Living Life to It’s Fullest

â€Å"Begin at once to live and count each separate day as a separate life. † At times, it’s seemed as though life contains an endless supply of days. When I was younger, I thought this for sure. It didn’t matter how long I held a grudge, or how long I waited to do something I wanted—there would be an unlimited pool of other opportunities. At least that’s what I thought back then. Maybe it’s a rite of passage from childhood to adulthood: the moment when you realize life happens now, and that’s all you’re guaranteed. It doesn’t really hit you when you merely know it intellectually, like you know your ABCs, state capitals, and other concrete facts.It hits you when somehow you feel it. Your health declines. You lose someone you love. A tragedy rocks your world. It isn’t until you realize that all life fades that you consider now a commodity and a scarce one at that. But maybe that’s irrelevant. Maybe living a m eaningful, passionate life has nothing to do with its length and everything to do with its width. So, i have created this list with a few tips to live life to it's fullest!!! 1. Live in the moment. Forget the past and don’t concern yourself with the future. 2. Fully embrace the now, no matter what the situation. 3. Do the things you love. 4.Learn to forgive and embrace unconditional love. 5. Live every day as if it’s your last, embracing each experience as if it’s your first. 6. Believe in â€Å"live and let live. † 7. Use quiet reflection, honesty, and laughter. 8. Be other-centered. 9. Find calm in making art. 10. Focus on today and how you can do your best to live it to the fullest. 11. Participate in life instead of just watching it pass you by. 12. Stay healthy, eat right and most importantly, be kind to all. 13. Pray, forgive yourself, appreciate others, listen to your gut, do things you enjoy, and remind yourself that we are all loved and connected . Sandra Lumb) 14. Don’t sweat the small stuff. 15. Question everything, keep it simple, and help whenever and however you can. 16. Try to enjoy every minute of every day. 17. Appreciate life’s every second. 18. Step through new doors. The majority of the time there’s something fantastic on the other side. 19. Remember that all is a gift, but the most precious of all gifts is life and love. 20. Keep your spirit free, be flexible, let go. 21. â€Å"Do one thing every day that scares you. † 22. Don’t attach to outcomes. 23. Spend as much time with a two year old as possible. 4. Enjoy each and every moment of life. Every day is a new challenge and opportunity to discover something new. 25. Budget travel. It is always an adventure! You get to enjoy what fate has to offer with limited means. 26. Be honestly thankful for every breath you take. 27. Just be. 28. â€Å"Trust yourself. Trust your own strengths. † 29. Pause momentarily before everythin g you do so that you notice everything you should or could notice. (Scott Hutchinson) 30. Follow your hopes and not your fears. What have you done today to live life to the fullest?

Business ethics Essay

The role that ethics plays in strategic management has changed drastically in the last 20 years. It was rare to find companies that had ethics in the forefront of their management plans in the 1990s. Business was all about maximizing profit/shareholder equity. Incidents like Enron’s bankruptcy caused a big change in management style. â€Å"Enron’s failure in 2001 represents the biggest business bankruptcy ever while also spotlighting corporate America’s moral failings. † (Silversmith, 2013) That spotlight showed a moral environment fraught with greed and shortsightedness where long term growth for companies was concerned. New government regulations on business make it more important that the Board of Directors, CEO and CFO takes more responsibility for how they run the company. Shareholders are also demanding more of the leaders of businesses. For a time, shareholders did not pay attention to how the company was run as long as they received their dividends. Now they are are much more aware. Many people were hurt financially by the bankruptcies and re-valuations of those companies with questionable practices. Pursuit of profits is no longer the main emphasis for many companies. The emphasis is now on ethical issues including environmental, employee satisfaction, and consumer satisfaction. â€Å"Ethics and integrity are at the core of sustainable long term success. † Says Richard Rudden, managing partner at Target Rock Advisors in New York State. â€Å"Without them, no strategy can work, as Enron demonstrated, enterprises will fail. That is despite having some of the ‘smartest’ guys in the room. † Another area that was affected by the lack of corporate ethics was the mortgage industry. Regulations were relaxed, and some larger banks took it as a chance to make a lot of money very quickly. They wrote bad loans for people that could not pay. Using sub-prime methods led to a lot of people that could not afford to buy a home getting mortgages. When they could not pay, the banks found is financially more advantageous to foreclose rather than try to work with the borrowers. They are still doing that to this day, even with government mandated refinance programs. Unfortunately, some people/organizations take longer to learn a lesson than others. References Silversmith, K. (2013, May 14). Enron, Ethics and Todays Corporate Values. Retrieved from Forbes. com.

The American Tactics of the Revolutionary War

Most of Europe thought that the British with their immense amount of capital, soldiers and supplies would beat the American resistance in the American revolutionary war without much of an effort. However the Patriots realized, from their earliest difficulties, to capitalize on the enemys weaknesses. Guerrilla warfare and a strategy that emanated from the ability to manipulate events to their own benefit enabled the Americans to defeat the ostensibly more powerful British. The Americans suffered great abuse from their mother country. The British laid upon the Americans heavy taxes between the years 1764 to the middle of 1776. They created such taxes in the Sugar Act, Townshend Act, Tea Act, the Intolerable Acts and many other acts. These acts over the course of the years destroyed much of the faith that Americans had in the British government. The greater portion of the population thought the British were inadequate rulers and that they could do a much better job in ruling themselves. The Americans were tired of the Quartering Act which let British troops be housed in their own homes. They didnt enjoy housing British troops so that their families could be spied upon or have their children raped. The least the Americans thought they deserved was the right to have a representation in Parliament and the right to settle the land over the Appalachian Mountains. If the farmers could have more land to work on, the Americans could have a surplus of food to ship to other countries creating a better economy for the American people. Over the course of about twenty-five years the Americans sent over 500 bills to the British House Of Trade trying to repeal the economic acts that Britain laid down upon them. The Americans also tried to convince the British to let them have the ability to trade with other countries. If the British would have allowed this the common people of American would have been doing better economically; the percent of poor people would have been lowered greatly and the average income would have gone up a great deal. The reason it would have gone up so much is that Britain controlled the prices of products. The British decided how much they would buy a product for from the Americans and charge them two or three times as much to buy it back. All the American people really wanted was to be treated properly. As Thomas Paine said in Common Sense the British treated the Americans like an abusive mother would treat her child. Due to the economic hardships the Americans suffered they knew that they were going to face many problems in the war. The Americans knew that the British had a larger supply of men ranging from more experienced generals to more soldiers. The British had such a surplus of income from all of their colonies that they were able hire and supply mercenaries from Germany to come and fight in America. They had a stronger navy and a lot more artillery than the Americans had. The Americans faced many other disadvantages such as lack of guns, ammunition, food, clothing, and most of all they were heavily outnumbered by men. The British had most advantages except for three main things. The first of all the British had a harder time setting up their supply line because they were so far away from any major base. Their main head quarters was on Long Island. The British had a difficult time setting up a supply line outside of New York and New Jersey to feed, clothe, and keep in contact with their men. The second disadvantage was that the American generals knew the land and terrain where they were fighting a lot better then the British generals did. The American Generals knew how to deal with certain weather issues and turned it to their advantage. The Americans could plan out strategies based on land and terrain rather than sheer numbers, which is how the British tried to deal with the patriots. The third and probably one of the most important British disadvantages that they faced was that the Patriots had more desire to win. The soldiers knew that they were defending their land, their families, and they were protecting their desires. The British soldiers were fighting for what most of them considered to be nothing. Most of the British soldiers were tired of fighting in America and wanted to go home and see their families or create and have a family. The Americans at the beginning of the war tried a certain style of warfare known as Jomini warfare. The two enemies would decide when to have a battle and attack each other. The two enemies would charge at each other, shoot and hope that the basic strategy that was planned at the beginning would hold out. Much less strategy was used and involved in a battle such as this. The only problem with this style of warfare for the Americans was that in certain battles the British sometimes outnumbered them four to one. One such battle that proved that the Americans could not beat the British using European warfare was in the Battle of Brandywine. Washington was trying to keep the British from overtaking Philadelphia and at least give the Continental Congress time to leave Philadelphia before they were attacked. Washington with a force of 11,000 men thought he could take on General Howe. Howe divided his army and over took Washington with a flanking maneuver and forced Washington to retreat. Washington had lost about a thousand men. This battle proved to Washington how he needed a strategy that would not have them going into a man to man combat situation where numbers were the main deciding factor. He tried to overtake General Howe at Germantown in fog by sending half of his army to the backside of the town and half to the front side of the town. The army failed to move properly so Washington lost the battle of Germantown but it prevented Howe not to have another assault on Philadelphia that year. Even though Washington lost this battle it was a victory for him personally as a commander and for the army. It proved to the Americans how they could not face the British in direct man to man combat and forced them to form new methods to fight the British so that they could survive. The Americans created new strategies in order to overcome their enemies and capitalize on their weaknesses. The native people coined this new strategy called guerrilla warfare. The basis of this style of warfare is to quickly attack your enemy and run away. The Americans carefully selected their battleground and time of attack as much as possible in guerrilla warfare so that they could have every advantage possible so that they could have a chance to win. Two such instances where the time of day and choice of terrain were the complete reasons for British defeat were at Stony Point and at Paulus Hook. The battle at Stony Point took place on the night of July fifteenth and ended the morning of July sixteenth. Washington assigned Mad Anthony Wayne to this attack. Wayne had 1,350 men that were given to him for this attack. He set his men in two tight lines and marched towards the fort in and camouflaged by the night darkness. The first men to raid the fort attacked with their bayonets. The British fort soon went into chaos and surrendered very quickly. In total this battle cost the Americans 15 lives, they killed 63 British soldiers, and General Clinton was forced to surrender the fort to the Americans. Another battle that was won by time of day and terrain was in Paulus Hook, New Jersey. Harry Lee took a small squad and attacked the 200 men post. He attacked at dawn and caught the British completely off guard and shocked them. He killed or captured almost everybody at the fort. He retreated with everyone within two hours of the attack to make sure no British reinforcements arrived. There were many different guerilla warfare styles and strategies over the course of the revolutionary war. One such strategy was to have two rows of riflemen fire and then run away. The British would then try to catch them and the troops would be lead into a trap waiting for them. Two of the best, and most successful, uses of this strategy were at the Battle of Cowpens and the Battle at Guilford Court. The Battle of Cowpens physically took place on January 17 but was set up between January 2,1781 and the day of the actual battle on January 17. The battle of Cowpens was a major battle of the war against the British for conquest as much as morals. Previous to the battle General Greene had separated his army of about 1,700 into two divisions. His army would have 1,100 and General Morgan would have about 600 men. General Cornwallis thought this to be a very foolish move and sent out Banastre Trarleton, one of the most fearsome British officers with 1,100 men. Morgan knew he would lose against Trarleton at his present so he traveled to Cowpens South Carolina to wait for the onslaught that they knew was coming. On the way to Cowpens Morgan picked up enough men to almost evenly match the British man for man. He knew that Trarleton would attack frontally so he prepared a strategy that would be able to handle it. He knew and planned on the fact that his militia would retreat at first sign of charge so he laid out a strategy that would take this into account. He had his militia stand in two rows. All of the militia that were in the rows were instructed to fire twice and leave. This strategy worked better then Morgan could have ever planned. His two rows of men, totaling about 400 men knocked back and completely destroyed the first British charge and then the militia retreated. Leaving his other men to charge at the British, General Morgan completely humiliated Trarleton. Morgan had killed or captured more than three fourths of his force. Trarleton had only escaped with 140 horsemen. The same strategy was implemented at the battle at Guilford Court. British General Cornwallis wanted revenge on General Morgan for what he did to the British at Cowpens. So Cornwallis had his army of 2,500 men trail General Morgans army who chose to go north after their victory and rejoin with General Greenes army. He trailed their army for nearly two months and after losing at least 500 men trailing Morgan and Greene, he decided to go in a complete circle back to Hillsborough. There General Nathan Greene was waiting for him. He had applied their previous strategy in the battle at Cowpens to this battle. General Greene started with 2,000 men after the Battle at Cowpens and had increased his numbers up to over 4,500 men. He decided to place a good number of his militia in two forward lines and the continental part of his army in a third row. He called Colonel Washington to protect his left flank and Light Horse Harry Lee to protect his right flank. After the quick attack Greene decided to leave and not pursue a fight. He knew that the losses that they would have suffered would not have been worth the fight but during this battle they killed about 300 British troops. This battle at Guilford Court caused Cornwallis to retreat all the way back to Wilmington and then to Virginia where the demise of the British was. Another reason the Americans won certain battles over the British army was that the British did not take the American resistance with total seriousness causing them to do some stupid things do to poor judgement. One example of a battle when the British lost due to their stupidity was in the Battle at Bennington. The British were heading towards Vermont to obtain horses, food, and other supplies to aid the German mercenaries who had been without horses for a great length of time. Lieutenant Colonel Fredrich Baum was instructed not to risk heavy losses but to scare and despoil the Vermonters. Baum left his camp with about 700 men and two cannons, which was thought to be more than enough to fight any small resistance that they might face. His first defiance of his orders was when Baum encountered a force of 200 men sent by Brigadier General John Stark. After the battle he was informed that these men were part of a militia force gathering at Bennington. He decided to press towards Bennington and destroy the force, even though it went against his orders again. Baum then marched towards Bennington. On his way there Baum saw two contingents of men going towards his rear and presumed that they were Tories that were going to flank the enemy and didnt give them a second thought after seeing them. When Baum approached Bennington, Stark order his men in front to charge, at the same time the two contingents of men already behind Baum also attack him and Baum was massacred. If Baum had taken any care as to even think of the contingents traveling behind him he could have possibly beaten the Americans at Bennington. But because of his disobedience of orders and his ignorance he lost the battle. The British, with all their money, men, supplies, and power couldnt overcome what little the Americans had. The Patriots realized, from their earliest difficulties, to capitalize on the enemys weakness. The Americans devised new tactics to overcome the British in their traditional Jomini style of warfare. The Americans used all that they possibly had to beat British. What drove the Americans to create these new strategies, though, was their desire; their desire to overcome the British is what gave the colonial fighters their true advantage during the American Revolutionary War.

Business Strategy in Tesco Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

Business Strategy in Tesco - Essay Example Vision depicts what the company wants to be i.e. what it ultimately wants to achieve and it gives the direct to the firm. Whereas the mission of the firm is the business where the company wants to operate and the customer base the firm will serve. These are the foundation stone of the company according to which the company implement its different strategies.Core competence is the competitive advantages that a company posses to differentiate itself from the competitors which gives them an extra edge to be the market leader (Hitt, Ireland, Hoskisson, 2009, p. 18).The core value of Tesco is to take care of the customers. Earning lifetime loyalty of the customer and to create value for the customer is their only value (Nwagbara, 2011, p.62). The company believes that no one in the industry tries as harder as they do to reach to the customers (Polytechnic Institute of New York University, 2011, p. 1). Being responsible to the community and the society in which they operate they always try to maintain good neighbourhood and always try to be a responsible member in the society. The brand image for its great quality products with diversified product line is the core competencies for the firm.b) Stakeholder AnalysisThe sustainable growth and well governed business policies of Tesco gives the belief to the investors to get a competitive return of their investments and their shareholdings. The main reason behind gaining the trust of the shareholders is due to the transparency in the company operation. and they expect the implementation of robust strategies by the company in every business processes for the long term growth of the organization along with the shareholders. Blackrock Inc with its 5.48 % share of the issued share capital, Legal & General Investment Management Limited with 3.99 % and Berkshire Hathaway with about 3.02 % of the total share is the major share holders of Tesco (Tesco Annual Report and Financial Statements 2011, 2011, p. 58). By maintaining qualit y service and increased customer value the company build its band value and continues its rapid growth in the market by benefiting the stakeholders of the

Respiratory therapy case study asthma Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Respiratory therapy case study asthma - Essay Example P: The patient must be treated aggressively since she is presenting symptoms of life-threatening exacerbations of asthma, including: severe asthma history, poorly controlled asthma, psychological factors/anxiety, previous hospitalization for asthma, and history of intubations with mechanical ventilation. Albuterol must also be stopped as this further aggravates bronchospasm. Hence, the following respiratory care protocol must therefore be administered: (1) 100 percent nonrebreather face mask, (2) continuous SaO2 monitor/pulse oximetry, (3) inhaled short acting beta2-agonist hourly or continuously with the addition of anticholinergic, (4) IV fluid is a must since insensible water losses are increased with the work of breathing. IV hydration also helps in reducing viscosity and mucus plugging; however, urine input and output should be monitored to avoid overhydration, (5) intravenous corticosteroids, (6) CBC, electrolytes, ABG, chest radiograph, EKG, and theophylline level should be o btained (Veteran Health Administration, 2002). Leukotriene modifiers is known for its anti - inflammatory effects and should be added to the aforementioned medications (Louisiana State University database, 2006). Additionally, ABG revealed that patient has metabolic acidosis (HCO3- 19 mmol/L), an ominous sign of asthma. The patient has metabolic acidosis as a compensatory mechanism of impending respiratory alkalosis. Treating the underlying causes of respiratory alkalosis such as anxiety and asthma per se is a must to avoid further complication. It should be noted that if possible, intubation and mechanical ventilation should be avoided if at all possible, because the â€Å"underlying dynamic hyperinflation will worsen with positive-pressure ventilation† (Werner, 2001). Inspection: high fowler’s position, pursed-lips breathing, cyanotic, using accessory muscles of inspiration,

Adopting a Child by Lesbian Couple Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Adopting a Child by Lesbian Couple - Essay Example Therefore, the social worker’s showing of displeasure was due to the Jacqui and Anne’s plea of intending to foster a child from a diverse culture from theirs (Coghill, 2009). The cultural difference may pose a great challenge to the fostering parents because besides helping the child to embrace that of UK, they will not be able to understand the child’s former traditions. For instance, suppose the child emanates from Africa where the children nurturing is exclusively diverse from the western states (Manchester City Council, 2013). Most African cultures regardless of a one’s sex usually deem the mother has more responsibilities in nurturing the child until the males reach the initiation age where the fathers take over. This is divergent to the UK where the couple assumes all the roles jointly and it may have a significant adverse impact especially if the adoptee is a teen (Coghill, 2009. Besides, the child may doubt the relationship of the fostering parents , which conflicts what he or she has all through deemed to be right (Coghill, 2009). Since, in African or other regions like Asian, same-sex union aspect is a taboo that may affect the child (Coghill, 2009, p. 54). This is especially when one is aware of what their culture dictates regarding marriage. Hence, prompting the social agency to reject Jacqui and Anne’s plea. Besides, according to their narration, there is no proof they will be together until the child attains his or her independence stage (Coghill, 2009). This is because they argue to be living together but no documents to prove their union (Coghill, 2009). Â  

Organizational Culture Assessment of Terre Haute Economic Development Assignment

Organizational Culture Assessment of Terre Haute Economic Development Corporation - Assignment Example The company has an added location advantage which makes it accessible from air, highways, and sea. The company has a high culture by way of integrity and sense of unity among the employees, as well as a â€Å"can do† attitude. Historically, in Terre Haute/Vigo County the economic development has not been smooth and keeping in view the county’s requirement of economic development services, THEDC was originated to provide strategic solutions to economic problems and development. This corporation works jointly with other entities for the all-round economic development and emphasizes on business development, attraction, and retention. Terre Haute/Vigo County is a place where leadership and creativity flourish in the unity between community members and government agencies. The most important matters that need strategic solutions range from growth, management to green living. The sincere efforts of leaders and citizens of Terre Haute are a contribution towards the development of the county. I choose this company for its competency and because it had some very significant successes for the community, and also because it is the Lead Economic Development Organization (Welcome to Terre Haute/Vigo County, n.d. ). In this paper, I put forward interviews taken on 5 people who are currently working in the management body of the corporation. The employees in the corporation are recruited across a range of industries according to their skill, productivity, and experience. THEDC offers workers to other industries at lower wage rates compared to other parts of the county. I have taken interviews of 3 women and 2 men who belong to the age group between 35 and 40 years. I have taken face to face interview with all the 5 people. I visited their office at allotted times after prior appointments.

Work of the Prophets Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Work of the Prophets - Essay Example Rather God encourages Isaiah and Jeremiah to stress on different issues of the same truth with a view of different concerns of their times. Some foretold historical events have already come true, but the God’s truth spoken by two prophets stays timely nowadays. Timely character of two prophecies is mainly observed when reading about those sins of Judah and Israel Isaiah and Jeremiah point on. Thinking about analogies between modern times and â€Å"more than 2  500 years ago† Friedman (2011) fairly points that none of prophets speaks directly on economic markets, great unemployment or etc., but on false leaders, a general lack of justice, a lack of fair treatment and peace, and these issues are among modern Christian concerns. House (n.d.) admits that Isaiah firstly expresses concerns because nations are sinning against each other suffering from mutual oppressions. Isaiah claims that by sinning against each other humankind sins against God. Thus, nowadays, until there’re nations engaged in conflicts with other nations, or oppressing one another, it’s still sinning against God. Friedman (2011) points that Jeremiah’s preaching generally, is for â€Å"loving-kindness† however, about half of his prophecy’s dedicated to descriptions of sins of Israel and Judah nations. House (n.d.) refers it to Jeremiah’s â€Å"turbulent times† when neither common Judah nations, nor Israel rulers were listening to true words spoken by God through Jeremiah instead, listening to false words of false prophets. â€Å"People have gone away from the Lord† so much that Jeremiah himself was constantly threatened and hatred though his preaching was based on Ten Commandments (House, n.d.). Thus, Jeremiah’s mostly concerned with false idolatry. Worshiping â€Å"chiefs of Sodom† had already been a matter of concerns for Isaiah, and Friedman (2011) says sadly it has stayed so nowadays when Christians appreciate those powerful because of their wealth, and at the same time, there’re

Chevron Corporation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Chevron Corporation - Essay Example Market Segmentation, by definition, is the grouping of customers into sub-units or segments based on their needs implying that a particular market segment has the same needs and as such, a business develops the same marketing strategy to respond to the needs. Segmentation of target markets takes three approaches namely undifferentiated, concentrated and differentiated. In this regard, undifferentiated segmentation entails a business treating customers as the same or when an organisation targets homogenous market while concentrated segmentation occurs when a firm focuses on several market segmentations that have same needs and preferences, for instance, price sensitive consumers. However, differentiated market segmentation entails a business targeting many market segments or heterogeneous markets as with the case of Chevron Corporation because it has various business segments. Chevron’s market segmentation depends on both the upstream and downstream business segments. Upstream business operations include exploration, development and production of natural gas as well as crude oil while downstream operations involve crude oil refinery, marketing in addition to the transportation of the finished or the final petroleum products.Nonetheless, businesses divide their market using demographics, psychographic, behavioural and geographic criteria when segmenting their markets. Demographic segmentation takes into consideration customer characteristics including gender, age, education, income status, cultural background and job.

Composite Cycle Frame Manufacturing Methods Project Assignment - 1

Composite Cycle Frame Manufacturing Methods Project - Assignment Example It also seeks to look at the various effective ways which hospitals and related institutions can store such records. It is important that they keep health records using reliable methods so that they ensure reliability of the data and easy retrieval of the same. Health informatics deals with ways of storing, retrieving and using information related to health and biomedicine. It has tools that are used in achieving storage and use of the data like computers, information systems and medical terms among others. Health informatics is also known as Health information systems. Areas of application include nursing and in public health. There are international standards that have been set regarding health informatics to ensure a standardized way of medical informatics (Joslin & Kahn 2005). Using computers and technology has been the best way to store data of patients in medicine all over the world. Electronic health records is the most reliable and accurate way of storing data because computers are more accurate than humans. Health institutions do not longer store records of patients manually like before the emergence of technology (Whetton, 2005). A good example of such online application programs is the ICD9-CM. they are codes used to store information of Diabetic patients in health institutions. The United States department for health is encouraging health institutions to migrate to the use of electronic means to store data. International Classification of Diseases (ICD) is an effective way of tracking many types of diseases in the world. Knowledge of this coding method is very important for health professionals because it helps in maintaining proper health records in hospitals. It is a code that contains a set of volumes with some instructions. It contains volume one to volume three which gives the procedures. Volume one

Ask week 3 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Ask week 3 - Essay Example What are some of the ways through which one can identify and define the research question? It is apparent that when carrying out a research on the establishment of an efficient Shared Financial Services solution for your organisation may have some biases in the project. As a research, what are some of the ways through which such biases can be avoided? Being an employee in your organisation and being aware of your shared financial services can not be enough to have all the information regarding shared financial services. What are some of the ways through which additional information about shared financial services can be obtained? The process of identifying the appropriate research question is one that requires some skills. What are some of the traits that a researcher has to have in order to successfully identify the appropriate research question? As an insider carrying out an action research in your organisation, and above all being in senior management, it is apparent that your participants- who in this case are your junior officers would find it difficult to participate in the research. What are some of the things are you supposed to consider as a researcher, in order to ensure there is no bias or intimidation of your juniors during the study? As a researcher and being a woman, it is possible that your research may be instigated by social issues that have dominated Kenyans for a long time. In a way, men, and especially in higher offices may see this as an incitement to women. How do you ensure that your study is scientific and free from bias? Before kicking off your research, you might have some hypothetical focus of your research. However, your data should be used to comprehensively elucidate your hypothesis. It is also evident that not all hypotheses are valid (Greenwood and Levin 2007). In this regard, in what ways can you ensure that your hypothesis

Perception of Depression amongst North American and African Cultures Essay Example for Free

Perception of Depression amongst North American and African Cultures Essay Depression or â€Å"Unipolar depression is another name for Major Depressive disorder. It is a mood disorder characterized by depressed mood, it often manifests in lack of interest in family, school and social life, changes in eating and sleeping habits, emotional and medical disregard for the self, difficulty in concentrating, and loss of interest in life† (Rush, 2007).   Just like any other pathological disease, it has risk factors, signs and symptoms, and a natural course. Like any other disease it can be treated with proper medical and psychological therapy. Yet it is not perceived as such by the community.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There is remarkable lack of awareness about depression in the communities, in spite of the staggering statistics about the disorder. Unipolar depression affects 7-18% of the American population at least once before the age of 40 (Kassler, McGonagle Zhao, 1994). In the United States alone, the number of females are reported to be suffering from clinical depression (Murray, 1997). It has also been observed that 2.5 percent of children and 8.3 percent of adolescents are depressed at any given time. These rates are considerably higher than the figure of the past decades (Depression Statistics Information, Internet). Yet, it has been found that only 20 percent of depressed people undergo medical treatment (Depression Statistics Information). This is caused by numerous reasons with ignorance or lack of concern and awareness about the disorder considered as the biggest suspect.   In fact, a United States surgeon general report   in the Hispanic community states that less than 10 percent of the mentally ill people will ever approach a mental clinic (U.S. Department of Health, 2000). This is possibly the result of lack of concern on their part, or due to the fact that in the Hispanic communitys, non-medical methods of   treatment for the depressed. It is imperative that we find out whether other communities also show a similar of lack of awareness and concern about depression.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Social Science medicine attempts to find cultural differences in the conceptual models of depression by an interviewed with North American immigrants and African Americans (Karasz, 2005) . His study demonstrated that Americans were more of the view that depression was a pathological disease of the body just like any other disease and required medical therapy. According to the author, the people from the African community were more likely to explain depression in terms of a social and moral problems and conformed to the belief that self management was the right way to deal with the issue of depression.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Different communities have different perceptions about the disease, people of certain cultures prefer going to spiritual healers rather than seek medical attention (Nayem, 2005). Some cultures prefer to treat this ailment with alternative therapies to allopathic ones.   Depression, though a serious and debilitating disease, does not command the same attention as other medical disorders like heart disease, Parkinson’s disease, or even obesity. According to Pasacreta (2008) there has been little attention given to depression and its consequences when we compare it with other diseases. For example obesity has been associated with diabetes many times. Even though depression also has a similar association with type II diabetes, not many people are aware of this fact.   Since public concern is lacking in communities, many depressed people fail to come forward, and receive proper treatment. If this trend continues prevalence of depression will continue to rise.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Though the attitudes of different cultures may vary toward the disease, it does not change the fact that â€Å"depression poses enormous costs for individual, family, and the society† (Nayem F, 2005). Depression is a severe disease with far reaching effects, starting from the patient, who may inflict self harm, leading to a family life, which cannot function in the same way as before (Scott, 2003). There has been research demonstrating depression as a burrden to people, communities, and health services as the treatment is long term and the patient has little or no productivity to society (Nayem, 2005). This research further highlights the need to conduct a survey to assess the perception of depression across various cultures.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   People are unaware of the magnitude of the problem and its economic implications. In certain cultures, inability to diagnose the disease or disregard of its seriousness lead to delayed medical opinion and treatment. Through this study, we will try to substantiate the various levels of awareness that different cultures have about the disease. The severity of depression usually gets aggravated if it is not treated promptly after diagnosis. This leads to a greater burden on the country. Scott (2003) echoed this sentiment when he stated â€Å"In the National Health Service the cost of treating depression ( £887 million) exceeds the cost of treating both hypertension ( £439 million) and diabetes ( £300 million). However, here, the direct health care costs are dwarfed by the indirect costs (i.e. days lost from work owing to depression exceed all other disorders and the economic burden on family members and society is considerable).   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‚  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‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     North American and African cultures both differ in there perceptions about depression as a disease. Different cultures may feel that depression is a problem but western cultures are more likely to view it as a disease which needs medical therapy just like any other, whereas the people from the non western culture will perceive depression as more of a social and moral problem which requires self-management. There will generally be a lack of knowledge about depression as a disease in the non western community.   The false beliefs and stigmas will be more present in non western cultures as compared to their western counterparts.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   How widespread is serious depression? According to Dr. Nathan S. Kline of the New York State Department of Mental Hygiene, â€Å"it has been estimated that 15 per cent of the adult population of the United States has some degree of depression which is serious enough to be in need of treatment. This amounts to about 20 million people, which makes it not only the most frequent psychological disorder but also one of the most common of all serious medical conditions.† Depression is so widespread that it has been called â€Å"the common cold of mental disturbances.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Studies report that women outstrip men in suffering from depression by a ratio of about 2 to 1, though some claim that this is because women are more willing to admit that they are depressed. Depression afflicts all races and every social and economic level. While the malady is most common between the ages of sixty and seventy, it strikes all age groups and has been rising among persons in their twenties. Why do so many millions of persons suffer from depression?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Much study has gone into uncovering the root causes of mental depression. Flaws in human society constitute one main source of the problem. Illustrating an aspect of this are comments by Dr. John Schwab, of the University of Florida College of Medicine: â€Å"We’re in an era of change right now. Old values such as the old work ethic are being rejected and people are caught in an ideological vacuum. Kids see that the fruits of four hundred years of scientific progress may be more bitter than sweet—but they don’t know what to put in its place, and consequently there is a sense of futility.† Because of this, many disillusioned youngsters seek â€Å"escape† through drugs and other means. â€Å"The search for highs among the young,† observes Dr. Schwab, â€Å"is often only a flight from the lows.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Also contributing to the rise in depression is â€Å"supermobility.† Families that keep changing their places of residence, hopping about from house to house and city to city, do not stay in one place long enough to build solid relationships with other people. A psychiatrist at the Massachusetts Mental Health Center wrote: â€Å"Psychiatrists around Boston have been aware for some time of what is called ‘the Route 128 syndrome’ or in Florida ‘the Cape Kennedy syndrome.’ It is found in young families who have moved too much, and its components are a husband too centered in his career, a depressed wife and troubled children.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Sometimes depression results when a person reaches a â€Å"plateau† in his life after many years of painstaking labor. A hard-driving business executive may finally achieve the top position in his company, only to realize that he no longer has a goal in life. Housewives in their forties and fifties often suffer from what psychiatrists call â€Å"empty nest syndrome.† By this time their children usually have grown up, their husbands are at work for most of each day and they must face lonely hours in houses devoid of people.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   What about the feelings of inferiority that often accompany depression? Here too the responsibility may rest with human society. How so? Because it is often at a tender age that children are made to feel unattractive. Their peers may ridicule them if they are unable to do what the majority consider the â€Å"in† thing. If a youngster tends to be clumsy and uncoordinated, schoolmates and playmates can influence the child to believe that he â€Å"can’t do anything right.† Children of this type often combine the generalization: â€Å"I am weak,† with the value judgment: â€Å"It’s disgusting to be weak.† Such youths are likely candidates for depression. Method    Participants   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Approximately 40 students (20 western, 20 international) students from a Midwest liberal arts college will participate in this study. All of them would be selected using randomized sampling. Participants will be offered candy for the completion of the survey. Materials    The survey questionnaire will consist of questions related to assessment of knowledge and attitudes towards depression and a demographic data form. The survey forms will contain closed ended questions only. It will consist of 3 parts.   The first section will consist of demographic questions to gather information about the participants: How long have they lived here. Have they adopted the western culture of living or not. The second part will consist of closed questions. The participants will have to choose from the given options in the questionnaires. There will be questions that ask whether they consider depression to be a serious disease. Whether they believe it is a disease of the mind, body, or mind and body. Questions related to stigma would also be included for example do they believe mentally ill people are more aggressive than others? Do they believe mental illnesses are not as severe as physical ones? Do they believe depressed people can be cured with drugs only, or do they require social and community help? Moreover, to support the validation of the results of the survey, the review of literature to be utilized within the research shall show a specific scale of measure that is used by psychologists to identify the behavior of humans with regards to depression from different cultures all over the world. Procedure   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It is imperative to find out exactly how different cultures perceive depression as a disease. The researcher plans on conducting this research. This research will deal with the perception of depression as a disease amongst western and non western cultures. The research will also look into the level of awareness in different cultures about the prevalence of disease in their societies. This research will try to substantiate if the perception of depression varies with different cultures.   To complete the said aim, the research will be conducted on campus.   Participants will be debriefed on the study being researched. The researcher would then have the participants sign a consent form before they participate in the study. After which, a survey kit would then be handed out to them and they would be given three days to return them back. Data analysis A one way ANOVA would be conducted to analyze the data. Since we have two independent sample populations and more than two variables. This will allow for the comparison of attitudes about depression for members of Western and non-Western cultures. Using the ANOVA we can calculate whether the stated answers have associations with either the western or non western societies.   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‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   References Depression Information and Fact Statistics (2008), Depression statistics and information, retrieved on February 13, 2008, from http://www.add-adhd-help-center.com/Depression/statistics.htm Haasen C, Levit O, Gelbert A, Foroutan N, Norovjav A, Sinaa M, et.al, (2007), Relationship between mental distress and acculturation among migrants, psychrische praxis,    retrieved on February 13, 2008, from the NCBI database on   Ã‚  Ã‚   http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez Karasz, A. (2005), Cultural differences in conceptual models of depression, Social Science medicine, 60, 1625-35, retrieved on February 13, 2008, from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15652693?dopt=Abstractholding=f1000,f1000m,isrctn Kessler, R., McGonagle K,, Zhao S, et al. (1994) Lifetime and 12-month prevalence of DSM-III-R psychiatric disorders in the United States: results from the National Comorbidity Survey. Arch Gen Psychiatry;51:8-19. Murray, C., Lopez, A.D. (1997). Alternative projections of mortality and disability by cause 1990-2020: Global Burden of Disease Study. Lancet 349 Neem F, Ayub M., Izhar N, Javed Z, et al (2005). Stigma and knowledge of depression, Pakistan journal of medical sciences, 21(2) 155-158. Pasacreta. J, (2008), Depression: Is society taking the wrong approach? , retrieved on February 13, 2008, from http://www.helium.com/tm/646939/novel-approach-managing-depression Scott, J. (2003), Global burden of depression: the intersection of culture and medicine, The British Journal of Psychiatry, 183: 92-94, retrieved on February 13, 2008, from http://bjp.rcpsych.org/cgi/content/full/183/2/92 U.S. Department of Health Human Services, Office of the Surgeon General. Mental Health: Culture, Race, Ethnicity Supplement, A Report of the Surgeon General 1999.from: http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/cre/default.asp.

Essay On Parliamentary Sovereignty

Essay On Parliamentary Sovereignty Tesco was founded in 1924 by John Edward Cohen in the East End of London. The name Tesco, was first used on tea, and was derived from the initials of Cohens tea supplier, T E Stockwell, combined with the first two letters of Cohen. Tesco Stores Limited was incorporated in 1932. In 1935, Jack Cohen visited the U S A and was impressed by the supermarkets self-service system which enabled more people to be served faster, with lower labour costs. In 1947, the Tesco branch in St Albans, a small shop by 21st century standards (200 square metres) was the first Tesco to be converted to self service, although it didnt immediately catch the publics imagination. See appendix 1 for details. Tescos Mission Statement Tescos mission statement is to Retain Loyal People. To make sure Tesco achieve their mission statement, they need to know who their loyal customers are. That is why Tesco has got a club card service, through which they can award people by giving them special vouchers and extra points. Vision A business aim is an organisations long-term goal. In 2005, the two core values of Tesco are: No-one tries harder for customers and Treat people as we like to be treated. In 2006, Tescos mission and vision shows that this company is really for quality service and values their customers:  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Be the leader in Quality Service provided to everyone in the retailing industry  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Understand the needs of their client and respond with urgency.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Meet customers demands and exceeds their expectations  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Maintain highly trained and motivated employees.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Continuously improve their skills, service and achieve excellence in all of the companys endeavours. Objective Objectives are goals that a firm sets itself for the next three or five years. They have a timescale, they must be measurable and they must contribute to the business achieving its aims. The core objective of Tesco is to establish value for customers in order to gain their lifetime loyalty.  Tescos success depends on their valued customers. These customers shop and work with the company. Tescos principle is, if the customer likes what they offer, surely these people will come back and purchase again. Industry Stage Life Cycle The stage life cycle of the retail industry is no doubt to be mature  because of the profits they are gaining every year. The retail industrys profit is increasing and profiting from their cash cows. Tesco is the largest UK retailer and the 3rd largest global retailer. Tesco controlled 30.8% of the UK grocery market as of May 2009 and ~9% of the UK non-food retail market. The majority of its sales and profits are generated in its 2,282 UK stores, which are segmented into the following formats: Tesco Express neighbourhood convenience store that focuses on fresh products, 961 stores Tesco Metro city centre convenience store,174 stores Tesco Superstore conventional supermarket, 448 stores Tesco Extra hypermarket that serves an entire community, 177 stores Tesco Homeplus and One-Stop account for its remaining stores The company also sells general merchandise through Tesco Direct, its online and catalogue businesses. Tescos management focuses on customer satisfaction by giving customers more choices where to shop and by offering them attractive prices on its products. In the fourth quarter of 2008, Tesco began selling new discount range of products to compete more aggressively on price against discounters. Its prices are generally perceived to be at a small premium to Asda and a small discount to Sainsbury and Morrison. Tescos primary supermarket competitors in the UK include Asda (17.3% share of UK grocery market), Sainsbury (16.3% share), WM Morrison Supermarkets (11.2% share), Waitrose (3.7% share), Aldi (2.9% share) and Lidl (2.3% share). In recent years, some of its major competitors have turned around their struggling stores, which will make it more challenging for Tesco to gain significant share in the UK market going forward. Tesco uses its customer information to target and segment communications to the millions of its loyalty program members by almost infinite demographic, purchase, and lifestyle profiles. Several hundred million in-store purchases per day are being tracked by the loyalty-card program. The company developed 5,000 customer needs segments, with each segment receiving personalized coupons. Source: www.tesco.com Income Statement Summary Sources: Companies, www.DeutscheBank.com Tescos UK sales grew 4.3% last year (3% ex gasoline) and its net new stores contributed 2.7% to growth. Its UK sales also benefited from a 53rd week that represented 2.1% of sales and the first time contribution from the consolidation of Tesco Personal Finance. International sales grew 30.6% (including FX benefits) and 13.6% at constant exchange rates benefiting from square footage growth and strong sales growth in Asia. The companys operating margin was flat at 5.9% in fiscal 2009 as unfavourable sales mix was offset by increased productivity and good expense control. Its EPS growth was only 2.6% last year, hurt by 26.7% tax rate vs. 24% in fiscal 2008 when it benefited from tax reimbursement and lower UK corporate tax rate. Introduction: The organisations of choice are within the Retails sector TESCO and ASDA as the elective firm both are UK based companies. 1.1 Tesco objectives blend in with each other All of Tescos objectives blend in with each other. None of the objectives will work without each other. For example; the business will not have any customers if the business is not operating well. Share holders will not invest money in the business, if the business hasnt got any customers. The company will not be able to afford to have any employees working for them if they havent got money being invested in the business. 1.2. Stakeholders Tesco Stakeholders are a certain group of people that have an interest in Tesco group businesses. Each group have their own interests in the business. The service-profit chain attempts to show the interrelationship of a companys internal and external communities, stakeholders and highlights how customer loyalty that translates into revenue growth and profits might be achieved; developed by Heskett et al. (1994). It does this by establishing relationships between profitability, customer loyalty, stakeholders and employees satisfaction. Tesco has many stakeholders. They are as follows: * Shareholders * Customers * Employees * Government and Non-Governmental * Local Community * Suppliers * Financials * Pressure Groups Customers: Generally a customer wants quality goods at a low cost. They would also want a variety of products to choose from. All customers want these things and by Tesco providing them Tesco will attract more customers because of people talking about it (Word-of-Mouth). Tesco like most business need their customers because they are the business income as the customers are the people who buy Tescos products. Tesco staffs hear customers views on everything from how we are serving them in our stores to our role in the community. The customers are a bit like a pressure group because they apply pressure to Tesco to meet their needs. Meeting the customers needs can be things such as expanding their stores. Staff Tesco employees give management their feedback through the Viewpoint staff survey, Staff Question Time sessions and Tesco Staff Forum process. Suppliers Tesco group core value is treat people how we like to be treated, and its something Tesco organisation applied firmly to enhance their suppliers relationships. Investors Capital Investor Relations team regularly meet analysts from the financial institutions which invest in Tesco group or represent their shareholders. All the above defined stakeholders are Tesco group influencers. They affect the outcome of the decision making process through their influence on others. Influence could stem formally from expertise, such as the advice of an accountant on return on investment. 2. Nature of the Retail (Tesco) Marketing Environment The definition that the module assignment work with is that Tesco organisations marketing environment is made up of those forces that lie outside the Tesco group organisation and that exert some degree of influence upon the ways in which marketing management develops relationship with the firms target markets. Two distinct components within Tesco environment are: Micro-environment and the macro-environment. See figure 1 below. Social and cultural factors Legislation Economic Factor Political Issues Technological changes Supply chain Customers Competitors Suppliers Distributors The Tesco Organisation Figure 1. The Tesco Organisations marketing environment It is recognised that regardless of which approach Tesco group adopts; the environment is a significant determinant both of strategy and organisational performance. Baker (1985, pg. 85) described it as the ultimate constraint upon the firms strategy; Drucker (1969), referred to the environment of the 1960 and 1970s as age of discontinuity; and Toffler (1970, pg. 28), who look ahead, referred to it as a time of future shock. 2.1. MARKETING AUDIT The marketing audit is really the launching pad for the Tesco marking plan, because it encourages Tesco management to reflect systematically on the environment and the organisations ability to respond, given its actual and planned capabilities. Similar to financial audit, marketing audit is first and critical about developing a shared, agreed and objective understanding of Tesco organisation. The audit is has suggested by McDonald (1995, p.28): The means by which a company can identify its own strengths and weakness as they relate to external opportunities and threats; It is thus a way of helping management to select a position in that environment based on known factors. Three major elements and potential benefits of the marketing audit can be seen to be: The detailed analysis of the external environment and internal situation The objective evaluation of past performance and present activities. The clearer identification of future opportunities and threats. These three above factors can be viewed against the background of comments made by Ansoff (1968 1984), who has suggested that irrespective of the size of the organisation, corporate decisions have to be made within the constraint of a limited total resource. Marketing audit have a place the overall management audit that incorporate financial audit together with audits of other functional areas as illustrated in figure 2 below. Marketing audit in terms of structure consists of three major and detailed diagnostic steps. That involved a review of: Tesco organisations environment (opportunities and threats) designed to establish the various dimensions of the marketing environment, change and probable impact of these change upon the organisation; its marketing systems (strengths and weakness) an assessment of the extent to which Tescos marketing systems are capable of dealing with the demands of the environment and its marketing activities review of the individual components of the marketing mix. There are the environmental variables and operational variables with distinction in terms of the macro-environmental forces (political / legal, economic / demographic, social / cultural, and technological) that affect the business. Micro-environmental actors (customers, competitors, distributors and suppliers) who subsequently influence Tesco organisations ability to operate profitably in the market-place Macro environment is the most general external audit of the environment, that consist of broad environmental factors, aimed at identifying key variable that offer actionable responses that would benefit Tesco and threats that must be avoided. These key external forces can be divided into five broad categories. Economic forces Social, Cultural, Demographic and Environmental forces Political, Governmental and Legal forces Technological forces Competitive Force Financial audit Personnel audit Production audit The Management audit Marketing audit EXTERNAL (Opportunities and threats) Macro The business and economic environments (political, economic, social/cultural, technological, legal and environmental factors PESTLE) Market Competition INTERNAL (Strengths and weaknesses) Micro Organisational performance and structure Operations and resources Marketing objectives Marketing strategy Information systems Planning systems Control systems Functional efficiency Inter-functional efficiency Profitability analysis Cost-effective analysis Figure 2. The place of the marketing audit in the overall management audit 2.2. SWOT Analysis The strengths and weaknesses of a SWOT analysis focus on the current market position of Tesco in retails business in relation to its: Customers is the business meeting the needs of its target markets Competitors- is the business offering a better way of meeting customer needs compared with its competitors Internal resources- is the business making effective use of its internal resources to meet customer needs and deal with competition The opportunities and threats of a SWOT analysis focus on the future market position of Tesco in retails business. Tesco organisation used their strengths and limits the weaknesses to plan for future development, marketing strategies and activities. Tescos opportunities and threats grew out of objectives, consideration of the real strengths and weaknesses of their business. Specific information were collated (such as data captured and analysed from CRM programs) before the process begins and personnel working to a joint solutions, adopted a truly objective positioning for the processes to be successful and worthwhile. 2.2.1. The main purpose of a SWOT analysis: Identify market opportunities To avoid complacency about market position a self evaluating organization As a safety check before embarking on major new project As a response to change change of director might initiate a SWOT analysis to gauge the strength of the team. There is no set procedure for carrying out a SWOT analysis but care must be taken to identify weaknesses if the process is to serve its purpose. A weakness may purely be lack of information, or lack of suitably qualified staff. SWOT analysis of TESCO Strengths Weaknesses To provide high level customer service Presence in multiple retail markets For Tesco to create unique products Increasing market share Wide knowledge of retail industry Competent top management and rank file for operation and maintenance Existing customer base Financial investment backing. Strong IT returns through internet shopping Good advertising Used iconic models to attract core target group. Tesco Online Brand value Insurance Secured commercial standing within the global market place winning Retailer of the Year 2008 at the World Retail Awards. This can be used for marketing campaigns to drive advantage towards the demographic base for future growth and sustainability Product diversification home and furniture Turnaround in sales and growth As a business looking for continued expansion TESCO have reserve funds of credit coupled with income derived from property portfolio development funds. In an environment where global retail sales are showing decline or level performance on a like for like basis TESCO Group have published sales gain of 13% for UK markets and 26% growth in international markets. As a business looking for continued expansion TESCO have reserve funds of credit coupled with income derived from property portfolio development funds. Tescos position as a price leader in UK markets can lead to reduced profit margins in order to retain the key price points on must have commercial items. Grocer outlets are not set up to operate as specialist retailers in specific areas of product which can be capitalised on by other smaller bespoke retailers. Low supervision on international market Considerably late exploitation of the Internet. Whilst current economic conditions suggest Tescos key value message will succeed there is a weakness in non-essential, mid to high ticket price items which will suffer from the rising cost of living and lower disposable incomes. Reliance upon the UK market Comparing Tesco with British Airways might get you thinking about how dependent Tesco is on the UK market (73.8% of 2003 revenues.) Comparing Tesco with Amazon might reveal flaws in its attempts to move into new markets. TESCO Finance profit levels were impacted through bad debt, credit card arrears and household insurance claims. Grocer outlets are not set up to operate as specialist retailers in specific areas of product which can be capitalised on by other smaller bespoke retailers Opportunities Threats Statistics suggest TESCO is the third largest global grocer which indicates a level of buying power to ensure mainstream economies of scale. Further international growth Expansion of target market Healthy market environment Increasing detraction of small retail businesses in UK Use younger more contemporary models to attract younger generation. The acquisition of Homever provides the opportunity to develop the brand through Asia, specifically South Korea and further grow International markets for the group. The development of Tesco Direct through online and catalogue shopping will grow the use of technology, providing the launch pad for larger non food based products with moderate to high margin returns and less focus on sales and margin per foot return to space. TESCO mobile have grown  ¼ million customers in 2008 and moved into profitable status suggesting further growth and development within this technological area can be developed. Tesco Homeplus stores offer all of Tescos ranges except food in warehouse-style units in retail parks. Introducing wider ranges such as Tesco (Value, Brand, Finest, Wholefoods, Bakery Kids), Healthy Living, Organic, Best Of British, World Foods, Cherokee, Free From, Tesco Christmas, Tescos own clothing label F+F to mention few Other services e.g. banking, insurance, savings to mention few. UK structural change could spark a price war Rising raw material costs from both food and non food will impact profit margins overall International expansion Economic restructuring Intensified competition Government regulation UK and American markets have been affected by economic concerns through the credit crunch. Lower available income will impact and strategic focus may need to change to lower priced basic products with less focus on higher priced brands suggesting a switch in price architecture. Sourcing changes to Far East locations with regards exporting restrictions on some non food product areas will reduce margin rates on products with already low margins. Changes to consumer buying behaviours require further analysis as technology develops consumer buying patterns change which will result in product areas requiring evaluation. For TESCO there is a persistent threat of takeover from the market leader Wal-Mart who has both means and motive to pursue such action. Lower available income will impact and strategic focus may need to change to lower priced basic products with less focus on higher priced brands suggesting a switch in price architecture. Overconfident of Tesco management Figure. 3. Tesco Micro and Macro-Environmental SWOT analysis 3. Tescos Strategic Options 3.1. Generic Strategies Generic Strategies are characterised by an individual retailers response to the industry structure. For a giant retailer, such as Tesco, to obtain a sustainable competitive advantage they may have followed either one of three generic strategies, developed by Porter (1985). The first strategy of cost leadership is one in which Tesco can strive to have the lowest costs in the industry and offer its products and services to a broad market at the lowest prices. This strategy will be based on the Tescos ability to control their operating costs so well that they are able to price their products competitively and be able to generate high profit margins, thus having a significant competitive advantage. Tesco used another strategy of differentiation that it has to try to offer services and products with unique features that customers value; Tesco was able to create brand loyalty for their offerings, and thus, price inelasticity on the part of buyers. Tescos breadths of product offerings, technology, special features, or customer service are popular approaches to differentiation The last strategy of focus can be either a cost leadership or differentiation strategy aimed toward a narrow, focused market. In pursuing a cost leadership strategy Tesco focuses on the creation of internal efficiencies that will help them withstand external pressures. Therefore, it appears reasonable to think that Tesco will have frequent interactions with the governmental/regulatory and supplier sectors of the environment. In accordance to this framework, while both overall cost leadership and differentiation strategies are aimed at the broad market, Tesco may also choose to confine their product to specific market areas or may choose to offer a smaller line of products to the broad market, thus pursuing a strategy of focus or niche (Porter, 1980). In other words, Tesco pursues a strategy of cost leadership or differentiation either in a specific market or with specific products. 3.2. Core Competence and Corporate strategy Superior performance, according to Johnson and Scholes (2003), has to be determined by the way in which companys resources are deployed to create competence in the organisational activities. Core competencies are activities or processes that critically underpin the companys competitive advantage. Core competences may be embedded deep in Tesco at an operational level in the work routines. The framework developed by Prahalad and Hamel in the 1990s suggests that over time companies may develop key areas of expertise which are distinctive to that company and critical to the companys long term growth (Drejer, 2000; De Toni, and Tonchia, 2003). In the case of Tesco the areas of expertise are most likely to develop in the critical, central areas of the organisation where the most value is added to its service and its delivery The phrase used by Tesco to describe its aspiration to appeal to upper, medium and low income customers is inclusive offer in the same stores. Tesco pulled off an idea that other retailers were not aware. That appealed to all segments of the market. One plank of this inclusively has been Tescos use of its own-brand products, including the upmarket Finest and low-price Value. Tesco implemented CRM programme launched the Clubcard rewards program to gather necessary customer information, which it then used to cater to specific customer needs and potential wants. When shoppers signed up for the card, they automatically submitted their age, gender, and income. Tesco was able to segment their shoppers based on these factors. As soon as the shopper used the card when shopping online or in-store, purchased product information was automatically uploaded into Tesco database. Product information was used to cross-sell additional products and services such as grocery delivery services. Beginning in 1997 when Terry Leahy took over as CEO, Tesco began marketing itself using the phrase The Tesco Way to describe the companys core purposes, values, principles, and goals This phrase became the standard marketing speak for Tesco as it expanded domestically and internationally under Leahys leadership, implying a shift by the company to focus on people, both customers and employees. 3.3. Partnership with Tesco Tesco respond to changes in marketing by partnering with other businesses; Tesco then added a travel service through a partnership with Lunn Poly, giving discounts off high-street prices. It also combined its card with Visa through the Royal Bank of Scotland, and offered discounts on DIY goods through well-known home improvement chain BQ. In 1997 it added a full range of financial services, and the Tesco Direct service. Adding value was mandatory to these functional items so, for example, expectant mothers were given priority parking outside the store, changing facilities, and personal shopping assistants to help them. In 1998, after the U.K.s deregulation of utilities, Tesco began to offer electricity and telecommunications products and services. Also in that year, clothing was added to the range through Next. By this time, Tesco had identified 108 customer market segments. This year, 2000, a joint undertaking with General Motors allows customers to buy cars from Tesco. 3.4. Enhancing Quality Everyday, top managers of Tesco stores gather for an hour-and-a-half customer advocacy meeting to pore over that weeks performance statistics. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦a strategy which is concerned with changing the fundamental beliefs, values and culture of an organisation, harnessing the enthusiasm and participation of everyoneà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.towards an overall idea of right first time by Atkinson and Naden (1989, pg 6). What makes this unusual is that every performance measure under scrutiny relates to customer satisfaction, and this meeting is the most important one on the corporate schedule. See Appendix 2 for On-Time-Delivery Tesco competitive strategy. 4. Industry Attractiveness   Inherent within the notion of strategy is the issue of competitiveness, analyzing industry attractiveness, and Porters (1979) five forces model is used. The attractiveness of the retail industry depends on the situation of competition. The competition in the retail industry is based on its economic structure Porters Five Forces Model implies that business are being influenced by five forces namely supplier power, threat of substitutes, buyer power, barriers to entry and rivalry. This model also implies that business must be able to understand the industry context in which they operate. 4.1. Porter five forces analysis: A Porters five forces analysis can complement other techniques, like a SWOT analysis. A SWOT analysis focuses on the company, while a Porters five forces analysis looks at the external factors impacting on a company Porters five forces framework as shown in figure 4, helps identify the sources of competition in the retail sector, and as a way of assessing the attractiveness that profit Tescos retails market. The underlying force in the macro-environment driven competitive forces are:- The bargaining power of supplier The bargaining power of buyers The threat of potential new entrants The threat of substitutes The extent of competitive rivalry The above five forces are not independent of each other, connection between competitive forces and the key driver in macro-environment is essential. Pressures from one direction can trigger off changes in another in a dynamic process of shifting sources of competition. Industry Competitors Rivalry among Existing firms Potential Entrants Buyers Suppliers Substitutes Bargaining power of suppliers Bargaining power of buyers Threat of substitude products or services Threat of new entrants Figure 4, Porters Five Forces Model The objectives of such an analysis investigated how Tesco organisation formed its strategy in other to develop opportunities and protect itself against competition and other threats. This must be done in order to better design the strategy that the business will use to be able to compete with rivals within the same industry. It is important for businesses to determine the level of competition present within the industry. This will allow them to address potential risks before they even strike. 4.2. Cost advantage and differentiation According to Baker (1985), a business positions itself based on its strengths and strength are categorized into two cost advantage and differentiation. Furthermore, when these strengths are applied in either a narrow or a broad sense, it will result to three generic strategies focus, differentiation and cost leadership strategy. Cost leadership strategy means that the company is the low cost producer or provider of a certain quality item in a given industry. This kind of strategy is being implemented for two reasons and achieved through two ways. The first method and reason is to sale items at average industry price so that the company will be able to be more profitable compared to rivals. The second method and reason is to sale the products at below average industry price in order to gain market share. According to Baker (1985), a company that has the ability to produce or offer less costly products will be able to remain profitable for a longer period. It is important to note that this strategy targets a broad market. 4.3. BCG Matrix Tesco can be considered as a cash cow because it distributes quality and extra services to its consumers and equipped with new innovative products and services in United Kingdom. At the same time the company can also be considered as Stars because they put a lot of efforts to increase the awareness of their consumers to the benefits of e-commerce and retailing 5. Market Objectives and Strategies Implementation Strategy frameworks and structuring tools are keys to assessing the business situation. Risk and value trade-offs are made explicit, leading to concrete proposals to add value and reduce risk. Explicit plans for action, including effective planning need to be developed by Tesco as the strategic alternative. Piercy and Morgan (1990, pg. 2) state: In short, the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦..reality the marketing executive faces is that implementing plans and strategies successfully is often d

A parts manufacturer approval

A parts manufacturer approval CHAPTER 1 : INTRODUCTION 1.1 Introduction Parts Manufacturer Approval (PMA) is a combined design and production approval for modification and replacement parts. It allows qualified sources that are not the original type certificate holder to design and manufacture replacement parts for commercial aircraft. The FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) approves materials, processes, appliances and other parts by other means like a Technical Standards Order (TSO) or in conjunction with a type certificate. The concept is pretty straight-forward: TheFAAsays that as long as you dont infringe upon someone elses patent, you can make a part or system of parts that someone can install on their aircraft in lieu of the original item. The FAA, specifically the ACO (Aircraft Certification Office) of the FAA, is responsible for approving any part design related to commercial aircraft. An OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) is subject to the same regulations to qualify and validate parts as a PMA holder is. An OEM does not approve its own pa rts. Order8110.42prescribes the approval procedures for FAA personnel and guides applicants in the approval process. Of course, for safetys sake, the FAA wants detailed proof that the PMA part is as good or better than the one made by the original equipment manufacturer, but thats a hurdle that more than a thousand PMA manufacturers have jumped many, many times. The rewards for their efforts are the profits received from building what they feel are better products, less expensive products or both. Today, airlines on every continent have an increasing demand for the PMA parts. The use of high-quality PMA parts has given airlines the cost savings that are translated into operational economy. Airlines are now working directly with PMA suppliers to develop replacement parts as a hedge against what they view as the monopoly pricing power of OEMs. 1.2 Problem definition Being first to the market is not as important as giving the customers what they want. Although being the major player in the industry, OEMs such as Boeing and Airbus have to take into considerations of how the customer feels about the cost-cutting value that the PMA part offers. The OEM might have paved the road in the industry, but PMAs are taking advantage of the situations that arise from it. At a time of weak revenue growth, the global airline industry has continued to seek more innovative cost containment strategies. Maintenance, which ranks second behind fuel as the largest cost line item for airlines, has huge potential for cost savings. Much of these savings can be realised through the use of DER repairs i.e. repairs approved by FAA Designated Engineering Representatives and parts manufactured under PMA by reputable sources other than the original OEM. (Andrew Farrant,October 2010). The battle between the original parts and the aftermarket parts have been a heated one, not only in the aviation industry but also from other businesses as well. We can see almost in every automotive workshops that aftermarket products are being sold widely to cater for the demand of the customers. Original manufacturers wants their customer to buy and use their products, whereas aftermarket products manufacturers is offering a cheaper alternative that can work as good as the original part. The OEM says theres plenty wrong in using aftermarket products, because if the OEM didnt make it, theres no guarantee that it will perform as well as the original; a situation that could jeopardize lives and indirectly ruin the reputation of the aircraft builder. A simple situation could explain all this. If in the event of an aircrash, the general public only hears that a particular model aircraft crashed, not the fact that an aftermarket part may have caused it. In the other hand, the PMA manufacturer says theres nothing wrong with their parts, especially since the FAA has to certify them as being equal to or better than the OEMs product before they can be sold to anyone. This is to prove that only a certified part can be used on an aircraft, thus keeping the standard of airworthiness. Use of such parts does not in any way affect the airworthiness of the aircraft. Such parts are identical in design specifications and part number to that of original manufacturer. Such parts are not bogus parts. They meet the drawing and material specifications and are manufactured under approval. Often, PMA parts are cheaper than the OEM parts as PMA holder does not have to make any investment on research and development. The PMA parts are identified by OEMs part number with either a prefix or suffix to differentiate it from OEM part number and to have traceability. It is almost identical, but with a lower price tag. The way that the OEM addresses this proble m is to say that once PMA parts is being used with their aircraft, the warranty for that particular aircraft, if still valid, is not accepted anymore. That is a big blow for the PMA industry, having a minority say in the situation.But like everything else in a free market, the victor is chosen by the customers, and for now theyre split, with some swearing by PMA parts and others swearing at them. In this battle, both OEM and PMA have their own strength. The OEM is armed with guaranteed compatibility and the PMA steps forward with compatibility, as well as lower prices and better availability. It is hard to see which side is winning the parts battle. It all comes to which part and what kinds of customers are being examined. 1.3 Objective of research The objective of this research is to determine the acceptance of PMA usage within the aviation industry in Malaysia. There is always two sides on a coin. Some may say that PMA is really the way to go especially in this dire economic state that the aviation industry is facing, while others may opt for the guaranteed OEM parts. According to Jason Dickstein, president of the Modification and Parts Replacement Association (MARPA), the attitude toward PMA parts was very different in the 1990s than it is today. He says that as some larger companies recognized that PMA parts could be a viable threat to their business, people became more reluctant to accept them. Efforts to try to disadvantage PMA parts ensued in the Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee (ARAC). â€Å"I think that there has been some anti-PMA sentiment in the past,† says Dickstein. â€Å"People who didnt understand PMAs were averse to PMAs because they represented an unknown quality. Over the last decade or so, MARPA, the PMA parts manufacturers themselves, and even some of the government agencies have done a good job cooperatively of better educating the public, particularly the public within the industry, about what a PMA part is. In response to OEM concerns, the FAA put its Aviation Safety (AVS) Repair, Alteration, and Fabrication (RAF) Team to work. Its task was to â€Å"provide recommendations to close any gaps existing in both current and in-process regulations, policy, and guidance necessary to ensure an acceptable level of safety commensurate with the criticality of affected parts.† â€Å"What they concluded was that what the FAA has been doing is safe, that PMA parts are safe, and a lot of the OEM concerns are competitive, rather than safety-driven,† says Dickstein. 1.4 Research scope This research will be targeted mainly on the two biggest airline operators in Malaysia, which are Malaysia Airlines System and Air Asia. The scope of the study will only be concentrated in the maintenance and financial field. * Maintenance the practicallity of PMA parts to be the substitude for OEM parts (how they perform,do they fit easily,the availability of parts etc) * Financial the pros and cons in terms of monetary value, both in short and long term aspects (how much difference does PMA parts offers in terms of savings, to what extend does PMA parts affect the warranty of an aircraft etc) This research will only cover the perceptions and opinions of people who are involved with the aviation industry, particularly on PMA issues. The outcome from this research could possibly help both airlines in deciding whether to go for or against PMA parts. There are a few big names working together with the PMA manufacturers. Names such as British Airways, Delta Airlines, Pratt Whitney are now enjoying the benefits that the PMA parts offers, both to them and also to their customers. Airline operators in Malaysia must have their stand on the PMA issue in order to be on par with the big names. CHAPTER 2 : LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Introduction PMA parts have been produced for 50 years, beginning with the demand for replacement parts for World War II-vintage aircraft. At that time, companies other than the original manufacturers were allowed to design and make spare parts for aircraft under a PMA to help a large number of military aircraft sold to civilian operators to fly again. However, even after 50 years of usage throughout the industry, arguments between the airlines, the OEMs and the PMAs are still highly debated. This is due to the questionable quality and safety concerns used by Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) to challenge PMAs, whom they take as a big competitor in the market. 2.2 Certification According to the FAA, PMA means the design and production approval for modification and replacement parts. It allows a manufacturer other than the OEM to produce and sell these parts for installation on type certificated products. Without the PMA, aircraft parts would be designed and manufactured exclusively by the OEM, granting them a monopoly in the replacement parts market. The FAA requires that companies or individuals that produce parts for sale for installation into type certificated aircraft may only sell approved parts. These approved aircraft parts, other than hardware, are parts that are approved by TSO, PMA, a type certificate, or a production certificate. To receive a TSO or PMA approval for a part, the manufacturer of the part must demonstrate to the FAA that the part will operate just like the original part, as intended in an aircraft environment and will be manufactured according to the FAA standards. The FAA regulations states that it is the responsibility of the person installing the parts on an aircraft to ensure the parts meet the appropriate airworthiness standards. The Technical Standard Order (TSO) is one of the procedures that the FAA uses to establish standards for aircraft parts. TSOs have been established for many types of aircraft parts such as landing gear parts, engine parts and many avionics equipments. TSOs are divided into d ifferent categories and the testing required to cover a wide range of environmental conditions such as heat, temperature, altitude, vibration, etc must be established. If a TSO is available for a part, a manufacturer will test the part in an FAA-approved laboratory to meet the requirements as per the TSO. If the part successfully passes all the tests, then the manufacturer will be granted a letter from the FAA stating that the part is approved per the TSO. This TSO approval letter means the part can be used for installation in any aircraft via an STC (Supplemental Type Certificate) or TC (Type Certificate) as long as the operating environment of the part in the aircraft is within the TSO criteria. If there are no TSO categories established for the part that the manufacturer wants to produce and sell, the manufacturer can still get the approval from FAA by testing the part in the actual aircraft type where it is designed to be used. To achieve this, the part must be conformed to the design drawings by a FAA-designated inspector to ensure it meets the type design. Then it will be installed and tested in accordance with a FAA-approved test plan. Upon completion of the tests, submittal of the appropriate documentation, and verification of a FAA-approved manufacturing system for the part, the FAA will issue a letter identifying the part as eligible for installation under PMA for the specific aircraft type in which it was tested. The PMA part may then be installed in the specific aircraft via STC or TC. If the part manufacturer wants to use the part in another aircraft type, additional documentation and testing may be required. In any case, a PMA part can only be installed in an air craft types where it has specifically been approved. Airliner who manufacture parts for their own use, do not require a PMA for the manufactured parts since they are not being sold to another party. The parts, however, still must be approved and manufactured according to the FAA standards and installed using a STC or other FAA-approved installation procedure. The regulations states that a PMA part must be equal to or better than the OEM equivalent. John Wicht, a project manager at Wisconsin-based Rapco, Inc pointed out that the FAA Aircraft Certifications Office wont accept on ‘equal to parts, according to his involvement in many PMAs. He also said that â€Å"If you cant definitively demonstrate that your part will exceed the performance of the OEM part, theyre just not interested in talking to you. 2.3 Safety issues The FAA or EASA have no statistical evidence for safety concerns with PMA parts. It is as if they are turning a blind eye on the matter, which is definitely not a good news for the OEM. For them, anything will do as long as all the required procedures are being followed accordingly. To achieve certification, PMA manufacturers must prove to the FAA that a part that they manufacture is the same in all respects to a design in a type-certificated product or, through test an computation, that the part is the same as, or better than, the one it seeks to replace. â€Å"You have to prove that the quality assurance system is adequate before you get production approval, just like the OEM products are proven,† says Jason Dickstein, president of the Modification and Replacement Parts Association (MARPA). As people begin to see what the regulatory structure surrounding PMA parts before it is being approved, those people begin to accept PMA parts. Many air carriers are now starting up programs to identify and purchase PMA parts because they believe that the PMA parts are safe and that, because they represent competition, PMA parts would bring prices down. British Airways had been on the opposite of the PMA parts until representatives from Heico International Inc., a maker of hydraulic cylinders, sat down with them to explain the benefits of PMA parts. After the presentation, British Airways had turned around 180 degrees and begin purchasing PMA parts. Air carriers are now being more acceptance towards PMA at the purchasing and quality assurance levels because they have conducted investigations prior to the actual usage of it. Air carriers had to investigate the usage of PMA to figure out whether or not they represent a good economic value. What the carriers found out was that not only were they a good economic value, but theyre also safe. A PMA may be obtained for replacement parts for TSO articles that are approved as part of a product type design, provided that installation eligibility to that product can be shown. Approval of a part that would result in a major design change to the TSO article cannot be done under a PMA and would require a new TSO authorization. Even critical components can be ‘PMAed, given that it is in compliance with the specific FAA guidance. When there is a PMA on a critical part, chances are that the critical part has gone through a whole lot of FAA scrutiny that the OEM part didnt go through. This means that a PMA part is being more thoroughly checked. The FAA has to witness all the tests being carried out to the most critical components. These will never be delegated to a DER (designated engineering representatives). The FAA has to perform its own analysis of all the data and make the individual regulatory compliance findings themselves. The draft for FAA Order 8120.2F also states that once a PMA part has passed through a PMA holders quality system, the holder must establish a procedure to report any failure, malfunction, or defect of the part to the FAA. 2.4 Cost savings By using the PMA parts, airlines all over the world can also save a lot of money. The economic imperative for airlines to minimize maintenance costs means the savings offered by PMA parts, when compared to OEM catalogue prices are a big advantage. DER repairs and PMA parts programmes that specifically focus on gas path components can result in savings of more than US$500,000 per shop visit, or over 50 percent of the typical OEM catalogue pricing. These alternative parts and repair programmes not only represent a great opportunity for savings, I believe they represent the only form of competition available in this specialised market. [ Andrew Farrant, 2010 ] As mentioned earlier, British Airwaysis clearly showing a very high interest on using PMA parts. They are now looking to make massive savings through the extensive use of PMA parts instead of sourcing them from the OEM. Speaking at The Great PMA Debate event at the Royal Aeronautical Society in London, Ameet Bhalla, British Airways technical manager, airframe systems, explained that the strategy follows on from a deal signed with Heico, the worlds largest independent designer, manufacturer and distributor of FAA and EASA approved replacement parts for jet engines and aircraft components. This will see that Heico will be managing BAs alternative parts programme while at the same time helping the airline maximise savings through using alternative aircraft parts. Through this deal with Heico, we will actively seek PMA opportunities going forward. We will no longer be the cash machine for OEMs, said Bhalla. Contrary to popular belief, PMA parts have been used for many years within BA. There has been an approval process since 1997 and hundreds of PMA parts are now in use. In 2006 alone, 28 new PMA parts were approved, he added. These are not bogus parts but approved by the very same regulatory authorities that approve OEM aircraft parts. BA reviews all applicable PMA parts and approves each one on a case-by-case basis. Once installed, the parts are monitored for any defect trends and we note failure modes of PMA parts to check that they are similar, if not the same, as their OEM equivalent, he says. Bhalla also said that BA are now looking on to exploring the potential of 95% of Heicos inventory that are non-critical items. There has been no overall financial saving target set but we have said that we will openly entertain the PMA concept and w ould consider putting non-critical PMA parts on any of our aircraft, he says. James Bennett, Heico European sales director, told Flight International: Historically BA, while not anti-PMA, could not be said to be advocates either. They are well known as being extremely conservative as an airline but the move byLufthansa, which isa stakeholder in Heico, was seen in the industry as an extremely successful move to keep the OEMs in check. BA must certainly be looking in the region of saving between 30-40% off OEM list prices and will be focusing on high-cost items. Heico will head that PMA management process and review together with BA where further PMA applications can be used. We will be the fulcrum for BA to explore PMA. 2.5 Availability PMA manufacturers are also proud of their inventories, having the ability to supply immediate availability on a variety of parts that the OEMs have trouble keeping in stock. Although customers most frequent complaints are with engine OEMs, shortages can be found with everything from fasteners to landing gear struts. During the summer of 2003, owners of MDHIs helicopters noticed a dramatic decline in the availability of OEM parts. It wasnt long afterwards that everyone realized the company was in the grips of severe cash flow problems, resulting in angry suppliers refusing to deliver new components to the factory floor until outstanding debts were paid. As a result, sales of MDHIs light single-engine MD500s and twin-engine Explorers plummeted and there are rumours that MDHI was months away from bankruptcy. Meanwhile, MDHI aircraft around the world were on the ground with timed-out parts and some very angry operators. Aerometals, a California-based supplier of PMA parts, which had been selling PMA parts for MDHI (then Hughes Helicopters) since 1983, was perfectly positioned to take advantage of the problem with the OEM and sell tons of products to MDHIs anxious customers. And even though the health of MDHI has greatly improved since its acquisition by Patriarch Partners investment group in 2005, customers still call on Aerometals for a wide variety of components. Aerometals tend to have 95 percent of their product line available for same-day shipment, whereas the OEM competitor has many items back ordered for six months or more. Aerometals has experienced a huge rise in sales simply because they have the items in stock and the OEM doesnt. Even some of the healthy helicopter manufacturers have had trouble filling orders. Since the terrorist attacks of September 11, companies likeAgustaWestland, Bell andEurocopterhave seen orders for new aircraft come in at a record pace. The increase in orders at the helicopter manufacturers still have their assembly lines running at maximum capacity. A new Bell orEurocopterproduct will have to wait around two to three years before it can be delivered. The ripple effect of those sales has overwhelmed the engine manufacturers and other OEM subcontractors in the chain as well, leaving the door open for PMA manufacturers to step in with parts ready for immediate shipment to aircraft already in-service. 2.6 Wider acceptance Acceptance comes with maturity. And where there is acceptance, market potential could grow from it. This statement briefly concludes the PMA parts in aviation world today. Every year, more businesses discover the advantage of buying PMA parts. As a result, the aerospace industry has witnessed a continuous rise in the usage of PMA parts on a global scale. But their acceptance by the airlines has escalated only recently. PMA parts acceptance among airlines was pretty low just five years ago, says Hal Chrisman, a principal at the Ann Arbor, Mich.-based management consulting firm, AeroStrategy. North American airlines have long used PMA parts, but their interest in their cost-cutting value has increased noticeably since 9/11 and the resulting economic downturn. PMA parts provide the irresistible cost advantage of 30 percent to 50 percent, says Kirti Timmanagoudar, research analysis at the consulting analysis company, Frost Sullivan, San Jose, California. Equally important to industry p otential is the emerging interest coming from Europe and Asia. Europes growing use of PMA parts is being supported by an improved industry structure and by major third-party MRO providers that are encouraging airlines to switch to PMA parts, according to a Frost Sullivan survey of European maintenance trends. The increased use of PMA parts in Europe is in tandem with the continents growing number of low-cost carriers (nearly 50 of the more than 80 carriers, according to Frost Sullivan) and the trend to outsource maintenance, which has brought the rapid increase in numbers of third-party MROs. Ironically, despite this growing demand for PMA parts (made in the United States and approved for acceptance in other countries through bilateral agreements), Europe has virtually no parts manufacturers other than the OEMs. This escalating interest in PMA parts led to a two-day meeting of airline maintenance officials in Seattle in late January 2006, the purpose of which was to better understand PMA parts and theFAAparts approval process for the airlines. They want to, first, find out how each of the attending airlines handle PMA parts and, second, find ways to expedite, and perhaps standardize, the use of PMA parts. Before, the airlines apparently didnt talk much to each other [about PMA parts processing], according to Gloria Nations, president of the Modification and Replacement Parts Association (MARPA) and attendee of the Seattle meeting. Spearheaded by Alaska Airlines, the meeting included presentations by invited association, government and industry officials. Airlines like United, Delta, Air Canada, Japan Airlines and, most recently, British Airways have struck strategic partnership deals with Heico, reputedly the worlds largest independent designer, manufacturer and distributor of FAA- and EASA- approved alternative parts for aircraft and jet engines. American Airlines has a joint venture with the company to manage its alternative parts, while Lufthansa Technik actively encourages the development and production of PMA parts through its 20 percent stake in Heico. Carl Pedersen, president and CEO of Cimber Air Support, a passionate advocate of PMA, told delegates that PMA will become more relevant than ever as operators are forced to cut cost without jeopardizing safety. Yet, whenever the use of PMA parts is put up for discussion, said Pedersen, the individual who tables the issue is often looked upon as the bad guy of the movie which, to my mind, indicates that the subject of PMA is not fully understood.† EASA will only grant approval to a PMA part today if its not a critical component, it has been manufactured under license or if any minor changes or more major supplemental type certifications meet specific EASA approval. But now, Pedersen said, EASA has plans in place for a European PMA equivalent to the FAA under the banner of an EPA part, for which a tender for review has been commissioned but not yet finalized. It could be argued that design and manufacturing procedures are already in place under EASAs Part 21, said Pedersen, but creating a recognized European equivalent will put European operators and MROs on an even footing with their U.S. counterparts, eliminating the unfair trade limitations we have today†. To this end, he said the issue of PMA might yet be included in the imminent EU/U.S. Bilateral Air Safety Agreement which, reportedly, currently is embroiled in the politics of fees and charges. Yves Morier, EASAs head of product safety, confirmed EASA is discussing with its FAA counterparts how best to cooperate on PMA rulemaking. Currently, there is no statistical evidence for safety concerns with PMA, said Morier. But the overall experience may not be sufficient to draw definitive conclusions. Chris Carter, who manages the FAAs Certification Procedures Branch, had a definite view. PMA is here to stay, he said. Its deeply embedded in our system, and theres an ever-growing demand, especially now that Pratt Whitney is entering the market, he said. Moreover, in terms of PMA product quality, he confirmed the FAA has no better than or safer than criteria. The only bar required is the absolute safeguard of industrial regulation. Any latent risk in PMA has more to do with the financial standing of the PMA manufacturer than the PMA part itself, and, in his view, some PMA manufacturers are attaining the scale and stability of many OEMs. Looking ahead, he told the delegates that the FAA will continually improve its processes and work very closely with MARPA (Modification and Replacement Parts Association) on upcoming policy and new changes. Were also expanding delegation as the industry matures its capabilities and responsibilities, he said. Indeed, the U.S. has signed its first PMA bilateral agreement with Australia, which now has its own PMA approval processes, he said. The greatest supporting fact that PMA is now being accepted is the defence from the FAA on the side of PMA. In an attempt to counter anti-PMA safety concerns, the FAA released Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SAIB) NE-08-40 on Aug. 8, 2008. There have been a few wording in some OEM manuals that drove the FAA to issue the bulletin as a closing statement in an ongoing argument about the validity of PMA parts. According to Jason Dickstein, president of the Modification and Parts Replacement Association (MARPA), the SAIB was driven by the FAAs dismay at the fact that some OEMs were using safety documents for competitive purposes. A MARPA release from Aug. 10, 2008, states that some manufacturers have made commercial statements designed to demoralize the publics confidence in PMA parts. OEM decisions cannot override the word of the FAA. â€Å"If the FAA approved a PMA part to be used, the OEM is in no position to tell you that the FAAs approval is invalid,† says Dickstei n. MARPA says that the FAA expects the industry to treat its approval of PMA parts with the respect to the FAA decision. â€Å"We are an extremely risk-averse industry,† says Dickstein. â€Å"Many industries will go with a new product as long as they dont see anything wrong with it. Our industry wont go with a product unless we see everything is right with it.† 2.7 Different views As a customer, the airline industry comprises of many different subcategories. Each of them have a different approach on the PMA issue and whether they best fit into their operation or not. 2.7.1 The Airlines It is in a very competitive business environment that airlines are operating, with profit margins so small, every dollar has to be treated as if it was worth a million. That is why all airlines are very interested at the low cost that PMA parts do offer. Most of the engine parts that must be replaced on a regular basis, needs to be changed periodically and the cost of sustaining such activity are directly proportional to the usage of the engine. This means that the more the engine is being used, the more maintenance that it has to go through and the more money needs to come out from the pocket of the airline. Maximising the usage of the airlines resources, in this case the aircraft itself, is very crucial in keeping the airline in business. Obtaining the less expensive part such as the PMA parts to cater to the demand of the ever increasing cost in maintenance is a very good move. The airlines are trying to control the amount of money that comes out from their pocket in order to oper ate efficiently. They cannot control the price of fuel, so the next best thing that they can control is the price of maintenance activity. But what scares them is the OEMs asking the billion dollar question: Are you willing to risk lives, law suits and ruining your good name because you decided to buy cheap parts? In response to not knowing which part to be in, whether going to the people who say PMA parts are safe and inexpensive or the OEMs who say PMA parts are unsafe because theyre inexpensive, some airlines conducted evaluations. Samples of an OEM part and its PMA equivalent are run in controlled tests side by side to evaluate their performance. Many airlines that conduct their own tests end up selecting certain PMA parts, while keeping some OEM components. The buzz around the airl