well as Computer Software which includes Multimedia, Graphics and Publishing Software.6 Pixar’s main competitors are Vanguard Films another Computer Graphics’ production company as well as DreamWorks and the major motion picture producers such as Universal Studio, Sony, Warner Brothers and MGM. Certainly independent film producers offer some level of competition as well. However, Pixar’s quality films and its track record, having won eight academy awards has proved Pixar with a brand name that safeguards its position in the feature film industry.7 As Wharton Marketing Professor Jehoshua Eliashberg observes: Moreover, Pixar as a brand is firmly established in the film market. Its amalgamation with Disney and even stronger brand name not only fortifies Pixar’s place in the feature film market but serves to strengthen it. In today’s film industry, the average consumer already has an expectation that any film

The end of the chapter questions Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The end of the chapter questions - Assignment Example The company’s marketing strategy also distinguishes the overall organization from other competitors that also apply digital services, offer marketing services, point solutions and agencies. Basically, the current eBay’s marketing solutions arm has ample attention put on simplifying the complex marketing landscape by coming up with innovative solutions within and across the demand generation value chain, increasing the company’s investment in its commerce marketing technology suite, and connecting its marketing-leading solutions with universal attribution, analytics and business intelligence to drive superior services and transactions. When it comes to the role of the organization’s business model, business philosophy, electronic community, and marketing strategies in the aspect of maintaining, attracting and growing customers; eBay takes this as one of the core matters that must be looked at keenly (EBay Enterprise 2014). In any business background, it is more expensive to bring on new faces or parties as customers than it is to hold on to the already existing ones; eBay uses this as a stepping stone to make sure that as they get more customers they do not loose the others. The company ensures that they know what you expect from them as a customer and makes unique, they consult with other experienced professions on how they can make their relationship with customers stronger, they ensure that all their advisors are competent and trustworthy to enhance confidentiality of significant customer details, and upon acquiring customers they ensure that the organization’s personal touch is not lost. Moreover , through the company’s business model there is smart planning and automation and ensuring that the collective growth is profitable. Marriott, as an international organization, has for many years focused on the aspect of taking care of its customers; which it does through putting a lot of attention on it