Case Assignment Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Case Assignment - Coursework Example For example: Sephora – a brand that sells cosmetics, perfume and other beauty products recently decided to enter into a contract with JC Penney upon opening a ‘store within stores’ strategy aiming to attract the young women. (MSNBC, 2007) Considering the change in the customers’ preference to shop conveniently at regional shopping malls, it is good that JC Penney has decided to open almost all new Penney store within the regional malls because that is where most of the shoppers go to buy cloths, furniture and other merchandises that JC Penney is selling to the consumers. However, opening a JC Penney store in each metropolitan area in order to create a significant presence in each market is not much of a good idea because it is not convenient for the consumers to intentionally go to a JC Penney store to buy something and go back again to the mall to buy the rest of what they need. Looking at this angle, the demand for establishing a JC Penney store separate from the regional malls is low. Giving each of the store managers the control over merchandise selection could greatly affect the quality and type of merchandises available within a specific JC Penney store outlet. In the absence of a strict centralized regulation in terms of selecting the items being sold in each store, some of the store managers could take advantage of the situation by entering into a special contract with its suppliers. This enables the store managers to make a bias judgment with regards to selecting the merchandise. Giving each of the store managers the power to price the goods could result to lack of uniformity when it comes to the selling price of the same product in each store outlets. The same is true when it comes to management of employees, the store manager will have the tendency to prioritize one employee over the other which may lead to serious management problem in the end. The funding for the local community relations will also be an issue since

Investigating the winners and losers of globalisation

Investigating the winners and losers of globalisation Globalisation over the past hundred years has undoubtedly made the world more interconnected including closer societies, politics, economies, cultures and the environment. The world has seen all these dimensions influenced by the process of globalisation and the resultant winners and losers. Primarily, the economies of nations around the globe have experienced the most significant globalisation process, with the foundation of this dating back to the 14th century. The globalisation of economies has resulted in numerous winners including most western nations, some third world labourers and international institutions. There have also been many losers including most third world countries, the environment and ironically even most western countries. Thus, it can be said that the globalisation process of integrating nations economies has had both positive and negative effects on the world. The globalisation of nations economies has undeniably improved the lives of millions across the planet, in both developed and developing countries. Economic globalisation can be defined as the process associated with increasing economic openness, growing economic interdependence and deepening economic integration between countries in the world economy.  [1]  By far the major winner from this process has been the citizens and corporations of developed countries. This is due to many factors that have come to fruition in the later half of the twentieth century. Specifically, the roles of transnational corporations, global financial institutions and consumerism all have ties to economic globalisation. Transnational or multinational corporations are corporations that have a headquarters in one country and operate in several other countries. These have been influential in globalisation and have brought much wealth to developed countries. The largest transnational corporation in the wor ld currently is Wal-Mart Stores, with sales for 2003 reaching 256.33 billion dollars.  [2]  With a sales figure of this proportion, Wal-Mart took in more money than many developed nations total gross domestic product. Charles E. Wilson who was a Chairman of General Motors said Whats good for General Motors in good for the country.  [3]  This quote highlights the positive aspects of globalisation for developed countries as often when transnational corporations win so do developed countries. Despite the criticisms that surround transnational corporations, they have been directly investing in developing countries and with their expansion into these markets, have actually raised the standard of living in many third world countries. The fourth largest non-financial transnational corporation, Vodafone has a total 207,458 million dollars worth of assets, where a staggering 187,792 million of that is made up of foreign assets. This shows the corporations expansion into core and periphery countries, bringing technology, employment and higher standards of living. Another example of a transnational corporation creating winners with the globalisation process is McDonalds. This is a prime example of globalization in both the economic and cultural sense, with nearly 50 million people around the world being served daily. The primary economic winner in recent times from McDonalds globalisation process has been East Asia, as in 1975 when McDonalds opened it first restaurant in Hong Kon g, it brought with it a high standard of professional service and the first restaurant to continually offer a clean eating environment, which customers came to demand from all restaurants later.  [4]   Another lesser-known winner of the globalisation process, are the third world workers employed by transnational corporations. Although the western world sees sweatshops as immoral and unethical, the labourers who work in these places are often being paid a higher wage than most of their fellow citizens. In 2005 in Honduras a developing country, where sweatshops are commonplace, the average apparel worker earned $13.10 per day; this is compared to the 44% of the countrys population that live on less than $2 per day.  [5]  This means through the economic globalisation process and cross border corporations, workers in developing countries have the opportunities to survive and beat the poverty cycle. The International Monetary Fund and World Bank have both actively been helping the developing countries. This has been occurring through loans, economic re-development and economic management. Both these institutions have played major roles in the economic assistance of developing countries over the past fifty years. A recent example is the World Bank implementing policies to help eradicate poverty through achieving universal primary education for all children. In 2006 a report showed that the United Nations and World Bank invested heavily in government schools in Ethiopia, as a result primary enrolment more than doubled from 22% in 1990 to 47% in 2004.  [6]  The globalisation of economies has resulted in many winners from the developed nations while also improving improved the standard of living in many developing nations. While there have been many winners from economic globalisation, there have also been and will continue to be many losers. The primary loser from globalisation has been the developing countries, who have supplied the labour and raw material necessary to fuel globalisation. In many third world countries, globalisation has had the negative effect of creating sweatshops, where workers are paid low wages to do hard manual labour in often poor conditions. These sweatshops are run by transnational corporations, that have the aim of minimising costs by taking advantage of the relaxed labour laws often in developing countries. An example of a transnational corporation that uses sweatshops is Nike, as its shoes are made in many Asian countries at a low cost and then sold in western countries for a profit. After the goods are sold and the wages paid, the transnational corporations take any profit made back to their headquarters or home country. This leaves the developing countries in poverty as the workers are being exploited for a minimal wage while the country sees very little of the profits. Another, problem associated with economic globalisation, is that citizens of developing countries are leaving their countries in order to achieve higher education, better job prospects and generally higher standards of living. This problem is called the brain drain and has significant economic implications for the countries involved. In the African nation of Ghana, an estimated 68 percent of all trained medical staff left the country between 1993 and 2000.  [7]  A large majority of developing countries are experiencing the brain drain problem and it is further fueling the poverty cycle, in which globalisation is playing a negative role. However, not only are the developing countries affected by economic globalisation, the developed countries that are often at the centre of globalisation also experience problems. A major loser that has resulted from the integration of economies specifically in times of economic downturn has been all economies, including both developing and developed. This is caused by the increasing integration and interconnectedness of economies all over the world, a problem arises when one nations economy goes into downturn and then due to the integration causes others to go into downturn also. The most recent examples of where this has occurred was the East Asian Financial Crisis of 1997 and the Global Financial Crisis of 2008. In both these situations, a crisis in one countrys economy, which was closely interlinked to the world economy, caused severe economic repercussions throughout the world. A subprime lending crisis in the US housing market eventually blew up to trigger the single largest eco nomic downturn since the Great Depression of the 1930s. The effects of this crisis are still being felt around the world today, with trillions of dollars being wiped off share markets, banking institutions collapsing and huge national debts. The problem associated with the integration of nations economies will be an ever present problem as economic globalisation increases in the future. It can be seen that the primary losers from economic development are developing countries; however, developed countries can also be losers. Another significant loser from economic globalisation is the environment; this problem affects all countries on the planet and has been getting worse over time. The environment has been abused and neglected since the beginning of the industrial revolution and today is currently at a precipice. Developed countries are the worst offender when it comes to the abuse of the environment. In recent times, the economies of China, India, Russia and Brazil have started rivaling the world powerhouse economies of America and Europe in terms of carbon dioxide pollution and environmental degradation. The primary environmental concern of recent has been the effects of increased carbon dioxide emissions and the effects on the level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. The resultant effect of a buildup in greenhouse gases will have serious problems for everyone including rising sea levels, extreme weather events, polluted oxygen and many more problems  [8]  . These problems have ties to economi c globalisation; this is due to many developed countries and transnational companies using limited resources and resultant pollution. Economic globalisation has been the driving force for sustained economic growth in both developed and developing countries. Along with this the need of transnational corporations to gain greater profits and expand into new markets has further increased the consumption of scarce resources and increased emissions. This is evident by the fact that developed countries are some of the worst polluters with America, Canada, Australia and New Zealand the top four emitters of carbon dioxide per capita and population in 2000.  [9]  However, developing countries are also increasing their emissions and speeding up their depletion of natural resources. In Brazil between 1978 and 1988, annual rainforest clearance rose from 78,000km squared a year to 230,000km squared.  [10]  The Amazon rainforest is considered the lungs of the earth and provide the vital ta sk of helping to remove pollution from the atmosphere. This means that the increasing economic globalisation has continued to assist developed countries achieve higher levels of consumerism and has helped developing countries achieve record levels of economic growth, which has actually had a very negative effect on the environment. This negative effect means that both developed countries and developing countries are both losers as globalisation makes it mark on the earths environment. There are positive aspects of globalisation as seen in developed countries, also now many developing countries are to some degree enjoying the benefits. In saying that, developing countries are still being generally exploited by transnational corporations and the developed world. Similarly, the planets environment is still being expended at a faster rate than it is being replenished or replaced and will surely cause problems for future generations. Therefore, if changes are not made to the mode and medium of economic globalisation, the costs will soon outweigh the benefits.

Revenge of the Killer Genre :: Quentin Tarantino John Cawelti Films Essays

Revenge of the Killer Genre After years of repeated thematic motifs and unchanging, stereotypical characters, films within a genre often lose their vitality. The conventions become predictable and the underlying myth becomes boring and banal. The innovative director will seek to revitalize a popular myth through a "generic transformation" (Cawelti 520). This essay shall demonstrate how Quentin Tarantino borrows a traditional myth from the gangster genre, subverts it and subsequently installs a new, unorthodox myth in its place. The end result is a new type of film that reaches beyond the established confines of the gangster genre. As with Arthur Penn's Bonnie and Clyde, the radical innovations included in Pulp Fiction make it hard to situate the film within mainstream cinema; it is, as John Cawelti would agree, "difficult to know what to call this type of film". While Penn's film and Tarantino's Pulp Fiction clearly acknowledge the conventions of the gangster genre, it is only as a point of departure. Tarantino introduces enigmatic characters and complex incongruities which combine to successfully remove his film from the "conventions of a traditional popular genre" (Cawelti 505). Cawelti describes the myth within the gangster film as "affirm[ing] the limits of individual aggression and violence ... show[ing] how violence evokes its own inevitable doom" (Cawelti 516). In Pulp Fiction and Bonnie and Clyde, the directors subvert the "traditional elements" and the "traditional mythical world ..." (Cawelti 505) is confounded. Thus begin the generic transformations. The directors thoroughly undermine the traditional myths and effectively replace them with myths of their own construction. The complexities of structure, character and theme within Pulp Fiction exceed the conventional boundaries of the gangster genre and the myths commonly associated with gangster films become inadequate. The narrative leads to non-romanticized situations and characters that appear too realistic to be contained within the "inadequate" boundaries of the gangster myth (Cawelti 510). Here then, Tarantino is effectively exposing the inadequacies of the gangster myth. The myth of the gangster is exposure by first firmly establishing the conventional gangster persona. Within the gangster environment, a darkened night club for example, the gangster looks the part; black suit, jewellery, sunglasses and the inevitable guns construct the image of menace. So too do his mannerisms, the gangster is a cocky, self-assured tough guy. The story within the film titled "The Bonnie Situation", provides an example an undermined gangster myth. Here, the two gangsters, Jules and Vincent, must retrieve and deliver a package that has been stolen. Revenge of the Killer Genre :: Quentin Tarantino John Cawelti Films Essays Revenge of the Killer Genre After years of repeated thematic motifs and unchanging, stereotypical characters, films within a genre often lose their vitality. The conventions become predictable and the underlying myth becomes boring and banal. The innovative director will seek to revitalize a popular myth through a "generic transformation" (Cawelti 520). This essay shall demonstrate how Quentin Tarantino borrows a traditional myth from the gangster genre, subverts it and subsequently installs a new, unorthodox myth in its place. The end result is a new type of film that reaches beyond the established confines of the gangster genre. As with Arthur Penn's Bonnie and Clyde, the radical innovations included in Pulp Fiction make it hard to situate the film within mainstream cinema; it is, as John Cawelti would agree, "difficult to know what to call this type of film". While Penn's film and Tarantino's Pulp Fiction clearly acknowledge the conventions of the gangster genre, it is only as a point of departure. Tarantino introduces enigmatic characters and complex incongruities which combine to successfully remove his film from the "conventions of a traditional popular genre" (Cawelti 505). Cawelti describes the myth within the gangster film as "affirm[ing] the limits of individual aggression and violence ... show[ing] how violence evokes its own inevitable doom" (Cawelti 516). In Pulp Fiction and Bonnie and Clyde, the directors subvert the "traditional elements" and the "traditional mythical world ..." (Cawelti 505) is confounded. Thus begin the generic transformations. The directors thoroughly undermine the traditional myths and effectively replace them with myths of their own construction. The complexities of structure, character and theme within Pulp Fiction exceed the conventional boundaries of the gangster genre and the myths commonly associated with gangster films become inadequate. The narrative leads to non-romanticized situations and characters that appear too realistic to be contained within the "inadequate" boundaries of the gangster myth (Cawelti 510). Here then, Tarantino is effectively exposing the inadequacies of the gangster myth. The myth of the gangster is exposure by first firmly establishing the conventional gangster persona. Within the gangster environment, a darkened night club for example, the gangster looks the part; black suit, jewellery, sunglasses and the inevitable guns construct the image of menace. So too do his mannerisms, the gangster is a cocky, self-assured tough guy. The story within the film titled "The Bonnie Situation", provides an example an undermined gangster myth. Here, the two gangsters, Jules and Vincent, must retrieve and deliver a package that has been stolen.

Manipulative essay

A manipulative and exploration aid in math is a great way to show children math concepts. Manipulative have proven to be valuable when used in math class and are even more valuable to the children when they are young. From reading in the textbook and reading articles about manipulative in a classroom in my opinion it seems like a very useful tool to help the children learn new math concepts. Having these concepts shows children how to learn and progress in the classroom.Using manipulative in a classroom is beneficial to both the student and the teacher because the teacher is able to explain the concepts to the students in a much easier manner using hands-on technique. The students are able to physically visualize the math concepts and gain knowledge because they understand what they are learning. Plus during this type of learning you are having fun with the activity. When you make these concepts fun for the students you can keep their attention and focus.When the children have the co ncepts down their self esteem goes up and they eel encouraged to keep on using the manipulative and visual aids. Children will be more proud of themselves when they understand the learning. Besides building your self esteem it will help the children to develop self-confidence as well as the teachers. Using hands-on technique will keep the children and the teachers happy and want to continue the learning. As a child I don't really remember using manipulative objects In my math class. Math was always very hard and confusing to me.Maybe If I was taught with these manipulative I might have enjoyed math. Today I see my niece In preschool and how they use the manipulative and visual aids. She Is learning so much. From this I can see how Important and valuable It Is In the learning for the children. In conclusion, from my essay I think manipulative and exploration visual aids In mathematical applications are a very usual tool In the classroom. It really helps the children understand math c oncept. From doing the research you can tell hands-on technique and manipulative Is an awesome concept for teaching young children.

Community College Essay

After graduating high school a lot of people do not know what their next step in life will be. Some struggle between deciding to go straight into the workforce, joining the military, or continuing their education by going to college. The average person chooses college as their next step. A common issue about going to college is whether to go to a two-year college/community college or straight into a four-year university. I think community college is the smarter and better choice. People fail to realize that going to community college helps you save thousands of dollars. Not only that, but students with undecided majors better find their way while saving money at community colleges. They are very flexible and can provide students with a better transition from high school while benefiting from their smaller class sizes and campuses. As we all know, community college is cheaper to attend than a four-year university. Four-year universities cost thousands of dollars while attending a community college would cost less than half of that. For instance, the average cost of attendance at Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) is roughly 5,000 dollars per year for a freshman, compared to the cost of attendance at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) which is about 25,000 dollars a year for freshmen. The cost of attending VCU is fives times as much as attending NOVA where in retrospect the same material is being covered. To break it down, tuition and fees at VCU amount to about 12,000 dollars. One credit costs about 300 dollars while at NOVA a credit costs 150 dollars. Room and board would be 9,000 dollars at VCU, while going to NOVA in most cases you would not have to pay to live at home if you are a freshman. Books would still be around the same price because books in college are expensive regardless. Other expenses would vary depending on what a student would need. Looking back on it the cost of going to a community college saves you a tremendous amount of money and would be worth it in the long run. Growing up people would talk about community college as if it were basically the thirteenth grade. In a sense would not that benefit a student more? Classes at four-year universities can sometimes be overwhelming, having hundreds of students in one lecture class. With classes getting hard from the transition of high school to college, would not a student want smaller class sizes? It only seems reasonable. By having smaller class sizes a student would naturally be able to learn better than in a class full of 300 people. Lecture classes can be long, tiring, and filled with millions of questions. In bigger classes some communication issues might occur and information might not always get to a student depending on their seating. Also the professors might not always get to a question that a student may have which can get very frustrating. Having smaller class sizes, everything is right there in front of a student. The professor is there for easier access to questions, class discussions would be more beneficial and easier to get involved with, and a person would get to know their classmates more. Smaller class sizes would help students gain a better learning experience. Many people go into college undecided on what they want their major to be. Studies prove that 50% of students who declared their majors change them after their first year according to Dr. Firtz Grupe of mymajors. com. Some students even change their majors up to three times throughout college. Going to community college can help a student find out their major while saving money. When a student changes majors there are always some complications. Some classes that were needed for their previous major have nothing to do with the current major that they just switched to. The money that was paid for those credits is, for the most part, wasted. That can be very taxing on a student’s financial income. If these problems occurred to a student who was attending a four-year college they would have wasted thousands of dollars compared to if a student changed majors at a community college. Even though money is lost in both cases, the amount of money lost at a community college is far more manageable than losing thousands of dollars at a four-year college. Think about it this way, would you rather lose 100 dollars or 10,000? Community college is a great way for students with undecided majors to discover what they want to do while not losing as much money and time. Classes at community colleges are very flexible and can help students manage their classes around other things. People who attend community colleges sometimes seek jobs while in school. One thing that could be very frustrating for a student would be having class at a time that conflicts with a work schedule. That could be a problem if a student at a four-year university had a job because not as much night classes are offered at four-year colleges. Community colleges have better options in that case. A student working a regular 9-5 schedule would find problems trying to go to school after work. At community college classes could easily be taken after work with more night classes being offered at a community college. Students can go to work then school or vice versa, go to school in the morning then work some time after without any hardships. Having flexible classes are always a benefit because they provide more options and having options are always a good thing. Community colleges provide an easier transition from the laid back high school environment to the stressful college life. As Liz Addison says, it helps students begin. High school classes are easier compared to classes in college. Grading wise and tests, quizzes, etc. Community college can help ease a student into the college atmosphere. That classes are not that much easier than that of a community college but not as hard either. It is a step up from high school in terms of difficulty and helps to better transition students into the university world. Less stress is involved and things are more manageable. Some people argue many things about community colleges. The main thing often associated with community college is commuting . People say that commuting to community college cost so much money in regards to gas. Community colleges are in your community and most of the times have ways to get you to and from school. They are called community colleges for a reason. All the money that a student would save from not going to a four-year college would cover the cost of gas easily. Also most community colleges have operating bus systems and car pooling is always an option. Another thing people try to argue about going to a community college is that a person will not gain a true college experience. Some people go through life and do not experience many things like never being on a plane, not having a dog, or even never going to a football game. That experience is not something that a student would need to have to become successful in life. The rewards of getting to where you want to be in life are far greater than not getting a full college experience. In the long run you will make up for the experiences you have missed by gaining better ones. Going to a two-year college first before transferring to a four-year university pays off in the long run. People either do not know the benefits or are two proud to attend a community college. Money is saved, the learning experience is better, the transition from high school is easier and community colleges help undeclared majors find their majors. Seems like the smart way to go.