Management Information System Essay

In this paper I will be answering the case study questions that involve; when antivirus cripples your computer, how secure is the cloud, are electronic records a cure for health care and also a tale of two IS project. Surprisingly about 90% of computers are completed infected with spyware, which make it the most common problem for most technical support staffs. That includes that major software companies. When spyware happen to become present on the computer, act as soon as possible to remove the problem and get the computer back in top condition. Cloud computing covers a lot of areas, cloud computing approach to IT where many users get information to shared computing resources, rather than each having their own dedicated servers. The lack of computer automation in the U.S health care system is appalling, electronic records have multiple benefits, they ensure that patients have coverage, and also explain exactly what is covered and what if the patient have a deductible, it explains it. In the next passage I will be answering the case study questions regarding the information provided. Case study questions When antivirus software cripples your computers 1. What management, organization, and technology factors have been responsible for McAfee’s software problems? 2. What was the business impact of this software problem, both for MacAfee and for its customers? 3. If you were a MacAfee enterprise customer, would you consider MacAfee’s response to the problem is acceptable? Why or why not? 4. What should McAfee do in the future to avoid similar problems? How secure is the cloud? 1. What security and control problems are described in this case? 2. What people, organization, and technology factors contribute to these questions? 3. How secure is cloud computing? Explain your answer.  4. If you were in charge of your company’s information systems department, what issues would you want to clarify with prospective vendors? 5. Would you entrust your corporate systems to a cloud computing provider? Why or why not? Are electronic medical records a cure for health care? 1. What management, organization, and technology factors are responsible for the difficulties in building electronic medical record systems? Explain your answer 2. What stages of system building will be the most difficult when creating electronic medical record systems? Explain your answer. 3. What is the business and social impact of not digitizing medical records (to individual physicians, hospitals, insurers, patients)? JetBlue an WestJet: a tale of two IS projects 1. How important is the reservation system at airlines such as JetBlue? How does it impact operational activities and decisions making? 2. Evaluate the key risk factors of the project to upgrade the reservations system of WestJet and JetBlue. 3. Classify and describe the problems each airline faced in implementing its new reservation system. What management, organizational, and technology factors caused those problems? 4. Describe the steps you would have taken to control the risk in these projects.

International Economic Essay

Globalization process refers to the worldwide incorporation of economic, cultural, political as well as religious and social arrangements. There are other definitions with the IMF referring it as the growing economic interdependence of nations globally through improving quantity and range of inter-country trade, free international capital flows and extensive widespread of technological knowledge. Economically, it’s defined as the union of prices, products, wages as well as interest rates and margins to fit in the developed countries standards. Globalization has various advantages such as appearance of global production, markets as well as wider access to a variety of internationally produced goods for consumers and producers. Secondly, there is emergence of international economic markets and greater access to external funds for; local, national and other borrowers. Thirdly, it’s economically beneficial in that there is recognition of an international common market depending on the autonomous exchange of commodities between nations. Fourthly, there is a formation of world political government that maintains the relationship between nations and ensures the freedom arising from social and economic internationalization. In addition, there is a greater information flows between different countries hence enhancing communication, while encouraging intercultural contacts and adoption of other cultural ideas hence promoting the adoption of new technology and practices therefore encouraging unity and harmony. Finally, it encourages global cooperation which assists in solving environmental challenges such as water and air pollution, over fishing of the seas and climate change. Similarly, it encourages health competition between nations and industries hence ensuring efficiency and effectiveness in the production of commodities. This ensures that goods produced are of high quality and charged fairly. This ensures that consumers are not exploited by producers who may produce counterfeit goods and charge high prices. In the wake of internationalization, productivity is essential so as to meet the international demand for goods and services and remain competitive in the world market. At the same time, nations which experience economic growth are fairly placed and their commodities are highly demanded in the world market. It also ensures that can trade with others effectively and efficiently by meeting the required standards as they can afford the current technology and production techniques. Tariffs refers to a tax on foreign goods once they are imported i. e. immediately on arrival at the port, the custom officer examines the goods and imposes a levy as per the custom formula. There are various types of tariffs such as: an ad valorem tariff which is a percentage of the value of a commodity while specific tariff is charged on a commodity as per its weight, volume or surface, but not to its value. It shows many units of a currency are charged per amount or area. There is also a revenue tariff that refers to a group of levies imposed mainly to raise income for the government while protective tariff is mainly imposed to temporarily raise the prices of imports while protecting the local or domestic industries from foreign competition and dumping of unwanted commodities or imports. However, they raise the price of a commodity as per the imposed levy, hence exploiting the consumers of the good or manufacturers who utilize as a raw material, at the same time ii can lead to trade war when it doesn’t favor the imposing country. Trade blocks are formed to minimize or eliminate tariffs against trade with each other and impose protective tariffs on imports outside the block, while custom union has a common external tariff as per agreed strategy; the member countries divide the revenue from the tariff on commodities entering the union among themselves. Economic theories argue that tariffs are unnecessary disruption of consumers’ sovereignty and the rule of free market. They argue that it is unjust to the consumers and generally unfavorable for a nation to protect a non performing industry, it’s healthier to let it collapse and give way a new efficient one to grow in its position. Others claim that protective tariffs that assist in protecting infant industries permit them to develop and withstand competition in the international trade once they expand their size. Similarly, tariffs can be used as a political tool to define the boundaries of an independent country as absence of tariffs establishes a free market system with no borders. However, it has been argued that tariffs assist developing countries as they are easy to collect, and these countries lack institutional capability to efficiently raise revenue and sales taxes. Non tariff barriers to trade are ways to avoid free trade regulations such as those of European Union (EU), World trade organization (WTO) etc. hat restrict imposition of tariffs such as anti dumping regulations and counterfeit goods measures, which have similar results as tariffs though imposed in special conditions. Other non tariff barriers are in form of processing or production requirements of a commodity with an import ban imposed on those goods which do not meet the requirement or condition. Some trade barriers are openly allowed in very limited conditions, when reckoned important to safeguard health, safety, sanitation or depletable resources. Non tariff barriers to trade take many forms such as state subsidies that favor an individual or industry hence disadvantaging others subsidizing, therefore becoming more competitive in the market as well as national regulations on safety, health, employment and product classification which tend to discriminate some business while favoring others. Quotas are also form of barriers as an industry can’t produce more than the recommended quantity, hence regulating its production capacity and trade in general. imilarly, foreign exchange control and multiplicity forms a non trade barrier as countries or industries that do not access it cant participate in foreign trade easily, hence it acts as a form of trade barrier as well patents and copyright laws that give an individual or industry the ultimate powers to produce a commodity alone, therefore regulating trade. Others include bribery, corruption, unfair customs procedures, restrictive licenses, import bans and restrictive import regimes which act as an obstacle to trade.

Osama Bin Laden’s Strategy Essay

What were Osama bin Laden’s intended strategies in response to the â€Å"Arab Spring and why did he consider it a formidable event?† In response to the revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protest (both non-violent and violent) throughout the Arab world, Osama Bin Laden wanted to reevaluate how Al-Qaida as a whole conducted their operations within the Muslim world. Osama Bin Laden viewed Al Qaeda’s in ability to attract followers as a weakness, â€Å"He believed that a media campaign should be launched to incite people who have not yet revolted and exhort them to rebel against the rulers†, (Lahoud et al. 2012, 3). By avoiding joining political parties and focusing on combat operations, for example in Afghanistan the Taliban were â€Å"weakening† the United States which had a negative effect on the United States ability to assist leaders in the Muslim world with combating the Arab Spring, (Lahoud et al. 2012, 3). Osama Bin Laden viewed the Arab s pring, which was sweeping across the Muslim World causing riots and protest as a time filled with great opportunity because of the effect it was having on Governments such as Tunisia and Egypt. â€Å"At the time he was writing, the presidents of Tunisia and Egypt, Zein al-`Abidin bin `Ali and Husni Mubarak had fallen. Bin Laden was convinced that their fall was bound to trigger a domino effect, and â€Å"the fall of the remaining tyrants in the region was inevitable†, (Lahoud et al. 2012, 48). Explain Osama bin Laden’s relationship with regional jihadi groups at the time of his death. Senior Al Qaeda leadership held mixed feelings in regards to how to deal with regional jihadi groups. These regional groups were likely attracted to Al Qaeda after its much successful attack on September 11, 2009. While some Al Qaeda leadership felt that regional Jihadis should not be accepted into Al Qaeda, other leadership felt that only be including regional insurgents could Al Qaeda grow it’s numbers. â€Å"Bin Laden represented a third position, as he wanted to maintain communication, through his own pen or that of his inner circle, with â€Å"brothers† everywhere, to urge restraint and provide advice, without granting them formal unity with al-Qa`ida†, (Lahoud et al. 2012, 11- 12). Explain how King and Taylor describe the radicalization process for the purposes of their study, and why their study focused on the radicalization of â€Å"homegrown† jihadists. King and Taylor describe the radicalization process as one, which requires more than point of view to  understand. This is why King and Taylor conducted analysis of all five radicalization models at one time in order to understand the process of radicalization. By comparing each method King and Taylor were able to note similarities and difference amongst the methods. The study focused on â€Å"homegrown Jihadists† because of the current threat towards the west as a result of radical ideology produced by terrorist organization such as Al Qaeda, (King and Taylor, 2011). Why do King and Taylor take the position that basing counter-terrorism or counter-radicalization strategies on models that have not been empirically validated can be misleading and risky? In addition, why do King and Taylor take the position that the narrative promoted by jihadists is amenable to empirical research? King and Taylor believe the understanding and process of radicalization cannot be narrowed down to one method because the reason behind one individuals path towards terrorism may differ from another, (King and Taylor 2011, 616). Also, King and Taylor believe insurgents use propaganda to their benefit. For example, by leading Muslims to believe the West is attacking not only Muslim countries but also Islam itself they are able to instill into Muslim that they must defend their fellow Muslim brothers and sisters. This is one method that is used in describing the early stages of the Radicalization, as described by the NYPD, (King and Taylor 2011, 617). What conclusions do King and Taylor reach, regarding their study of radicalization of homegrown jihadists and what recommendations do they make regarding future research? At the conclusion of their research, King and Taylor decided that each method provided important information in regards to their own respected method. â€Å"When brought together, however, the commonalities and discrepancies between these models offered even greater insights, which may be used as a guiding framework for future research concerning homegrown jihadi radicalization†, (King and Taylor 2011, 617). The conclusion primarily focused on three factors which King and Taylor label as â€Å"contributing factors† to the radicalization process, reaction to group relative deprivation, management of identities and lastly personality characteristics, (King and Taylor 2011, 617-618). Along with these three factors King and Taylor suggest further research also focused on the internet and how it leads to ra dicalization and also the Jihadi narrative and its ability to influence homegrown jihadists, (King and Taylor 2011, 618)

Compliance Techniques Getting People to Say yes ( Shelley E. Taylor, Essay

Compliance Techniques Getting People to Say yes ( Shelley E. Taylor, Letitia Anne Peplau, and David O. Sears - Essay Example A family of robins had nested in a nearby tree near his rest shed. We stealthily walked to just beneath the tree and dad informed me to raise the stick up to the nest. A red male robin had stood guard nearby. Immediately he saw the red feathers; he attacked them, wildly chirping and flapping his wings in distress. I was flabbergasted. My father told me that the red feathers made the bird go berserk. I asked for reasons, but he told me he did have any though he though the bird thought that the feathers were from another robin. He noted that robins have territories and are prone to attack another robin on his territorial sight. Since then, I have experienced experimental demonstrations that unadorned bunch of red feathers can be assaulted by a male robin will. However, I have ignored a detailed resemblance of an actual male robin that does not possess red feathers. I do not know if the other male robin will recognize it and react in the same way it does to the red feathered

Continuum Professional Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Continuum Professional Development - Essay Example Like any other activity I developed a working plan that would help me achieve my goals and objectives. The action plan was mainly based on gaining experience and learning from experienced practitioners. According to Plunket (2008) creating good relations with experienced practitioners is the best way to gain effectively from continuum development practices. In the action plan, I focused on the location of my placement as a junior practitioner, the skills required from me, being in good terms with my tutors and supervisors and having the best academic qualifications. In continuum practice development an action plan should have a mandatory requirement of acquiring maximum skills from the academic side and skills in practice development (Jasper, 2006). The author further argues that as a student, academic qualification is the most important requirement to build ones skills in their career. In the academic level students are advised to also create relationship with their tutors and other experienced instructors who may guide them as amateur nursing practitioners. In the paper, I will discuss my experience in continuum professional development in terms of communication and working with others. Additionally, there will be an inclusion of my strong and weak areas as a learning nursing practitioner. ... In my academic life, I developed my communication skills by research and by creating relationships with my instructors. Like a requirement in continuum professional development, one should create a healthy relationship with tutors and instructors. In this way, the experienced practitioners aid students in understanding the requirements of the practice. In terms of communication I indulged in practical lessons in gaining experience and getting used to the terms involved. In the practical lessons, there were programs which we participated in that helped our tutors evaluate and promote our progress. The programs were based on specific requirements from our tutors. The programs enhanced our communicating skills with patients, taking notes from practical lessons, analyzing the trends in communication in the practice and learning from experienced practitioners how to relate to the practice situations. Communication in the academic level is also enhanced through creating groups that help fo rmulate communication strategies (O’Farell & Evans, 2008). In these groups, tutors and instructors provide instructions on how to create communication programs and trends to suit the field. Additionally, the groups act as support mechanisms to slow learners who require more attention when learning. According to Hansen (2013) communication in groups help students have confidence and enough self esteem to face patient and experienced practitioners. In groups, every person is ranked an amateur regardless of their sharpness and level of understanding. This helps students feel comfortable when learning and experimenting new communication skills. Academically, students also learn how to work in groups. In every class level tutors created groups which required working together to

The obesity lawsuit against Mcdonalds was benefical because it was a Case Study

The obesity lawsuit against Mcdonalds was benefical because it was a catalyst in improving laws that govern the fast food industry - Case Study Example The case was filed in the New York Court, in the year 2005, which stated, inter alia, that as a result of prolonged and heavy consumption of McDonalds’ food products, at the Bronx outlet of the McDonalds, two teenagers, by names of Ashley Pelman and Jazlyn Bradley contracted severe obesity, resulting a series of distress causing health problems. Their contention was that MacDonalds’ has misled them to believe that their products were entirely safe for consumption. (Colb 2005). Their original complaint was refused on 22/1/2003, by the US District Justice Robert Sweet, citing lack of specific reasons in substantiation of their claims. However, he asked them to modify the application, citing that consumption of McDonald’s products could produce health hazards that could not be known to the consumers during the ordinary course of using their products. However, the teenagers had cited that McDonald’s had failed to provide adequate knowledge about the composition of its various food products, and have assured consumers about the total safety of their products by means of false propaganda, and brilliantly executed, yet untrue advertisements. Thus, they had succeeded in luring young people into having food products, which could prove detrimental to the health of the young consumers, as was rightly proved in the cases of the two teenagers, Ashley and Jazlyn. Although the defendants were acquitted of the charges at the subsequent hearings, fundamentally, on the grounds that the plaintiffs could not conclusively prove, that the health hazards arouse due only to consumption of McDonald products.

Perspectives of Early Psychology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Perspectives of Early Psychology - Essay Example Behaviorists, recently discounted as questionable, do not account for the inner workings of the mind, as behaviorists believe that they are beyond the realm of understanding. Cognitive theorists, however, look deeper into the mind to attempt to discover the reasoning behind our actions. Cognitive theory had its basis in the Gestalt psychology of Wertheimer, Khler, and Koffka (Hufnus, n.d.). However, Cognitive theory diverges from Gestalt in that it promotes the idea that solutions to problems are much like formulas. Gestalt views the whole problem. Cognitive sees the independent parts. The Cognitive process goes through a series of steps that are not consciously understood by the subject. In this way Gestalt and Cognitive are similar. It is somewhat like having an automobile. Gestalt knows we can get from point A to point B by operating the car. However, Cognitive looks inside the workings of the car to determine how it goes from point A to point B. Both Gestalt and Cognitive rely on the study of the mind, but Cognitive attempts to look deeper and more scientifically into the thought process. Sociocultural psychology is a relatively recent entry in the realm of psychology, though may have the greater influence on our understanding of behavior and pro

Public Anger And The Occupy Wall Street Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Public Anger And The Occupy Wall Street - Essay Example The idea was obviously to goad and move the government and to convince them that people the limit of patience of a docile public has been reached (Moynihan, 17 March 2012). The OWS movement was a continuation of the anger felt by a frustrated public across the world. This was seen in the Tahrir square of Egypt, the Arab Spring movement of Saudi Arabia, protests in the UK, Spain, Greece, India, Pakistan, Libya, and many other nations. In many places, these movements have succeeded in bringing in some level of change. In Egypt, the President Mr. Mubarak was forced to resign, in the Middle East, changes were brought in the manner in which people were governed, in Greece, the government was forced to change its stance on the Euro. In a way, such movements have brought in changes though not to the extent those were planned. These mass-based movements can be traced to Mahatma Gandhi who used non-violent protests to throw out the British from India. China had the Tiananmen Square protests that ended in a massacre. Such movements become successful when there is a mass-based movement and more people in different cities join the movement. Zit must be a movement by the masses and not by a few. Some discipline, leadership and an agenda are needed else the movement becomes anarchy and lewd acts, violence and anti-social elements take over the movement. It is interesting to see how the common person on the street is affected. When such protestors block roads and they do not allow traffic to pass, people cannot go to work, to school, and the ill cannot go to the hospitals and so on. When traffic is blocked, the government machinery grinds to a halt. Police can be called in but they can do little when the number of protestors is in thousands.

INTERNATIONAL BANKING - LAW AND PRACTICE Coursework

INTERNATIONAL BANKING - LAW AND PRACTICE - Coursework Example The underlying aspects of suretyship guarantees are that they are effective upon certain conditions, whereas demand guarantees are simply effective upon demand. The underlying reason as to why issuers need instruments to be suretyships is that in a deal of guarantee, the surety accepts a secondary liability to responds for the debtor, who rests primarily responsible. In a contract of indemnity the surety assumes a primary liability, either alone or jointly with the principal debtor. The cases mentioned above will be looked at as to what the courts decide in determining demand and suretyship guarantees, and all information has been extracted directly from the case reports. Demand Guarantees Demand guarantees are written agreements made by a guarantor to assure a beneficiary, subject to the conditions in the agreement. The guarantee is an agreement between the guarantor and the beneficiary. Thus, if an employer is specified a demand guarantee by a bank in respect of the responsibilitie s of a contractor, the contractor is not a party to the agreement. Therefore, the beneficiary is in a strong situation should there be a default. Demand guarantees are contracts and can be generated by either a simple contract or executed as a deed (Birchal & Ramus, 2012). Banks generally set demand guarantees. There are two basic types: on demand guarantees (often referred to as on demand bonds) and documentary demand guarantees. On demand guarantees essentially necessitate a guarantor to make payment to a beneficiary upon request to do so. In the case of documentary demand guarantees, payment will only be made on the securing, by the beneficiary, of the papers required by the terms of the guarantee. These, for example, may be documents proving a court judgment (Birchal & Ramus, 2012). Banks support demand guarantees since they do not need to get tangled in legal opinions and disputes following a default; their view is generally direct. However, their situation is not so reasonable for those necessary to provide demand guarantees. Take, for example, a contractor required to provide a 20% demand guarantee with regards of a $100,000 contract. The guarantee will be the amount of $20,000. The contractor’s bank supplying the guarantee will handle the price of the guarantee as contractors credit and will, therefore, reduce any credit amenities offered to the contractor by this amount. In addition, the bank will undoubtedly require security from the contractor to backup the credit. Both these activities will disturb a contractor’s cash flow and make it more challenging for him to execute contracts. Indeed, the functional competence of a construction firm can be decreased by the obligation to deliver demand guarantees. A contractor in this situation may also sense insecurity, especially where on demand guarantees are delivered. The contractor has insignificant entitlements to avoid a bank paying against an on demand guarantee. Banks will pay on demand a nd leave the contractor to settle any dispute directly with the beneficiary (Birchal & Ramus, 2012). Suretyship Guarantee Companies frequently require working capital to function and grow. The owners of small businesses regularly need to cater a guarantee of suretyshi

Discuss the major components of an academic essay,outlining the role that each component plays. Essay Example for Free

Discuss the major components of an academic essay,outlining the role that each component plays. Essay An academic essay is a systematic piece of writing which has a coherent and cohesion meaning. Basically, an academic essay is mainly characterized by an introduction, the body, the conclusion and the reference as shall be discussed forth with. To begin with, an introduction as stressed by McMillan and Weyers (2010: 90) â€Å"has to be the first contact that the reader makes with the author of the text.† This, therefore means it (the introduction) has to be well organized and clear, that is, short and precise to the subject matter or the topic. In support, Cleary et al (2013: 264) writes, â€Å"The introduction is the official start of your essay and introduces your reader to the subject.† Furthermore, Gamble and Gamble (2010: 371) supports the idea of the introduction being the first to impress the subject matter or points to be stressed. They further explain that, â€Å"The functions of an introduction are to gain the attention of the audience members, to make them listen to the speech.† Just like Gamble, Payne (2001) gives an emphasis on getting the attention of the audience through introducing the subject. Payne (ibid) suggests that, the introduction has to bring about the topic, that is, highlighting the audience or the reader about the subject or topic. In addition to that, Gamble (ibid) further shows that, in the introduction one of the ultimate goals to be built is rapport. This therefore, means creating or having a mutual relation of understanding with the audience. Cleary (2013: 265) suggests that, â€Å"an introduction has to explain the title as necessary: defining terms used in the title and explains the purpose in writing the subject matter.† This means, educating the audience or reader about the topic and thereby, giving adequate information relating to the subject. In addition, McMillan (i bid) gives an emphasis on the importance of the introduction being brief and, thereby explaining of the topic context. Meaning the introduction has to be clear and making the topic being clearly understood by everyone. Pritchard (2008) also highlights on the formulation of the relation between the audiences so as to deliver the information effectively. More so, Payne (ibid), further outlines that the role of the introduction is to create focusting of the major ideas of the subject matter. Again, this creates the map of the rest of the piece of work or document or speech, giving directions and highlights of what is going to happen through the course of the writing. In support, McMillan (2010:89) suggests that, â€Å"an introduction should have an explanation of how one is going to plan to address the topic in a particular text-in effect statement on intent.† Furthermore, Cleary (2013: 265) suggests that, â€Å"an introduction has to briefly state the structure of the essay by giving the main points.† This thereby gives the reader a clear picture on the title, the purpose of writing, the focus and the essay structure writes. Furthermore, an introduction should not be too difficult to understand. The use of simple language which is widely accepted gives credibility and the use of jargons it should not be used when introducing a topic. There should not be any ambiguity when introducing a topic. After the introduction, an academic essay should have the body. This, as writes Payne (2001: 416), â€Å"Is the main portion of the speech.† This therefore, means that the use of good joints of sentences is widely encouraged. This part therefore provides all the facts, evidence, critical analysis, discussion and a well built up side line of the story or the topic. As a result, the main ideas or the gist of the topic are easily attainabl e efficiently. In addition to, McMillan et al indicates that, â€Å"This section (the body) lays out the work based on the approach which one has decided to adopt in organizing the content.† This part of the essay needs to be dealt with great care, as organizing the information is crucial. Since the idea needs proper and crucial alignment, this therefore explains the importance of a good essay structure with a good planning of words and a coherent of good words in sentence construction. Clouse (2008) asserts that, the body consists of two major parts which are the topic sentence and the supporting details. The topic sentence has to present the main topic of the paragraph and announces the paragraph’s main idea, giving a map. Also, the supporting details are the evidence details provided to demonstrate the truth about the topic sentence. In other words, the body has to explain the major points, generalizing, describing or exemplifying as part of the analysis (McMillan). In addition, these authors also allude on keeping the body part as concise and clear as possible; this thereby means the body has to have less ambiguity in it. CEES (ed.) applauds that the body part of an academic essay writing has to serve the purpose of giving evidence, examples, references which relates to the topic sentence. This as a result, gives the audience a clear and a well defined picture of what is being meant by the topic sentence in play. In addition, CEES ibid points out that, th e body presents the topic sentence or the central idea supporting the thesis  statement or line of argument. In line with Cleary (2013: 135-136), paragraphs should be well constructed and of meaning and this is when sentences are arranged in such a way that they link to one another giving clarity to the reader. Such coherence can be achieved by arranging the sentences in the sequence that will best communicate the message to the reader through the inclusion of signpost words or signals which guides the reader. Also, a smooth flow of ideas makes the essay much more interesting, that is, cohesive meaning of the thoughts or ideas pertaining to the topic being discussed. Again, this uses transitions between paragraphs in order to ensure a perfect flow of ideas. However, the conclusion in an essay serves the purpose of summarizing the presentation. More so, McMillan (91) defines a conclusion as a summary of the whole piece of work. Therefore, a good conclusion has to present and clarify what has been discussed, evaluated, analyzed, and stated in the master piece (the body) party of the essay. Furthermore, Redman (2006) gives an emphasis that, proper conclusions has to revisit the key points or the main points of one’s argument, summarizing the key debates raised and try to fuse them. Therefore, the conclusion should provide a condensed version of the essay’s core argument, and restating the writer’s position in essay. Also, Cleary ibid purports that, in the conclusion, ideas not mentioned before should not be introduced as this thereby changes the focus of the conclusion. Payne ibid (2001: 424), indicates that, â€Å"Conclusion is the summarizing of the major ideas.† One does not have to review everything said in the speech, but a short piece reminds the audience of what is important. The conclusion has to serve the purpose of clarifying the issues or ideas one has just discussed. In addition to that, Cleary ibid says, â€Å"The component of a conclusion is to serve as a summary of the main points, usually referring to the thesis statement.† Besides serving as a summary, a good conclusion should be used to heighten the impact of the presentation writes Gamble (2010: 374). The conclusion must be a synthetic summary which therefore provides a platform of mutual understanding. Furthermore, it must grace the piece of work in such a manner that the major audience notes the major points or ideas of the summary as a whole (Payne). This means, a good conclusion has to be justified for recommendations. Again, a conclusion should be short, clarifying and emphasizing on the main topic of the writing, or the subject matter. Therefore, this acts as a tool in making the presentation of the rest of the topic to be well remembered through a bracing conclusion (Payne ibid). To embrace more on a good academic essay, references should be made so as to applaud the works of others (A2Z Essay). Cleary ibid (2013: 361) defines, â€Å"Referencing as a standardized method of acknowledging printed or electronic sources of information and idea that one have used in the essay, in a way that uniquely identifies their source.† Furthermore, referencing is an act of back acknowledging the works of others in any borrowed fact so as to keep the works of others safe from any plagiarism claims (A2Z). Simply put, referencing is necessary to avoid plagiarism; to enable readers to verify quotations; and to enable readers to follow up and read more fully cited author’s argument or research. On another note, reference gives proof that allows the readers or audiences to consult the source in case of confusion or furthe r discussions. Again, references acts as an assessment tool in the sense that it requires one to find reliability of the sources of the text, similarities and differences among the sources and making connection between the details (

The Epic Of Gilgamesh | Analysis

The Epic Of Gilgamesh | Analysis The epic of Gilgamesh, is one of the oldest pieces of literature still read to date and the themes are still some that society can relate to. The trials and tribulations the main characters in this epic poem go through can easily be used to interpret challenges in peoples everyday life today. Gilgamesh the hero in the story who is also king to the great city of Uruk is blessed with strength, wisdom, beauty and is two-thirds god like. Gilgamesh is also very arrogant, self-absorbed and most certainly, lonely. The people of the city of Uruk pray to the gods for help with Gilgamesh and the gods send Enkidu. Enkidu is a wild, natural and carefree man who has subsisted in the woods. On a day when Gilgamesh is on his way to do what he feels is his birth right and sleep with a bride to be of one of his men Enkidu blocks him and challenges him to a fight. Gilgamesh who is undeniable the more powerful one of the two wins. Enkidu praises the king instead of being upset and causes Gilgamesh in r eturn to embrace Enkidu as his friend. This is the beginning of a bond of friendship in which both are opposites but they balance each other out. This is also where the transformation of Gilgamesh begins we see how meeting his complement teaches him to appreciate humanity and the bond of brotherhood that grows between them. Gilgamesh finally realized that the feeling of loneliness that he felt was the yearning of his soul for a true friend. Although it is a very primitive way but Gilgamesh begins to show signs of selflessness as soon as he brings his new found friend Enkidu home. Gilgamesh introduces his new friend to his mother, Gilgameshs mother adopts Enkidu he becomes not only the servant, confidant, and friend of Gilgamesh, but also he is referred to as a blood brother. The first journey that Gilgamesh proposes is an attempt to lift his friends spirits because he had noticed his weeping, Gilgamesh speaks, why are your eyes full of tears, why are you listless, your strength turned to weakness? (Gilgamesh, Tablet 2, 136-137). Gilgamesh has failed to get to know his friend and his action seem careless and selfish. When his intentions are to share what he feels would be a good time with Enkidu. Gilgamesh is not aware of the dangers in the forest and tells Enkidu they should journey into the forest and kill Humbaba. Enkidu attempts to speak some sense into Gilgamesh about the dangers of the wild but of course Gilgamesh still being selfish does not see his friend is trying to protect him. They set out to the forest Enkidu is entrusted to take care of the king of Uruk and bring him back home safe. Thought these two men just met there bond is immediate and while in the forest the trust Gilgamesh has in Enkidu is so great that when he wakes from sleeping tells his friends his dreams and feels comfort in his interpretation of them. When they finally reach their goal and confront the monster Humbaba in the forest the influence they have on each other is obvious. Gilgamesh the never wavering strong one has second thoughts and here come Enkidu and tell him those words of encouragement he needs to hear and Gilgamesh kills Humbaba. The men return home and are content for a while. As time progresses the loyalty Gilgamesh and Enkidu have towards each other grows. Almost childlike the way Enkidu responds to the princess and also goddess Ishtar who attempted to kill Gilgamesh in a fit of rage because he refused to marry her. Enkidu says to Ishtar If I could vanquish you, Id turn you to this, Id drape the guts beside you! (Gilgamesh, Tablet 6, 154-155). Enkidu is referring to the guts of the bull of heaven the princess had released to kill Gilgamesh but it failed to do so instead the two friends join together and kill it taking its horns as a trophy. The men caring spirit towards each other even though the response is playful in nature it brings comfort to the other to know that they have each others back. Unfortunately the gods felt that the insult towards Ishtar was enough and decide to punish the two friends. In the mist of all their adventures Gilgamesh has still never experienced a loss and still he feels that he is invincible. In spite of all of Gilgameshs p ower, he is incapable of preventing Enkidus death. Enkidu the great friend of Gilgamesh dies a death he considers to be a curse, he would have much rather a glorious death in battle but instead he lays in bed and waste away from an illness. This is the first time that Gilgamesh feels lost and helpless even his mighty strength cannot save his friend. Also Gilgamesh will get in touch with his human side and feel fear for he finally has come to the realization that he is human and death comes to all even him. Gilgamesh says, The fate of mankind has overtaken him, Six days and seven nights I wept for him, I would not give him up for burial, until a worm fell out of his nose. I was frightened (Gilgamesh, Tablet 10, 58-61) Gilgamesh referring to his friend Enkidu, that even after his death he was holding on to the hope that just maybe hes friend would wake up somehow. It took him seven days to finally realize that he is powerless against death. Gilgamesh gives his friend a lavish burial ceremony, lays him to rest in what he describes as a perfect resting place. The king also serves many offerings to the rulers of the underworld so that his friend is taking care of. Gilgamesh also calls on his craftsmen and has them build a statue in the image of his great friend covered in gold and other precious metals and stones to forever immortalize his friend. The fact remains Gilgamesh realizes his full humanity when Enkidu dies and he decides to go on a quest to search for immortality. Gilgamesh still consumed with pride will go on one last journey to seek eternal life, for he fears that his death will one day come just like it did for his friend Enkidu. Gilgamesh has become more aware of the vulnerability that comes along with being human. Without knowing he has also learned to care for another human being other than himself. Gilgamesh still full of pride refuses to give up and begins his journey. Along the way Gilgamesh encounters a few obstacles, first it was a pair of serpents that guard the entrance of the mountain he intends to pass. He pleads with them to let him through and tells them he is searching for eternal life, even though they tell him that he will never find it he is relentless and refuses to give up so they let him through. Next, he encounters Siduri the tavern keeper who tell him again immortality is not for humans but Gilgamesh refuses to listen, he pleads saying he is heartsick for his friend and to please allow him to cross or he will never ha ve peace within. But Siduri advises him and tell him that he should be content and enjoy his life and tells him This, then, is the work of mankind (Gilgamesh, Tablet 10, 90). The king of Uruk has ability to live life to the fullest to be merry, but instead he refuses and continues his search for something that is not attainable to human beings. Gilgamesh reaches the sea which is the last obstacle he believes he needs to cross to reach Utanapishtim the oldest human known to man and the only human who has been granted immortal life by the gods. Gilgamesh believes that by reaching him he will find the answer hes looking for and be granted eternal life. After finally crossing the waters of death Gilgamesh finally reaches Utanapishtim and tells him the purposes of his journey is to seek eternal life. Gilgamesh says Enkidu, my friend whom I loved has turned into clay! Shall I not lie down like him, and never get up, forever and ever?(Gilgamesh, Table 10, 265-267). In an effort to gain compassion from Utanapishtim this great King of Uruk will go into great detail in telling him of all the hardships he had to endure in his journey to reach the only person that may be able to tell him how to obtain immortality. Utanapishtim, does the opposite of what Gilgamesh expect him to do, instead of feeling pity for Gilgamesh he points out that all the hardships he has endured are by choice. Gilgamesh does not want to hear that instead he presses to know the reason why he has been granted immortality; finally he learns the story of the flood and why the gods granted Utanapishtim everlasting life. Utanapishtim gives Gilgamesh one chance to everlasti ng life and challenges Gilgamesh to stay awake for a week, he fails when he wakes Gilgamesh says What then should I do, Utanapishtim, whither should I go, Now that the Bereaver has seized my [flesh]? Death lurks in my bedchamber, and wherever I turn there is death! (Gilgamesh, Tablet 10, 246-249). With nowhere else to go with his quest of eternity Utanapishtim sends Gilgamesh home not before telling him to count his blessings and enjoy his life. He also gives him a plant of everlasting youth that again Gilgamesh fails to take care of and drops it allowing a snake to eat it. Gilgamesh weeps and finally realizes that although he searched far and wide for the secret of immortality, he found nothing and lay exhausted. Gilgamesh returns home and for the first time he looks at his great city of Uruk with pride. The Epic of Gilgamesh showed the reasons of Gilgameshs grief and why his attempt to do the impossible was so important to him. In a way Gilgamesh was looking to see if there was anything he could do and maybe be able to bring his friend Enkidu back to life. Enkidu shows Gilgamesh true friendship and love. It also showed how loyal friends could be to each other and how fast a friendship is born. The two friends learn from each other and support each other through all their journeys together. As Enkidu becomes more civilized by leaving his wild nature behind him, Gilgamesh was becoming a more selfless human being and leaving the tyrant king he used to be behind him Even though the two men had nothing in common in the surface they took notice of each others kindred spirits. Friends on impulse who formed a bond for no apparent reason but in return give us a glance at what it means to have a best friend and confidant. This also tells us that it doesnt matter how much humanity evolves the bonds we form with friends or family are just as important today as they were centuries ago.

Stronger Case Antigone Or Creon Philosophy Essay

Stronger Case Antigone Or Creon Philosophy Essay At the centre of The Burial at Thebes is the contest between the belief that the gods should form the basis of moral behaviour in the state, presented by Antigone and Creons case that the king can define what is correct behaviour. I shall go through the text and pick out passages that are relevant to the cases presented. My conclusion will be based on which case has the most support throughout the text, remains the most consistent and also the desire of the protagonists to see their views through to the end. Antigone presents her case during the plays prologue. She believes Creons general order forbidding the burial of Polyneices is morally wrong and states clearly that she is going to bury his body (Heaney, 2004, p5Â  [1]Â  ). It is important to note that women played a central role in the religious conventions of funeral rites and practices (Hardwirck, 2008, p195), and these events contrasted with the usual exclusion of women from Greek public life. This issue is raised by Ismene who describers herself and Antigone as two women on our own who we must do as were told (p5). It is made clear in this passage that Antigone knows she will be sentenced to death for defying Creon, something she has not intention of covering up. For Antigone burying her brother is a matter of showing honour to the dead (the ones youll be with the longest) and her belief that the gods will be proud of me (p6). The importance of reverence to the gods is a central theme in the play and Antigones case is strengthened by her invocation to them and the importance of giving the dead an appropriate burial. Before Creon has stated his case he has it strengthened by the Chorus who describe him as right for this city at this time (p9) at the end of the parados. Given that one function of the Chorus is to provide moral comment this is notable backing. Creon case, that Polyneices, a traitor, an anti- Theban Theban (p10), should not be buried is stated during his first rhesis. By giving this order Creon is not only willing to sacrifice family ties but emphasising loyalty to the state. The security of, and loyalty to, the state is the at the heart of Creons case. His opening speech is an extended metaphor in which the state is a ship that he led to calmer waters (p8), and those that stood by him a loyal crew. Creon emphasises the words friend and family (p9) to strengthen his belief that personal loyalty must always give way to patriotic duty (p9). After the war with Argos it makes sense that Creon would want to install a sense of unity by honouring those that stood up for Thebes and highlight the importance of patriotic duty. Creon uses the gods to back up his case. For him they kept Thebes safe during the war with Argos and later on describes as preposterous the idea that the gods have had a hand'(p14) in the burial of the traitor Polyneices. Creon believes his case here is strong for it would be illogical that the gods would side with Polyneices given that the city [is] under their protection (p14). If Creons view of the gods is correct, then is case his strengthened but if, as the Chorus suggests, the gods have sided with Antigone than her belief that they will be proud of her appears to be true. Another theme Creon raises is his belief that dissent to his rule is money orientated. It warps minds and generally corrupts (p15) and is, in Creons mind, the reason why the guard has not apprehended the burier of Polyneices. When the guard suggests that the judge has misjudged everything (p16) he emphasises judge and mis when he speaks, giving an added sense of foreboding to his words. This is added to when he describes waiting for whatever plague.. the gods were sending (p19) when capturing Antigone. The theme of money and plague are later returned to and help destroy not only Creons case, but also himself. Antigones acceptance of death is highlighted when the guard describes how she showed no signs of panic (p20) and admitted breaking Creons law. The following agon gives each protagonist the opportunity to strengthen their cases. Antigone does this by emphasising the edict is not the law of Zeus and that she follows original, god-given laws (p20). By invoking the gods again Antigone gives her case the backing of those that all in Thebes will worship long after Creon ceases to rule. Creon challenges Antigone when he asks if religion dictates the same for loyal and disloyal (p24). Here he is supporting his belief that the gods value the security of Thebes and would not want to be joined by a traitor. When he would states he would know his enemy in the underworld (p24) Creon appears to be stating that the afterlife is a a continuation of this life, and the battles he has fought; whereas for Antigone the next world is a place where past sins matter not and all are equal and thus that the gods are less concerned with mortal actions than Creon. With such differing views on the will of the gods the case that is the strongest will be the case that pleases the gods the most. The third episode sticmythia with Haemon gives Creon the opportunity to restate and strengthen his case which he does with his opening speech. Here he restates the importance of discipline and obedience to the state; when those go cities, homes and armies collapse (p15). Again Creon is stating the importance of stability as he did with his first speech and again he states that he expects his family to observe the discipline I expect from every citizen (p30). It is hard to not respect Creons views here and the Chorus does just this when they state the he seems to make good sense (p31). By the end of the third episode the case laid out in Creons opening speech is brought to the fore. He has sacrificed his son for what he perceives to be the security of the state and has proven that patriotic duty has triumphed over personal loyalty (p10). By relenting now Creon would destroy his case; Antigone has to die for Creons case to remain strong and Creon shows that he is willing to accept the consequences of his actions when he tells the Chorus that Haemon can do his worst then (p35). Creon should have remembered the Choruss warning that anyone who overstep[s] what the city allows risks being put beyond the pale (p16). Haemon tells Creon that People here in Thebes dont seem to think that Antigone is a danger. Creons response that rulers[are] meant to be in charge should strengthen his case but it doesnt the Chorus also warned of the dangers of treating the lawas his own word (p33). The grace with which Antigone accepts her fate throughout the fourth episode strengthens her case. The Chorus believes that Antigone goes with her head held high and because you were noble (p37 39). It is difficult to not be moved when she says I close my eye on the sun. I turn my back on the light (p39) with emphasises on close, eye, sun, turn, back and light. Antigone remains consistent and sees her case through to the end. In her final speech she reminds the reader that she has been punished for a reverence that was right (p41), that is a reverence to Hades, to the dead, even if they are enemies of the state and the duty of families to mourn their loved ones. By this point Creon can present his case as being successful. The state has won, and someone that has shown a lack of loyalty has been punished as the law demanded. Despite this his case isnt as strong as it should be. The Chorus who who at first supported Creon and who he relied upon to be agents of the law (p11) have turned against him, and the warnings put to him earlier have still not been dealt with. The entry of Tiresias brings the end of Creons case. The plague the guard alluded too has become tangible, and the corpse of Polyneices is where the contagion starts (p44). The king has been warned that the gods are revolted (p44) but when told that he can undo his mistake his first response is to accuse Tiresias of being bribed and his second sight.. well warped (p45). When Creon does relent it is because he has taken Antigones view that we should keep the established law (p48). This is a complete u-turn that sees Creon accept Antigones case and proves beyond doubt that her case is the stronger of the two. It is too little too late, Antigone is dead in her wedding dress with her beloved Haemon by her side, his mother and Creons wife Eurydice soon joins them in the underworld. Creon is destroyed; he want(s) to hurry death (p55) but can not. Antigone accepted the consequences of her actions but Creon has courted calamity (p56) and must accept the unknown to come. Using the criteria stated above I can only conclude that Antigone has been given the stronger case. If the play finished at the end of fourth episode it would be a hard decision but I would have sided with Antigone following her heartbreaking speeches. I would, as a modern reader, also be swayed by the belief that the state should not interfere in the religious practices of families and should not overturn centuries old traditions for political reasons. Creons taking on of Antigones view and the Choruss final moral comment, that leaders should always rule by the gods and reverence them (p56), makes it impossible to draw a conclusion different to mine.

The Archetypical Low-Cost Air Carrier: Southwest Airlines :: Aviation Southwest Airlines Flying Essays

Abstract The seventh largest major domestic airline in the United States (US), Southwest Airlines, is commonly known or referred to as a low-cost carrier. Southwest Airlines is the only major airline that provides short-haul, point-to-point service in the United States. In fact it was the first airline of its type ever started; it has become the archetypical low-cost airline. The idea has proven itself so well, that other start-up airlines have based their company strategies upon the basics of Southwest. Today, there are two other low-cost air carriers (the other two airlines are considered national airlines and not major airlines) that are actively and aggressively competing with Southwest Airlines for business and profit turning. The three American low-cost air carriers are currently posting profits even in light of the US economy’s current state of affairs, with Southwest Airlines first, JetBlue second, and Air Tran third, in profits. How is this possible when the major six airlines are reporting losses of millions and millions of dollars each quarter? The answer to this question begins about 30 years ago. The Archetypical Low-Cost Air Carrier: Southwest Airlines The product one airline can offer is the same exact product the next airline can offer, a single available seat mile (ASM) for sale. The difference between the airlines lies in the marketing, routing, pricing, executive decision-making, and the operating strategies that each airline chooses to espouse regarding that one product. It is through these strategies that an airline must find productivity in total revenue passenger miles (RPM) flown to be profitable. When the ASM is filled with a fare-paying passenger, sales or income is recognized, and it converts to an RPM. The relationship between the ASM and RPM are directly related and is expressed in percentages known as Load Factors (LF). This LF is a management tool used to determine the efficiency and health of the airline. It is necessary to keep these two variables in balance of each other. Southwest Airlines load factors are represented in Figure 1 and 2.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   RPM LF = ASM Many airlines choose to use the hub network, which induces costly effects in all areas of the airline. It is the point-to-point; short haul airline that is capable of keeping costs low and turn profits, Southwest Airlines has proven just that. Southwest Airlines survived the initial years of deregulation, years of cyclical business cycles that may have led to recessionary and or inflationary periods, and its 25-year

South Africa - Diverse In Culture But Could Be Unified In Language :: essays research papers

South Africa is diverse in culture but could be unified in language. English should be South Africa’s unifying language. It is necessary to understand what nationhood is, so that you the reader realise that a national language does not alter a nation. It binds the nation. I will also discuss South Africa’s diverse cultures and how a unifying language can merge these cultures. Lastly, I will demonstrate the links between language and identity. The concept of a nation is not easily defined. †Nationalism is a deeply contradictory enterprise.† (P Brooker, 1999,148). Our nation is one that has been formed over many years and languages have been brought to us through imperialism, immigrants and time. We have to accept that, †for most nations of the world to escape the profound experience of imperialism would be in fact to escape their own actual history† (P Brooker, 1999,148). We cannot deny that there is an assortment of language, which abound this nation. However, we need to choose one unifying language, which we can all use. This is essential for purposes of communication and mediation, which I will discuss later. This national language would be the only official language and English would be the unifying language. Identity is an ever-changing concept. South Africans sexuality, class, gender, race and even language determine our identity. †Contemporary identities can therefore be fluid or consciously delimited. Any number of factors are likely to be under negotiation in either case; whether of religion, nation, language, political ideology or cultural expression† (P Brooker, 1999,109). Our South African identity is one which has changed through imperialism and it is one that has changed through apartheid and it is one which will continue changing in order to progress therefore a national language such as English can become a part of this ever changing south African identity. A national language will not change the identities of South Africans, it will enhance it. People will still speak their different languages however when we are together we will have a common form of communication. In English-medium schools, for example, English is used as a medium for the study of a wide range of subjects. The students and the teachers come from different cultural backgrounds and many speak different languages at home but they use a common language for educational purposes. This means that an Indian teacher, who maybe speaks Tamil at home, can teach students, who might speak Zulu at home, using a common language, (S. South Africa - Diverse In Culture But Could Be Unified In Language :: essays research papers South Africa is diverse in culture but could be unified in language. English should be South Africa’s unifying language. It is necessary to understand what nationhood is, so that you the reader realise that a national language does not alter a nation. It binds the nation. I will also discuss South Africa’s diverse cultures and how a unifying language can merge these cultures. Lastly, I will demonstrate the links between language and identity. The concept of a nation is not easily defined. †Nationalism is a deeply contradictory enterprise.† (P Brooker, 1999,148). Our nation is one that has been formed over many years and languages have been brought to us through imperialism, immigrants and time. We have to accept that, †for most nations of the world to escape the profound experience of imperialism would be in fact to escape their own actual history† (P Brooker, 1999,148). We cannot deny that there is an assortment of language, which abound this nation. However, we need to choose one unifying language, which we can all use. This is essential for purposes of communication and mediation, which I will discuss later. This national language would be the only official language and English would be the unifying language. Identity is an ever-changing concept. South Africans sexuality, class, gender, race and even language determine our identity. †Contemporary identities can therefore be fluid or consciously delimited. Any number of factors are likely to be under negotiation in either case; whether of religion, nation, language, political ideology or cultural expression† (P Brooker, 1999,109). Our South African identity is one which has changed through imperialism and it is one that has changed through apartheid and it is one which will continue changing in order to progress therefore a national language such as English can become a part of this ever changing south African identity. A national language will not change the identities of South Africans, it will enhance it. People will still speak their different languages however when we are together we will have a common form of communication. In English-medium schools, for example, English is used as a medium for the study of a wide range of subjects. The students and the teachers come from different cultural backgrounds and many speak different languages at home but they use a common language for educational purposes. This means that an Indian teacher, who maybe speaks Tamil at home, can teach students, who might speak Zulu at home, using a common language, (S.

MacDonald’s Corporation Essay

McDonald’s Corporation is an American based world’s leading company in the fast food industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice. McDonald in 1948 they reorganized their business as a hamburger stand using production line principles. Ray Kroc joined the company in 1955 as a franchise. A McDonald’s restaurant is operated by either a franchisee, an affiliate or the corporation itself. McDonald’s Corporation revenues come from the rent, royalties, and fees paid by the franchisees, as well as sales in company-operated restaurants. In 2012, McDonald’s Corporation had annual revenues of $27.5 billion, and profits of $5.5 billion. Products: Macdonald’s primarily sells hamburgers, cheeseburgers, chicken burgers, French fries, breakfast items, soft drinks, milkshakes and deserts including ice-creams. Currently restaurant also expanded its menu to include salads, fish, wraps, smoothies and fruits in order to change the taste of the consumers. Company also serve soup in the Asian countries. The menu of the company differs according to the serving countries like prawn burger in Singapore. In Germany and western European countries MacDonald’s serve beer also. Operating countries: Macdonald’s corporation is one of the largest fast food selling company. It have 31,800 flagship restaurants serving nearly 68 million people in each day among the 119 countries worldwide. Mainly, company operated by franchisee, an affiliate or the corporation itself. Basically company is operated largely in America, Canada and European countries like U.K., Competitors: There are many fast food restaurant running currently in the market. However, Macdonald’s is one of the largest company operating internationally. Though, MacDonald’s itself is a brand but also it have some of the competitors in the market. There are many small fast food restaurant like as chicken and chips shops which serve the most of the items served by MacDonald’s in context to U.K. Besides these small fast food operating restaurant some of  other big company are also running internationally. Such as Burger King, KFC fast food, Sam, Subway, etc. All of these are the main competitors of the MacDonald’s. PESTLE ANALYSIS. POLITICAL FACTOR: The international operations of McDonald’s are highly influenced by the individual state policies enforced by each government. (2001) For instance, there are certain groups in Europe and the United States that clamour for state actions pertaining to the health implications of eating fast food. (2005) they have indicated that harmful elements like cholesterol and adverse effects like obesity are attributable to consuming fast food products. On the other hand, the company is controlled by the individual policies and regulations of operations. Specific markets focus on different areas of concern such as that of health, worker protection, and environment. All these elements are seen in the government control of the licensing of the restaurants in the respective states. For instance, there is an impending legal dispute in the McDonald’s franchise in India where certain infringement of rights and violation of religious laws pertaining to the contents of the food. The existence of meat in their menus in India is apparently offensive to the Hindu religion in the said market. In terms of the Asian countries there are many people who do not consume beef burger and it hurts their religion as well. This kind of act arise the dispute and violence and it affects the business of the company. Like also in Middle East countries, they have their political law that meat provided in the country should be Halal. The company should f ocus on the religion, ethnic and the political status of the operating countries for the sustainable business. There are also other studies that points to the infringement of McDonald’s Stores with reference to the existing employment laws in the target market. Like any business venture, these McDonald’s stores have to contend with the issues of employment procedures as well as their tax obligations so as to succeed in the foreign market. Political system: 1. Liberal democracy (less than half 191 UN members) A liberal democracy is a form of representative democracy in which elected representatives who hold power are limited by a constitution that emphasizes protecting individual liberties, equality and the rights of minority groups. Among the many liberties that might be protected are freedom of speech and assembly, freedom of religion, the right to private property and privacy as well as equality before the law and due process under the rule of law. Such constitutional rights, also called liberal rights, are guaranteed through various controlled institutions and statutory laws. Additionally, the constitutions of most contemporary liberal democracies prohibits majorities, which is rule by the will of majority, when it harms those in the minority. 2. Authoritarian or absolutist (Burma, Saudi Arabia) A political theory holding that all power should be vested in one ruler or other authority. b. A form of government in which all power is vested in a single ruler or other authority. 2. An absolute doctrine, principle, or standard. 3. Communist (china, Cuba, North Korea) Communist reg the term â€Å"Communist state† is generally applied to a state with a republican form of government characterized by single-party or dominant-party rule by a Communist party which sets as its ultimate aim the construction of communism. Technically, â€Å"communist state† is a contradiction in termini as a communist society is in principle stateless; hence such states do not refer to themselves with this term, but rather as socialist states or workers’ states. It should therefore be understood that â€Å"Communist†, in this sense, refers to the Communist organization governing the state rather than the state structure itself (imes) 4. Theocratic (Iran, Vatican) Theocracy is a society governed by priests, or one whose government is heavily influenced by religious leaders. Originally, theocracy meant a system where divine law was the basis of all humanly enacted law, and in which religious and political hierarchies were merged. Today, the term  theocracy is applied to refer to the dominance of religion over state. Technological Factor: McDonald’s generates a demand for their own products. The Company’s key tool for marketing is by means of television advertisements. There are similarly some claims that McDonald’s are inclined to interest the younger populations more. The existence of play spots as well as toys in meals offered by the company shows this actuality. Other demonstration of such a marketing strategy is apparent in the commercials of they use. They employ animated depictions of their characters like Grimace and Ham burglar. Other advertising operations employ popular celebrities to promote their products. Company also have its marketing strategy like as Facebook, Google Ads, etc. The like has become endorsers for McDonald’s worldwide â€Å"loving’ it† campaign. Moreover, the operations of McDonald’s have significantly been infused with new technology. Elements like the inventory system and the management of the value chain of the company allows for easy pa yments for their suppliers and other vendors which the individual stores in respective markets deal with. The integration of technology in the operations of McDonalds tend to add value to their products. Basically, this is manifested in the improvements on its value chain. The improvement of the inventory system as well as its supply chain allows the company to operate in an international context. According to (computing.co.uk) MacDonald’s are inventing the new ideas of technology. The company is also introducing wireless networking, PlayStation 2 video games consoles, internet terminals, flat screen televisions and music videos into its revamped stores. They are also providing free WiFi in the context to U.K. market. According to (marketingmagazine Jan 2011) MacDonald’s have started using contactless card payment service in U.K. This services helps in faster service for the consumer and saves the time period. Macdonald’s also have invented their new machinery equipment for the better service. They use new process for oil refining and latest machines which help in le ss pollution. They also use their cooked oil as bio diesel for their own delivery trucks. SOCIO- CULTURAL FACTOR Articles on the international strategies of McDonald’s seem to function on  several fields to guarantee lucrative returns for the organisation. To illustrate, the organisation improves on establishing a positive mind-set from their core consumers. McDonald’s indulge a particular variety of consumers with definite types of personalities. It has also been noted that the company have given the markets such as the United Kingdom, an option with regards to their dining needs. (2005) pointed out that McDonald’s has launched a sensibly valued set of food that tenders a reliable level of quality for the respective market where it operates. Additionally, those who are aged just below the bracket of thirty-five are said to be the most frequent consumers of McDonald’s franchises. As socio – cultural includes the attitudes of people, religion, their culture, taste, family, etc all this factor may affects the MacDonald’s company. As matter of fact, MacD onald’s opened in India have to be concern in selling the meat products like beef, mutton, and pork. The religion where these products are as offensive will not be consumed. Another example is selling meat products in Muslim based countries also. All the meat products should be Halal otherwise the consumer will not use the products. Other meat is pork which is not allowed to sell in the countries of Middle East like U.A.E, Dubai, Qatar etc. MacDonald’s should focus on the culture of the operating countries. The culture and tradition of the country also impact on MacDonald’s. Many people have tradition of not using the market cooked foods or they don’t have culture of eating outside, this also may affect the business of the company. Education and awareness is another factor. People may have the bad image of the food they consume if the quality of the food is not well. As a result they spread the negativity which may arise the fall in the sell. Another is age groups of people. So, company should emphasis on the socio-cultural aspect of the operating countries in order to provide the best service and obtain well business. Currently in U K MacDonald’s faced social problem. As from report from BBC, it was found about the sexual poem in the Kid Meal which was complained by the parents of the country and later the company apologised. LEGAL FACTOR In the external environment legal factor also have its impact in the different organisation and companies. In context to the fast food companies it arises the different problems. The legal issues regarding the quality of  foods, employees, environment and many more are some of them. There was a current roar against the fast food industry. It has forced McDonald’s to apply more close examination on their corporate social responsibility. As a whole it has addressed to requirement of the company to generate its corporate reputation to more positive and the more socially responsible company. The reputation of McDonald’s is obviously a huge question. Noticed on company’s web site, seems, that they have got steps to take in hand the key social condemnation that they abused them in the last decades. The company gave to their clients the corresponding data in which they need the relation of food essence of their products. This is to attend to the arguments of obesity c harged against the products of the company. In the same way consumers have provided freedom in a choice, whether they want to buy the meal. It is connected with socio-cultural market signs which they influence. For example, operations in predominantly Muslim countries demand, that their meat corresponded to Halal requirements of the law. In the same regard, those that operate in countries in the European Union should correspond to the existing laws forbidding usage of genetically modified meat products in their meal. Other legal concepts as tax obligations, employment standards, and requirements to a degree of quality are only a few of important elements on which the company should consider. Otherwise, smooth operations should be difficult to reach. Some issues may be: company sells fatty foods it may be changed in the operating countries. Other, MacDonald’s opens 24 hour in some places which also may be changed by the law and gets affected. PORTER’S FIVE FORCES 1. The threat of entry of new competitor   McDonalds, has make an entry barriers that others competitor cannot enter the fast food industry easily because, McDonalds have good product and services that customer has learned to expect from fast food industry.  · As we can see, people more choose McDonalds compare to others fast food like KFC, Burger King or A&W because MacDonald’s has cheaper price a lots of menu that suitable with Malaysian taste and good service like MC Delivery compare to others fast food restaurant.  ·The greatest strength was creating an image in the minds of the people and introducing them to the fast food culture. Delivery speed, customer care and cleanliness are the core strengths on  which these stores expanded. They created a corporate symbol and their advertisement campaigns were highly successful in establishing the brand image and logo in the minds of the millions. Two main competitors generally identified with McDonald are the Burger King a nd the KFC. McDonald marketing strategy is concerned with the internal resources.  ·A large amount of product differentiation exists in the industry. The McDonald brand ranks as 8th in Business Weeks Scoreboard over global brands. Furthermore the brands KFC and Pizza Hut are also represented (with place nr. 61 and 63 on the scoreboard). This signifies a large consumer preference to the global brands, and would create somewhat of a barrier for new entrants. 2. The bargaining power of supplier Different suppliers have different bargain powers in the fast food industry. There is the soft drink industry where mayor supplier brand names supplies products and brand value to the fast food industry. Then there is the large amount of smaller suppliers that delivers other products to the fast food industry. For example, Coca Cola and Pepsi. The market for soft drinks is dominated by a few companies. Mainly Coca Cola and Pepsi. These soft drinks suppliers are the only ones who have the capacity to match the needs of the global fast food chains. The domination of a few suppliers in an industry with more customers sets a high bargaining power for the suppliers.  · The fast food industry is interested in having the soft drink producers being a part of their own branding. The Pepsi and Coca Cola brand have a global brand ranking of respectively 23 and 1.  · With the smaller fast food places the soft drink suppliers are holding all the bargaining power, since the individual fast foo d companies does not form a significant part of the supplier clientele, and their business could be partially dependent of the suppliers willingness to provide necessary equipment for the company. 3. The bargaining power of customers (buyers) Since the industry is flooded with many different kinds of fast foods and many different suppliers of fast food, then the buyer are in a situation where many suppliers are offering products that have a certain similarity. Since the global fast food chains have been trying to match each other’s successful products and product packages, then the buyers can actually buy  similar products from multiple suppliers, and that is a situation the empowers the buyer.Furthermore, if the fast food industry does not match the demands of the buyers and the general consumer trends, then the buyers can choose not to buy their product and convince others to do the same.  · A good example of this is the movie ‘Super Size Me’ in America. It is a movie showing an ordinary consumer trying living of McDonald’s fast food, and the purpose of the movie was to see what the traditional fast food from MC Donald could do to your health if you were to eat their products for every mea l. This movie shows what the buyers possible reactions could be if not satisfied or not being pleased. The reactions from the whole market were a large change in consumer preferences and brand preferences. 4. The threat of substitute products or services The generic products of fast food are mainly considered as convenience. Convenience and availability are the main drivers for choosing fast food. However, this is backed up by focus on value. Since the market as a whole consists of many differentiated fast food companies, then the customers are used to having the option of choosing the best value products.  · The value of the substitute products in general matches the fast food products and the consumer preferences of the consumers. The substitute product offers both cheap value meals and quality products for both ends of the quality scale that the fast food industry normally targets. Furthermore, it offers healthy alternatives to match the consumer needs and wishes.  · The differences between McDonald and their others competitive are services of delivery that is Mc Delivery that give a good service, faster and make customer easy to buy from any kind of set of menu at McDonald’s. 5. The rivalry among existing firms in the industry McDonald however is far larger than most in the industry with 31,000 outlets compared to its nearest hamburger competitor Burger King, with 11,500 (Reuters, 2008). KFC (owned by 2nd largest competitor Yum! Brands (Yahoo7finance, 2008), Burger King and countless others sell similar product to McDonald.  · McDonald traditional competitors include many of the other fast food outlets across the country has been shown that the presence of a Burger King, for example, will increase the likelihood that McDonald will  open nearby. Thus, it can be seen that the threat of competition from traditional rivals is intense and should never be over looked. In general, McDonald and its main competitors (Burger King Corporation, Wendy’s International, Inc., Hardee’s, and Jack in the Box) are active in making fresh moves to improve their market standing and business performance by introducing their product innovation and launching many outlets franchise. A good example of this would be the price competition between multiple fast food chains’ value meals. Price dumping is normally a good way to attract new customers, or stealing customers from competing companies, and since it have been a growing consumer trend to go after these value meals, then it is a product category that have been adapted from most of the global fast food companies. The high level of competition forces the individual competitors to copy of each others are products and ideas quickly since the competitors are always keeping an eye out for new ideas for themselves, and so far there have been no way of protecting a burger or sandwich recipe. In Malaysia, every Chinese New Year, there will be a prosperity burger. Thereby they have found a way to differentiate, which gives them a bit more space to move in, and thereby a little less fierce competition.  · The main competition goes through the branding. In addition, the competition to create the strongest brand is fierce. Firstly, normal advertising through TV, posters radio-commercials are regular. However, the biggest brands like McDonald’s and Burger King have been branding their own brand through piggy backing on other brands power. Ecological Factors affecting International Business Environment or ecological factor is one of the aspect of external environment. Ecological factor is any factor, biotic (living) or abiotic (non-living) that influences living organism. All the environmental factor brings marked distributional, structural and functional changes in the living creatures which directly affects the business internationally. International business is highly influenced by the different ecological factors. Manufacturing industries, different organisations, food selling companies, etc faced the several problem through many environmental factors. For the sustainable growth and development of any business all the aspect  should be well matched. In absence or excess of any factor, which is necessary in the business may arise the depletion in the business. As a matter of fact, ecological factor should be considered vitally for the growth of international business. Below we will discuss some of the ecological factor that affects the business. 1. Climate, weather and climate change Any business can only be success in the favourable climate and weather of the place. Climate and weather is very important in order to have a growth of business. It affects the business in the unfavourable conditions. Especially climate, weather and climate change affect the industries such as tourism, farming, insurance etc. The adverse effect of climate change causes many problem in the industries. However, businesses that are dependent on long-term investment are likely to have larger impacts, because the consequences of climate change increase over time. So the industries of construction, real estate, transport and infrastructure are likely to be the most effected by climate change impacts. As for the example, tourism sector will be directly affected by the climate change and the weather condition of the place. People couldn’t broad to their destination due to the inconvenience. Climate change may occur high temperature, low temperature, high rainfall etc. in the improper time period which result problem for the tourist. Currently, in USA there was a high snowfall in the history which is due to the climate change. As a result the industries and companies are not able to run their business accordingly. Climate change will affect almost all forms of infrastructure: electricity, gas, and water in the utilities as well as transport access and telecommunications. This in turn will affect people. 2. Natural calamities Natural calamities or disasters are another factor of ecology which affect dynamically on the business. These disaster came unknowingly and create the adverse effect not only on the business but also affect people. Natural disaster affect all small and large types of business. Natural disaster includes flood, landslides, earthquake, volcano, tsunami, storm, hurricane, and others. If one of these occurs than it brings the wide problem in all  companies and industries. Additionally, natural disasters have larger repercussions for small businesses because they often operate from a single location. As small businesses also gets the majority of their business from customers in the surrounding area, any of these disaster may bring the adverse effect. As for example last year storm in New York causes several problems. Business are closed for many days due to unviability of electricity, water, telecommunication, transportation etc. Due to this factor business cannot take off and there was a huge loss in all sector of businesses. Another example is flood in Pakistan, Tsunami in Philippines, volcano in Indonesia, earthquake in japan etc. As of the report Japan nearly need a year to recreate it business in all of the sector. Not only the host countries businesses get affected but also they affects worldwide. There will be shortage of supply and recession may arise. 3. Pollution and wastes Another ecological factor affecting the business internationally is pollution. It is one of the most important factor which is to be consider in the change in businesses. Mainly there are air, water, noise and land pollution. All of these four pollution creates the adverse effect in current business sector worldwide. All type of businesses are influenced from pollution. Manufacturing industries are highly affected through this factor. Due to high pollution businesses cannot produce high number of product due to which it generate loss in the industries. Chemical industries are main source of water pollution, they are advised to deactivate their chemicals and proper managements for their waste and build separate place to dispose it. Due to which companies need to spend big amount of money for the waste management. In china government encourage to use the public transport instead of private due to extreme air pollution. This directly affects the motor industries sector as their sales ge t decrease. According to the report from BBC, due to the extreme air pollution in Hong Kong it is very difficult for the people. Tourism industries is influenced as people cannot see the proper scenery due to the air pollution. As from report air quality in Hong Kong is three times worse than London and New York. Wastes management also affect the business sector. Proper waste management gives the healthy environment. Mainly food factories and restaurants are affected due to waste  pollution. 4. Global warming and depletion of resources Global warming is the average increase in the temperature of the earth in air level and oceans. Industries including agriculture, tourism, health, real – state etc. are main sector of business which are affected. Due to the pollution and global warming the depletion of Ozone layers is highly occurring as a result the UV rays of sun will directly fall in the earth surface and increases its temperature. This affects the wildlife, agriculture and others sector dynamically. The business in this sector gets affected and it creates the vital problem. Another is depletion of natural resources. Raw materials are one of the important ingredients to run any type of business. All the manufacturing industries required raw material to run their business. Due to the global warming and improper use of resources it difficult for the companies to find raw materials which may result closing of the businesses. Scarcity of raw materials typically slow down the long term strategies and responses b y the business, thereby missing on opportunities to make early moves and position themselves competitively. Ecological Factor affecting MacDonald’s MacDonald’s corporation is one of the largest fast food selling company globally. It have its companies in more than 119 countries serving 68 millions of people each day. McDonald’s is growing day by day by increasing the number of restaurant. The main source of ingredient and packaging is nature. McDonald’s has a Rain Forest Policy, which declares its commitment to beef purchasing practices that do not contribute to tropical de-forestation. Everyday McDonalds using a huge amount of napkins, carryout bag, tray lines, clamshells. Oil and water is other major ingredient using in MacDonald’s. Environment is the most important in context to the business of MacDonald’s. As most of the ingredients came from the environment and they need depend on it. However, due to different ecological factors there is imbalance in the ecosystem and environments gets affected. As a result various impacts affects the business of MacDonald’s. Some of the ecological factors which affects MacDonald’s corporation are discussed below: 1. Global Warming and climate/weather change The process of changing the temperature of the earth surface gradually and occurring the unfavourable climate is known to be global warming. In a common way, having the imbalance climate and weather in earth surface which is not acceptable for the living creatures indicates as global warming. MacDonald’s is the fast food selling company which is highly affected due to the impact of climate change and global warming. Most of the materials used by the company are fully available from nature. First of all let we discuss the resources used by the MacDonald’s to run its business. They use different animals such as beef, chicken, pork, etc. Vegetables and salad are also most important for their productions. Organic coffee beans which comes from tropical rain forest is another raw materials which are used. Other several resources are used to run the business. Climate change and global warming creates impact in the whole environment not only in the numbers of product. MacDonald’s use the coffee beans from African tropical forest, due to the climate change their will not be the favourable environment to produce the organic coffee, as a result company need to use for cost to recreate its business. On the other hand, customers may not be fully satisfied because of non-organic and in concern to the health. Also tropical deforestation is becoming one of the vital problem which generates the low production of resources. This result the fall in the business. Different animals are used in the burger of MacDonald’s, due to global warming the UV rays of the sun are reflect back into the earth and its temperature rises gradually which makes difficult for the creature to survive. Global warming brings the unpredictable weather conditions. This will bring the bad impact in the business like MacDonald’s. As of the current example, heavy snowfall in New York City which is due to the global warming. Many places were affected due to that unpredictable snowfall. As a result all the companies including MacDonald were also closed for several days. Overall, global warming and climate change is one of the hot topic of concern in current situation. Food sectors and many more are adversely affected through unpredictable change in the environment. All the business sectors are fully responsible to do a research and generate awareness in controlling the environment. 2. Natural Disaster, pollution and resources depletion. Natural disasters are those calamities which have not any time period to happen. They happens automatically and unknowingly. It includes flood, landslides, earthquake, volcano, etc. Food selling companies like MacDonald’s are directly affected due to this type of disasters. Normally, people are affected in the places of occurrence. So, the business of that places influenced badly. In terms of MacDonald’s in U.K, beef are provided from Scotland. If disaster like landslides or earthquake happens than there will be difficulties in the transportation facilities. Other like communication, electricity, water facilities, etc are also affected. Due to which there will not be supply of goods. As a result it slow down the business of MacDonald’s and customer are will not be satisfied. As for the example, tsunami in Japan, Flood in Pakistan, storm in USA, etc directly affects the business. Due to this factor MacDonald’s are closed for long period of time. Pollution is also one of the ecological factor which created disturbances in the business of food selling companies. As MacDonald’s corporation use most of the natural resources for it food production, pollution mainly affects the environment. Harmful gases are released by the different manufacturing industries which creates air pollution. Due to this pollution there is more probability of acid rain which dynamically affects the living creatures and plants. MacDonald’s use coffee bean seeds from tropical rain forest, but due to acid rain it will generate several problems and will not be more organic. Different kinds of diseases will emerge in the animals like beef, chicken and pork. As MacDonald’s is popular for Hamburger, the diseases like swine flu will directly affect in the pork, another bird flu in chicken and others. Government may apply the new rules regarding water, noise and land p ollution which may also affects the opening of new branches worldwide. Depletion of natural resource is another major factor. Deforestation, water resource depletion, wildlife degradation are some of them. All this will adversely affect the ecosystem which creates scarcity of resources. MacDonald’s may face the scarcity of the raw materials required for its production due to deforestation in the tropical forest. Due to lack of water resources it generate the negativity in the productions of drinks and other products. Hence, natural disaster, pollution and resources depletion affect the business of MacDonald’s in a major way. MacDonald’s need to focus on these factors to create its business  successfully in worldwide. Preservation and long term usage of production should be in action. Long term strategies and external sources should be implemented in order to get the sustainable business and growth of the company. MacDonald’s responding to the ecological factors. a) Other areas of improvement include coffee beans and milk. McDonald’s now only uses those beans certiï ¬ ed by the Rainforest Alliance; and uses organic milk for milkshakes and hot beverages. It has Rainforest policy where it is completely against tropical deforestation supporting the balance in eco-system. b) Recycling and reusing of the products (to decrease the pollution) c) Separate agriculture and farming facilities to produce for its own use. (eg, beef, pork, chicken, vegetables) d) Use of vacuum urinating facilities(preserve water resources) e) Using paper bags instead of plastic, easy to dispose f) Use its grease oil for its own delivery trucks g) it have its separate waste management site which helps to make community clean h) McDonald’s worked with Conservation International to develop an environmental scorecard. It drives greater awareness of resource use (energy, water, air emissions and waste) with the ultimate goal of reducing our environmental impacts i) To provide customer with both good food and good value, MacDonald consider priorities for food safety, quality and cost–as well as sustainability–when making sourcing decisions. Their vision for a sustainable supply chain links responsibility for ethical, environmental and economic outcomes. j) McDonald’s has developed a next generation â€Å"low oil volume† (LOV) fryer that uses about 40% less cooking oil and 4% less energy maintaining the SAME Great taste. Hence these are available in restaurants around the world. As a result of this, environmental action plans have been developed to address these issues. For example, McDonald’s has a policy of sourcing its food as close to home as possible, with approximately 70 percent of the company’s food coming from the UK and Ireland k) In a ï ¬ rst for the quick-service restaurant industry, McDonald’s opened the world’s ï ¬ rst hydroï ¬â€šurocarbon (HFC)-free restaurant in 2003 in Denmark. The result is that the restaurant does not use Freon in its  refrigerants, thereby helping cut down on harmful climate changing emissions. As further proof of its commitment, McDonald’s’ efforts at efficient packaging and recycling have been recognized by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Also, the Campus Ofï ¬ ce Building received the LEED-EB Platinum award in2009, in recognition for its ‘green’ initiatives. Future developments work MacDonald’s can use the electrical heating instead of gas to save the resources Also can use the latest machinery equipment which produce less emission of harmful gases Using less fridge and freezer which emits harmful gas such CFC. Use new technology to open the new restaurant which have less effect on environment featuring the Rainforest Alliance Certified MacDonald’s celebrate their work with the Rainforest Alliance and want to inform customers that they should feel good about purchasing their espresso beverages that are brewed with 100% Espresso from Rainforest Alliance Certified farms. Environment awareness campaign Intellectual properties: Patents Patents protect what makes things work – like what makes a wheel turn or the chemical formula of your favourite fizzy drink Copyright Copyright is an automatic right which applies when the work is fixed, that is written or recorded in some way Trade mark Trademarks are signs (like words and logos) that distinguish goods and services in the marketplace Design Designs protect the appearance of a product/logo, from the shape of an aeroplane to a fashion item Types of Market: 1. Monopoly 2. Oligopoly 3. Monopolistic Monopolistic competition is a market structure where many companies sell similar products, but are not identical. Firms in this market structure are a monopolist for their brand. There is freedom of entry and exist into the industry as there are no barriers such as strategic raw material, very high  start –up cost and lack of information. Mc Donald’s maintains its competitive advantage with ‘Big Mac’ as its biggest attraction and backbone of the corporation.(ukessay) So how McDonald has managed to compete with other monopolies? McDonald’s have their own profitable specialty coffee in the form of McCafes, a concept taken from Starbucks. Recently, McDonald’s has remodelled the design of some of their restaurants, replacing their fiberglass tables and industrial steel chairs with wooden tables, comfortable faux leather chairs, and have painted their interiors of muted colours of orange, yellow, and green. McDonald’s not only have borrowed Starbucks’ concept of coffee, but have also begun borrowing the same design and feel. McDonald’s has gone under this remodelling with their restaurants to bring down other top competitors such as Burger King and Wendy’s since they are not as successful and cannot afford such upgrades to their own restaurants. Non-price competition is a way of how firms attract consumers with factors other than price, such as style, service, or location. So how McDonald has used non-price competition to convince customers to come to them instead of other burger places. Macdonald’s has not only been trying to beat other top competitors in the burger industry. It has also been competing with restaurants that are not even fast food chains. One of the examples of non fast food chains that McDonald’s has been trying to draw customers away from is Panera Bread. McDonald’s has also been trying to bring customers away from Chipotle, a Mexican chain that was originally owned by McDonald’s until October 2006. McDonald’s has also competed with Starbucks Coffee with the selling of their McCafes. 4. Perfect competition Globalisation, its indicator and main driver. Hetal (1999) defines globalisation as, ‘ the widening, deepening and speeding up of all worldwide interconnectedness in all aspects of contemporary social life, from the cultural to the criminal, financial to the spiritual. It helps in following: increased international trade a company operating in more than one country greater dependence on the global economy freer movement of capital, goods, and services Recognition of companies such as McDonalds and Starbucks in less economically developed countries. INDICATORS OF GLOBALISATION: 1. International trade 2. Financial flows 3. Migration DRIVERS OF GLOBALISATION: 1. Economic ( benefits of economies of scale, cheap labour) 2. Technology (communication and transportation) 3. Political/regulatory BARRIERS TO GLOBAISATION: 1. Government regulation( tarrifs and subsidies, border and immigration control, public procurement, control on capital flows) 2. Cultural and geographic distance (taste, culture, language, religion, corruption, work culture) DEMOGRAPHIC FEATURES: 1. Population 2. Ethnicity 3. Religion CSR and MacDonald’s Corporate Social Responsibility is a management concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and interactions with their stakeholders. CSR is generally understood as being the way through which a company achieves a balance of economic, environmental and social imperatives (â€Å"Triple-Bottom-Line- Approach†), while at the same time addressing the expectations of shareholders and stakeholders. Key CSR issues: environmental management, eco-efficiency, responsible sourcing, stakeholder engagement, labour standards and working conditions, employee and community relations, social equity, gender balance,  human rights, good governance, and anti-corruption measures. Being a responsible corporate citizen, McDonald’s firmly believes in giving back to the communities it operates in. they love to provide support and encouragement to the people who need it the most. All our restaurants contribute to their local community and every year we help set up and support numerous educational, sporting and charity programs designed to help a wide range of people. McDonald’s has a proactive approach to charities and sponsorships. We believe these help inspire and support the people of Pakistan, especially the underprivileged ones, to live a better life. We are dedicated to delivering great experiences through our ongoing community support programs. Some of the program done by MacDonald’s: 1. In Pakistan, litter patrol set up in the neighbour to pick up litter and aware the people, cleaning campaigns, walk for cruelty of killing animals, support woman, support the thalassemia society in Pakistan. 2. In UK, clean the surrounding near the restaurant, fix litter patrol, keep Britain clean campaign, feeding program in London Olympics, charities and support to the different clubs, support education sectors. 3. Support various community based programs such as sponsoring education for the poor people in India and Asian countries. 4. Support in sports and encourage children to physically fit. MacDonald’s use low energy LED light bulbs, energy saving equipment and waterless urinals, and recycle used cooking oil into biodiesel to fuel more than half of our delivery trucks. They also recycle the cardboard boxes used in more than 89% of our restaurants, and more than 85% of our packaging is made from renewable resources. They are the Community Partner Community Partner of t he four nations’ Football Associations. This means it work with local football clubs, schools, youth teams and junior leagues around the UK. MacDonald’s programme gives people the chance to volunteer and qualify as a football coach so they can give free, high-quality coaching to young people across the country. They also organise daily litter patrols and work with environmental charities Keep Britain Tidy , Keep Wales Tidy , Keep Scotland Beautiful and Tidy Northern Ireland. Most of our charity work is focused on supporting Ronald McDonald House Charities, an independent charity which McDonald’s has supported for over 20 years. Ronald McDonald House Charities provides a ‘home away from home’ for families with children undergoing  treatment in hospital. The Charity relies on voluntary donations, and you can find collection boxes in every single one of our restaurants. MacDonald’s also invest over  £360 million a year in the UK agricultural industry. The majority of our ingredients come from Britain and Ireland, with more than 17,500 British and Irish farmers providing us with ingredients such as beef, Freedom Food pork, free-range eggs, organic milk and potatoes. E Business: McDonald’s is one of the most recognisable brands in the world, yet also has to battle a fair amount of negative publicity The McDonald’s UK page has more than 30m fans, and its local market pages have all attracted several hundred thousand ‘likes’. Data collected by Internet Access – Households and Individuals, 2013 In 2013, 36 million adults (73%) in Great Britain accessed the Internet every day, 20 million more than in 2006, when directly comparable records began. Access to the Internet using a mobile phone more than doubled between 2010 and 2013, from 24% to 53%. In 2013, 72% of all adults bought goods or services online, up from 53% in 2008. In Great Britain, 21 million households (83%) had Internet access in 2013. Broadband Internet connections using fibre optic or cable were used by 42% of households, up from 30% in 2012. Globalisation strategy of McDonald: McDonald’s has developed their unique globalisation strategy. McDonald include their fore main characters to make perfect business strategy. Are shown as below 1 Think globally but act locally 2 Pricing 3 Advertising strategies 4 Social responsibility 1. Think Globally but Act Locally: The main aim of the McDonald’s Corporation is to focus locally with the global strategy. It always performs and supply all the operation, systems as per the requirement of the local factors. It always try to be fit in local traditions, cultures, society and political. McDonald’s Corporation always  keep special factors in mind while making their business strategy. It always performs as per the requirements of the different markets. Macdonald expenses lots of resources to develop and create its products as pre the local demands and traditions. However, once McDonald’s corporation failed to do this, while establishment in Germany and Netherlands, consumers did not accept their local menu in the year 1970 because they wanted American food rather than their local menu. After this experience company realised that every restaurant’s local menu should incorporate some local tests as well but at a minimal level.At the time of establishing in India, McDonald has considered that Hindu community does not eat beef as per their Hindu belief. Therefore, they specially introduced new vegetarian series of the product in their menu. Also taking Muslim community in focus that Muslims did nit consume poke. Therefore, they only sell chicken and lamb. It had done separate preparation for Vegetarian and non-vegetarian. 2. Pricing: The other most important feature is their price differentiates than their competitor. This pricing strategy of McDonald’s corporation is very reliable and unique. While fixing the price McDonald’s takes some factors in consideration like local life style, income of the family, location etc. The time of fixing price for the products, they also focus on the primary target group of the company, lower and power level. McDonald’s enters in most of metropolitan city of the country in which it enters.Sometime during period of lean time company offers discounted price to boost their sell in short McDonald’s corporation believes that to stay longer life in the market we should have unique pricing policy. 3. Advertising/Promotional strategies: Advertising is the other platform to the company by the help of which company introduce their product, boost to the customers etc. every organization have their unique and own promotional strategies. Here McDonald’s arranges their promotional strategy as a part of advertisement. The worldwide promotional activities of the McDonald’s corporation is organised by â€Å"DDB Needhamand Leo Burnettas† well their local collaborates in different countries. It sometimes organised by the local advertising company also. Other than advertisement, McDonald’s corporation uses more promotional tools to promote their product. Company offers their product at law price; it gives toys to  the children etc. most successful promotional strategies became very popular now days .McDonald’s has for decades maintained an extensive advertising campaign. In addition to the usual media (television, radio, and newspaper), the company makes significant use of billboards and signage, sponsors sporting events ranging from Little League to the Olympic Games and makes coolers of The Orange with their logo available for local events of all kinds. Nonetheless, television has always played a central role in the company’s advertising strategy. In January and February 2008 there was an offer of buy one get one free by McDonald’s UK particular for the Big Mac. Company introduced press coupons and those coupons can be exchanged at the McDonald’s restaurant to get benefit of the product. To date, McDonald’s has used 23 different slogans in United States advertising as well as a few other slogans for select countries and regions. At times, it has run into trouble with its campaigns