IT WORKFORCE Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

IT WORKFORCE - Essay Example Thus, adversely affecting the business The paper B1 talked about the ethical issue of whether an IT officer should access and read his colleagues and companys private information just because he is the one managing the network? Such an issue is a major concern to the business and its other employees as it needs to know that it has entrusted its information and that of its other employees to a morally responsible IT personnel. The company, therefore, decides to draw up an ethical policy to regulate the operations of the IT officer and to ensure the security of the clients, employees and companys information. The company will thus hold liable the person who breaks the privacy rules of any of its parties. The overall goal of setting up the privacy policy is for the company to create an environment of trust and security. Such an environment creates an atmosphere of reassurance to the parties involved because they know that any person who breaks such a rule is held responsible. The policy will thus serve as a guide to IT officers conduct within the business premises. "Effective ethics is a team effort involving the participation and support of every Company employee" (Institute, 2014). All employees have an obligation to know the ethics Privacy guidelines set by the company. A security scope defines who has a right to access what information within an organization. The ethical privacy policy applies to all the parties involved in the operations and actualization of the business goals. The IT officers the primary party affected by this policy, and who should adhere to this policy. The employees, management, and other consultants are secondary parties. They should also adhere to this policy by ensuring they do not interfere in any way with the companys network settings, either by hacking the business security system or by using the network to access information on their colleagues or companys computers. c. The IT

Article Critique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 10

Article Critique - Essay Example In the article, author mentions that the Taksim Park has seen many changes and social movements during different periods of the twentieth century. Once the area housed Armenian cemetery and St. Gregory church; however, the cemetery was demolished, and on its area, and surrounding properties now stands the Gezi Park, Istanbul Radio building and many luxurious hotels, including Hilton. According to the author Taksim , in its present form, designed by the urban planner Henri Post, presents a vibrant section of the city and symbolizes modern Istanbul. The author in her article states that the current Prime Minister wants to destroy the symbol of Istanbul, and build in its place a shopping mall in the fashion of 19th century artillery barracks of Ottoman Empire. People consider that in taking such a decision Prime Minister acted as an authoritarian ruler who wants to revive Muslim elite culture in a secular country. A peaceful sit-in protest against uprooting of trees from a park created turbulence in the political arena of a country spreading a wave of violent protests across the country; was the author able to describe the underpinning cause of this incident? From the title of the article, one would imply that the author is conveying a message that Taksim Park incident should be an example that, in the 21st century, a leader cannot use the state power to change country’s environment. In the modern century, people’s concerns over the balance of development and degradation of environment cannot be ignored any more. The author very precisely portrayed the sentiment of a large cross section of the Turkish society through the sentence â€Å"Erdogan's and other government officials' apparent contempt for and vilification of the protesters, and their seeming indifference to their concerns (Watenpaugh 1).† In the first paragraph, the author concludes that movement shows deep discontent of Turkish society against Erdogan’s authoritarian governme nt, but the author does not provide an analysis of this conclusion based on facts. Instead, the author provides links to different articles on the Internet, so the reader reads the articles to establish the validity of author’s conclusion. The author uses this method repetitively in all over the article. This is perhaps the weakest side of the article. However, the author successfully explains that re-creation of 19th century Ottoman military barracks, which once were destroyed, and naming a planned third bridge over Bosphorus after controversial 16th century Sultan Selim indeed portray the current government as neo-Ottoman Muslim elite. The article contains 10 paragraphs. In these paragraphs, the author failed to explain whether the article intends to present to the audience that the Taksim protest describes people’s concerns over urban development at the cost of environmental sacrifice, or it describes the protest against the authoritarian behavior of Erdogan’ s government. The motive in this case is the protest against the uprooting of trees, but the cause is political, rooted deep in the society. Though author implied it, but failed to explain it explicitly. Author’s commentary in the article, â€Å"through a series of highly contested lawsuits, the municipality managed to appropriate the cemetery from the Armenian

Odyssey bibliography Essay Example for Free

Odyssey bibliography Essay Odysseus was one of the famous Greek poets. He was Laertes and Anticlea’s son and was married to Penelope (a woman thought to be inordinately faithful) and was a father to Telemachus. Odysseus was the king of Ithaca, a favorite place in Athens, and was one of the few Greeks that returned home safely from troy and the Trojan War though it took a long time before they returned. He is believed to have written some poems in the end of eighth century BC. Odysseus was among the leader of Achaeans who have contributed to most part of Greek literature. In his different walks of life, he is view as a hero and in other side as a failure, in the focus of his bibliography as written by homer, his participation in Trojan war and his tricks that made him stand unique paving way for his success in his missions. He was a family man who focused on achievements and did not believe on failures, he believed in as supernatural power of gods that were making him strong in believe that they were in his support in the victory. The essay focuses on the life line of Odysseus, participation and contributions as well as his character traits as narrated by different poets and other literatures. Joachim, 2005) Odysseus early life When Odysseus was a young boy, he exhibited on his talent; his main fond was archery and was excelling on it. Young Odysseus was fond of hunting with his dog, Argos, he could not stop doing what he liked no matter the challenges example is when he was gored by a bear and left a scar on his thigh. The scar was a lifetime mark that would help his old nurse Eurycleia when he returned from his wonderings. He was know to mind less about the appearance, some people went far as saying that he had bandy-legged, but when he began talking, he was unstoppable. His cleverness brought him closer to goddess Athena; he became his protector at troy and later on the sea. Odysseus became one of the original suitors of Helen of troy. He came woo her in Sparta for it was expected of him though his main interest was in her cousin Penelope. To avoid dispute among the suitors that were interested in Helen, Odysseus suggested to her father to help him win Penelope, Helen’s cousin, her father feared the preference of one suitor. Odysseus suggested to Tyndareus to exact an oath to all suitors that they will defend the favored suitor and protect his marriage against anything wrong that may be done to him. Helen married Menelaus of the cursed horse. Icarius of Lacedaemon, the Penelope’s father, offered his daughter to Odysseus, the man who defeated him in foot race. Penelope’s father, the old king of Lacedaemon was trying to make the newly wedded couples to stay in Lacedaemon but Odysseus refused and set for Ithaca. After much insisting, Odysseus had to bade to his wife either to move with him or return to her father. Penelope did not respond but instead she covered her face which was a clear indication that she wished to move with her husband, this was a clear prove of her cleverness and wily as her husband. Martin, 2007) On arrival in Ithaca, Odysseus had to build a new palace for him and his new bride. The couple got a son, it did not take long before the news came to them that Paris had eloped Helen. After the Paris abducted Helen, her father invoked an oath of Tyndareus, Odysseus refused to make good out of it. He pretended to be mad just to proof his sanity after he avoided hitting a child. (Kayakas, 1988) Odysseus character Odysseus is described as a hero due to his cunning intelligence. The use of deceptive speech describes him well and is well manifested in his character traits as a peer of Zeus in counsel. His disguising character takes form altering his appearance and verbal, this may be seen in the event when he blinded Cyclops when he told him that his name was nobody the managed to escape after blinding Polyphemus. When polyphemuss was screaming and Cyclops asks him why he was doing that, he said that nobody is hurting him, every one (Cyclopes) thought no one was hurting him and may be he was suffering in the hands of immortal Zeus. According to Odyssey of Homer, it is evident that Odysseus was arrogant and proud, as he sailed away from the Cyclops’s island, he boasted as he shouted his name saying that no one defeat him ‘great Odysseus’. The Cyclopes were not happy with him and the threw bitter words to him as he tells his father that Odysseus blinded him which enraged Poseidon and caused the god to curse Odysseus home coming and delayed for a long time. (Rodney, 2006) Odysseus events Odysseus events are narrated and given from the middle of the plot; this has been done through flashbacks and story telling. The later authors have done this through imitation, examples of these authors are Virgil and Aeneid, the modern poets were not left behind such as Pope Alexander in the mock epic, mock-heroic also commonly known as ‘the rape of the rock’. At first we find Odysseus trying to assert control on the household and later at Athena’s advice while in search for news concerning his lost fathers. Odysseus was a captive for a long time of the beautiful nymph Calypso who he had spent with his seven years of his lost ten years. (Karykas, 2003) After his release by intercession of his patroness Athena, he leaves and his raft was destroyed by his known enemy Poseidon who was much annoyed because Odysseus had blinded Polyphemus his son. Odysseus washed up Scherie, which was the home to Phaeacians and is assisted by Nausicaa who treats him with great hospitability. When he returned he narrated about his adventures since he left troy to Phaeacians and the leader of his adventures satisfying their curiosity. This flash back extends back to where Odysseus stands and his tale told. Odysseus got a ship through loan from shipbuilding Phaeacians to return to Ithaca, he is assisted by swine hearder Emaeus to meet Telemachus, in the process he got back his house hold and managed to kill the suitors and then he was able to reunite with his faithful Penelope, his wife. Odyssey is divided into 24 books in all modern editions and translations. The message contained there in is convincing but not original, Alexandrian editors developed this by 3rd century BC. Through the period, the books have been given different titles. Barry, 2006) Odysseus and culture Different cultures have risen in concern of Odysseus; some of the cultures describe him as a hero and others as a scoundrel. Odysseus was ruling the Cephallenians, this were the people who were dwelling on the islands that was on the northwest coast of Greece. His palace was on the rocky island of Ithaca, compared to other Greek princes that were fighting at troy; he was not as wealthy as them though he was living a com fortable life. (Malcom, 2000) Trojan War According to myths of Greek, the Trojan war was war that was Achaeans against the city of troy after Helen was stolen by troy of Paris from her husband Menelaus who was the King of Sparta. Trojan War was among the most important events that happened in the Greek mythology which was narrated by many and different works of Greek literature that included the Iliad, Homer and the Odyssey. Trojan War believed to have originated from a quarrel between the Aphrodite, Athena and Hera goddesses after the Eris, goddess of strife and discord offered them a golden apple, and this is also referred to as apple of discord that was marked to be the fairest. When the goddess went to Paris and judged that Aphrodite as the fairest and should be the one to receive the apple. In exchange apple, Aphrodite made Helen to be the most beautiful woman and fallen in love with Paris who would take her to troy. Achaeans desecrated temples and they slaughtered Trojans, they got the wrath of gods’, only few of the Achaeans returned home safely while others found colonies in different places in the shores. The Romans were led by one of the surviving Trojan to their origin, Italy. Wood, 1998) Odyssey describes the Odysseus journey home. He was among the Achaean leaders. Other parts of the war have been narrated by cycle of epic poems, though has survived in fragments. The war episodes were important for they provided materials for the Greek literature and for the Roman poets like Ovid and Virgil. Odysseus had fought for more than ten years in the Trojan War before he came up with the idea of wooden horse. This was probable the reason why wily or c rafty was attached to his name. Odysseus incurred another decade on the way before arriving home after blinding Poseidon’s Cyclops son that brought a wrath to him. This delayed him to arrive in time so this covers him and his crews return way to Ithaca from Trojan War. (Jonathan, 2004) Dilemma of Odyssey Though the ancient Greeks great epic poems were attributed to the confusing figure of homer, not much is known about him and the contribution of odyssey beyond his name being attached to the poems. There is some doubt whether homer was the real author of Odyssey and Iliad. Homer played a primary role in shaping the master work, much is said about the probability of his contribution, if he is the real author, he must be a great literature artist. Odysseys are the most influential poems; Odysseus epics are used in the Greek education and culture throughout the age and have formed a backbone of human education from the time of Roman Empire and spread of Christianity. The translation of odysseys have brought an impact on Renaissance culture of Italy, this have helped in forming European tradition. The poems are of some use in determining when Homer and Odysseus lived, this gives a clue that make it easy to assume that they lived around 8th century, The Odyssey may belong closer to this period. The dilemma behind this is that odysseys were oral; this was to be passed through generations till the time of writing. Odysseus own means of poems are through singing. Another dilemma is what would affect the accuracy of when epics came to written form. (Michael, 1976) Conclusion Odysseus was a man of different character; no one could really describe his character confidently. He was a man of high moral and he used his cleverness to avoid what he wanted and avoid what seemed not good for him. During the Trojan War, Odysseus was a man his group could not do without; his mode of decision making was quite unique and stood as a pillar for the victory. The life of Odysseus was a life well lived, he left a legend behind that would become a literature to learned in European education, this was an epic that taught much of the Greeks’ empire and history.

The British Heart Foundation Organisation Marketing Essay

The British Heart Foundation Organisation Marketing Essay The British Heart Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation. We are the UKs largest heart charity (the fifth largest charity in the UK), fighting heart and circulatory disease. Largest funder of research into heart disease in UK. Founded in 1961 Our head office is based in London and there are six regional offices. Employ 1807 staff. Heart and circulatory disease the UKs biggest killer 2.6 million people in UK living with heart disease. Income year ending March 2008 was nearly  £117 million Fund research, education/campaigns raising awareness, life-saving cardiac equipment and through BHF heart nurses, they help support patients suffering from heart disease. BHF has B2B customers, working in partnership with organisations such as Colgate, HSBC, Lloyds TSB, Weight Watchers and Scottish and Southern Energy. However, this study will focus on BHFs B2C customers. Number of SBUs trading, Events, VFR, Legacies, Prevention and Care therefore serving multiple customer segments. BHFs target audiences include Heart patients, at-risk groups, health professionals, and children and parents. As with most charities, those donating money, time and support to the BHF are typically 45 plus, ABC12s. 1.2 BHFs Philosophy The philosophy of an organisation refers to its business approach, it is the principles that underlie its whole operation; the philosophy is what guides the organisation. Organisations may operate under one of three philosophies; they may be product, sales or market oriented (Lancaster and Reynolds, 2005). A product oriented organisation focuses on their existing products, their goal being to produce them as efficiently as possible. There is little, if any, consideration of the needs and wants of their customers or the market. A sales-oriented organisation, although recognising their competition, still devotes little in the way of considering the needs and wants of their customers. The sales-persons role is key and their goals are typically short-term with success being measured in terms of sales (Lancaster and Reynolds, 2005). A market-oriented organisation holds the customer at the centre of all its activities. In contrast to the sales orientation, where marketing is likely to be restricted to a marketing department, the marketing-oriented philosophy is one that permeates the whole organisation; every department recognises the central importance of the customer. There is an emphasis on understanding their target audiences; identifying their needs and satisfying them. (Lancaster and Reynolds, 2005). Products and services are developed with the target audience in mind, in fact extensive research into the customer needs and market conditions is conducted to inform the development. Andreasen and Kotler (p38, 2007) Marketing orientation means marketing planning must begin with the target audience, not with the organization The BHF follows a market oriented philosophy, Target audiences are a central focus of the organisation; the organisation only exists as a result of their audience. The focus on their customers is demonstrated not only by their current strategy to make the organisation more relevant to target audiences, but also by their corporate objectives (see appendix 1), which are customer focused; based on fulfilling their needs and attaining a high standard service. The organisation is dedicated to instilling the market-approach organisation-wide, for example internal marketing workshops are frequently held, aimed at the non-marketing departments. Lancaster and Reynolds (2007) claim that to achieve their corporate objectives, the market oriented company must recognise that they do not exist in a vacuum; rather, the external environment is dynamic and constantly changing. Whilst it is essential to identify and anticipate the needs and wants of their target markets, and know how best to respond to these with the most efficient use of the resources available to them, it is important that this is done within the context of their ever-changing external environment and the opportunities and threats it poses. Therefore, for a market-oriented organisation such as the BHF, the role the marketing plan plays is a crucial one. It operationalises the organisations philosophy and ensures the organisation actually is market-oriented and provides a route the organisation can follow to ensure this. As mentioned in 1.1 the marketing plan requires a great deal of research scanning the environment and aiming to meet the customer needs and wants (Beamish and Ashford, 2008). The role of marketing information and research in conducting and analysing the marketing audit The Role of Marketing Information and Research In order for an organisation to operate a market orientation and remain customer-focused, information and research is essential. When undertaken properly it can provide a thorough understanding of target audiences and the micro and macro markets. The findings guide the direction of the marketing plan and with the right information and research subsequent decisions will be informed ones and it will be possible to make more realistic future predictions. Failing to gather data and research poses serious risks; without it an organisation is effectively operating in a vacuum, future decisions are uniformed and there is no customer focus. (Beamish and Ashford, 2008). Collecting Marketing Information There are two ways of collecting marketing information; secondary and primary. Secondary data is information collected for a purpose other than for the current research. External sources of secondary data include third party databases such as keynote and mintel, government statistics, national and trade press and the internet. In addition, there are also a number of internal sources of secondary data, for example a Customer Relations Management (CRM) database providing demographic (age, gender, address, occupation) and lifestyle data (where, what, when and how they buy, how much they spend, religion). Other internal sources include customer complaints, sales reports, personnel, information on their products and services, prices, retailers, internal training of staff, marketing budget/spend, communications spend and results of previous market research studies. Much of this data may be held on a central database The Marketing Information System (MkIS), this can provide substantial inf ormation, fulfilling some research needs, however to obtain bespoke, targeted information to fulfil all research needs primary data is necessary (Taghian and Shaw, 1998) Primary data is data bespoke to the research project. It allows for a more detailed analysis specific to the organization. External sources of primary data interviews, focus groups and surveys. Internal data can be gathered through interviews with staff. Conducting Research within BHF Secondary: OneCRM Third party databases Subscribes to specialist magazines such as ThirdSector, Marketing Week and PR Week Information on external environment. Primary: Recognises importance of bespoke research uses external agencies (FIND NAME RESEARCH NOTES!!). Important to note that there are only 2 other chest and heart charities in CAF top 500, third party data therefore often only relates to charity or health charity sector, not very specific. Use surveys and focus groups. 2.4 Conducting and Analysing the Marketing Audit Environmental scanning is necessary to conduct a detailed marketing audit; it requires both primary and secondary information on both the internal and external environment. To analyse the internal environment we need to consider: Product, Price, Place, Promotion, People, Process and Physical Evidence (7Ps) and Staff, Style, Shared Values, Systems, Structure, Strategy and Skills (7Ss). This data is specific to the organisation and therefore internal sources such as sales reports, CRM databases, staff interviews, internal observations and staff intranet are used. To analyse the external environment we need to consider factors such as political, economical, social, technological, environmental and legal (PESTEL) as well as suppliers, publics, intermediaries, customers and competitors (SPICC). This requires information sources such as third party reports, newspapers, trade magazines such as ThirdSector, focus groups, surveys and interviews of existing and potential volunteers/beneficiaries/supporters. Marketing audit and their key issues and their implications for the plan 3.1 The Marketing Audit The Internal Environment This refers to those factors the organisation has full control over. To identify the strengths and weaknesses of BHFs internal environment the 7Ps marketing mix and McKinseys 7Ss framework were used (appendix 2). These consider 14 elements such as product, price, place, promotion, strategy, structure staff and skills. In addition there are also models that can be used to help analyse certain elements, for example the BCG matrix (appendix 2) and value chain analysis. The Micro Environment To help identify the opportunities and threats that exist within BHFs micro environment the SPICC model was used (appendix 3), which considers 5 factors an organisation has partial control over; suppliers, publics, intermediaries, customers and competitors. To help analyse these factors the Product Life Cycle, Porters Five Forces model (appendix 3) and the Value Systems Analysis can be used. The Macro Environment An organisation has no control over influences within the external environment, however it is important to scan the environment in order to identify the opportunities and threats that may exist and to make informed decisions to prepare for them. When scanning BHFs external environment the PESTEL model was used (appendix 3), this categorises the forces into political, economical, social, technological, ecological and legal. Having analysed the internal and external environment a SWOT analysis can be conducted (figure 2), whereby the key strengths and weakness of the BHF and the opportunities and threats facing them are identified. Bringing together the strengths and weaknesses enables the identification of BHFs core strengths; their distinctive competencies (DCs), and from the opportunities and threats their critical success factors (CSFs) can be identified. CSFs Little direct competition. Many customers with a link to the cause. Media attention surrounding issues BHF tackle. Large prospect market. THREATS The credit crunch: decreased disposable income, corporate donations, legacies (accounts for 40% BHFs income). Direct Marketing not as effective as it used to be for charities (not seeing a return on investment). Hard to obtain the details of new people. More health and medicine charities than any other type, therefore a lot of competition especially as many tackle similar issues e.g. smoking, obesity. Many people find it embarrassing and give socially desirable answers when discussing issues such as obesity and exercise, i.e. issues the BHF deal with research unreliable. Governments Digital Britain Initiative could leave the BHF looking out-of-date. OPPORTUNITIES Many customers have a link with the cause potential to engage with our audiences more directly and build long-term relationships. There is a large prospect youth market opportunity to increase revenue and market share. Little direct competition, one of just 3 heart charities in top 500 opportunity to maximise differentiation. Companies are placing more importance on Corporate Social Responsibility provides more B2B opportunities. More media attention surrounding the issues BHF tackles such as food labelling and obesity raises profile. Governments Change4Life campaign has given BHF exposure. WEAKNESSES Lack of perceived relevance to the target audience hard for them to engage with BHF. Many generic products that arent customer friendly. Website is hard to navigate much information available, but buried under links. Low staff turnover lack of fresh ideas and perspectives in the organisation. Staff close to or highly driven by the cause find it hard to see general public perception. Regional offices developing their own structure, meaning BHF messages may appear inconsistent on a national level. STRENGTHS Strong and trusted brand. Market leader (number 1 heart charity in UK) Large integrated CRM large pool of customer data Highly motivated -dedicated and driven by cause. Recently launched large multi media campaign Connections increased awareness. Strong demand/need heart disease is the biggest UK killer. A number of large corporate sponsors give access to large audiences. Many professionals working for BHF high calibre and solid knowledge base. DCs A strong, trusted brand. Large CRM database. Strong demand. Large corporate sponsors. 3.2 Key issues faced by the BHF and their implications for the plan The SWOT analysis highlights the key issues now faced by the BHF, these are shown below: Key issues the BHF faces and their implications to the marketing plan. Key Issue Implications to the Marketing Plan Credit Crunch reduction in disposable income, therefore less donations slump in the housing market, therefore reduction in legacies reduction in corporate donations Income reduced therefore a tighter budget need to generate alternative, cost-efficient ways of raising funds go for low risk options such as building on existing relationships rather than investing a lot of resources trying to make new contacts. Increasing competition from other health charities. BHF needs to maximise their advantage of having little direct competition and emphasise their differentiation by highlighting unique aspects of the BHFs work rather than those that are similar to other charities and make it relevant to target audiences. Direct Marketing no longer an effective communication media for charities. Need to use alternative communication media that are equally accountable yet more effective possibly making more use of new media. Large prospect market. Targeting this market will require a great deal of resources, however in the short term; given the economic climate it is perhaps not the best time to try to enter this market. It is a great opportunity that should be should be considered in the long-term. Very high priority given to cost savings and operational efficiency, even more so due to the recession often results in generic products (Bruce, 2007). Need to optimise the use of the OneCRM database and increase product customisation. The Digital Britain Initiative is set to secure the UKs place at the forefront of innovationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦and quality in the digital communications industries rapid development could leave the BHF behind. Plan needs to make better use of new media, possibly going out of the BHFs comfort zone. Having conducted the SWOT analysis and considered the key issues, the BHF is now in a better position to set their objectives and determine their strategy. Referring back to figure 2, the DCs are well supported by the CSFs; there is a good match. Therefore we can afford to set higher level marketing objectives (discussed in section 4.1). This creates a gap, identified through gap analysis, between the initial forecast (where we will be if we continue to do nothing) and the new objectives. Taking the SWOT analysis into consideration I believe this gap can be bridged through establishing a product development growth strategy, this is a moderate risk strategy, which the match of the DCs and CSFs supports. The BHF will also operate a differentiation competitive strategy (appendix 4); we need to emphasise our unique selling point amongst all the other health charities. Although, other product lines may also contribute in closing the planning gap, the remainder of this plan will focus on the BHFs new product. Task 02 Red for heart campaign London to Brighton Bike Ride New Product B2B Corporate Partnerships World Events Regional Events Sponsored School Events SBU Marketing Marketing Objectives for the BHFs New Product The BHFs New Product The BHF will launch a B2C membership service that will allow them to engage directly with a large audience and encourage the development of long term relationships. Members will receive information on how to improve their heart health. Upon registering the member will receive a welcome pack containing a heart risk tape measure, a guide to heart health, a 5-a-day food diary, a heart matters fact card and a membership card. They will also receive access to the heart matters helpline, receive email alerts tailored to their needs (healthy eating, getting active, quitting smoking and well being) and will have an online account with a homepage that is regularly updated according to their stated interests upon sign up. Their membership will also provide them with special commercial offers. This is a free service because it is a belief of the BHF that heart health information should be available to all. 4.2 Marketing objectives for the BHFs Heart Matters membership service There is a hierarchy of objectives with three levels; corporate, functional and operational. At the corporate level they start off more general and are long-term and get more specific the closer the planning activity gets to the tactical implementation stage (p23 Robert et al, 2005). Corporate objectives are often expressed in financial terms, for example referring to return on investment (ROI) and return on capital employed (ROCE) (Beamish and Ashford, 2008). However, for many not-for-profit organisations, including BHF, although still long-term, they can be much harder to measure. They are typically based on the needs of the beneficiaries, now and for the future. [They] set out the direction of the organisation; they are a statement of its prioritiesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Everything the organisation does should be related back to a [corporate] goal (accessed on 10/04/09 10.30 at http://www.ncvo-vol.org.uk/index.asp?id=488) Functional objectives are more specific than corporate objectives, often medium term referring to percentage increase in sales or market share. These then feed down to the operational objectives that are short-term and much more specific based on the 7Ps marketing mix, for example to offer a 10% discount for 2 weeks. Therefore when setting the marketing objectives for Heart Matters, they should support the corporate objectives as well as reflecting the close match between the DCs and CSFs. With regards to Heart Matters, the BHF have three options. The first is to take the view that the BHF is doing a lot of work directly related to their corporate objectives, therefore Heart Matters should be all about raising funds to help finance this work. The second is that Heart Matters should primarily focus on the need of the beneficiaries, the third is a middle-of-the-road option, whereby the need is addressed to a certain extent, but the service must be self-financing. We believe Heart Matters should initially be about addressing the need of the beneficiaries as this would provide the best opportunity to reach and engage with a wider audience. Keeping in mind the objectives should be SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time bound) the marketing objectives for Heart Matters are as follows: Marketing objectives for Heart Matters Membership Service Objectives To recruit over 300,000 members, with less than 7% annual attrition by 2012. This helps support the BHFs objective to provide vital information to help people reduce their own heart health risk once recruited, members will have access to heart health information to help improve their heart health. Hitting this target would indicate increased engagement with supporters. For 20% of donors to make a donation by 2012. 30% of the general population donate to charity; however, this may be skewed (as heart conditions are more prevalent in low income areas). This supports all objectives, as funds raised are invested in helping achieve BHFs objectives. For example, to achieve objective 1 (appendix 1) the BHF will provide funding, equipment and facilities to achieve the best results. Therefore, funds raised will support this. For 40% of members recruited to have engaged with another BHF product/service by 2012 e.g. to have participated in an event, donated, made a purchase from the online shop or catalogue. This serves to increase public involvement in heart health, to help achieve objective 2 (appendix 1). Achieving this target would indicate an increased understanding of the work BHF does and an increased involvement of BHF supporters. 5. Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning of Heart Matters. 5.1 Segmentation Customers are very diverse; therefore the same product and tactics will not appeal to all of them. We need to use segmentation; the process of dividing the market into specific groups of consumers/buyers who share common needs and who might require separate products and/or marketing mixes (Kotler, 1998 as cited in Ashford and Beamish, 2008). B2B and B2C markets each require different techniques to do this, as Heart Matters is a B2C product consumer segmentation will be used. Consumer markets can be segmented based on the following criteria: Geographic segmentation is based on variables such as region, population density and size of the area. Demographic segmentation uses variables such as age, gender, income, occupation, ethnicity and social class. Geo-demographic segmentation is a combination of the above, assumes that people either socialise according to class and occupation, or their lifestyles and geographic factors (Ashford and Beamish, 2008). ACORN (A Classification of Residential Neighbourhoods) is a system commonly used to segment the population according to geo-demographics. Psychographic segmentation groups according to lifestyle using variables such as social activities, interests, opinions and values. Behaviouristic segmentation refers to customer behaviour, segmenting based on variables such as benefits sought, purchasing rate and usage rate. Segmentation for the BHF differs depending upon whether the market to be segmented is donor or beneficiary. When segmenting the donor market, all of the above criteria are important, however when segmenting the beneficiary market, behaviourist segmentation will typically be given priority (Bruce, 2007). There will be 2 main phases to Heart Matters; the first will target beneficiaries. Upon recruitment of the target beneficiary groups the product will move into its second phase, to raise donations, therefore the target beneficiary groups will be further segmented and new target groups identified (for example this will determine those members receiving a  £5 donation ask and those receiving a  £15 one) . This report will focus on phase 1, therefore segmentation will be specific to the BHFs beneficiary market (for further information on phase 2, please refer to appendix 5. As previously mentioned, the BHF gives priority to behaviourist segmentation when segmenting their beneficiary markets. Potential segments Heart Matters could target include: Seeking help recovering from a heart condition Seeking help living with a heart condition Seeking information on caring for someone with a heat condition Desire to improve their lifestyle Desire to improve their diet Frequent user of BHF products/services Infrequent user of BHF product/services Use products and services from a variety of health charities Loyal to an alternative health charity Although behaviourist variables form the basis of segmentation, further segmentation is necessary as within these groups there are still huge differences from one customer to the next. Further, given limited resources it may not be possible to serve everyone within a particular needs group. The BHF also use the other criteria to identify additional segments: Geography: The BHF is a nation-wide organisation, however they segment according to Densely populated areas Large metropolitan areas Areas of low income Demographics: Parents educate about keeping their childrens hearts healthy 65+ higher risk of heart disease, inform on how to reduce risk 30-45 leading busy lives, but still have a chance to make a change 7-16 to educate about the importance of keeping their heart healthy Sedentary occupation High stress occupation Geo-demographic: Segment into different ACORN groups all of which are within the BHFs beneficiary market as heart health information should be made available to everyone. The market is segmented according to ACORN group as solutions and recommendations may differ depending on income and social class, for example EF14 category affordable healthy recipes, gym-free ways of keeping fit. Psychographics: Internet-savvy Dependents Families Older couples (no children or left home) Gym Members 5.2 Target audience for Heart Matters The marketing of Heart Matters will follow a differentiated strategy, that is Heart Matters will only be targeted at certain segments of the total market and the marketing mix (section 6) will be tailored towards these target segments of the market. Figure 4 below shows the target groups chosen for Heart Matters Membership. Recovering/living with heart conditionhigh risk Glasgow and London Age 50+ Behaviour Geographic Demographic Target groups for Heart Matters Target Group Reason for Choice Recovering/living with a heart condition and high risk groups. This is a large market; heart and circulatory disease is the UKs biggest killer, almost 2.6 million people are living with heart disease. It is a current strategy of the BHF to make the organisation more relevant to target audiences; this is a large audience where the need is currently greatest and it is important to ensure the BHF is made relevant to them. These are issues that are unique to the BHF, no other large charity tackles them targeting this group provides an opportunity to highlight the BHFs differentiation. Glasgow and London As this is a new product, and one which is free it will initially be launched into just 2 cities, this is to reduce the risk involved. Densely populated cities give a wider market reach. Glasgow has been chosen as there is a high concentration of heart disease, London has been chosen as people living here tend to have a faster pace of life, encouraging them to be unhealthy. Initial rates of membership registration of the two cities may give an indication of where to roll the membership out to. Age 50+ Heart disease is more common and risk is greater in older people. Further, a survey under-taken by one of our corporate sponsors Fitness-First revealed that of all age groups the over 50s showed the greatest percentage eating healthily, this indicates a large market that would be receptive to health-related information. In addition, this is the baby-boomer generation, a large percentage of which are wealthy home owners may provide significant fundraising opportunities in phase 2. 5.3 Positioning Heart Matters Having selected the target segments, it is important the service is then positioned with their needs and requirements in mind. Positioning is the act of designing an offer so that it occupies a distinct and valued place in the minds of target customers (Kotler et al, 1998). The target segments are likely to have concerns, it is therefore important the service is positioned as reassuring. However, we do not want to be patronising and compromise our brand, the service tackles serious issues so needs to be positioned as a provider of expert advice. Each customer treated as an individual, we wish the service to be viewed as providing customised, not generic information. Figure 4 below shows how we would like our target audiences to perceive our service. Customised Reassuring Expert, trusted advice Generic Inaccessible Amateur advice Depressing Accessible Perceptual Map for Heart Matters Marketing mix for the BHFs Heart Matters Membership Service Strategy Justification Product USP (Unique Selling Point) Core product: USP no other charity provides information and advice specific to living with and recovering from a heart condition. Supports our competitive differentiation strategy. Secondary and tertiary product: Carbon Copy many other charities provide free membership services offering newsletters, free calendars, membership cards etc (appendix 4) Price Intermediate strategy, in terms of the value the customer will place on the product. This supports our quality of information positioning and selective marketing strategy. Heart Matters core product has a USP; however we want it to be available to everyone within our target market, not just a specialist group, so therefore skimming is not applicable. Price penetration is also not applicable as this is a strategy typically used for lower quality, carbon copies therefore does not support our quality of information positioning strategy. In addition we do not want to target everyone within the beneficiary market; this is a new product, do not want to appear low quality and generic, the intermediary price strategy supports this. Place Dual distribution use both direct and indirect (via intermediaries) distribution to the customer. Selective Distribution Interdependence BHF retains full control. Dual distribution: the core product will only be distributed directly, this is essential to support the expert positioning and give the BHF full control over the service. Indirect distribution of the core product may confuse customers and fail to relate it to the BHF. Indirect distribution of Heart Matters registration and materials. This will give a greater access to the market and provide customers with the option to register in person or online. Selective distribution will give access to the right customers i.e. our target groups. This also supports our quality positioning strategy and intermediate price strategy, as we can choose intermediary locations that support our brand such as pharmacies. Intermediaries will be interdependent the BHF will retain full control. This is because the BHF has a strong brand and a g

Egyptian Bedouins :: essays research papers fc

The Life of the Egyptian Bedouins   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Bedouin people of Egypt can easily be described as a people with no place to call a home. Studying the Bedouins show that they have a deep and unique culture. They do not get involved in politics, and they live a humble and modest life. The Bedouin Nomads of Egypt are predominantly Muslim. Therefore, their beliefs, practices and rituals will be the same as that of a common Muslim. I will discuss the doings of Muslims but more importantly, I will concentrate on the beliefs and other aspects that make the Bedouin people unique and different from other Muslims.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In Islam, there is something known as the five pillars. These five pillars detail how to carry on your religious duty. The five pillars of Islam start off with the belief in the oneness of God and Muhammad as his prophet, as well as belief in all other prophets before Muhammad. The next pillar is prayer. Prayer must be carried out five times a day. The first prayer called Fagr (streak of light) must take place between when the first light of the day is seen until 10:00 am. The second prayer called al-duhr (noon prayer) should be done between noon and the next prayer which is the asr (afternoon) prayer. The fourth prayer of the day is the Maghrib (sundown) prayer. The last prayer is called the Isha (night) prayer. If any prayer is missed at any time of the day for any reason, it can be made up at a later time. The next pillar of Islam is al-sowm (the fast). Muslims must fast during the Islamic month of Ramadan. Muslims engage in this practice in order to gain endur ance and compassion for the poor. The fourth pillar of Islam is zakah (charity), every Muslim is asked to give a fraction of their money to the poor. This fraction is usually a percentage of their wealth. The final pillar is the Hajj (journey to Mecca), a mature Muslim must visit Mecca in Saudi Arabia at least once in their life. A Muslim that visits Mecca seven times in their lifetime can visit the Dome of the Rock is Jerusalem. The Dome of the Rock is the second most holy place in the world for Muslims. Most reputable literature written on the Bedouins were written by anthropologists that have spent time and traveled with them.

origins of the american traditions :: essays research papers

The origins of the traditions held by the population of American started from the time that this land was first set foot on by the human species and was compounded throughout the rest of time. The immigrants, and slaves expanded up on the traditions of the original settlers. And along with those they brought their own religions and cultures that also added to the traditions of this country.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Long before the Europeans ever set foot on to the fair soil, people from Asia came to the land that now makes up the Americans. They came by crossing the land and ice bridge once located across the Bering Strait between the Alaska and Russia. This location is now submerged by water. The exact date of the first human arrivals in America is unknown but estimated to be range from twenty thousand to fifty thousand years ago. The Asians that made the trip across the land bridge are the predecessors of the Native Americans that were located in the Americas as the Europeans began to arrive. If the features are compared between these two the similarities are striking and the facts behind this theory become ever more prevalent.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Native Americans that were Descendants of the Asian populated North, Central, and South America creating a large variety of cultures. In the late fifteenth century, there were perhaps 240 distinct Native American cultures just in North America alone with a population estimated at between one to two million people. Although these two million people varied greatly in there social cultures, government, economic systems, and others aspects of their life, they shared between them a common respect for and connection with the natural world. Were as the Europeans encroaching upon their land tended only to look at the natural world as something to be subdues owned and used for personal gain.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The First Europeans to arrive in America are believed to be Norse sailors from Scandinavia. Leif Ericsson, son of Eric the red who settled Greenland, established a brief settlement in current day Canada around the year one thousand. After this brief settlement the Europeans did not return for nearly five hundred years on a misguided voyage not in tended for the Americas but for the Orient. This discovery was made by the Italian Explorer Christopher Columbus, who had the misconception that he had reached India when he had made land fall on the present-day island of th4e Bahamas, henceforth the natives whom he met being called â€Å"Indians†.

Below the Line Sales Promotion

BTL sales promotion is an immediate or delayed incentive to purchase, expressed in cash or in kind, and having short duration. It is efficient and cost-effective for targeting a limited and specific group. It uses less conventional methods than the usual ATL channels of advertising, typically focusing on direct means of communication, most commonly direct mail and e-mail, often using highly targeted lists of names to maximize response rates. BTL services may include those for which a fee is agreed upon and charged up front. BTL is a common technique used for â€Å"touch and feel† products (consumer items where the customer will rely on immediate information rather than previously researched items). BTL techniques ensures recall of the brand while at the same time highlighting the features of the product. Another BTL technique involves sales personnel deployed at retail stores near targeted products. This technique may be used to generate trials of newly launched products. It helps marketers establish one-to-one relationship with consumers while mass promotions, by definition, make it difficult to gauge consumer-response, except at the time of sales. Examples include tele-marketing, road shows, promotions, in- shop and shop-front activities, display units. The terms â€Å"below the line† promotion or communications, refers to forms of non-media communication, even non-media advertising. Below the line promotions are becoming increasingly important within the communications mix of many companies, not only those involved in FMCG products, but also for industrial goods. Below the line sales promotions are short-term incentives, largely aimed at consumers. With the increasing pressure on the marketing team to achieve communication objectives more efficiently in a limited budget, there has been a need to find out more effective and cost efficient ways to communicate with the target markets. This has led to a shift from the regular media based advertising. In other words, below-the-line sales promotion is an immediate or delayed incentive to purchase, expressed in cash or in kind, and having only a short term or temporary duration. Below the Line uses less conventional methods than the usual specific channels of advertising to promote products, services, etc. than Above the Line strategies. These may include activities such as direct mail, public relations and sales promotions for which a fee is agreed upon and charged up front. Below the line advertising typically focuses on direct means of communication often using highly targeted lists of names to maximize response rates. Trained sales personnel, often young women, are deployed at Retail Stores, near the shelves of targeted products. These young women convince customers visiting these shelves about the better aspects of their brand compared with others. This is ideal for new launches as it generates trials, which if successful result in repeat sales. In addition, above the line is much more effective when the target group is very large and difficult to define. But if the target group is limited and specific, it is always advisable to use BTL promotions for efficiency and cost-effectiveness. Say, for example, if a pen manufacturer is going to promote its product, it may take the ATL route, but if a company manufactures computer UPS, it will certainly take the BTL route, as the target group is very limited and specific. More recently, agencies and clients have switched to an ‘Integrated Communication Approach. ‘