Marketing startegies of kfc Essay

Harland Sanders was born in 1890 and raised on a farm outside Henryville, Indiana. His father died when he was five years old, forcing his mother to work at a canning plant, and leaving her eldest son to care for his two younger siblings. After he reached seven years of age, his mother taught him how to cook. After leaving the family home at the age of 12, Sanders passed through several professions, with mixed success. In 1930, he took over a Shell filling station on U.S. Route 25 just outside North Corbin, a small city on the edge of the Appalachian Mountains. It was here that he first served to travelers the recipes that he had learned as a boy: fried chicken and other dishes such as steaks, country ham, and pancakes. Originally using his own dining room table, in 1934, he purchased the larger filling station on the other side of the road and expanded to six tables By 1936, this had proved successful enough for Sanders to be given the honorary title of Kentucky colonel by Governor Ruby Laffoon. The following year he expanded his restaurant to 142 seats, and added a motel he purchased across the street, naming it Sanders Court & Cafà ©. Sanders was dissatisfied with the 30-minute duration it took to prepare his chicken in an iron frying pan, but he refused to sacrifice quality by deep frying the product. If he pre-prepared the chicken in advance of an order, there was inevitably wastage. In 1939, the first commercial pressure cookers were released onto the market, predominantly designed for steaming vegetables. Sanders bought one, and modified it into a pressure fryer, which he then used to fry chicken. As well as reducing production time to be comparable with deep frying, the new method produced flakier, moister chicken. In 1940, Sanders finalized what came to be known as his Original Recipe of 11 herbs and spices. Although he never publicly revealed the recipe, he admitted to the use of salt and pepper, and claimed that the ingredients â€Å"stand on everybody’s shelf†. After being recommissioned as a Kentucky colonel in 1950 by Governor Lawrence Wetherby, Sanders began to dress the part, growing a goatee and wearing a black frock coat (later switched to a white suit), a string tie, and referring to himself as â€Å"Colonel†. His associates went along with the title change, â€Å"jokingly at first and then in earnest†, according to biographer Josh Ozersky. History KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) is a fast food restaurant chain which specializes in fried chicken and is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky. It is the world’s second largest restaurant chain overall (as measured by sales) after McDonald’s, with over 18,000 outlets in 120 countries and territories as of December 2012. The company is a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, a restaurant company which also owns the Pizza Hut and Taco Bell restaurant chains. KFC was founded by Harland Sanders, a colorful figure who began selling fried chicken from his roadside restaurant in Corbin, Kentucky, during the Great Depression. Sanders identified the potential of the restaurant franchising concept, and the first â€Å"Kentucky Fried Chicken† franchise opened in Utah in 1952. KFC popularized chicken in the fast food industry, diversifying the market by challenging the established dominance of the hamburger. By branding himself as â€Å"Colonel Sanders†, Harland became a legendary figure of American cultural history, and his image remains prominent in KFC advertising. However, the company’s rapid expansion saw it grow too large for Sanders to manage, and in 1964 he sold the company to a group of investors led by John Y. Brown, Jr. and Jack C. Massey. KFC was one of the first fast food chains to expand internationally, opening outlets in England, Mexico and Jamaica by the mid-1960s. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, KFC experienced mixed fortunes domestically, as it went through a series of changes in corporate ownership with little or no experience in the restaurant business. In the early 1970s, KFC was sold to the spirits distributor Heublein, who were taken over by the R.J. Reynolds food and tobacco conglomerate, who sold the chain to PepsiCo. The chain continued to expand overseas however, and in 1987 KFC became the first Western restaurant chain to open in China. The chain has since expanded rapidly in China, and the country is now the company’s most profitable market. PepsiCo spun off its restaurants division as Tricon Global Restaurants, which later changed its name to Yum! Brands. KFC primarily sells fried chicken pieces and variations such as chicken fillet burgers (chicken sandwiches [US]) and wraps, salads and side dishes such as French fries and coleslaw, desserts and soft drinks, often supplied by  PepsiCo. Its most famous product is pressure fried chicken pieces, seasoned with Sanders’ â€Å"Original Recipe† of 11 herbs and spices. The exact nature of these ingredients is unknown, and represents a notable trade secret. Larger portions of fried chicken are served in a distinctive cardboard â€Å"bucket†, which has become a signature product of the chain since being introduced by franchisee Pete Harman in 1957. KFC is known for the slogan â€Å"finger lickin’ good†, which has since been replaced by â€Å"Nobody does chicken like KFC† and â€Å"So good†. Marketing Marketing is the process of communicating the value of a product or service to customers, for the purpose of selling the product or service. It is a critical business function for attracting customers. From a societal point of view, marketing is the link between a society’s material requirements and its economic patterns of response. Marketing satisfies these needs and wants through exchange processes and building long term relationships. It is the process of communicating the value of a product or service through positioning to customers. Marketing can be looked at as an organizational function and a set of processes for creating, delivering and communicating value to customers, and managing customer relationships in ways that also benefit the organization and its shareholders. Marketing is the science of choosing target markets through market analysis and market segmentation, as well as understanding consumer buying behavior and providing superior customer value. There are five competing concepts under which organizations can choose to operate their business; the production concept, the product concept, the selling concept, the marketing concept, and the holistic marketing concept. The four components of holistic marketing are relationship marketing, internal marketing, integrated marketing, and socially responsive marketing. The set of engagements necessary for successful marketing management includes, capturing marketing insights, connecting with customers, building strong brands, shaping the market offerings, delivering and communicating value, creating long-term growth, and developing marketing strategies and plans. Marketing Strategies Marketing strategy is defined by David Aaker as a process that can allow an organization to concentrate its resources on the optimal opportunities with the goals of increasing sales and achieving a sustainable competitive advantage. Marketing strategy includes all basic and long-term activities in the field of marketing that deal with the analysis of the strategic initial situation of a company and the formulation, evaluation and selection of market-oriented strategies and therefore contribute to the goals of the company and its marketing objectives. Marketing Strategies of KFC KFC IS synonymous with chicken. It has to be because chicken is its flagship product. The latest they have on offer is the marinated hot and crispy chicken that is â€Å"crrrrisp and crunchy on the outside, and soft and juicy on the inside†. It gives you a regular Pepsi with this at nothing more than just Rs. 39. But make no mistake, while this is a rage across the world, and in our very own Bangalore, KFC has made sure one other thing: it doesn’t want to alienate the vegetarian community â€Å"that gave birth to the vegetarian menu†. It means you can be veg and yet be at KFC. KFC offers a wide range of vegetarian products such as the tangy, lip-smacking paneer tikka wrap ‘n’ roll, the veg de-lite burger, and the veg crispy burger. There are munchies such as the crisp golden veg fingers and crunchy golden fries served with tangy sauces. If you are veg and looking for a meal, you can combine the veg fingers with steaming, peppery rice and a spice curry. The mayonnaise and sauces don’t have egg in them. Sharanita Keswani, Director, KFC Marketing, says the vegetarian menu in India came about when KFC found the country had about 35 per cent vegetarians, and in metros such as Delhi and Mumbai, almost 50 per cent. The non-vegetarian is the obvious target customer because, as Ms. Sharanita points out, Bangalore and the rest of south India have over 70 per cent non-vegetarians. But she also observes that chicken is KFC’s strength. KFC’s vegetarian menu is almost exclusive to India and is the most extensive. Most countries either do not have a vegetarian menu, and some which do, have a burger at the most. â€Å"Contrary to affecting chicken sales, the presence of a vegetarian menu has made the brand more relevant to a wider cross-section of the consumer society. This is essential as we grow the brand across the country,† says Ms. Sharanita. The KFC menu strategy is to â€Å"balance standardisation and localisation†. The localisation works in two ways: to modify a standard chicken product with a different topping or sauce; and to have a vegetarian menu, where necessary, along with the flagship product, chicken. The localisation exercise is undertaken in every country. â€Å"The U.S. and European markets have a traditional KFC menu based on chicken burgers and wraps, while Asian markets like India have been more experimental and adventurous. Here, they have rice meals, wraps, and sides. The change is imperative as Asian tastes can be very different from Western ones,† Ms. Sharanita observes, adding that KFC learnt very early the high demand for vegetarian products in India. KFC has taken care to maintain safeguards on the production of its non-vegetarian products in response to observations by People For Ethical Treatment of Animals that chicken were not being treated humanely by suppliers. The debate has been on for years now and animal rights activists have prompted companies to adopt stringent measures. Pankaj Batra, Director, Marketing, Indian Sub-Continent, Yum! Restaurants International, observes: â€Å"KFC is committed to the well being and humane treatment of chickens. We require all our suppliers to follow welfare guidelines developed by Yum! Restaurants International, U.S.A., with leading experts on their Animal Welfare Advisory Council. In India, we source chicken from Venkateshwara Hatcheries Limited (Venky’s), which is one of the leading and respected organised players in the poultry farming business. They also supply chicken to several reputed hotel and restaurant chains in the country. We respect the Indian law and our guidelines completely adhere to them.† Ms. Sharanita points out that while KFC’s brand standard products are their strength throughout the world, KFC works around the core and gives consumers products with a familiar taste, especially â€Å"important in a country like India that is home to such distinct and different food habits†. All KFC outlets offer its customers with various forms of incentives to buy its Chicken. Using coupons that one can acquire after spending a particular amount over a period of fixed time, customers can enjoy the benefits of free meals or free add-ons. Additionally they provide meal vouchers and exciting offers in their print ads, which the customer must cut and bring along. KFC in India The first Indian KFC opened in Bangalore in June 1995.[198] Protests ensued from left wing, anti-globalisation and environmental campaigners, as well as local farmers, who objected to the chain bypassing local producers.[199] Many Indians were concerned about the onslaught of consumerism, the loss of national self-sufficiency, and the disruption of indigenous traditions.[200] The protests came to a head in August 1995, when the Bangalore outlet was repeatedly ransacked.[198] KFC Bangalore demanded, and received, a police van permanently parked outside for a year.[199] Rural activist M. D. Nanjundaswamy subsequently claimed KFC would adversely affect the health of the impoverished, by diverting grain from poor people to make the more profitable animal feed.[201] Former environment minister Maneka Gandhi joined the anti-KFC movement.[201] KFC was also accused of using illegally high amounts of monosodium glutamate (MSG) and frying its food in pork fat.[202] A second store opened in Delhi, but was closed by the authorities soon afterwards, purportedly for health reasons, but more likely to avoid a repetition of the Bangalore incident. The two stores only managed to attract a limited, affluent clientele, and KFC decided to abandon the Indian market. KFC returned to India in 1999, with a new Bangalore outlet. This was the sole KFC in India until 2004, when the chain began to expand, albeit with a makeover and a range of new vegetarian dishes. As of December 2012, there were 280 KFCs in the Indian market. As well as the standard KFC offerings, the chain sells a chickpea burger and hot wings with chilli lemon sprinkles.

Human Senses and Perception: Accuracy and Weaknesses Essay

Can you really trust your senses and the interpretation of sensory data to give you an accurate view of the world? Describe and discuss the accuracy and the weaknesses of the human senses as they pertain to think in general and to your own thinking in particular. What perception means and how is relate to our senses? According to Joe Stratton (1999) on his book Critical Thinking for college students stated that â€Å"perception is the process of selection, organization, and interpretation of the sense-data into mental representation that can be use by the brain and the nerve system to provide content for thought† (p. 17). We can understand as Perception the process by which we receive and interpret information coming from the environment or ourselves. This information is received through the five senses: Sight, hearing, taste, touch and smell. Sensory perception is not sufficient to identify the outside world, it is necessary also the intervention of other processes such as attention, memory, and imagination. In other words, perception is how we understand and interpret the world. We perceive the world in certain ways depending on our beliefs is like a filter between us and the reality, the memories and experiences that we have stored in our subconscious mind and our capacity of imaginatio n is responsible for how we can perceive the reality. The perception varies from person to person; different people perceive different things in the same situation. â€Å"This sensing-thinking connection is so closely interrelated that our thinking often begins in our senses, progresses through additional sensory input, and shapes itself to our sensing habits; conversely, thinking can shape the way we sense† (Goodpaster & Kirby, 1999, p.44). There are some reasons that help us to believe in the accuracy of the sensory information, this mean that we are aware, dependent of our mind and perceptually seem to us. For example if we approach our arm to the fire we can feel the heat, meaning that the information passes through the touch receptors feeling the heat and sensory information reaches the brain, so next time we experience fire close to our body we will perceive that is hot.

Under the Influence Analysis

â€Å"Under the Influence† Rhetorical Analysis In â€Å"Under the Influence†, Scott Russell Sanders recreates his memories and feelings of loss, anger, and fear from his childhood inflicted by his alcoholic father. Sanders shares that growing up with a drunken parent can have a serious long-term effect on a child. He educes awareness and empathy for others by using similes, imaginary, and allusions to recreate battles against his father. Sanders writes to support other victims and to let them know they are not alone.Sanders opens his essay with a very direct fact: â€Å"My father drank†. Although this sentence is simple, his story is not. In the next sentence, he uses a simile to describe his father’s transformation with every alcoholic binge. Sanders wrote that his father â€Å" drank as a gut punched boxer gasps for breath, as a starving dog gobbles food compulsively, secretly, in pain and trembling†. He uses this simile to show that his father wa s not a social drinker, but a man who would drink just to drink.Sanders then uses imaginary to create a typical scene in his house while his father is drunk. He describes his father drinking from bottles of wine, cylinders of whisky, and cans of beer, then his father passes out in his recliner. Later, Sanders’s mother awakens him, which is when the fighting begins. This imaginary creates a sense of sadness and empathy for Sanders, for this was a daily issue for him. Sanders’s purpose for writing â€Å"Under the Influence† was to show that people do not act like themselves when consumed by alcohol.When alcohol takes over a person, they are to be feared. While continuing the story, Sanders begins to use different terms for the word â€Å"drunk†, such as tipsy, pickled, plowed, juiced, and looped. He points out that some of these words are meant to be funny, but the irony is that this is not a funny matter. The irony creates a sense of remorse for the people who suffer the way Sanders suffered growing up. As an adult, Sanders is able to accept the fact that his father suffered from a disease; however, this was not always easy for him to grasp.

Research-Supported Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Research-Supported - Essay Example It is therefore because of this reason that this study is aimed at discussing influences of modern technology on the children development (Internet, cell phones, TV). Presents two lines of thought where admirers of modern technology argue that it ensure swift communication and quick receipt information. Opposing side believes that technology affects cognitive and physical development of children. Modern technology is usually accredited to the Internet, cell phone, computers and television among others. The entire above mentioned are summarized as a civilization that is swift, communication rich, information and on the screen. For that reason, it is difficult for children today to imagine a life without computers, the Internet and cell phones. Numerous researchers have, thus, differed concerning the effects of technology on the growth of the contemporary kids. Some believe that technology is the advanced level of human life while others contend that technology has diverse effects on brain development. Presently, children are immersed in technology. Many children today, envisioning a life without technological gadgets is like living in the senior generation, and it is difficult for kids to imagine living in the aged generation. This is because technology has eased all aspects of life. However, in spite of increased use of technology among children, technology has both positive and negative influences which if not observed well, can lead to immorality all over the modern children. It is therefore because of this reason that this study is aimed at discussing influences of modern technology on the children development (Internet, cell phones, TV). Technology refers to advancement in scientific knowledge utilized for practical purposes, mainly in industry. Modern technology is usually accredited to the Internet, cell phone, computers and television among others. The entire above mentioned are summarized as a civilization that is swift,

Managing strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words - 1

Managing strategy - Essay Example In this particular study different strategic frameworks shall be incorporated so as to analyze external environmental and internal conditions of Netflix. These tools will not only help to identify key resources and competencies but even facilitate determining critical success factors. In broader context these factors are highly responsible for acquiring sustainable competitive advantage. Michael Porter states that a strategy provides valuable and unique market position to a firm. A strategic fit needs to be achieved by a company in order to align business activities with overall business strategy. Business strategy can be defined as developing, finding and formulating a doctrine so as to ensure long-term success. Strategic thinking and strategic planning approaches are closely knitted with the framework of strategic management. Netflix is an organization founded in 1997 and providing Internet streaming media on demand to wide base of viewers. It has its viewers located across South a nd North America, and certain parts of Europe such as Norway, Netherlands, Denmark, France, Ireland, Sweden, United Kingdom, Finland, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, Austria and Luxembourg. The company is even involved in sending DVD by mail at flat rate in various locations of United States. Netflix has implemented a subscription based model within its system. Members are able to choose from wide range of subscription plans encompassing option of unlimited streaming movies or media. This study shall not only highlight current strategies been followed by the firm but even would focus on available strategic options for future development. Netflix is a well-known organization operating in movie rental industry. The company is subjected to political, social, technological, economic, environmental and legal conditions. In legal and political context, the

Male-Female Relationships Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Male-Female Relationships - Research Paper Example Thus, romantic relationship remains the main focus of many researchers. The relation now aims at analyzing the social, emotional, mental, sexual and physical aspects between the two periods. Therefore, several interviews were taken to vilify this case. Introduction In any relationship, romance is measured by several factors such as the emotions of the couple. Furthermore, one can measure the strength of the relationship by number of conflicts, occurrences of domestic violence and resolution of domestic violence. In a study carried out, seven groups of participants were studied. An interview was carried out in several parts of U.S. such as cities like New York, colleges and universities like the Harvard University, and in remote places such as Harlem. Furthermore, another aspect that was analyzed during the study was the number of respondents. The study involved seven different respondents like college students, which includes young men and women aged 18-23 years. This group was close ly followed by the old in society which involved men and women over 24 years. The third group was the scholars which involved the doctors and psychologists. Furthermore, couples were also interviewed and at the same time the singles were also interviewed. Psychiatrists and police officers gave pout their reports. In this method, related literature was also studied and analyzed. The literature was a report on a research that had been carried out ten years across the line. Research question The purpose of the study was to compare the relationship in early 90s and the present relationship in families. Several factors were measured during this study. In this study we investigated the differences between men and women. We analyzed the physical, emotional, sexual and mental differences between the two sexes. The study aimed at unfolding the differences between the city and the rural area and the influence it has on relationships. We based our analysis on television, radios, movie, music a nd many more. Furthermore, the study was aimed at investigating gender socialization and age difference in relationships. In our study, we aimed at exploratory instead of testing the hypothesis. In our study, we investigated the number of conflicts in relationships. We considered the level of conflict, the frequency with which conflicts occurred and the ease of resolving the conflicts. Conflicts in relationships can be viewed as the measure for analyzing if a relationship is fairing on well or not. Furthermore, the ease with which conflicts can be resolved is used to determine the number of families which have recently broken as results of conflicts. Research site In our research, we analyzed respondents from Harvard University who included young men and students. The study included respondents from varied cultures and believes. Other respondents from the city and the rural were also analyzed. Among the respondents in New York, we managed to interview about 80 respondents. In the sa me way, we interviewed 80 respondents from Harlem. The group included both the elderly and young couples. In addition, the analysis of the results involved an analysis of results on a report on a research that was carried in 1987 in U.S on relationship among couples. Research design Our study made use of interview which had several respondents. During the study, several samples were used in specific areas. The study involved both men and women as

History of mordern political thought Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

History of mordern political thought - Essay Example ..But mostly he wrote about politics. He was mad about politics. He says in one of his letters that he had to talk about it; he could talk of nothing else...The Prince is scarcely more than a pamphlet, a very minor fraction of its author's work, but it overshadows all the rest...Everyone recognizes "Machiavellian" as an adjective for political conduct that combines diabolical cunning with a ruthless disregard for moral standards...The Prince contradicts everything else Machiavelli ever wrote and everything we know about his life.... The notion that The Prince is what it pretends to be, a scientific manual for tyrants, has to contend not only against Machiavelli's life but against his writings... The standard explanation has been that in the corrupt conditions of sixteenth-century Italy only a prince could create a strong state capable of expansion. The trouble with this is that it was chiefly because they widened their boundaries that Machiavelli preferred republics. In the Discorsi he wrote, "We know by experience that states have never signally increased either in territory or in riches except under a free government. The cause is not far to seek, since it is the well-being not of the individuals but of the community which makes the state great, and without question this universal well-being is nowhere secured save in a republic.... Popular rule is always better than the rule of princes." (1958) Machiavelli was a nationalist, a political scientist, a scholar and a staunch republican. About the most pro-monarchic view that could possibly be ascribed to him is that a Prince might be the best way to unify Italy. Machiavelli began by writing satire of the corrupt leaders of Italy such as the Medicis, making bare their horrible and destructive ambitions, but he also created modern political science simultaneously. This paper will analyze precisely how The Prince is in fact brilliant political science. Modern political science takes something for granted that class ical analyses of politics and law would have found preposterous: Analyses of what governments actually do and how to efficently carry out objectives are just as valuable as analyses of what governments should do. The Prince describes how princes actually behave and how they should behave if they want to be effective, not if they want to be moral. The Prince opens up in a rather startling way for a philosophy book about politics and law: It describes what principalities there are (Chapter I). He goes on to distinguish separate types of rule for hereditary and mixed principalities (Chapter II and III). The Prince is proceeding with simple, clear analyses, breakdowns and categories. Filling The Prince is distinct analysis of history of the Greeks and Romans, what a modern political scientist would call a case study, providing support for his claims. Take his analysis of Nabis in Chapter IX. â€Å"Nabis, Prince of the Spartans, sustained the attack of all Greece, and of a victorious Ro man army, and against them he defended his country and his government; and for the overcoming of this peril it was only necessary for him to make himself secure against a few, but this would not have been sufficient if the people had been hostile...[G]ranted a prince who has established himself as above, who can command, and is a man of courage, undismayed in adversity, who does not fail in other qualifications, and who, by his resolution and energy, keeps the whole people encouraged — such a one will never find himself deceived in them, and it will be shown that

Hubble space telescope Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Hubble space telescope - Research Paper Example this brief analysis will consider the initial need and desire for such an instrument, development of the telescope, launch and operation use, breakthroughs in astrophysics and astronomy that have since been able to be uncovered by means of the Hubble Space Telescope, and future outlook for the Hubble as well as other planned space telescopes. Although certainly not the first astronomer to note the need for a space based telescope, Hermann Olberth formerly iterated his desire to see such a plan put into implementation as early as 1923. The ultimate reason behind such a bold and technologically challenging plan was the need to get beyond earth’s inner atmosphere as a means to reduce the level of light and environmental pollutants and/or dust that so strongly influenced the quality of astronomical work that could be performed with traditional earth based telescopes. Recognizing these limitations, astronomers such as Hubble began to lobby funding entities for the means to design and build a non-earth based telescope (O’Dell 265). Unfortunately however, as is often the case with scientific visionaries, the work of actually building the space telescope was not completed until long after Olberth and many others instrumental in the formulation and development of such an idea were dead. After years of delays, a near continual struggle for available resources and review and oversight by nearly every imaginable entity, the Hubble Space telescope was finally launched in 1990. It should be noted that regardless of the delays or the budgetary overruns and issues that have herein been discussed, the Hubble Space Telescope represented the very cutting edge of optical technology; so much so that it has continued to be relevant over 20 years after being in service. This is a seemingly impossible feat of engineering and design due to the fact that the computer revolution, the age of the internet, fiber optics, and a litany of other technology breakthroughs have occurred

Bureaucracy Policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Bureaucracy Policy - Essay Example ilization of anti-bureaucratic sentiments and the claim that it is time to say good-bye to bureaucracies and bureaucrats just another round in a perennial debate and ideological struggle over what desirable forms of administration and government are--that is, a contest for control of the size, agenda, organization, competences, moral foundations, staffing, resources, and outcomes of the public sector? If so, how helpful is the literature on "bureaucracy" in analyzing current administrative challenges, compared to the diagnoses and prescriptions presented by reformers over the last twenty-five years? The paper acknowledges that there have been important changes in public administration and, even more so, in the way administration is portrayed. Yet it questions the fashionable ideas that bureaucratic organization is obsolescent and that there has been a paradigmatic shift from (Weberian) bureaucracy to market organization or network organization. (1) In contrast to decades of bureaucracy bashing, the paper argues that contemporary democracies are involved in a struggle over institutional identities and institutional balances. It also argues that for those interested in how contemporary public administration is organized, functions, and changes, it is worthwhile to reconsider and rediscover bureaucracy as an administrative form, an analytical concept, and a set of ideas and observations about public administration and formally organized institutions. The argument is developed in the following way: First, some characteristics of bureaucratic organization are outlined. Second, claims about the undesirability of bureaucracy are discussed in relation to competing criteria of success/failure and assumptions about the performance of bureaucratic organization. Third, aspects of administrative dynamics and the viability of bureaucratic organization are inquired, and fourth, some reasons for rediscovering bureaucracy are recapitulated. "Bureaucracy" is often used as a

School of Management and Economics Essay Example for Free

School of Management and Economics Essay During this work, we experienced how to manage the relationships within our work group in order to be efficient. Trust and collaboration have been the prerequisites for the formation of this team. We considered this bachelor thesis as an ongoing process, where all the parts of the paper have been rewritten many times. This work enables us to see marketing from a new perspective, more complex, maybe closer to the reality of companies. We would like to thank the managers from L’Orà ©al, Edouard Laclavià ¨re, Valentin Guillois, the manager located in Honk Hong, Ivan Coste-Manià ¨re, Iku, Aico, Mayumi, Ying, Sun-Young, Ahra and Katrin that dedicated time to answer to our questions. We are grateful to all these persons as they made the writing of this thesis possible. We would like to thank our tutor, Christine Lundberg that helped us finding our way in this process by providing us with good advice. We would like to thank also Marie Thuriot and Isabelle Petit, from IPAG, Nice, who answered from France to our emails and helped us in our researches orienting us to the right websites and to the right persons. Finally, we would like to thank our friends and relatives for their support, comprehension and criticism. Và ¤xjà ¶, May 25th 2006 Emilie, Lauranne and Tytti EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Bachelor thesis in Economics at Và ¤xjà ¶ University, 2006 Authors: Lauranne Fina, Tytti Luc and Emilie Venezia Examiner: Jerzy Kociatkiewicz Tutor: Christine Lundberg Title: The Role of Cultural Differences in the Product and Promotion Adaptation Strategy: A L’Orà ©al Paris Case Study Introduction: Nowadays, firms are becoming more and more global. However, are consumers becoming global too? Therefore, the challenge for the firms consists in determining if they should adapt their products or if they should consider the consumers as being global, and keep their product standardized. The purpose of this paper is to investigate adaptation strategy in South Korea, Japan and People’s Republic of China (PRC) for make-up products and its promotion considering the influence of culture on the consumer behaviour. This is studied referring to the European market. L’Orà ©al Paris is used as an example to illustrate the study. Methodology: This study is a case study about L’Orà ©al Paris. To conduct it, we chose to use qualitative interviews and document analysis. Different kinds of interviews have been done in order to know more about the company adaptation strategy, the culture and the consumer behaviour in Asia. Written sources as external documents from L’Orà ©al Paris, websites, press articles, scientific articles and literature have been used to complete the primary data. Theoretical framework: Culture is a system of meanings shared by members of a group. It is an important part of marketing because it influences the consumers’ wants and needs and because it impacts on the interpretations of products’ communication. This demonstrates that the culture impacts consumer behaviour. The study of the consumer behaviour conducts companies to adapt their products features, their packaging, their symbolic attributes, their service attributes and their promotion. Empirical data: The empirical data comes from various sources. We interviewed three managers from L’Orà ©al Paris and as well girls from the following nationalities: three Japanese girls, one Chinese girl and two Korean girls. We also interviewed a specialist of cosmetics. All these interviews were conducted in order to answer our objectives. The interviews with the Asian girls and with the specialist of cosmetics were conducted in order to collect data on the culture and on the consumer behaviour. The interviews with the managers of L’Orà ©al Paris were conducted in order to collect data on their adaptation and standardization strategies on the studied markets. Analysis: Cultural aspects impact directly or indirectly on the consumer behaviour. The culture diversity creates the consumer behaviour diversity as it can be noticed in South Korea, Japan and PRC where the culture and the behaviours are very different than in Europe. L’Orà ©al Paris is trying to know more about these consumer behaviour differences in order to answer the consumers’ demands and to adapt its products and promotion strategy. Conclusion: L’Orà ©al Paris is adapting some elements of its product range and its promotion. The three countries studied are very different culturally speaking. However, the adaptations on products and promotion made by L’Orà ©al Paris do not take fully into account these cultural and consumer behaviour differences. Moreover, many promotion and products aspects are standardized. Thus, the L’Orà ©al Paris adaptation strategy in the Asian zone is a mix between standardization and adaptation. In its adaptation strategy, the firm considers some elements of the consumer behaviour therefore of the culture. To conclude, the cultural differences may influence the make-up products and promotion adaptation strategy.

Strategies to Improve Water Scarcity

Strategies to Improve Water Scarcity Executive Summary This report is the summary of the definition, problems, limitation, consequences, government intervention to solve the issues and suggestion for improvements for the scarcity of water. The topic for my report is the scarcity of water in Malaysia. This report is about in the early March of 2014, there was a water crisis incident that had happened in Selangor and Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. There are 6 subtopics that will be stress out in this report. The first subtopic is about the definition of scarcity and the number of usage of water for Malaysia compare with other country. The second subtopic is about the problem. In this subtopic, we are going to discuss about the problem that faced by the society such as lack of water for personal consumption; Malaysia suffer from malnutrition, dehydration when undergoes scarcity of water. Furthermore, the third subtopic is limitation. In this subtopic we are going to discuss about why scarcity happened in Malaysia. Moreover, we are going to disc uss about the consequences that will happened to the society. There will be good and bad consequences. This report will also reviews on how the government intervention to solve this issue. The methods are government can intervenes through planning, regulation, taxes, subsidies and partnership. In this case, the Malaysian government increases the budget to help to resolve the water shortage problem in Selangor; Malaysian government has also delay a project to save the water supply and Malaysian government has also cut down the water supply of the neighborhoods every couple of days. Lastly, as a conclusion of this report we had express our suggestion on how to improve the society to cut down the percentage of the scarcity of water. Definition In the early March of 2014, there was a water crisis incident that had happen in Selangor and Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Itsdeja vuall over again and this incident reminds us of the incident in Klang Valley on 1998. Furthermore, this incident happens because of the citizen in Malaysia need a lot of water supply every day until the level that the reservoir in Malaysia is not enough to fulfill all their needs. This is a very serious problem especially when we are dealing with the natural resources that produce by our mother earth. â€Å"According to studies, Malaysians use an average of 226 liters of water per person daily, which is way above our South-East Asia neighbors. Singaporeans use 154 liters (and intend to lower it to 147 liters by 2020) while the Thais manage with 90 liters.† (Meng, 2011). Due to this statistic there is no chance that the amount of water can fulfill all the wants of the citizen. Problems When this water crisis incident had happened, there are a lot of problems faced not only by the citizen but also by the government of Malaysia. Firstly, the problem faced by the Malaysian is there is not enough water supply for the citizen’s personal consumption and culinary purpose; this may cause the citizen in Malaysia suffer from malnutrition, dehydration or also dead. According to (Bins, 2012) â€Å"Some people can only survive for 8 to 10 days without water†. Moreover, the citizen can also experience disease problem due to not less water supply. This is because contaminated water carries a lot of virus and it can cause diarrheal diseases. Diarrheal disease alone can directly link to the deaths. â€Å"Contaminated water causes 80% of the health problems throughout the world.† (Globalwater, 2010). Poverty can also take place when water crisis happen. This is because, when the water supply is not enough to fulfill the citizens need, the whole society suffers. The children in Malaysia will lack of energy to go to school and study; professionals are also lack of energy for them to drive to work. Limitations Moreover, this water crisis incident happens because Malaysian citizen does not know how to appreciate the value of water supply. The price of water supply in Malaysia is very low and because of this, most of the people do not know how much water they are using until they receive their monthly bill and the water bill is just a small part of the bill. â€Å"Water is dirt cheap. So cheap that nobody pays any attention to saving it in the same way we would save electricity. In fact, the average Malaysian family’s water bill is only about 10% of its electricity bill,’’ (Dr. Chan, 2014). On the other hand, Malaysian government does not give any attention to the management of the water resources while we have plenty of rainfall to cover up for the lost that we might experience. The government did not plan for any alternative ways to survive from water crisis. â€Å"Our government does not have laws to safeguard water catchment areas and bar development projects in ec ologically sensitive areas.† (MalaysiaChronicle, 2014). Consequences When this water crisis incident had happened, there are good and bad consequences. Firstly, the good consequence is that Malaysian will be more aware of the usage of water supply. Malaysian will be more aware the limitation of water supply in Malaysia. Citizen in Selangor and Negeri Sembilan will start to save water by using campaign. Furthermore, citizen in Selangor and Negeri Sembilan will also know the importance of the water to the society. The citizen in Malaysia will realize that without water, health problem will occur. In addition, water crisis can cause the water pollution to decrease rapidly because people will start to appreciate water and they do not want to suffer from water shortage again. Moreover, the bad consequence is that water shortage can increase the percentage of people pass away. The shortage of water will cause health problems such as diarrheal diseases. This incident can also decrease the production of crops. The shortage of water can decrease the crops prod uction. Without water farmers wont be able to produce enough food to sell in the market and because of this the price of food will raise rapidly and the demand for this food will be very low. Government Intervention Malaysia is a country that uses mixed economic system. All economic decisions are made partly by the government and partly through the market. For example, government can intervenes through planning, regulation, taxes, subsidies and partnership. In this case, the Malaysian government increases the budget to help to resolve the water shortage problem in Selangor. â€Å"Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak announced on 2nd February an additional allocation of RM120 million to Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (Syabas) to help resolve the water problem in Selangor.† (wordpress.com, 2013). Furthermore, Malaysian government has also delay a project to save the water supply. According to (thenutgraph.com, 2014) â€Å"Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Datuk SeriPeter Chin, saying Selangor is due for a water crisis by 2014 if the current state government under the Pakatan Rakyat continues to delay land approval for the Langat 2 treatment plant to be built.† This project has been delayed and will be restart again on 2016. Lastly, Malaysian government has also cut down the water supply of the neighborhoods every couple of days. According to (themalaymailonline.com, 2014) â€Å"The rationing will see millions of consumers in the state receive two days of water supply followed by two days of dry taps to enable water to be conserved in the dams over the next two months.† Suggestion My first suggestion for Malaysia to improve the economics is that Malaysia government should understand the issue in the society now days so that the government can meet the needs of the citizens. Secondly, the Malaysian government should not separate from its currently economy system because the benefits are better than the problems the country is facing now; instead Malaysian government should focus on how they can to restructure it in order to enhance the chances of success. The restructuring approach can involves defining areas that businesses will have to invest in and areas that government will have to invest in. The end product will be an economy where all customers’ needs are well meet and equality establishing for competition and business growth. The conclusion is that mixed economy is the right choice for the economic growth of Malaysia as it serves the right background for understanding what should be invested and defining how such investment will be undertaken, and also providing the necessary resources for such investment because it is both the government and the individuals that combines to finance the production process. References Meng Yew Choong. 2011.Malaysia faces looming water crisis. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.thestar.com.my/story.aspx/?file=%2f2011%2f3%2f22%2flifefocus%2f8192017. [Accessed 04 May 14]. Corey Binns. 2012.How Long Can a Person Survive Without Water? [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.livescience.com/32320-how-long-can-a-person-survive-without-water.html. [Accessed 04 May 14]. globalwater.org/. 2010.Why Water? [ONLINE] Available at:http://globalwater.org/whywater.htm. [Accessed 04 May 14]. Malaysia-chronicle.com. 2014.SPORE MUST BE LAUGHING: A water crisis of Malaysias own making. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.malaysia-chronicle.com/index.php?option=com_k2view=itemid=232812:spore-must-be-laughing-a-water-crisis-of-malaysias-own-makingItemid=2#axzz2zWgCEZLu. [Accessed 04 May 14]. wordpress.com. 2013.najib gives syabas another rm120million bailout?. [ONLINE] Available at: http://fabm.wordpress.com/tag/water-crisis/. [Accessed 04 May 14]. thenutgraph.com. 2010.Averting Selangor’s water crisis. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.thenutgraph.com/averting-selangors-water-crisis/. [Accessed 04 May 14]. themalaymailonline.com. 2014.In Selangor, taps to run only every two days. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/in-selangor-taps-to-run-only-every-two-days. [Accessed 04 May 14]. 1 | Page

Causes Of The Indian Removal Act Architecture Essay

Causes Of The Indian Removal Act Architecture Essay The Indian Removal Act of 1830 was unfolded was during a time of contradictions. While it was a period of expanding democratic institutions, it also pointed to obvious limitations of that democracy. States largely abolished property restrictions on voting and as the Western frontier was being expanded, it meant more opportunities of settlement for whites. However, the Western land of promise spelled disaster for the Native peoples who lived with the whites. No one better understood the contradictions of this age of democracy than the Cherokees, who adopted many of the white institutions only to suffer from the tyranny of the majority and were forced to the West against their will. In this study, I will answer the question: What were the causes of the Indian Removal Act of 1830 and what were its effects upon the Cherokee nation? Before the act, the American government sought to civilize and integrate the Native Americans into their culture, and the Cherokees were an example of the successes of assimilation. I will explore why there was such a significant shift in American policies toward the Native Americans from assimilation to removal. I will also discuss the long term effects of the Indian Removal Act that negatively altered the internal organization of the tribes and created factions within the Cherokee nation. I relied on both primary and secondary sources to understand both Americans and the Cherokees perspectives on the act. In my research, I discovered the grievances harbored by the Cherokee nation when the American policies were changed and implemented. The Indian Removal Act is, without a question, a Cherokee tragedy, but it is also an American tragedy. The Cherokees had believed in the promise of democracy by the United States, and their disappointment is a legacy that all Americans share. Introduction: The Cherokees were only one of the many Native Americans forcibly removed in the first half of the nineteenth century, but their experiences have a particular significance and poignancy. The Cherokees, more than any other native people in their time, tried to adopt the Anglo-American culture. In a remarkably short time, they transformed their society and modified their traditional culture to conform to United States policies, to fulfill the expectations of white politicians, and most importantly, to preserve their tribal integrity. This civilization policy required a total reorganization of the spiritual and social world of the Cherokees. They established schools, developed written laws, and abolished clan revenge. Cherokee women became involved in spinning and weaving while the men raised livestock and planted crops. Some Cherokee even built columned plantation houses and bought slaves. John C. Calhoun, secretary of war, writes to Henry Clay, Speaker of the House of Representatives on January 15, 1820, The Cherokees exhibit a more favorable appearance that any other tribe of Indians. They are already established two flourishing schools among them.' (Ehle 154). By adopting the white culture, the Cherokees hope to gain white respect. Acculturation was also a defensive mechanism to prevent further loss of land and extinction of native culture. Even more adamant Cherokees firmly believed that civilization was preferable to their traditional way of life. The progress of the Cherokees astounded many whites who trave led through their county in the early nineteenth century. Adding to these achievements, a Cherokee named Sequoyah invented a syllabary in 1820 that enabled the Cherokees to read and write in their own language. They also increased the number of written laws and established a bicameral legislature. By 1827, the Cherokees had also established a supreme court and a constitution very similar to those of the United States. Their educated men even attended the American Boards seminary in Cornwall, Connecticut, and could read Latin and Greek as well as understand the white mans philosophy, history, theology, and politics (Anderson 7). The Cherokees exceeded the goals proposed for the Indians by various United States presidents from George Washington and Andrew Jackson. In the words of a Cherokee scholar, the Cherokees were the mirror of the American Republic. On the eve of Cherokee removal to the west, many white Americans considered them to be the most civilized of all natives peoples (Anderson 24). What then caused the Cherokees to be removed? Why were they forced to abandon homes, schools, and churches? From demographic shifts to the rise in political factions, the ensuing conflicts that arising from the Indian Removal Act of 1830 still affect the surviving Cherokee nation today. Causes of the Indian Removal Act: It is important to recognize that the decision of the Jackson administration to remove the Cherokee Indians to lands west of the Mississippi River in the 1830s was more a reformulation of the national policy that had been in effect since the 1790s than a change in that policy. In the early years of the Republic, seizure of Indian land was a way of civilizing Native Americans. First articulated by George Washingtons Secretary of War, Henry Knox, on July 2, 1791 in the Treaty of Holston, the policy of seizing native lands was that the Cherokee Nation may be led to a greater degree of civilization, and to become herdsmen and cultivators, instead of remaining in a state of hunters. The United States will from time to time furnish gratuitous the said nation with useful implements of husbandry. On the surface, the original goal of the civilization policy seemed philanthropic. Making civilized men out of savages would benefit the Native Americans and the new nation as well as ensure the progress of the human race (Bernard Sheehan, Seeds of Extinction: Jeffersonian Philanthropy and the American Indian, 119). However, the policy represented attempts to wrest the Cherokee lands. Knox and his successors reasoned that if Indians gave up hunting, their hunting grounds will become surplus land that they would willingly exchange for funds to support education, agriculture and other civilized pursuits (Perdue 25). For this reason, coercing the Indians to cede their hunting grounds would actually accelerate acculturation because they would no longer occupy the forest when they had fields to till. Thomas Jefferson, who became president in 1801, shared Knoxs beliefs. Jeffersons negotiating tactics were far more aggressive than anything Knox envisioned as Jefferson ordered his agents to intensify the pressure on tribes to sell more and larger tracts of land. Soon, he let it be known that treats, intimidation, and bribery were acceptable tactics to get the job done (Anderson 35). Jefferson, with his aggression, merely uncovered that these civilization policies were not for the benefit of the Native Americans. Rather, the assimilation policy was a disguised policy of removal of the Native Americans by the American government. It is therefore important to identify that the cause of the Indian Removal Act did not originate in the 1830s, but rather culminated in the early nineteenth century. However, more immediate reasons did cause Congress to pass the Indian Removal Act of 1830 during Jacksons presidency. The factors contributing to the fate of the Cherokees were the discovery of gold on Cherokee land, the issue of states rights, and the emergence of scientific racism. American speculators coveted the nearly five million acres the Cherokee Nation refused to sell. Whites desired land for settlement purposes as property was an obvious measure of wealth in the South. The southerners also desired more agricultural land as the invention of the cotton gin made cotton a lucrative business. In addition, intrusion into Cherokee lands became more urgent with the discovery of gold on its land in 1829. Also, the Americans began to embrace a belief in white superiority and the static nature of the red man in the period after the 1820s. Many Americans concluded, Once an Indian, always an Indian (Anderson 35). Culture, they believed, was innate, not learned. However civilized an Indian may appear, he retained a savage nature. When the civilization program failed to transform the Indians overnight, many Americans supported that the savages should not be permitted to remain in midst of a civilized society. Though earlier in his letter to Clay, Calhoun had praised the progress of the Cherokees, he concludes the letter writing, Although partial advances may have been made under the present system to civilize the Indians, I am of an opinion that, until there is a radical change in the system, any efforts which may be made must fall short of complete success. They must be brought under our authority and laws, or they will insensibly waste away in vice and misery.' The condescending tone tha t Calhoun takes to describe the Cherokees reveals the racist attitude of the early nineteenth century and sheds light onto one of the reasons why Americans urged Congress to remove Indians from their homelands. In this racist atmosphere of Georgia, another vital cause of removal was states rights. Although the Cherokees saw their constitution as a crowning achievement, whites, especially Georgians, viewed it as a challenge to states rights because the Cherokee territory was within the boundaries of four states. The 1827 Cherokee Constitution claimed sovereignty over tribal lands, establishing a state within a state. Georgians claimed that such a legal maneuver violated the United States constitution and that the federal government was doing nothing to remedy the situation. Sympathetic the Georgians cries was Andrew Jackson, who became president 1829. As a follower of the Republican doctrine of state sovereignty, he firmly supported a national policy of Indian removal and defended his stand by asserting that removal was the only course of action that could save the Native Americans from extinction. Jacksons attitude toward Native Americans was patronizing, describing them as children in need of guidance and believed the removal policy was beneficial to them. To congressional leaders, he assured them that his policies would enable the federal government to place the Indians in a region where they would be free of white encroachment and jurisdictional disputes between the states and federal government. He sought congressional approval of his removal policy and stated to Captain James Gadsden in October 12, 1829 that the policy would be generous to the Indians and at the same time would allow the United States to exercise a parental control over their inte rests and possibly perpetuate their race. Though not all Americans were convinced by Jacksons and his assurances that his motives and methods were philanthropic, Congress passed the Indian Removal Act in 1830 that allowed: 1) the federal government the power to relocate any Native Americans in the east to territory that was west of the Mississippi River; 2) the president to set up districts within the Indian Territory for the reception of tribes agreeing to land exchanges, and 3) the payment of indemnities to the Indians for assistance in accomplishing their resettlement, protection in their new settlements, and a continuance of the superintendence and care. Effects of the Indian Removal Act: The Removal Act of 1830 left many things unspecified, including how the removal of the eastern Indian nations would be arranged. During Jacksons administration, one of the most important Cherokee groups that decided to leave was led by the powerful Ridge family. At the beginning of the struggle against removal, the Ridge family firmly supported Chief John Ross, one of the elected leaders of the tribe. Ross and his people also believed that the Cherokees years of peace, achievements, and contributions gave them the right to remain on land that was legally theirs. However, the Ridges soon decided that the struggle to keep the Cherokee lands in the East was a lost cause. Major Ridge had been one of the first to recognize that Indians had no hope against whites in war. Two factions then developed within the tribe the majority, who supported Chief Ross in his struggle to keep their homeland in the East, and the Treaty Group, who thought the only solution was to emigrate to the West. Rather than lose all they had to the states in the East, the Ridge party, without the consent of Ross, signed the Treaty of New Echota in December 1835. They treaty conveyed to the United States all lands owned, claimed, or possessed by the Cherokee Nation east of the Mississippi River. Major Ridge explained his decision to give up the Cherokee homeland saying, We cannot stay here in safety and comfortWe can never forget these homesI would willingly die to preserve them, but any forcible effort to keep them will cost us our lands, our lives and the lives of our children' (Gilbert 21). By Cherokee law, the tribe owned all land in common, no individual or minority group had a right to dispose of it. Army officer Major William Davis who was hired to enroll the Cherokees for removal, wrote the secretary of war that nine-tenths of the Cherokees would reject the Treat of New Echota: That paper called a treat is no treaty at all (Gilbert 23). However, on May 17, 1836, the Senate ratified the Treaty of New Echota by one vote, and on May 23, President Jackson signed the treaty into law. The deadline for removal of all the Cherokees from the East was set for May 23, 1838. The Treaty of New Echota was not an honest or fair agreement between the United States and the Cherokee nation. Even Georgia governor William Schley, admitted that it was not made with the sanction of their leaders (Ehle 244). However, in January 1837, about six hundred wealthy members of the Treaty Party emigrated west, a full year before the forcible deportation of the rest of the Cherokees. Cherokee removal did not take place as a single expulsion but instead spanned many years. In the late summer of 1838, a detachment of Cherokees began to exit the stockade where they had been held for many months awaiting the long journey to their new home west of the Mississippi. Some Cherokees had voluntarily moved west, though most remained in their homelands, still not believing they would be forced to leave. In 1838, the Cherokees were disarmed, and General Winfield Scott was sent to oversee their removals. John G. Burnett, a soldier who participated in the removal described the event saying, Women were dragged from their homes by soldiers. Children were often separated from their parents and driven into the stockades with the sky for a blanket and the earth for a pillow. And often the old and inform were prodded with bayonets to hasten them to the stockades (Ehle 393). Those forced from their homeland departed with heavy hearts. Cherokee George Hicks lamented, We are now about to take our final leave and kind farewell to our native land, the country that the Great Spirit gave our FathersIt is with sorrow that we are forced by the white man to quit the scenes of our childhood (Anderson 37). For Cherokees, the Georgian land had meaning far deeper than its commercial value. Their culture and creation tied them to this place, and now they were being compelled to surrender their homes and march west. Above all, Cherokees lost faith in the United States. In one Kentucky town, a local resident asked an elderly Indian man if he remembered him from his service the United States Army in the Creek War. The old man replied, Ah! My life and the lives of my people were then at stake for you and your country. I then thought Jackson my best friend. But ah! Jackson no serve me right. Your country no do me justice now! (New York Observer, January 26, 1839, quoted in Foreman 305-307.) Exposure and fatigue during the deportation weakened immune systems, making the Cherokees susceptible to diseases such as measles, whooping cough, dysentery, and respiratory infections. The number of Cherokees who perished on the Trail of Tears, the name given to the 826 mile route taken took them west, is hard to determine. The most commonly cited figure for deaths is 4,000, approximately one quarter of the Cherokees, and is an estimate made by Dr. Elizur Butler, a missionary who accompanied the Cherokees (Anderson 85). By his own count, John Ross supervised the removal of 13,149, and his detachment reported 424 deaths and 69 births along with 182 desertions. A United States official in Indian Territory counted 11,504 arrivals, a discrepancy of 1,645 when compared to the total of those who departed the East. Sociologist Russell Thorton has speculated that removal cost the Cherokees 10,000 individuals between 1835 and 1840, including the children that victims would have produced have they survived (Anderson 93). Therefore, the overall demographic effect was far greater than the actual number of casualties. When the Ross detachments arrived in the spring of 1839 to the Indian Territory, melding with the Treaty Party who left before the forcible removal was a daunting task. Removal had shattered the matrix of Cherokee society, ripping them from their ancestral sources and shaking their infant institutions of government. Civil war burst forth as the political chasm brought on by the Treaty of New Echota divided the Cherokee Nation. For more than a decade, the Cherokee fought this bloody civil war, and a distorted version of the old clan revenge system reemerged. In June 1839, between six and seven thousand Cherokees assembled at Takatoka Camp Ground to resolve the looming political crisis. Chief John Ross insisted on the continuation of the eastern Cherokee government for several reasons. The Cherokee Nation had a written constitution and an elaborate law code and government, and they did constitute a substantial majority. However, the United States saw the Treaty Party as true patriots, Ross as a villain, and the recent emigrants as savages, thwarting all efforts to reconcile the divided factions in the Cherokee nation. When the meeting ended with a compromise to be voted on a later date, 150 National Party men met secretly and decided that the Cherokees who had signed the Treaty of New Echota were traitors who had violated the Cherokee law prohibiting the unauthorized sale of land. Early on the morning of June 22, one group dragged John Ridge from his bed and stabbed him to death. Another party shot Major Ridge as he traveled along a road in Arkansas, killing him instantly. About the same time, a third group came to Elias Boudinots house and split his head with a tomahawk. Reacting to these acts of violence, the Treaty Party remained opposed to any government dominated by the National Party. They held their own councils and sent delegates to Washington to seek federal protection and the arrest of the persons responsible for the killings. Most of the Treaty Party continued to resist the act of union and bitterly opposed any concession to the National Party, widening the growing political chasm. However, as long as the National Party refused to ratify the Treaty of New Echota, the nationalist Cherokees were refused payment of its annuities and funds by the federal government. The relative prosperity of the Treaty Party members ignited the dormant resentments of the impoverished Cherokees who had suffered the agony of the Trail of Tears (McLoughlin 17). In order to affirm the sovereignty of the Cherokee Nation and to alleviate the suffering of his people, Ross pressed for a renegotiation of the fraudulent Treaty of New Echota. While Ross was in Washington in the summer of 1842, violence in the Cherokee Nation escalated as members of the Treaty Party began killing individuals who they believed had been responsible for the death of their leaders. Gangs began to attack and kill other Cherokee citizens, most of whom were identified with the National Party, but became impossible to distinguish between political violence and common crime. The Starr gang, for example, coalesced arou nd James Starr, a signer of the Treaty of New Echota. Under the guise of political resistance, Starrs sons and others terrorized the Cherokee nation. In 1843, they murdered a white visitor to the Cherokee Nation and also burned down the home of John Ross daughter. The violence gave the federal government an excuse to keep troops at Fort Gibson, decry the inefficacy of the Nations government and meddle further in Cherokee affairs. The Treaty Party renewed their hope of undermining Ross authority since federal officials tended to blame Ross for the carnage (Perdue 156). The letters during the time of this Cherokee civil warfare reflected the fear and anguish felt by the people. In November 1845, Jane Ross Meigs wrote to her father, Chief John Ross, The country is in such a state just now that there seems little encouragement for people to build good houses or make anything. I am so nervous I can scarce write at all. I hope it will not be long youll be at home but I hope that the country will be settled by that time too (Rozema 198). Less than a year later, Sarah Watie of the Treaty Party wrote her husband, I am so tired of living this way. I dont believe I could live one year longer if I knew that we could not get settled, it has wore my spirits out just the thoughts of not having a good homeI am perfectly sick of the world (Perdue 141). An uneasy peace came to the Cherokee Nation after the United States government forced the tribal factions to sign a treaty of agreement in Washington in 1846. The Cherokees, under Ross leadership was to be sovereign in their new land. It also brought the per capita payments so desperately needed for economic recovery of the Cherokee Nation. However, with this treaty, the Cherokees were caught in a series of contradictions. Cherokee leaders wanted to convince the white population that they were capable of managing their own affairs if left to their own self-government. But economically, they were tied to the financial aid of the federal government, growing ever more dependent on American funds. Furthermore, in midst of this peace, the Cherokees could not cast aside old fears that continued to haunt them. If whites could drive them from Georgia, why not from this place? From this fear spawned an attitude of distrust toward the American government that is still present in some Cherokee societies today (Anderson 115). Conclusion: The causes of the Indian Removal Policy of 1830 are numerous and varied in interpretation. Some historians have equated Jacksons removal policy with Adolph Hitlers Final Solution and have even called it genocide (Peter Farbs The Indians of North America from Primeval Times to the Coming of the Industrial State New York: E. P. Dutton, 1968). Not only did he encourage the geographical separation of Indians and whites, but thousands of Native Americans perished in the process. Whether or not he advocated this mass extinction of Indians, Jackson on the political front was a staunch supporter of state sovereignty and could not deny Georgias rights to the Cherokees expansive lands. In addition to the impact on the Cherokee demographics, the Treaty of New Echota caused factions within the Cherokee Nation that broke loyalties and caused them to revert back to old clan revenge warfare. The resentment that was fostered between the New Party and the Treaty Party created lasting divisions within the Cherokee nation. Moreover, the Cherokee Nation, before the Indian Removal Act, had prided itself on the fact that it had adapted to white institutions with great degrees of success. However, engaging in clan warfare, the Cherokees took a step back in progress when embroiled in such violence that was primarily caused by the Treaty of New Echota.   Furthermore, the Cherokees remained dependent on federal governments economic assistance when they were seeking to prove that they could function better as a soverign nation. The removal of the Cherokees west of the Mississippi is one of the greatest tragedies in United States history. While the Cherokees have shown incredible resilience in recovering from the decimating effects of their removal, the injustice they faced from fraudulent treaties, ethnocentric intolerance, and discriminatory laws will forever stain Americas history.  

Software Piracy :: essays research papers

Software Piracy   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Software piracy is the failure of a licensed user to adhere to the conditions of a software license or the unauthorized use or reproduction of copyrighted software by a person or entity that has not been licensed to use the software. Software piracy has become a household word and a household crime and has had a great affect on the software industry. It is a problem that can only be solved by the choices of each individual.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The computer software industry is one of the great business success stories of recent history, with healthy increases in both hardware and software sales around the world. However, software piracy threatens the industry's economic future. According to estimates by the U.S. Software Publisher's Association, as much as $7.5 billion of American software may be illegally copied and distributed annually worldwide. These copies work as well as the originals and sell for significantly less money. Piracy is relatively easy, and only the largest rings of distributors are usually caught. In addition, software pirates know that they are unlikely to serve hard jail time when prisons are overcrowded with people convicted of more serious crimes. The software industry loses more than $15.2 billion annually worldwide due to software piracy. Software piracy costs the industry: $482 every second $28,900 every minute $1.7 million every hour $41.6 million every day $291.5 million every week   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  To understand software piracy, one must get inside the mind of the pirate. People, who wouldn't think of sneaking merchandise out of a store or robbing a house, regularly obtain copies of computer programs which they haven't paid for. The pirate has a set of excuses for his actions: prices are too high; the company doesn't provide decent support; he's only going to use the program once in a while. Although, what really makes software piracy seem less bad than other kinds of theft is that nothing is physically taken. There is no immediate effect on the inventory or productive capacity of the creator of a piece of software if someone 500 miles away copies a disk and starts using it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  People tend to think of property as a material thing, and thus have a hard time regarding a computer program as property. However, property is not a concept pertaining to matter alone. Ownership is a concept which comes out of the fact that people live by creating things of value for their own use or for trade with others. Creation does not mean making matter, but rather changing the form of matter alongwith an idea and a purpose. Most often, the actual cost of creating goods is determined in the production of individual items.

Japanese Education Essay examples -- Essays Papers

Japanese Education Japan is a country that takes education very seriously. This may be understood by the remarkable achievement that has been made. Japan=s education system played a major role in enabling the country to meet the challenges presented by the need to quickly understand Western ideas, science, and technology in the Meiji Period. It was also a key factor in Japan=s recovery and fast growth in the years that followed World War II. We can=t assume that education is the only thing that shaped the country, but can we say that it was a major influence in prosperity and welfare. Despite what may have happened before, it is clear that the education reform was necessary to build back up Japan=s prosperity in the years to come. History of Japan's Education Education has always existed one form or another. The first system of education was during the Tokugawa Period, which placed a high sense of learning. They learned benevolence, justice, courtesy and individual integrity. These were the most stressed systems of thought. The men also had to learn education and the ways of war. The founder of this method was Tokugawa Ieyasu, he issued a law saying Aarts of peace@ (10) which meant learning and also to learn the arts of war. He felt that both were of equal importance and should be mastered by all. After this system was applied, by the 1860's much of the curriculum was found in more than 300 schools across Japan. This soon changed by1868, when one of the top students from the Tokugawa education, suggested that Japan can compare with other Adeveloped nations@(11) of this time. After this suggestion Japan accepted many of the Western ideas. They wanted to modernize their country and by doing th... ...dation, 1982. Beauchamp, Edward R. AEducation and Schooling in Japan since 1945.@ New York & London. Garland Publishing, Inc, 1998. Walberg, Herbert J., and Leestma, Robert. AJapanese Educational Productivity.@ University of Michigan, 1983. Japan=s Education System. December 5, 2003. November 5, 2003. Japan=s Education System. September 30, 2003. November 5, 2003. Japan Access. December 1, 2003. November 5, 2003. Japanese Education and Literacy. August 1, 2003. November 5, 2003. Role of Education in Economic Development in Japan. September 23, 2003. November 5, 2003.

Land of the Free Because of the Homeless

LAND OF THE FREE BECAUSE OF THE HOMELESS In this article by Shaunna Miller, We learn about the American service members who have unfortunately committed suicide. Yearly, more than 6,500 service members lose their lives due to suicide cases. What most individuals fail to realize is that the number by far exceeds that of those soldiers killed in both Afghanistan and Iraq combined over the last six years. Even those who are against the idea of committing suicide are at high risks of meeting another ill fate.Despite their efforts of fighting for a noble cause, most veterans of America are today homeless. According to estimates of the Census Bureau of the United States, there are over 470,000 homeless people every night. When an analysis is carried out regarding the plight of the homeless veterans, the numbers are devastating. Of the adult population of the country, only about 11 percent are veterans, yet on any given night, veterans make over 154,000 of those individuals who are homeless . This represents over 33 percent of the homeless population.This implies that one third of those persons who are homeless are those people who at one time served this great country. It is not uncommon to find Vietnam War veterans holding placards in streets begging for food. More than 335,000 veterans were reported to be homeless in 2006 alone. According to studies, about 44,000-64,000 of this homeless population is categorized as being chronically homeless. The big question remains why are individuals who served our country left to suffer alone.The major reason that has been given to explain why there exist so many homeless people among the veterans is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Statistics from PTSD National Center reveal that this psychiatric disorder normally presents itself after an individual has been through events that are life-threatening. â€Å"Life changing monster† is the name that the disorder has been given by experts. Individuals who were once healthy sudd enly become impulsive, detached, anxious, and sensitive to noise and light.This implies that they become prone to regular emotional outbursts, and even doing simple problems becomes a hard ask. With time, these difficulties alter the functional ability of the individual, as well as their family and social life. Consequently, the disorder creates parenting difficulties, divorces, marital problems and occupational instability. When the PTSD related ailments become to severe, they will consequently result in lack of social support, and when the veterans lack support from their friends and family, they inevitably become homeless.Web postings reveal that the two wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have resulted in the loss of 4,848 lives as of April 14, 2009. This is proof that American troops are exposed to a lot of traumatic events, most of which result with PTSD for those who survive. Of every five troops that successfully return home, one gets diagnosed with either depression or PTSD. A Mil itary medicine article reveal that of the more than 8 million who served their country in the Vietnam War, about 30 percent suffer from PTSD. The current population that is homeless is predominantly made of war veterans.Of the batch that is currently deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq, more than 300,000 have been diagnosed with PTSD. They are even becoming homeless at rates that are much higher than their Vietnam War counterparts. The solution that could effectively address this is to give it our time. During 2007 85,000 volunteers saved the VA 218 million dollars. When people become volunteers their time allows other funds to be used to further treatment for PTSD. So it is in giving our time that we hope to decrease homelessness in our veterans and increase their ability to cope. Qs:Central Idea: After not choosing to take their life the plight of our homeless veterans is that of depression and post traumatic stress syndrome; but the volunteering of our time can help decrease the 33% of the homeless population they represent. The main points are: 1. Suicide numbers for American Veteran. 2. How veteran Homelessness and its numbers are associated with depression and PTSD. 3. The volunteering of citizens time is requested as a solution over money

Applying Servqual to Web Sites: an Exploratory Study

International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management Emerald Article: Applying SERVQUAL to Web sites: an exploratory study Jos van Iwaarden, Ton van der Wiele, Leslie Ball, Robert Millen Article information: To cite this document: Jos van Iwaarden, Ton van der Wiele, Leslie Ball, Robert Millen, (2003),†Applying SERVQUAL to Web sites: an exploratory study†, International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, Vol. 20 Iss: 8 pp. 919 – 935 Permanent link to this document: http://dx. doi. org/10. 1108/02656710310493634 Downloaded on: 27-01-2013References: This document contains references to 26 other documents Citations: This document has been cited by 25 other documents To copy this document: [email  protected] com This document has been downloaded 2679 times since 2005. * Users who downloaded this Article also downloaded: * Jos van Iwaarden, Ton van der Wiele, Leslie Ball, Robert Millen, (2003),†Applying SERVQUAL to Web sites: an exploratory studyà ¢â‚¬ , International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, Vol. 20 Iss: 8 pp. 919 – 935 http://dx. doi. org/10. 108/02656710310493634 Jos van Iwaarden, Ton van der Wiele, Leslie Ball, Robert Millen, (2003),†Applying SERVQUAL to Web sites: an exploratory study†, International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, Vol. 20 Iss: 8 pp. 919 – 935 http://dx. doi. org/10. 1108/02656710310493634 Jos van Iwaarden, Ton van der Wiele, Leslie Ball, Robert Millen, (2003),†Applying SERVQUAL to Web sites: an exploratory study†, International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, Vol. 20 Iss: 8 pp. 919 – 935 http://dx. doi. org/10. 1108/02656710310493634Access to this document was granted through an Emerald subscription provided by UCSI EDUCATION SDN BHD For Authors: If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service. Information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www. emeraldinsight. com/authors for more information. About Emerald www. emeraldinsight. com With over forty years' experience, Emerald Group Publishing is a leading independent publisher of global research with impact in business, society, public policy and education.In total, Emerald publishes over 275 journals and more than 130 book series, as well as an extensive range of online products and services. Emerald is both COUNTER 3 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. *Related content and download information correct at time of download. The Emerald Research Register for this journal is available at http://www. emeraldinsight. com/researchregister The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at http://www. emeraldinsight. om/0265-671X. htm NEW RESEARCH Applying SERVQUAL to Web sites: an exploratory study Applying SERVQUAL 919 Jos van Iwaarden and Ton van der Wiele Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, and Leslie Ball and Robert Millen Received August 2002 Revised December 2002 Accepted December 2002 Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA Keywords Worldwide Web, SERVQUAL, Electronic commerce Abstract In an effort to identify the quality factors perceived to be most important in relation to the use of Web sites, a survey was undertaken. The questionnaire utilized was based on the SERVQUAL instrument that identi? s ? ve quality dimensions in service environments. The results indicate that the quality dimensions found applicable in the service sector are also applicable to Web sites. The items that have been identi? ed as most important in relation to the quality of Web sites are tangibles (the appearance of the Web site, navigation, search options, and structure), reliability (the abi lity to judge the trustworthiness of the offered service and the organization performing the service), responsiveness (the willingness to help customers and provide prompt service), assurance (the ability of the Web site to convey trust and con? ence in the organisation behind it with respect to security and privacy), and empathy (the provision of caring, individualized attention to customers, including user recognition and customization). Introduction In the early 1990s three technologies (communications speed, memory capacity, and computer speed) were rapidly growing in terms of capabilities they had for over 20 years. However, their combined S-curve growths suddenly enabled one of the greatest technology revolutions ever seen – the explosion of the Internet.Originally designed as an information conduit, entrepreneurs soon saw the great power of a selling channel that enabled browsing, selecting, and buying without leaving the comfort of the home. Businesses realized that t hey could interact directly with other businesses over the Internet, as well. Additionally, government agencies caught on and began delivering services online, collecting payments for licenses and taxes, providing information, etc. The history of this explosion is well documented as both computer and Internet use have increased substantially in the past few years (US Department of Commerce, 2002).Since 1997 computer use has grown at a rate of 5. 3 percent on an annualized basis. Internet use has grown at a rate of 20 percent per year since 1998, and in the 13 months prior to the September 2001 survey by the US Department of Commerce, over 26 million more Americans went online. The authors are thankful to all anonymous referees for their valuable comments. International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management Vol. 20 No. 8, 2003 pp. 919-935 q MCB UP Limited 0265-671X DOI 10. 1108/02656710310493634 IJQRM 20,8 920While there is a great talk about the â€Å"digital divide†, t he US Department of Commerce reported that 54 percent (or 143 million Americans) have access to the Internet in their homes and that nearly 100 percent of the US population has access through schools and libraries. Thousands of companies were formed to sell goods and services over the Internet during this period creating the â€Å"New Economy†. Subsequently, many of those companies are now gone as witnessed by the huge number of bankruptcies (Baldwin, 2002). Different experts might de? e e-commerce differently, but most agree on one thing: the sector represents a growing piece of the overall commerce pie, and its share is expected to increase steadily – though gradually – over the next ? ve years. Various parties have forecast different results. For example, Forrester reports that online sales in the USA accounted for $51. 3 billion in revenue during 2001, and revenue for 2002 is expected to a total of $72. 1 billion, a 41 percent increase over the previous year (Hirsh, 2002). However, this accounts for only 2 percent of the overall retail spending.It has been predicted that this share will grow by about three-tenths of a percentage point each year through at least 2005, marking a slow but steady climb. As for e-commerce sales, another projection estimates that online revenue will total about $90 billion in 2002, $160-$170 billion in 2004, and $287. 9 billion by 2006 (Hirsh, 2002). The value of the Internet goes beyond adding another selling channel. Researchers at McKinsey and Company report that the retention of customers online is easier than in traditional â€Å"bricks and mortar† companies where the online company spends three to ? ve times less to retain them.Companies that retained customers exhibited traits of reliable basic operational execution. Their sites downloaded quickly; they responded to customer queries quickly; they delivered more than 95 percent of their orders on time; and they made it easy for customers to retu rn or exchange purchases. One company raised its on-time delivery rates from 60 to 90 percent, and cut customer churn in half (Agrawal et al. , 2001). The Internet also can play a pivotal role in enhancing brand relationships and corporate reputations. Nike, Disney, Coke, and Toyota are all well-established brands that drive us to search for and ? d their products. Branding is a critical component of the design of Web sites. It is about building a brand or corporate reputation to create relationships with customers (Chiagouris and Wansley, 2001). â€Å"Branding is rede? ned online,† says Caroline Riby, vice president-media director at Saatchi & Saatchi Rowland. â€Å"We are moving beyond representing a brand to experiencing it† (Chiagouris and Wansley, 2001). The Web site must capture the attention of those people who know nothing or very little about the company, but are interested in its category.It must also build awareness of what the company does within the contex t of the industry in which it is competing. Earlier Web sites were developed by large corporations, which required that they adhere to the corporate logo and color scheme, attach to the corporate databases, and comply with several other corporate requirements. This translated to high cost and signi? cant development time. Others (those created for â€Å"Mom and Pop† operations and early entrepreneurial operations), built over the weekend, did not connect to large databases, and had no standards. While the company was in operation fast, the sites were often unattractive and dif? ult to use. Is it not surprising that the companies that are most successful selling over the Internet are the former and not the later? Certainly, we can ? nd examples of the up-starts that have succeeded, but they have usually adapted to the model of the corporation that requires high standards. Just as in the bricks and mortar world, companies have to offer excellent service on the Web. Web sites wi ll become very important to companies as more products and services will be bought either over the Internet or by making use of the Internet before purchasing in a bricks and mortar store.Therefore, companies need to have Web sites that live up to customers’ expectations. The purpose of our research is to provide empirical evidence on the factors that contribute to the quality of Web sites. Our most important research questions are: . How do customers distinguish a good Web site from a bad one? . What factors determine the quality of a Web site? Customer satisfaction Companies offer quality to satisfy their customers (Dale, 1999). Because a Web site is part of the connection between a company and its customers, it is evident that it should re? ct the quality efforts that are in place throughout the company. Besides this reason there is another reason why a company should provide high quality Web sites to its customers: there is no human contact through Web sites. The interact ion via the Internet between a company and a customer is always through technology. This means the â€Å"moment of truth† between a company and a customer is the Web site. Although companies may try to emulate human behavior with technology, the interaction remains different because some aspects of human interaction cannot be replaced with technology, e. g. ourtesy, friendliness, helpfulness, care, commitment, ?exibility and cleanliness (Cox and Dale, 2001, 2002). The absence of these aspects of human interaction through which quality can be delivered to customers will have to be compensated by better performance on other quality factors or by excellent performance on â€Å"new† speci? c Web quality factors. A key aspect in customer satisfaction is the way a customer can attain satisfaction or dissatisfaction with a company’s service. If a company wants to satisfy its customers the ? rst question it needs to answer is what is it that Applying SERVQUAL 921 IJQRM 20,8 22 satis? es customers and, equally important, what is it that makes customers dissatis? ed with the company and its products and services. Satisfying customers depends on the balance between customers’ expectations and customers’ experiences with the products and services (Zeithaml et al. , 1990). When a company is able to lift a customer’s experience to a level that exceeds that customer’s expectations, then that customer will be satis? ed. Because customers have ever increasing expectations it is necessary for companies continuously to improve their quality and hence customers’ experiences with the company.The issue is what should be improved to keep the customers satis? ed. What customers experience is not just one simple aspect of a company, but a whole range of aspects. Some of these aspects are concerned with the way customers experience the company itself, some are concerned with the way customers experience the physical product and, ? nally, some are concerned with the way customers experience the service the company offers. Comparing customers’ expectations and their perceptions of actual performance can be done by making use of the SERVQUAL scale of Berry, Parasuraman and Zeithaml (Zeithaml et al. 1990). This scale has been developed for the service sector. It has ? ve generic dimensions or factors and are stated as follows: (1) Tangibles. Physical facilities, equipment and appearance of personnel. (2) Reliability. Ability to perform the promised service dependably and accurately. (3) Responsiveness. Willingness to help customers and provide prompt service. (4) Assurance (including competence, courtesy, credibility and security). Knowledge and courtesy of employees and their ability to inspire trust and con? dence. (5) Empathy (including access, communication, understanding the customer).Caring and individualized attention that the ? rm provides its customers. In the SERVQUAL instrument, 22 statements m easure the performance across these ? ve dimensions. For each statement, the expectation and the experience of a customer is determined. There is some criticism on the long-term stability of the results of the SERVQUAL scale (Lam and Woo, 1997) and on the general applicability of the ? ve dimensions (Buttle, 1996; Crosby and LeMay, 1998). Although alternative models have been proposed for the measurement of service quality, e. . SERVPERF (Cronin and Taylor, 1992), the SERVQUAL scale has been widely used by academics and practitioners to measure service quality. Therefore, this model has been used as a point of reference in this paper. SERVQUAL dimensions in relation to e-business Tangibles Examples of the tangibles factor are â€Å"has up-to-date equipment†, â€Å"physical facilities are visually appealing† and â€Å"materials are visually appealing†. These aspects might be even more important in e-business as there is no face-to-face contact between the custome r and an employee.The visual aspects of the equipment (i. e. the Web site) are the only visual contact between a customer and an organization. Therefore, the need to have well functioning and good-looking Web sites is paramount. There are a great number of customers who abandon their shopping carts on the Internet because they get frustrated with the technology, or the design and lay out of the Web site interface (Hager and Elliot, 2001). The visual aspects of Web sites are also judged differently by the people of different age. While young people may be attracted by ? shy graphics, sounds and a high-speed interface, older people do not want blinking texts that are hard to read or animations that distract from the use of the Web site (Houtman, 2002). Although a number of Web sites offer users the opportunity to customise the Web site to their needs, this customization process is mostly aimed at the content of the Web site and not at the graphics, animations and sounds. Reliability S ome of the aspects in the reliability factor have to do with â€Å"doing what is promised† and â€Å"doing it at the promised time†.Although many organizations seem to think that the major reason why customers shop via the Internet is because of the low prices, this does not always need to be the case. Some organizations found out the hard way that there are also a lot of customers shopping via the Internet because of convenience considerations (Riseley and Schehr, 2000). If customers cannot trust an organization to do what they ask, those customers will be dissatis? ed. Priceline, for example, ran into big problems by the end of 2000 because of its focus on the lowest prices. People could buy a plane ticket at a very low price, but because of possible inconvenient ? ing times there was a big risk for customers. This resulted in dissatis? ed customers who were happy to trade off Priceline’s discounts for the convenience of a competitor (Riseley and Schehr, 2000) . Responsiveness One of the aspects in the responsiveness factor is â€Å"gives prompt service†. The amount of time it takes to download a Web page appears to be of great importance to the users of the Internet. Research in 1999 found that fewer than 10 percent of users leave a Web site if page response time is kept below 7 s. However, when it rises above 8 s, 30 percent of users leave.When delays exceed 12 s, a staggering 70 percent of users leave a Web site (Cox and Dale, 2001, 2002). It can be assumed that people expect Web sites to be even more quicker than in 1999 because of the technological advances. Thus, it is very important Applying SERVQUAL 923 IJQRM 20,8 924 for organizations to have a Web site that is quick, but on the other hand users expect Web sites to be visually appealing. As the number and size of animations, pictures and sounds increase to make a Web page more visually appealing, the time it takes to download that Web page will also increase, which is judg ed negatively by users.Hence, there is a trade-off between the looks of a Web site and the speed of that site. Organizations will have to try to ? nd the right balance between good looks and speed. The trade-off between looks and speed is complicated by companies’ demand that their Web sites convey the corporate image (Manning et al. , 1998). The design department of a company wants Web pages to be easily recognisable as belonging to that company. In their view, Web pages have to display company and product logos as well as other graphics that underscore the corporate identity.These graphics add to the overall size of Web pages and thereby increase the download time for Internet users. It is questionable whether users are willing to accept slower pages in return for more logos and graphics that do not improve the functionality of the Web site (although they might improve the visual appeal). Assurance One of the aspects in the assurance factor is â€Å"knowledge to answer que stions†. Customers expect to ? nd everything they want on a Web site. In a bricks and mortar store, people feel comfortable with a limited inventory. On the Internet, people are not satis? ed if they cannot ? nd everything they want.Web shops need to have great depth of inventory and rich and relevant product information (Dayal et al. , 2002). Two other aspects in the assurance factor are â€Å"employees can be trusted† and â€Å"feel safe in your transactions with employees†. First, there is the risk for users to share personal information with an organization they do not know. Research on this topic (Statistical Research Inc. , 2001) shows that at least 50 percent of users are very concerned about: misuse of credit card information given over the Internet; selling or sharing of personal information by Web site owners; and cookies that track customers’ Internet activity.Second, the same research shows that two-thirds of active Web users typically abandon a site that requests personal information and one in ? ve has entered false information to gain access to a Web site. Aspects in the assurance factor that could be very important in e-business are (Daughtrey, 2001): . availability of a formal privacy and con? dentiality policy on a Web site; . secured access to a Web site (that customers are prompted to acknowledge); . general reputation of supplier; . certi? cations or guarantees of assurance; and . reports of experiences of other customers.The ? rst aspect in this list is also acknowledged by the International Organization for Standardisation in Geneva. The Code of Practice for Information Security Management (ISO/IEC 17799:2000) provides a basis for establishing and maintaining the means of handling sensitive data (Daughtrey, 2001). Certi? cations and guarantees of assurance are also important in e-business. More and more organizations are trying to obtain certi? cation by an objective, consensus-based standard, just as they did earlier with quality management standards (Daughtrey, 2001).These organizations are becoming aware of the advantages of such certi? cation in relation to customers’ trust in these organizations. Empathy In the dimension of empathy there are several aspects that are usually not found on a Web site. Because of the fact that there is no human interaction, Web sites normally do not offer personal attention. To achieve this, a number of Web sites have a design that can be personalized by the users of these sites, so people can have their own version of the Web site. This kind of Web site design is aimed at giving users the experience of getting personal attention.The idea is that the more a Web site is tailored to a particular customer’s needs, the more likely that customer will return again and again (The Economist, 2001). The most advanced technologies in this area aim to create a face-to-virtual-face interaction. A friendly looking face of a virtual assistant on your scr een is supposed to make customers feel more comfortable. With the use of arti? cial intelligence, the virtual assistant can suggest products or services that might be of interest to a customer based on previous purchases and on reactions to the questions of the virtual assistant.The latter possibility of asking users of a Web site questions via a virtual assistant will enable companies to tailor their offerings to the wishes of the user to prevent customer dissatisfaction. The only purpose of all these technological gadgets is to add one of the Web’s key missing ingredients: warmth (The Economist, 2001). Other aspects It seems that most of the dimensions and aspects that have been de? ned for general service environments are also important in e-business. Besides the ? ve dimensions as de? ned by Zeithaml et al. (1990), empirical evidence might come up with more speci? c dimensions related to e-business.Some preliminary research has been done in this area (Cox and Dale, 2001, 2002; Fink and Laupase, 2000; Schubert and Dettling, 2001; Wan, 2000), but no de? nitive results have been attained. Hence, more research is needed (Zeithaml, 2002). Research methodology The research was conducted by means of a questionnaire survey. Employment of this approach provides a relatively easy means to study the perceptions and Applying SERVQUAL 925 IJQRM 20,8 926 opinions of a large group of people in a limited time frame and at low costs. The survey was undertaken with the student population at Northeastern University (NEU), Boston, USA.Students were expected to be familiar with e-business and the Internet. Students received an e-mail with a hyperlink to the Web site containing the questionnaire allowing them to respond to the questionnaire electronically and to submit by clicking a button. The purpose of the questionnaire survey was to develop empirical evidence on the quality factors of Web sites that are important to people who are familiar with the Internet and frequ ent Internet users. The survey comprised the following questions: . personal information (gender, age, academic discipline); . respondents’ use of Internet (equipment, frequency of use); . peci? c Web sites that are visited by respondents (a prede? ned list of 20 categories of Web sites); and . aspects of Web quality (a prede? ned list of 50 aspects). The core of the questionnaire consists of the list of aspects of Web quality. For every aspect we ask the respondent to indicate the importance of that aspect and at the same time we ask for their satisfaction with that aspect. The structure of the questions is based on the SERVQUAL scale (Zeithaml et al. , 1990). The aspects have been de? ned according to the categories of the model developed by Cox and Dale (2001, 2002) and are as follows: clarity of purpose; . design; . communication; . reliability; . service and frequently asked questions; . accessibility and speed; . product or service choice; . order con? rmation; . produc t purchase; . user recognition; . extra service; and . frequent buyer incentives. For each of these categories a number of aspects have been de? ned in the questionnaire. The questionnaire has been discussed with experts in the ? eld of quality management and a pilot study has been conducted amongst a small number of students. This lead to an improved questionnaire which has been used for the esearch presented in this paper. Survey results Sample and response rate All students who obtained a university e-mail account at NEU (approximately 6,000) received an e-mail about the study and the questionnaire. Responses were received from 293 students. The response rate for the direct mailings to students was rather low (approximately 5 percent of the number of e-mails sent out), although acceptable for this type of mailing. Applying SERVQUAL 927 Descriptive statistics In Tables I and II, the response sample is described in terms of gender and age, respectively.A comparison of the response sample with the total population at NEU leads to the conclusion that the response group is representative for the total population. The respondents were enrolled across many academic disciplines, and judged by the age of the respondents, most students were at the undergraduate level. Table III shows the respondents’ use of the Internet in terms of the quality of their own equipment. Overall the students are rather satis? ed with their equipment and do not seem to have problems with speed and download time. Table IV summarizes the frequencies of respondents’ Internet visits.They visit the Internet on an average 18 times per week, for about an hour per visit. So, it is clear that students make frequent use of the Internet. Male Female Total 104 188 292 Table I. Number of respondents by gender , 21 years 21-25 years 26-30 years 31-35 years . 35 years Total 192 71 19 4 7 293 Table II. Number of respondents by age PC Connection speed Printing from the Web Downloading from t he Web Notes: On a ? ve-point scale from very dissatis? ed to very satis? ed 3. 83 3. 59 3. 53 3. 57 Table III. Satisfaction of respondents with the equipment they use IJQRM 20,8 928 Table IV. The use of the WebIt is interesting to note the types of Web sites that are used most often by our respondents (Table V). The types of Web sites that are used most often are: search engines, university sites, daily news and entertainment sites. Web sites that are used less frequently are: e-shops and chat rooms. Sites with stock exchange information are not visited very often either. In Table VI (top ten) and Table VII (bottom ten) the importance (expectations) and the satisfaction (experiences) are summarized on prede? ned aspects related to the quality of Web sites. The top ten aspects seem to relate to reliability issues in pure e-commerce.Customers who buy a product on the Internet want Web sites and the organizations behind them to be trustworthy. E-commerce Web sites need to be fast, sim ple and always available. Customers want a clear overview and con? rmation of what they bought and what they have to pay for. Easy to ? nd desired Web site 3. 80 Easy to use Web page links 3. 92 Easy to ? nd relevant information 3. 38 Time spent on one site , 12 min Time on the Web per Internet visit , 60 min Number of Internet visits per week , 19 visits Note: If not indicated otherwise, on a ? ve-point scale from very dif? cult to very easy Mean Table V. Web sites ranked by requency of visits Search engines Daily newspapers Entertainment Universities Electronic libraries Personal Web sites Information portals Games Travel Sports Banking Company information E-shops Book stores Music stores Movie stores Second-hand products Stock exchange information Who is where Chat rooms Note: On a ? ve-point scale from never to once a day or more 4. 64 3. 63 3. 47 3. 38 3. 02 2. 99 2. 92 2. 82 2. 72 2. 62 2. 60 2. 58 2. 57 2. 41 2. 39 2. 27 2. 16 2. 02 1. 84 1. 76 Top ten with highest scores on importance Finding your way on the Web site is easya Access is fasta A complete overview of the order is presented before ? al purchase decisiona Tax and/or other charges are clearly detaileda The registration process is simplea Access to anticipated delivery times is available at all timesa All relevant order con? rmation details sent by e-maila Order cancellation and returns details are con? rmed within three daysa Order-tracking details are available until deliverya There are well programmed search optionsa Importance Satisfaction mean mean Delta S-I 4. 61 4. 60 3. 44 3. 31 2 1. 17 2 1. 29 4. 55 4. 50 4. 50 4. 46 4. 46 3. 75 3. 47 3. 36 3. 18 3. 84 2 0. 80 2 1. 03 2 1. 14 2 1. 28 2 0. 62 4. 43 4. 40 4. 39 3. 24 3. 30 3. 08 1. 19 2 1. 10 2 1. 31 Notes: a Mean values on ? ve-point scales; difference between importance and satisfaction signi? cant at 0. 01 level based on a t-test (two-tailed) Bottom ten with lowest scores on importance Applying SERVQUAL Importance Satisfaction mean mean Searches on related sites are provideda 3. 81 The privacy policy is accessiblea 3. 79 The security policy is accessiblea 3. 76 The Web site contains company detailsa 3. 70 3. 68 Scrolling through pages and text is kept to a minimuma Links are provided to pages on related products and servicesa 3. 67 Web site animations are meaningfula 3. 52A customer platform is provided for exchange of ideas 3. 36 The user is invited into a frequent buyer programa 3. 31 Brand image is important 3. 22 Notes: a Mean values on ? ve-point scales; Difference between importance signi? cant at 0. 01 level based on a t-test (two-tailed) 3. 40 3. 52 3. 51 3. 32 3. 29 929 Table VI. Importance of and satisfaction with aspects of Web quality Delta S-I 2 0. 41 2 0. 27 2 0. 25 2 0. 38 2 0. 39 3. 40 2 0. 27 3. 21 2 0. 31 3. 29 2 0. 07 3. 08 2 0. 23 3. 29 0. 07 and satisfaction The bottom ten aspects seem to relate to extra service (e. g. customization of Web sites) and information (e. g. ecurity policy and c ompany details) that is provided to the customer. Apparently respondents do not ? nd these extras very important in their use of the Internet. Tables VI and VII also show the gaps between experiences and expectations (satisfaction minus importance). It can be concluded that the gap is widest for the aspects that respondents perceive as most important. The aspect with the largest gap is â€Å"access is fast† (satisfaction score 3. 31 and importance score 4. 60). In the top ten aspects there are no aspects with a positive delta, meaning Table VII. Importance of and satisfaction with aspects of Web qualityIJQRM 20,8 930 that for every aspect the experience is less than expected. In the bottom ten aspects there is just one aspect with a (very small) positive delta â€Å"brand image†. Factor analyses (varimax, principal components) on the importance data (KMO value ? 0. 91) and satisfaction data (KMO value ? 0. 93) based on Eigenvalues greater than one indicated 12 factor s olutions. These factors cluster the aspects more or less according to the structure of the questionnaire. Most of these factors also become too speci? c and do not disclose the underlying structure of customers’ perceptions of the quality of Web sites.The Scree plots indicated solutions with fewer factors, possibly around ? ve factors. A comparison of the results of factor analyses with varying numbers of factors led to the conclusion that ? ve-factor solutions ? t the data best. These ? ve-factor solutions were used to ? nd evidence for the existence of the ? ve dimensions according to the SERVQUAL scale (Zeithaml et al. , 1990). The results of these ? ve-factor solutions are summarized in Table VIII. In Table VIII we only include the aspects with factor loadings greater than 0. 5. The aspects are ranked under each factor according to their factor loadings.It can be seen from the table that the two ? ve-factor solutions (importance and satisfaction) come to the same conclusi ons regarding the clustering of the aspects. There are some minor differences in the clustering of the aspects between the two factor solutions; however, these differences are related to the aspects with low factor loadings. It can be concluded that the factor analyses on both the importance of the Web quality aspects and the satisfaction with the Web quality aspects are compatible with the ? ve factors of the SERVQUAL scale. Correlation between Web sites and Web quality factors The importance of any of the ? e factors of the SERVQUAL scale might differ per type of Web site, just like it differs per service sector in the bricks and mortar world. Therefore, a correlation between the ? ve SERVQUAL factors and the different types of Web sites is useful to determine these differences. In order to categorize the fairly large number of different types of Web sites, a factor analysis (varimax, principal components, KMO value ? 0. 83) on the data on the use of Web sites (Table V) is conduct ed. The results of this factor analysis indicate that there are clearly ? ve groups of sites that form the underlying usage pattern.These are: (1) e-shops for books, music, movies, etc. (Cronbach’s alpha ? 0. 75); (2) university and study information (Cronbach’s alpha ? 0. 64); (3) games, entertainment, and sport (Cronbach’s alpha ? 0. 66); (4) company information, stock information, and banks (Cronbach’s alpha ? 0. 69); and (5) general information on daily news, travel, libraries, and search engines (Cronbach’s alpha ? 0. 58). Importance Satisfaction Factor 1 (Reliability) A complete overview of the order is presented before ? nal purchase decision Tax and/or other charges are clearly detailed Different payment options are stated clearlyAll relevant order con? rmation details are sent by e-mail within 24 hours Access to anticipated delivery times is available at all times Terms and conditions of sales are accessible Order-tracking details are avai lable until delivery Order cancellation and returns details are con? rmed within three days Full details of product or service pricing are available The registration process is simple Full product or service characteristics are available Registration process details are retained The Web site offers free shipping and handling within a set of rules Access is fast The user can make a purchase without Web ite registration Factor 1 (Reliability) All relevant order con? rmation details are sent by e-mail within 24 hours A complete overview of the order is presented before ? nal purchase decision Terms and conditions of sales are accessible Order-tracking details are available until delivery Different payment options are stated clearly Tax and/or other charges are clearly detailed Access to anticipated delivery times is available at all times Order cancellation and returns details are con? rmed within three days The home page features options for new and registered users Registration proce ss details are retainedFactor 2 (Tangibles) Finding your way on the Web site is easy Information is found with a minimum of clicks Navigation is consistent and standardized There are well programmed search options Instructions are directly available Opening of new screens is kept to a minimum Applying SERVQUAL Factor 2 (Tangibles) Finding your way on the Web site is easy Information is found with a minimum of clicks Navigation is consistent and standardized The number and type of links are meaningful The purpose is clear Scrolling through pages and text is kept to a minimum Instructions are directly available It is easy to print from the WebFactor 3 (Empathy) Factor 3 (Empathy) Links are provided to pages on related products Links are provided to pages on related products and services and services A customer platform is provided for the On travel sites a ? ight/hotel search is provided exchange of ideas A standard navigation bar, home button and On travel sites the user can customiz e seat and back/forward button are available on every meal preferences and the information is page retained (continued ) 931 Table VIII. Con? rmative factor analysis (? ve-factor solution) IJQRM 20,8 Importance Satisfaction It is easy to print from the WebOn travel sites a ? ight/hotel search is provided Web sites that focus on brand awareness have a store locator The user is invited into a frequent buyer program Factor 4 (Assurance) The security policy is accessible The privacy policy is accessible External validation of trustworthiness is important The Web site contains company details Brand image is important Page availability information is given on entry The user is invited into a frequent buyer program A customer platform is provided for exchange of ideas Factor 4 (Assurance) The privacy policy is accessible The security policy is accessibleThe Web site contains company details External validation of trustworthiness is important 932 Factor 5 (Responsiveness) The frequently ask ed questions and answers contain links that take the user to the relevant page(s) Information is provided to frequently asked questions and answers Queries or complaints are resolved within 24 hours User feedback is sought to measure customer satisfaction An e-mail address for queries and complaints is provided Table VIII. Factor 5 (Responsiveness) User feedback is sought to measure customer satisfaction Queries or complaints are resolved within 24 hoursThe frequently asked questions and answers contain links that take the user to the relevant page(s) Access is fast Opening of new screens is kept to a minimum Graphics and animation do not detract from use Full details of product or service pricing are available Notes: Principal component analysis. Varimax with Kaiser normalization. Rotation converged in nine iterations (importance) and ten iterations (satisfaction). Factor loadings . 0. 5, ranking based on factor loadings from high to low Table IX shows the correlation matrix betwee n the frequency of use of types of Web sites and the importance of the Web quality factors.Some results are as follows: . All ? ve quality dimensions are most strongly correlated with e-shops, indicating that frequent users of e-shops tend to have higher quality expectations. . An increase in the frequency of use of the types of Web sites is in all cases most strongly correlated with either empathy (E-shops), assurance (company sites and search engines) or responsiveness (study related sites, Reliability Coef. Sign E-shops (books, music, movies etc. ) Study-related sites Games and sports sites Company and banking sites Search engines, daily news, travel Tangibles Coef. Sign EmpathyCoef. Sign Assurance Coef. Sign Responsiveness Coef. Sign 0. 220 ** 0. 174 ** 0. 239 ** 0. 232 ** 0. 233 ** 0. 171 ** 0. 167 ** 0. 183 ** 0. 156 ** 0. 202 ** 0. 114 * 0. 124 * 0. 168 ** 0. 112 n. s. 0. 171 ** 0. 144 ** 0. 136 * 0. 151 ** 0. 166 ** 0. 144 ** 0. 122 * 0. 115 * 0. 115 * 0. 123 * 0. 115 * Note s: * Correlation is signi? cant at the 0. 05 level (two-tailed); ** Correlation is signi? cant at the 0. 01 level (two-tailed); n. s. ? no signi? cant correlation . Applying SERVQUAL and games and sports). More frequent users of the Internet tend to ? nd reliability and tangibles less important.All correlation coef? cients are positive, indicating that for all types of Web sites more usage leads to higher importance of all quality dimensions. The experienced user seems to have higher expectations of the quality of Web sites. Conclusion The results of this research can be summarised in the following way. Of a prede? ned list of Web quality aspects these aspects are considered to be the most important: access is fast; ? nding your way on the Web site is easy; a complete overview of the order is presented before ? nal purchase decision; and the registration process is simple. Of the ? e factors that can be found by means of factor analyses (reliability, tangibles, empathy, assurance an d responsiveness) various aspects related to the factors reliability and tangibles are included in the top ten important aspects. Various aspects related to the factors empathy and assurance are included in the bottom ten aspects ranked according to their perceived importance. Both the importance of the Web quality aspects and the satisfaction with the Web quality aspects are compatible with ? ve-factor analyses that support the existence of the ? ve factors of the SERVQUAL scale of Zeithaml et al. (1990).The importance of any of the ? ve factors of the SERVQUAL scale differs per type of Web site, just like it differs per service industry in the bricks and mortar world. So far, it can be concluded that the quality dimensions developed by Zeithaml et al. (1990) for service environments are equally useful in e-business. 933 Table IX. Correlation between the frequency of use of types of Web sites and the importance of the Web quality factors IJQRM 20,8 934 Further analysis of the data is needed. While this research project yields a number of very interesting results, we believe that there are a number of things that should be done to con? m our results as well as to expand our hypotheses. First, with the number of Internet users now over one billion, our sample is relatively small. Therefore, research with larger samples that pose the same or similar questions would be appropriate. Second, Internet users come from all over the globe. One has to suspect that there are differences between a sample taken from students of the USA and what might be found among students elsewhere. Possible, language, culture, religion, and a host of other factors may be important to a user’s impression of the quality of a Web site.Finally, quality is an area of critical importance for commercial companies. Businesses need to understand what attracts people to their Web sites, what keeps them there, and what keeps them coming back. They need to understand the differences between the casual buyer versus the user who visits their Web sites on a daily basis. Web sites for companies like Dell, Cisco, Orbitz, and Covisint do millions of dollars of business each day. They need to understand the factors that keep these businesses growing better by understanding what encourages buying and what brings them back to the Web sites.Likewise, their competitors need to understand these factors even more to compete in this highly competitive marketplace. Due to the signi? cance of this to business, we expect that this type of research will be ongoing for many years to come. The results of that research will be easier to use Web sites that are more customer focused and evolving as the user evolves. A Chinese proverb says, â€Å"May you live in interesting times†. We are certainly living in interesting times. References Agrawal, V. , Arjona, L. and Lemmens, R. 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(2001), â€Å"Even veteran Web users remain skittish about site s that get personal†, 7 June, available at: www. statisticalresearch. com/press/pr060701. htm (accessed 15 March 2002). US Department of Commerce (2002), A Nation Online: How Americans Are Expanding Their Use of the Internet, US Department of Commerce, Washington, DC, February.Wan, H. A. (2000), â€Å"Opportunities to enhance a commercial Web site†, Information and Management, Vol. 38 No. 1, pp. 15-21. Zeithaml, V. A. (2002), â€Å"Guru view†, Managing Service Quality, special issue on service excellence, Vol. 12 No. 3, pp. 135-8. Zeithaml, V. A. , Parasuraman, A. and Berry, L. L. (1990), Delivering Quality Service; Balancing Customer Perceptions and Expectations, The Free Press, New York, NY. Further reading Cutler, M. and Strene, J. (2000), E-metric: Business Metric for the New Economy, NetGenesis Corp. Applying SERVQUAL 935