History of IKEA Essay

Ingvar Kamprad founded IKEA in 1943. The name IKEA is formed from Kamprad’s initials (I.K.) plus the first letters of Elmtaryd (E) and Agunnaryd (A), the farm and village where he grew up (1). IKEA originally sold pens, wallets, picture frames, table runners, watches, and jewelry and nylon stockings. Known today for its furniture, IKEA did not start furniture sales until 1948. Kamprad saw opportunities for selling furniture on a large scale, distributing the first catalogue in 1951. In 1955, in the midst of a fierce price war with a competitor, Kamprad took his company a step further by opening the first store showroom. The concept behind this was that customers could now touch and look at IKEA home furnishings before they purchased, showing that quality did not have to be sacrificed for lower prices. With this being a success, Kamprad opened the first store in Almhult, Sweden in 1958. At its opening, the 6,700-meter store was the largest home furnishings store in Scandinavia (1). Kamprad retired as IKEA Group’s president in 1986, with Anders Moberg becoming his successor. This brought about many other changes for IKEA. Starting in 1990, IKEA took interest in corporate social responsibility (1). The IKEA Group developed an environmental policy that would ensure the company and its co-workers take environmental responsibility for all activities conducted within its business. Since then, they have become more energy efficient by generating their own renewable energy. They also work with their suppliers to inspire them to do the same. One example of this is each of their facilities is fully equipped with solar panels on the roof. They also take into consideration where and how they get their raw materials. Raw materials most important to the business and those that have the highest potential environmental or social impact are wood, cotton, palm oil, leather and food (3). Taking wood, they are continually looking for ways to get the most out of the wood they use by designing their products to minimize the amount of material needed and increasing the effici ency of manufacturing. They also only use wood that comes from responsibly managed forests in an effort to safeguard wood supplies to protect the future of their business, prevent deforestation, and to support the livelihoods of those communities. In order to make sure these efforts continue IKEA hired a fulltime forestry manager to secure sustainable use of forest resources (3). Upon Anders Moberg leaving IKEA in 1999, Anders Dahlvig became the President and CEO of the IKEA Group. This brought about more changes for the company by writing out a Code of Conduct. This code of conduct called â€Å"The IKEA Way on Purchasing Home Furnishing Products (IWAY)† defines what suppliers can expect from IKEA and specifies what IKEA expects from its suppliers in terms of legal requirements, working conditions, active prevention of child labor, external environment and forestry management (1). In addition, IKEA also introduced â€Å"The IKEA Way on Preventing Child Labor† in order to ensure that their suppliers and their sub-contractors use no child labor (1). IKEA has grown rapidly since its founding. As of August 31, 2012, the IKEA Group has operations in 44 countries, including 30 service-trading offices in 25 countries. T hey also have 33 distribution centers and 11 customer distribution centers. The IKEA Group had 298 stores in 26 countries. They employ 139,000 co-workers, 99,000 in Europe, 18,000 in North America, 11,000 in Asia and Australia, and 11,000 in Russia. They send out over 212 million catalogues, which has increased their foot traffic into the retail setting to 776 million visits. As technology use increases, so has their internet and app traffic with 1.1 billion visits to their website and over 5.7 million app downloads. With these increasing numbers, they have been able to open another 18 stores around the world in 2012 (5). IKEA’s vision and business statement paraphrased is to provide quality furniture products at a low price for all. Their product has always been furniture and over the past few years, they have grown to a company that is well known among all ranges of income from, broke college students to wealthy senior executives of companies. They do provide quality products whose function and style rival all other products in their industry. With those rival products, they also have prices that are lower than any of their competitors can afford to rival. How do they do it? IKEA is a very cost conscience company, where other companies will spend large sums of money on employee accommodations, IKEA does not. They tell of an instance where employees were at a conference and instead of paying for them to stay in the one and only hotel in town, an overpriced Marriot, they had their employees sleep in their cars (6). They have recently adopted a new energy saving method for each of their stores, both bettering the atmosphere as well as cutting energy costs. This mentality of saving, though extreme, has allowed the company to build a business into an industry leader in quality and price that most companies are not able to touch, based on their spending habits. This has been the mentality of the company structure since day one. Kamprad grew up in a farm-based village where people were not used to having quality products at an affordable price. From this, he developed the mentality and business structure that continues. The company has grown immensely due to their overall understanding of cost cutting and satisfying customer needs. The companies’ culture, as listed above, is all about saving money to provide a better company and product to the customer. One example of this is Kamprad had made company employees sleep in cars on a business trip. Having not talked to an employee that was forced to sleep in their car, as opposed to a Marriot hotel bed, I cannot say how they feel toward the company. That being said, I could make two inferences. The first is that the employees were upset. They should be provided with the basic essentials of life when on a business trip and the company should be able and willing to provide that. My second inference would be that these employees made this decision for themselves as well as the company, for the overall benefit of the company. The company advertises that that they share values for each employee. They ask for a unique employee and they advertise that they are not â€Å"filling jobs† but rather collaborating with people based on shared unique values. They compose and suggest these four-shared values as just a start to their list of shared values; One: togetherness, two: cost-consciousness, three: respect, four: simplicity. With those, four shared values maybe being their foundations, it would be easy to say that all employees, if truly investing time and effort into these values, are happy to work together in a uniform effort to save money as well as remain simple and respect one another. This would imply that they all are happy to work together in a situation that is best for everyone, as well as the company. IKEA is an industry leader when it comes to cutting costs and providing quality furniture at a price for everyone. In the market place, they have established themselves with their main competitive advantage to be price. They have done this in a way that most companies are not willing or would be too difficult for companies to rebuild their business model; and thus they are an industry leader. IKEA has established their marketing strategy as a furniture store that provides its customers with stylish furniture at an affordable price. Its founder Ingvar Kamprad instilled this strategy/mindset of the company. Mr. Kamprad’s mission for IKEA is to offer â€Å"a wide range of home furnishing items of good design and function, at prices so low that the majority of people can afford to buy them.† Therefore, IKEA’s focus is finding ways to lower prices yet still maintain the quality product they have been delivering, to its customers, for 70 years. This is their competitive advantage. IKEA maintains their competitive advantage by operating outside the practices of the conventional furniture supplier. A typical furniture store has an open show floor, where customers can peruse at their own leisure. IKEA steers away from this by designing its store in a trail pattern. This forces the buyer to proceed to the entire store and possibly find items they might not had intended on purchasing. Another thing IKEA does differently is, instead of providing delivery for every purchase, IKEA provides means of attaching containers on a customer’s car. This allows them to be able to take the furniture home the same day that they purchased it (7). The containers are usually pods that strap onto the top of a car. Then the customer takes it home and brings it back upon their next visit to IKEA. In addition, IKEA requires more of its customers than classic furniture stores. IKEA does not offer pre-assembled furniture. IKEA’s furniture is easy to assemble furniture that customers can take home and quickly put together (7). They take pride in the simplicity of their designed assembly. They also will not place a cumbersome item that would need to be assembled in the store because it is neither cost effective nor customer friendly (7). IKEA’s main strength comes from their value chain. â€Å"Unique design capabilities, unique sourcing, and tightly controlled logisti cs†¦they are able to produce products that are distinctive enough to provide market recognition, secure sourcing for long runs at profitable levels, and reduce inventory costs through regional warehouses which work closely with stores† (4). Meaning, IKEA is in complete control from furniture design to furniture delivery and storage. IKEA’s main weakness, one could assume, would be the large operation that it is. IKEA now operates in 29 different countries with over 2,000 suppliers in over 50 countries. With the large span of products and countries involved, maintaining control and communication will pose as one of IKEA’s biggest issues. The biggest challenge IKEA is facing would be wood. IKEA consumes 1% of total commercial wood, which amounts to over 13.5 million cubic meters (8). With all this considered, IKEA is launching a new campaign to operate in a more economic-friendly way by only processing wood that has been FSC certified. They are slowly incorporating new policies and plan to be â€Å"forest positive† by 2020; however, missed their 2012 goal of using 35% of their wood from FSC certified wood mainly because according to IKEA’s CSO Steve Howard, ‘only 7% of the world’s forest areas are currently certified to FSC standards† (8). However, IKEA is not only meeting obstacles from the environment, certain countries bureaucratic powers are causing some difficulty for further advancement in the country. China is one of these countries. The Chinese government is imposing harsh restrictions on its real estate market, which has caused stores to close (9). IKEA continues to grow every year by saving money at their current locations through energy saving building and using renewable resources. With their corporate responsibility programs, they continue lead the way in their industry. They also continue to work toward a better future for children all over the world through their Child Labor initiatives. As they continue to keep costs down, they will continue to expand all over the world. Works Cited 1. â€Å"About IKEA.† History. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Feb. 2013. 2. â€Å"Facts &Figures.† Inter IKEA Systems B.V. N.p., Oct. 2012. Web. 16 Feb. 2013. 3. Canada, Newswire. â€Å"IKEA Group releases 2011 Sustainability Report.† Canada Newswire 15 Feb. 2012: Regional Business News. Web. 16 Feb. 2013. 4. Grol, Paul, Christopher Schoch, and Michel Roger. â€Å"Culture as a Competitive Advantage.† Efbl.org. N.p., 16 Dec. 2010. Web. 13 Feb. 2013. 5. â€Å"IKEA Group SWOT Analysis.† IKEA Group SWOT Analysis (2012): 1-8. Business Source Complete. Web. 16 Feb. 2013. 6. Lewis, Elen. â€Å"Chapter 2: Ingvar Kamprad: The Grand Designer.† GBS: Great IKEA!. 28-45. n.p.: Marshall Cavendish Limited, 2004.Business Source Complete. Web. 16 Feb. 2013. 7. â€Å"The IKEAConcept.† Inter IKEA Systems B.V. N.p., Oct. 2012. Web. 16 Feb. 2013. 8. Kelly, Annie. â€Å"IKEA to Go ‘forest Positive’ à ¢Ã‚€Â“ but Serious Challenges Lie Ahead.† The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 14 Dec. 2012. Web. 16 Feb. 201 3. 9. â€Å"WantChinaTimes.com.† WantChinaTimes.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Feb. 2013.

Prom Nights from Hell Chapter Seven

â€Å"He didn't even know you were there,† Sibby said. â€Å"He never even knew who hit him.† â€Å"That was the idea.† They were parked next to an abandoned Amtrak maintenance building on an old part of the train tracks that was completely hidden from the street. It was the place Miranda had started coming seven months earlier to work out all her new crazy energy and try things she couldn't practice anywhere else-Roller Derby was great for speed, balance, gymnastics, and shoving moves, but you weren't supposed to use advanced judo. Or weapons. She could make out marks from her last crossbow exercise on the side of the building, and the piece of railroad track she'd tied in a knot the day after Will rejected her was still lying on the ground. She'd never seen anyone else here, and she was sure she and Sibby would be pretty much invisible as long as they stayed parked. â€Å"Where did you learn to knock people out like that?† Sibby asked, sprawled out over the backseat. â€Å"Can you teach me?† â€Å"No.† â€Å"Why not? Just one move?† â€Å"Absolutely not.† â€Å"Why did you say you were sorry after you hit him?† Miranda swiveled to face her. â€Å"It's my turn to ask questions. Who wants to kill you and why?† â€Å"Gods, I don't know. It could be a ton of people. It's not like that, how you think it is.† â€Å"What's it like then?† â€Å"It's complicated. But if we can just hang out until four in the morning, there's a place I can go.† â€Å"That's six hours from now.† â€Å"That'll give me time for at least ten more kisses.† â€Å"Well, of course. What else would you do while someone is trying to kill you besides go out and tongue tango with as many strangers as possible?† â€Å"They weren't trying to kill me, they were trying to abduct me. It's totally different. Come on, I want to do something fun. Something with boys.† â€Å"Or we could not do that.† â€Å"Look, just because you are a founding member of Down with Fun Inc. doesn't mean that the rest of us want to sign up.† â€Å"I am not a founding member of Down with Fun Inc. I like fun. But-â€Å" â€Å"Funkiller.† † – somehow the idea of wandering around while ‘a ton of people' are trying to kidnap you, doesn't sound fun to me. It sounds like a good way to get into the Guinness Book of World Records under ‘Plan, comma, World's Most Stupid. Plus innocent bystanders could get caught in the middle when the ton of people find you.† â€Å"‘If, not ‘when. And they don't care about anyone but me.† Miranda rolled her eyes and turned back around. â€Å"That's why they're called innocent bystanders. Because they were standing by you and accidentally got hurt.† â€Å"Then you should definitely get away from me. Seriously, although there's nothing I'd rather do than sit parked in a homeless person's bathroom for six hours with only you for company, I think it would be safer for both of us if I take my chances elsewhere. Like at that ice cream place we passed on the way here. Did you see the lips on the guy behind the counter? They were mythic. Drop me there and I'll be all set.† â€Å"You're so not going anywhere.† â€Å"Really? Because that sound you hear? Is me reaching for the door handle.† â€Å"Really? Because that sound you hear? Is me engaging the child lock.† In the rearview mirror, Miranda saw Sibby's eyes blaze. â€Å"You're really mean,† Sibby said. â€Å"Something horrible must have happened to you to make you so mean.† â€Å"I'm not mean. I'm just trying to keep you safe.† â€Å"Are you sure it's me you're thinking about? Not some skeleton in your closet? Like the time you-â€Å" Miranda turned up the radio. â€Å"Turn that down! I was talking and I'm the customer.† â€Å"Not anymore.† Sibby yelled really loud, â€Å"What happened to your sister?† â€Å"I don't know what you are talking about,† Miranda yelled back. â€Å"That's a lie.† Miranda didn't say anything. â€Å"I asked you before if you had a sister and you got all teary,† Sibby shouted in her ear. â€Å"Why won't you tell me?† Miranda turned down the radio. â€Å"Can you give me three good reasons why I should?† â€Å"It might make you feel better. It would give us something to talk about while we sit here. And if you don't tell me, I'm going to start guessing.† Miranda leaned her head back, checked her watch, and turned to stare out the window. â€Å"Be my guest.† â€Å"You bugged her so much she left? You bored her so much she left? Or did you drive her away with the huge stick you keep up your butt?† â€Å"Stop being tender with my feelings. Go on, tell me what you really think.† From the backseat Sibby said, â€Å"That might have been too mean. Sorry.† Miranda didn't say anything. â€Å"You don't really have a stick in your butt. You couldn't drive then, right? Ha-ha?† Silence. â€Å"But I mean, you started it. With the child-lock thing. I'm not a child. I'm fourteen.† More silence. â€Å"I said I was sorry.† In the backseat Sibby slumped, sighed. â€Å"Fine. Be that way.† Silence. Until, for no reason she could explain, Miranda said, â€Å"They died.† Sibby sat up quick now, leaning toward the front seat. â€Å"Who? Your sisters?† â€Å"Everyone. My whole family.† â€Å"Was it because of something you did?† â€Å"Yes. And because of something I didn't do. I think.† â€Å"Um, Grandma Grim, that doesn't make any sense. How can not doing something-wait, you think?. Don't you know what happened?† â€Å"I can't really remember anything from that part of my life.† â€Å"You mean from that day?† â€Å"No. From that year. And the year after. Anything pretty much from when I was ten until when I turned twelve. And there are a few other holes, too.† â€Å"You mean that stuff is just too painful to remember?† â€Å"No, it's just†¦ gone. All I have are impressions.† And the dreams. Really really bad dreams. â€Å"Like what?† â€Å"Like that I wasn't where I should have been and something happened and I let everyone down†¦Ã¢â‚¬  She stopped, waved a hand in the air. â€Å"Wait, you actually think you could have stopped whatever happened to them? By yourself? When you were four years younger than me?† Miranda's throat felt like it was closing up. She'd never told anyone even that much of her real history before, never talked about it, not even with Kenzi. Ever. She swallowed hard. â€Å"I could have tried. I could have been there and tried.† â€Å"Oh my gods, now this is some kind of pity party. Yawn. Wake me when you're done.† Miranda gaped at her in the mirror. â€Å"I told you I didn't want to talk about it but you kept bugging me and now you turn into the mayor of TellItLikeItIsVille?† Swallowing again. â€Å"You little-â€Å" â€Å"You don't even know what happened! How can you feel so bad about it? Plus, I don't see how that can be your fault. You weren't even there and you were only ten. I think you should stop obsessing about some mystery thing that is ancient history and live in the mo.† â€Å"I'm sorry, did you just tell me to ‘live in the mo'?† â€Å"Yes. You know, ditch the past and try focusing on what's going on in the present. Like that the song on the radio right now? Sucks. And that there is a whole city of cute boys out there I am not kissing.† Miranda took a deep breath, but before she could say anything, Sibby went on. â€Å"I know, I know you say you're sorry to the people you knock out because you never got to say sorry to your family, and you have to keep me safe because you couldn't keep them safe. I get it now.† â€Å"That is not what's going on. I-â€Å" â€Å"Blah blah blah, insert denials here. Anyway, why does ‘safe' have to mean sitting in this car with you all night? Isn't there somewhere we could blend in? Instead of hiding? I'm good at blending. I'm like butter.† â€Å"Oh yeah, you're totally like butter. In fact, in your Madonna-called-and-she-wants-her-costume-from-the-‘Borderline'-video-back outfit, you're practically invisible.† â€Å"Good one, Funkiller. Come on, let's go somewhere.† Miranda turned all the way around in her seat and said, â€Å"Let me sound it out for you. Someone. Is. Trying. To. Kill. You.† â€Å"No. They. Are. Not. You keep saying that, but I've told you. They can't kill me. You should really work on this obsession you have with people getting killed. And I have to be honest with you, I'm getting bored. What do you have the radio set to, K-CRAP? There is no way we are staying in this car for six hours.† Miranda had to agree with her. Because if they did, it was now clear she'd kill Sibby herself. That's when she thought of the perfect place for them to go. â€Å"You want to blend in?† she asked. â€Å"Yes. With boys.† â€Å"Guys,† Miranda said. â€Å"What?† â€Å"Normal American girls from this century call them guys, not boys. If you want to blend in.† For a second, Sibby looked shocked. Then she gave a little smile. â€Å"Oh. Yes. Guys.† â€Å"‘Yeah, not ‘yes. Unless you're talking to a grown-up.† â€Å"Yeah.† â€Å"And it's ‘Oh my God' or ‘God, not ‘gods. â€Å" â€Å"Did I-?† â€Å"Yeah. And no one ever has or ever will say, ‘live in the mo. â€Å" â€Å"Just wait.† â€Å"No. Never. Oh, and no paying guys for kisses. You don't need to. They should feel lucky to kiss you.† Sibby frowned. â€Å"Why are you being so nice to me and helping me? You don't even like me.† â€Å"Because I know what it's like to be far from home, alone, trying to fit in. And to never be able to tell anyone the truth about who you are.† After they'd been driving in silence for a few minutes, Sibby said, â€Å"Have you ever killed someone with your bare hands?† Miranda looked at her in the rearview. â€Å"Not yet.† â€Å"Ha-ha.†

The psychological aspects of transgenderism Research Paper

The psychological aspects of transgenderism - Research Paper Example In this case, the book presents a significant interpretation of opportunities based on the data gathered during the research. The book offers findings from tracking of gender identity based on individual and groups; in fact, this tracking commenced in childhood, thereby leading to identification of these participants as transgender. The books explores the feeling of different participants due to their gender, thereby seeking to unveil factors that makes them developed a feeling of uncertainty regarding their gander identities. In addition, the book covers factors that facilitate embracing their transgender identity and the effort they make to meet other transgender people (Beemyn and Rankin, 232). The books present the form of discrimination and harassment that these transgender individuals are subjected to, especially in U.S and psychological charge of living in fear and secrecy. The book gathers ideas to support the notion that transgender people are increasingly subjected to viole nce, social and economic challenges, despite their discovery and recognition by the public, through rights movement; in fact, this book offers information that is supported by human testimony, thereby introducing plans for future research. â€Å"The Transgender Child: A Handbook for Families and Professionals† by Brill Stephanie and Pepper Rachel is a guide to assist parents in bridging gap in relationship with their transgender and gender-variant children. Moreover, this books is developed on research and ideas gathered from other authors based on experience (McElroy, 1). In this case, this book offers an overview of issues, ranging from health care to discussing issues with their transgender children. On the other hand, this book offers a combination of practical proposals and philosophy, which offers guidance that facilitate understanding and accepting their transgender children. Apparently, this book commences with a discussion of crucial terminologies and an overview of the broad range of issues (Brill and Pepper, 2). It is evident that, this book lays substantial emphasis on love, whereby these authors urge parents to navigate a course that offers a chance for supporting and offering unconditional love to their children. This book provides the reader a substantial solution to ordinary problems such as offering recommendations to parents in playing a role of answering questions from strangers. On the other hand, the book offers a basis of addressing various challenges; for instance, there are sample letters provided for parents to revise. In fact, these letters are vital for recognizing the status of child, and this is carried by the child and presented to the authorities. The book offers quotations from different parents, children and members of the society concerning their real-life viewpoint; in fact, offers education and guidance on health care professionals who deal with transgender issues and gender variant children (Keen, 43). Therefore, the book recognizes and acknowledges different challenges faced by transgender and gender-variant children; in fact, the authors proposed that families with transgender and gender variant children are expected to offer advocacy and parenting to their children. â€Å"Transgender 101: a simple guide to a complex issue†

Keatons Film Daydreams Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Keatons Film Daydreams - Movie Review Example The directors' utilization of the chase sequence is literally handled to prolong the entire film. Considerably, it did its purposes. Instead of sending Renee' back to his girlfriend's house, he had still to deal with different challenges along the way to be able to run past his chasers. Through different points of stops, the director aimed to give the audience a cup of laughter in the middle of every chase. Take for example the scene where Renee managed to pose as a road-side mannequin that appeared to be his disguise from his solo-policeman chaser, later on he manages to get a pair of pants and suit that luckily had some money in it which he used to pay for the said set of garments to the seller completing his cover as a ordinary man while the policeman was watching him standing just right beside him. This particular scene actually made Renee' appear more of an intelligent individual who was able to cut the chase short to an end that served as a prelude to his success in running awa y and supposedly coming home to his girlfriend with something to show her at least instead of being chased to his death. However, the cover immediately ended when he lost his pants with the policeman still looking at his path. This then continued the chase.

Brain Based learnnig Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Brain Based learnnig - Essay Example Jerome Bruner, Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky, the brightes representatives of this approach, strongly believed that students must actively construct their own knowledge. Thus, Vygotsky claims that the process of learning is socially determined and the teacher is supposed to control and supervise learning instead of providing strict directions (Vigotsky, 1997). Piaget argues that children independently form their understanding of the world perceiving different information and creating their own cognitive schemes. Therefore, the role of teacher is not very important when supervision is concerned: excessively rigorous supervision and control reduce the child's ability and desire to discover the world independently (Ginsberg, & Opper, 1979). Brunner holds the same opinion, but he also recognizes the role of teachers in organization of learning process claiming that effective organization greatly facilitates children's discovery of the world (Bruner, 1966). Regular education teachers often fail to consider these valuable findings in their teaching strategies.

The theory of endogenous money Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

The theory of endogenous money - Essay Example endogenous money theory based its arguments on classical economics, it proved a constructive attempt for providing alternative theoretical framework for dealing with unsatisfactory IS/LM model. As of now, policy makers are receiving utterly contrasting advice from economists concerning how to surmount the prolonged financial sprawl in the USA and Europe: a number of them propose austerity while others advocate for deficit spending. With this regard, this paper will seek to assess the arguments and the probable impact of both policy extremes in the light of the theory of endogenous money. Fiscal austerity as well as fiscal stimulus brings about numerous impacts on the economy of a country, depending on the level or degree in which they carry out the redistribution of income to both the low and high earners. After the 2007/2008 economic slump, many nations continued to struggle with the view of reducing government debt levels. However, as time went by, it came to a point where the US and Europe’s governments accepted that they faced great level of government debts and as such, they ought to increase their revenue, cut their spending, default on their obligations, or thereof combine all of them. Some policy makers recommend austerity because it is an intriguing option and rarely takes place on government debt even at times when the available solution is painful (Keen and Grasselli, 2012:3). In spite of the measure that default increases the future borrowing cost sharply, austerity leaves tax increased and the level of government expenditure cut. Fiscal austerity, in a number of ways, seems to be the contrast for of fiscal stimulus policies. This is so because it leads to tax cuts and increase spending applied by government at times whose purpose is to expand the country’s economy. With reference to the endogenous theory, some policy makers seem to propose austerity due to its impacts. First, with austerity, low-income earners will be in a position to have

The mistakes ICTY and the ICC of the Nuremberg war crimes trials Essay

The mistakes ICTY and the ICC of the Nuremberg war crimes trials - Essay Example The Nuremberg war crimes trials of 1945-1946 were also known as the IMT. These trials put in the trial the most prominent German leaders who were still surviving for their crimes against humanity. Apart from the primary trials, the Nuremberg trials had other twelve secondary trials that were conducted between 1946 and 1949. The first forty years after the Nuremberg war crimes trials, the world witnessed a period of slow progress in the development of the international criminal law. However, it is agreeable that in recent years, the international criminal law has developed tremendously.   To a greater extent, it has been argued that the Nuremberg war crimes trials formed a fundamental basis upon which the international criminal law and courts were developed. These trials established that the whole humanity would be guarded by the international legal shield and that prominent persons including the head of states would be held criminally responsible if they commit crimes against human ity. There is a common ground among many international legal practitioners and scholars that the right of humanitarian intervention that is aimed at putting the end to crimes against humanity gradually emerged from the principles of Nuremberg and affirmed by the United Nations.  After the Nuremberg trials, there were evident inadequacies and mistakes that were committed during the trials. Also, the awareness of the inadequacy of the law and the need for something to be done to enforce new war crime trials emerged.... The first forty years after the Nuremberg war crimes trials, the world witnessed a period of slow progress in development of the international criminal law. However, it is agreeable that in recent years, international criminal law has developed tremendously.3 To a greater extent, it has been argued that the Nuremberg war crimes trials formed a fundamental basis upon which the international criminal law and courts were developed. These trials established that the whole humanity would be guarded by international legal shield and that prominent persons including head of states would be held criminally responsible if they commit crimes against humanity. There is a common ground among many international legal practitioners and scholars that the right of humanitarian intervention that is aimed at putting the end to crimes against humanity gradually emerged from the principles of Nuremberg and affirmed by the United Nations.4 After the Nuremberg trials, there were evident inadequacies and m istakes that were committed during the trials. Also, the awareness of the inadequacy of the law and the need for something to be done to enforce new war crime trials emerged. There was evident failure by the international community to develop international criminal law that was binding in 1946; the UN committees that were charged with this responsibility were slow in developing statutes to try perpetrators of the crimes against humanity.5 The slow development of these laws led to the flourishing of international crimes. It is estimated that about 170 million civilians were subjected to crimes against humanity in the twentieth century and some of these crimes were committed after the formation of the UN.

Essay of media analysis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Of media analysis - Essay Example The book ‘carved in bone’ by Jefferson Bass conveniently covers the subject under study by virtue of an interesting plot where Dr Bill Brockton who is a Forensic Anthropologist studied the case of a deal mummified woman discovered in a cave. Brockton this makes use of quite intriguing techniques like analyzing the graphical decomposition of the corpse and using various experiments to put together pieces of the puzzle to unveil who the woman really was. He owns a research laboratory where he experiments with the techniques which may have been used during homicides. To de-flesh the bones, he boils them and bleaches them and later tries to determine patterns from fragments on bones and also from the kind of impact he finds on the bones to gather enough evidence to challenge the strong lobbies in the county (Bass 2006). This book, written by a forensic anthropologist himself proves to be an insightful account on how far can the subject matter go in solving mysteries of the c rime world . In the article ‘When Forensic Anthropology meets DNA’, another interesting aspect of the subject is unveiled. The forensics department was able to draw DNA samples from a corpse decomposed to such an extent that extracting any evidence of identity was nearly impossible. However, Laura Fulgitini, who`s a forensic anthropologist uses her impeccable skills to jot together the pieces of skull together by adding cement to the missing sections to conveniently unveil the identity of the corpse, who turns out to be one of the people missing from San Diego, Joy Risker. Under normal circumstances, drawing DNA from the sample would have been of no use since there would have been no one to compare the sample to, however, by re-creating the shape of the skull, the forensics was able to get a fine idea of what the person would have looked like. On comparing the image of the corpse with the person missing, they were able to get a breakthrough, which was only possible due to

Food Industry Analysis Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Food Industry Analysis Paper - Essay Example This is not so with the food industry because it is a basic physical need. It may be that some luxury foods are done away with during times of economic crisis, but the food industry as a whole can be rest assured that it will be around for a long time to come. As the population of this country grows, so will the number of mouths that are needed to be fed. This ensures that should increase year-on-year for a long time to come. The purpose of this paper is to look at the strengths of the various categories of the food industry and determine how an increase in sales is reflected by increases in employment numbers, employee wages, and the number of restaurants. Because this is such a large industry and covers tens of millions of people, I will focus specifically on New York City. The reason why I chose this place was because the city is famous for always being on the move. The diversity in the city means that there are many ethnic food restaurants available for customers to eat at. My hy pothesis is that as the sales of the food industry are increasing, so must employment numbers, employee wages, and the number of restaurants. For an industry that seems to be booming, it would make sense to reinvest profits back into the industry itself, thereby ensuring its success over the short and long term. The types of data that will be used in this paper are primary sources, such as the New York State Department of Labor and ReferenceUSA. To clarify what food restaurants will be taken into consideration, the NAICS code that will be looking at is 722211 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2002). This code specifically entails establishments that provide food services where the customer chooses his meal and pays for it before receiving it. To be clear, snack and non-alcoholic beverage bars will not be included in this analysis. The dependent variable in this paper will be the sales numbers for the food industry as a whole. It is very easy to locate these figures because they are complied by t he relevant departments each year for public knowledge. The scatter plot below shows the sales numbers in the food industry over the last few years: As can be seen from the graph, the food industry as a whole is growing year-on-year. Of course, the figure for 2012 is just an estimate since we don’t have those figures available yet. In fact, in the last couple of years, the slope has gotten steeper, which suggests that the pace of the food industry will not slow down anytime soon. On average, the food industry’s sales are increasing by $22.13 billion each year or around 3 to 4%. From this, we can say that the outlook for the food industry is positive unless some unforeseen disaster occurs. The slope for this graph is y = 22.13x + 167.26, based on a base year of 1990. Looking ahead to 2020, we can make a prediction of the sales of the food industry with this equation. The equation would be as follows: y = 22.13 (30) + 167.26 = $831.16 billion each year. Of course, the gr owth rate may change based on external factors that are outside of the food industry’s control. However, this figure gives a pretty good estimate of where the food industry will be by the end of this decade and shows that everything is looking positive. Now that we have shown that the sales for the food industry will continue to grow for some time yet, we need to see what is fueling that helping to fuel that growth. This paper will look at three independent variables: employee numbers, employee wages, and number of restaurants. For employee numbers, New York City can

Crime and Punishment Essay Example for Free

Crime and Punishment Essay People will sometimes go to greater extents just because they believe it’s for the better of the people. Mankind may sometimes reside to murdering a person in belief that it will benefit the society because that person is worthless and just takes up space. In Fedor Dosteovsky’s Crime and Punishment, the character Raskolinikov decides to commit a murder or in his eyes, rid society of a worthless person. Sometimes poverty will make a man tip over the edge. It will cause a man to commit a homicide because in their mind they see that person worthless to society. In Doestoevsky’s Crime and Punishment, poverty helps setup the theme of nihilism. â€Å"Life is in ourselves and not in the external,† writes Fyodor Dostoevsky in a letter to his brother dated December 22, 1849. â€Å"To be a human being among human beings, and remain one forever, no matter what misfortunes befall, not to become depressed, and not to falter—this is what life is, herein lies its task.† This passage was written immediately after Dostoevsky underwent the traumatic experience that Tsar Nicholas I ordered for sever prisoners condemned to death for supporting the expression of free thought within the Russian state, a mock execution in Semyonovsky Square, a staged performance so terrifyingly real that it induced insanity within one of the author’s fellow prisoners. The quote is evidence of Dostoevsky’s strength of character; his would be a difficult life living in poverty, he would helplessly watch as many of the people closest to him died from the ailments of the poor. It also exposes the significant flaw common to som e of his characters and tragic heroes through despair, and weakness before the weight of misfortune, they falter, and commit barbaric acts that render them unfit to operate within the context of humanity. This is the case with both Baklushkin and Shishkov from The Hous of the Dead, as well as with Raskolnikov in Crime and Punishment. Fyodor Dostoevksy was born on October 30, 1821 in Moscow, Russia. He was born into a strict way of life. He lived much of his childhood distanced from his frail mother and officious father. In these formative years, he formed a close bond with his elder brother Mikhail. He was sent to school at an early age, during his years in school Dostoevsky was lonesome, but those lonesome years in school afforded him a release from his father’s stern household. In his solitude he found an interest in Literature and spent most of his time reading. As a young man, Dostoevsky’s father was brutally murdered by his serfs. Though he rarely mentioned his father’s death, the theme of parricide provided the central focus of perhaps his greatest work, The Brothers Karamazov. At his father’s instance, Dostoevsky attended engineering school, but upon graduation he chose to pursue a literary career. His first published work, Eugenie Grandel, was published in a St. Petersburg journal in 1844. Dostoevsky completed his first novel, Poor Folk, in 1845. A naturalistic tale with a clear social message, the novel was acclaimed by the foremost literary critic of the day, Vissarion Belinsky, who stated, â€Å"A new Gogol is born!† the work brought Dostoevsky success and adulation that he was ill-equipped to handle. Dostoevsky became a member of Belinsky’s literary circle, but when Belinsky reacted coldly to Dostoevsky’s subsequent work, a breach developed between them. In 1848, Dostoevsky joined a political group of young intellectuals led by Mikhail Petrashevsky. The reactionary climate of Russia at the time was not receptive to a group which published illegal literature and discussed utopian socialism, and in 1849 the members were arrested and charged with subversion. Dostoevsky, whom the authorities considered the most important member, was imprisoned and sentenced to death. In a scene that was to haunt him all of his life, Dostoevsky and his friends faced a firing squad, but were reprieved when a messenger arrived with the announcement that their sentences had been commuted to four years of hard labor in Siberia and four years of army service. His harrowing near-execution and terrible years of imprisonment made an undeniable impression on his life, converting him to a long life of intense spiritual lifestyle. His prison experiences, as well as his life after prison among the urban poor of Russia, would provide a vivid backdrop for much of his later work. Released from his imprisonment and service by 1858, he began a fourteen-year period of furious writing, in which he published many significant texts. Among these were: The House of the Dead, Notes From The Underground, Crime and Punishment, The Idiot, and Devils. In 1859 Dostoevsky returned to St. Petersburg were he contributed articles expressing his belief that Russia should develop a social and polit ical system based on the values drawn from the Russian people. He then described his life as a prisoner in the book The House of the Dead, a novel reflecting both an insight into a criminal mind and an understanding of the Russian lower class. His intense study of the New Testament, the only book prisoners were allowed to read, provided a major influence on his later work as he became convinced that redemption was only possible though suffering and faith. In 1862, Dostoevsky and his brother Mikhail created a magazine called The Time, which was later banned in 1863. Due to the Dostoevsky and Mikhail created another magazine called Epoch, which in 1864 published the complex novel Notes From Underground, generally considered the preface to Dostoevsky’s greater novels. In that same year, 1864, both Dostoevsky’s wife and beloved brother died, leaving him saddled with debts and dependents. In an attempt to win money though gambling, Dostoevsky instead buried himself further in debt. With creditors at his heels and with debts around 43,000 rubles, he was able to escape with 175 rubles and a slave contract with book seller F.T. Stellovsky. This agreement stipulated that if Dostoevsky did not produce a novel by November 1, 1866, all rights to Dostoevsky’s past and future works would revert to Stellovsky. Time passed and Dostoevsky, preoccupied with a longer, serialized novel, did not work on the book he promised Stellovsky until at last, on the advice of his friends, he hired the young Anna Grigorievna, Snitkin as his stenographer. He the dictated the Gambler to her, and the manuscript was delivered to Stellovsky on the same day their agreement was to expire.

Strategy used in dialog broadband

Strategy used in dialog broadband Strategy used in dialog broadband Executive Summary Dialog Telekom group is the leading telecommunication service provider in Sri Lanka. Their main goal is to be the best and the largest mobile telecommunication provider in Sri Lanka. Dialog Telekom was established in 1995. This company is one of the largest listed companies in Colombo stock exchange and its a subsidiary of Axiata Group Berhad. To be the leading telecommunication provider in Sri Lanka its not easy. They provide their customers with a wide range of services like Dialog TV, Dialog CDMA, Dialog Broadband and Dialog Mobile connection. Specially involve in a competitive industry. As for they various types of services provided by, Dialog Telecom, they operate as a separate division for Dialog Broadband which is our area of our research project. Dialog Broadband goal is to provide their customers with the best product in the market at a low cost, but not the least cost at a high service rate. Currently they have proudly achieved this by making sure that they provided their customers with the best service. At this rate it means more customers is equal to more company profit. Dialog Broadband expands their services into a wider range. Broadband internet, WiMax technology, WIFI technology and the Unlimited mobile broadband. They targeted the 500,000(approximately) 3g users in the country, dividing the market into two sections, Student and the General mass. Accordingly fixing separate price ranges to the appropriate segment, and a wide range of connection packages to them, and launched the Unlimited mobile broadband connection to them. In this report i will be discussing how to promote the Unlimited mobile broadband connection in the competitive market with the use of strategic management. Introduction Purpose of Report The purpose of this report is to fulfill the requirements to complete the BIS3324 module. Topic and company chosen for the research The company I have selected for the research project was Dialog Broadband, and the topic I have chosen is The use of strategic management for promoting Dialog Mobile Broadband connectivity in the competitive market. Introduction to Dialog Broadband. Dialog Broadband is a Strategic business process unit of the Dialog Telecom Group, providing fixed telephony solutions, data networks, and broadband internet and coverage solutions. Dialog Broadband major products such as Broadband internet, WiMax technology, WiFi technology and the Unlimited mobile broadband. Ø Broadband internet Dialog Broadband draws on its far reaching infrastructure to bring the Internet direct to a users home or office. Ø Wimax technology This world-class technology enables scalable, carrier-class solutions to support thousands of users with a single base station, while providing differentiated service levels. WiMax is fast becoming the standard for the provision of broadband solutions worldwide. Ø WiFi technology Wi-Fi allows your business to deploy a network quickly, at lower cost, and with greater flexibility than a wired system. Productivity increases since workers can stay connected longer, and are able to collaborate with their co-workers as and where needed Ø Unlimited Mobile Broadband Dialog Mobile Broadband is Internet on your mobile its fast, and affordable. HSPA stands for High Speed Packet Access. This technology literally brings high-speed access to users on the go. To access the world of streaming video, music, downloads, news and communication, simply get on the HSPA network. All you need is an HSPA modem and a data connection. Ø Description of Unlimited Mobile Broadband Dialog Mobile Broadband is Internet on your mobile its fast, and affordable. HSPA stands for High Speed Packet Access. This technology literally brings high-speed access to users on the go. To access the world of streaming video, music, downloads, news and communication, simply get on the HSPA network. All you need is an HSPA modem and a data connection. Dialog offers Unlimited Mobile Broadband for a monthly rental of just Rs. 2,990/-. Sign up for 6 months and be eligible to purchase an E220 HSPA modem for Rs 5490/-. Monthly fee entitles customer to broadband usage of unlimited duration and unlimited data volume (download/upload) however subject to a Fair Usage Policy (FUP) whereby download/upload speeds would be reduced relative to their maximum levels following monthly usage exceeding 5GB. The FUP is designed to ensure that the service received by the vast majority of our customers is not negatively impacted because of extremely heavy usage by a very small minority of customers. Technology HSPA stands for High Speed Packet Access. This technology literally brings high-speed access to users on the go. To access the world of streaming video, music, downloads, news and communication, simply get on the HSPA network. All you need is an HSPA modem and a data connection. Evolution 2g (sms) >> GPRS >> Edge >> 3g >> HSPA The evolution defines the connection level provided to the user, this depends on the number of users connected to a particular tower in a given area. The more the users connect to the tower, it shrinks the connection speed, but it does mean the customer will not get any connectivity, but the user will get a connection of a GPRS speed. 3G the Third Generation of wireless communication technology that allows you to enjoy a more seamless and magical General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) enabled networks offer always-on, higher capacity, Internet-based content Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE) is an extension to GPRS, EDGE allows faster data speeds enabling faster Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) is a world wide standard in the mobile telecommunication industry that lets you access Mobile Messaging is evolving beyond SMS text messaging with the introduction of MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) Short Message Service available on digital GSM networks allowing text messages of up to 160 characters User policy and Product Service The customer will experience 7.2Mbps download and 2Mbps Upload speed up to usage of 5GB. Once usage passes ahead of 5GB, the quality of service will be downgraded to download a speed of 384kbps and upload a speed of 64kbps and will continue for the next 1GB usage. Beyond 6GB the quality of service will be downgraded to download a speed of 64kbps and upload a speed of 16kbps. Online Research I have found the details from Dialog official website. Sales report Product description What are the strategies they are using? Strategy information Rogers Diffusion , Ansoffs Matrix Price comparison between Dialog and Mobitel. Strategies used in Dialog Broadband to promote the product Strategy Rogers Diffusion Curve Rogers Diffusion is defined as the communication process by which a new idea or new product is accepted by the market, while the rate of diffusion is defined as the speed that the new idea spreads from one consumer to the next. Adoption, which is similar to diffusion, also deals with the psychological decision making processes of the individual, rather than those of an aggregate market. Rogers showed that a diffusion process in a social system follows an S-Curve in which the adoption of a technology begins with slow change, is followed by rapid change and ends in slow change as the product matures or new technologies emerge. He also held that people adopt new technological innovations at different times and at different rates. He then used the varying rates of adoption to distinguish different phases in the diffusion process allowing practitioners to assess such things as the life of a new product or service and the application of the correct set of marketing activities at the appropriate time. This process tracked through the diffusion curve is a decision-making process where an individual passes from the initial knowledge of an innovation to forming an attitude toward the innovation, to a decision to accept or reject it, then it implements the use of the new idea, and finally to confirmation of this decision. The increasing number of adopters follows the above mentioned S-shaped curve. The number of newly converted adopters plotted as a frequency histogram against time follows a bell-shaped Gaussian curve where the number of new adopters rises until halfway the S-curve after which their numbers decrease, To make the model actionable, Rogers introduced innovativeness the degree to which an individual is relatively earlier in adopting new ideas than other members in a social system. Rogers Distinguished Adopters 1. INNOVATORS Innovator first 2.5% of adopters are brave and educated. They have several sources of information and show greater tendency to take risks. They will be thankful for technology for its own sake and are motivated by the idea of being a change agent in their reference group, they are willing to accept initial problems that may accompany new products or services and are willing to make shift solutions to such problems. 2. EARLY ADOPTERS The next 13.5% of adopters are Early Adopters. They are the social leaders, popular and educated. They are the visionaries in their market and are looking to accept and use new technology to achieve an innovative breakthrough that will achieve competitive advantage in their industries. They are attracted by high-risk, high-reward projects and are not that expensive because they imagine great gains in competitive advantage from adopting a new technology. They usually demand personalized solutions and quick-response, highly qualified sales and support. 3. EARLY MAJORITY After Early adopter the next is 34% of adopters are formed by the Early Majority. They are deliberate and have many informal social contacts. Slightly looking for revolutionary changes to gain productivity enhancements in their firms and they are motivated by evolutionary changes. They have three principles in adopting of new technology they are: When it is time to move, lets move all together: This means when adoption increases so rapidly in the diffusion process and causes a landslide in demand. When we pick a vendor it will lead us to the new model, let us all pick the same one: This means which firm will become the market leader. Once the transition starts, the earlier we get it over with, the better: This shows why the transition stage occurs rapidly. 4. LATE MAJORITY Then 34% of adopters are the Late Majority. They are doubtful, traditional and low socio-economic status. They are aware of price and require completely preassembled, bulletproof solutions. They are encouraged to buy technology just to stay even with the competition and often rely on a single, trusted adviser to help them make sense of technology. 5. LAGGARDS Finally the 16% of the adopters consist of Laggards. Laggards are technology doubters who want only to maintain the status. They tend not to consider that technology can enhance productivity and are likely to block new technology purchases. Rogers model has found wide appeal and application such as marketing and management science. The most important aspect about this model is the Bass Diffusion Model where new innovations are created by the interaction of current and potential users is described mathematically. Rogers diffusion Curve with the Dialog Product (HSPA) Talking about Rogers Diffusion curve with the dialog product, at the early stage before the product release, Dialog selected the Colombo Metropolitan area as their main target for the product launch, with the help of their Informations systems they were able to identify Five hundred thousand Dialog 3g users in this area. This identified target consists of two major segments The General Mass and the University Students. Referring to figure 1.0 shows the state of this process. This selected set of two is guaranteed to take the risk of using the new technology, which defines the Innovators curve in the diagram. Theses adopters are a portion of 2.5%. They are ready to face all the limitations that may accompany new products or services and to make shift solutions to such limitations. The next move along the curve will be towards the Early Adopters stage, which defines the product moving is moving towards the society. The society at this stage will be willing to adopt the new technology; this is the current position in which Dialog Broadband is standing now. It is in a much more competitive position than their competitors. This stage the company is offering their customers attractive rewards and very sensitive prices to gain competitive advantage. They look at the solutions to overcome the problems so that they wont face any difficulties in the future. They will even have better marketing strategy such as improved customer services, pricing and high turnover. As for time to come Dialog Broadband will encounter the stage Early Majority , when they move their sales to the outskirts of Colombo, people will have a evolutionary change with the enhancements in productivity and Technology. Figure 2.0 shows the state when the product is spread through society, the early adopters selects the technology first, followed by the majority, until a technology or innovation is common amongst the people. Dialog Broadband will have to keep improving the product to remain in the S-Curve. If not they will shift to the Late Majority stage, where the people with less social status who are price concerned, they buy the product only when its cheap. And finally going into the LAGGARDS stage, which be when people will be using the HSPA just to maintain their status quo. Strategy Ansoffs Matrix The Ansoff Product-Market Growth Matrix is a marketing tool which helps the business to make a decision and to work on their product and market stratigy. This will help the marketers to improve and will help the organizations to know what sort of actions should be taken to their business in the present or future markets. There are four types of strategies in this matrix. They are: * Market penetration (existing markets, existing products): This takes place when a company enters a market with current products. To achieve this there are so many ways such as by gaining competitors customers, attracting the customers who are not using your product or service, informing the current customers to use more of your product or service and you can advertise or do promotions about your product or services. When a company is growing understanding the market is the low risk which is involved in that. There are four objectives market presentation should be looked in to. They are, Secure area and expansion market Increase usage by existing customers Maintain and increase the share of the current market Restructure of growing up competitors and send them out. * Product development (existing markets, new products): This means when a organization introduces its new product into present market. For example, KFC is always within the fast-food industry, but very often it markets new products such as Twister, Double down chicken sandwich. When a firm introduces new products into the market, it can gain new customers for these products. Therefore new product development can be a key business development strategy for a company to stay competitive in the market. * Market development (new markets, existing products): A recognized product in the market can be changed or targeted to a different type of customers, as a strategy to earn more income for the organization. A very good example is, in the beginning Lucozade marketed for sick children and then rebranded to target the people who are involved in sports as energy drink. * Diversification (new markets, new products): Diversification is an organization which introduces new product in a new market. For example, Virgin Group which is in UK introduced Virgin Cola, Virgin Megastores, Virgin Airlines, and Virgin Telecommunications, to leverage the Virgin brand. This company entered new market which was not in the market previously. This strategy is a risk for the company because it is entering the market which doesnt have any experience. The matrix show, when the risk increases more the strategy goes up from the known quantity in the present product or service and market. Therefore higher risk will be involved in product development and new market other than present and future product and market. In his original work, Ansoff didnt use the matrix form, Igor Ansoff said that the diversification (future product and future market) strategy was apart from the other three. While the latter are usually followed with the same technical, financial, and merchandising resources which are used for the original product line, diversification usually requires new skills, new techniques, and new facilities. As a result it almost invariably leads to physical and organizational changes in the structure of the business which represent a distinct break with past business experience. For this reason, most marketing activity revolves around penetration; and the Ansoff Matrix, despite its fame, is usually of limited value although it does always offer a useful reminder of the options which are open. Ansoffs Matrix with the Dialog product When talking about the product Dialog broadband released 2 months ago, the HSPA device, it is the second product to enter into the market of wireless internet connection. First to launch was their main competitor Mobitel with a similar type of product. Dialog broadband waited eight months after their competitor launched the product to release their product. For a company like dialog that has a very high market for its current products, focused on their new product the HSPA, to cater to the current market, they came up with the HSPA as new product into the market which was created by their competitor by improving the product itself in terms of technology with much more connectivity and broadband facilities to their customers. Whenever new products are released it tends to it can gain new customers for these products. This stage they entered into the market was the stage of Market development in the Ansoffs Matrix, they are competing with their rivals giving more facilities to their target sector of customer. Setting more reasonable price according to the catered segment. In order to compete with their competitors Dialog broadband must provide better pricing schemes, promotion offers, and target a specific group of customers. If a company needs to stay competitive in the competitive market it should use product development as their business development strategy. How Competition is done Companys Environment is supported to market the Mobile HSPA Dialog Telekom has grown to become Sri Lankas flagship telecommunications company. Operating in an oligopolistic market (mobile telecommunications in Sri Lanka), the company operates Dialog GSM, the countrys largest mobile phone network. Dialog was the first to introduce the concept of GSM in to Sri Lanka and has thereafter reinforced itself with technologies such as GPRS and 3G. Dialog has also managed to invest sufficiently into its network in order to grid a majority of the populated areas in Sri Lanka. Due to this significant investment in its base stations, Dialog Telekom provides the widest cellular coverage in the country. The company boasts 6 switching centers and 625 base stations covering 85% of all habited areas in the island. The Companys subscribed base account for (approximately) 60% of the countrys mobile sector and 40% of total telecommunication subscribers. When you consider the environment, the Dialog has competition like any other company. Main competitor is Mobitel. Mobitel is providing the HSPA Broadband Connection but the price and the customer base of mobitel they cannot compete with dialog Dialog takes a new step into the market, every time with a strategy that is very tactful. For the past 12 years Dialog has been leading the Sri Lankan Mobile Telecommunication market. Their main strategies are focused on, Captured Customer share Market Competition Increasing Market Share Locking Competition 1. Captured Customer Share Dialog GSM for the past decade has been valuing the customers as the King. Dialog also well known for showing Customer Satisfaction has been banking on it. Dialog Sathkaraya a new banner under which Dialog markets on Customers Relationship. This is in keeping with their Vision that To lead in the provision of technology enabled connectivity touching multiple human sensors and faculties, through committed adherence to customer driven, responsive and flexible business processes, and through the delivery of quality service and leading edge technology unparalleled by any other, spurred by an empowered set of dedicated individuals who are driven by an irrepressible desire to work as one towards a common goal in the truest sense of team spirit. (Dialog Telekom) 2. Market Competition Having 7million mobile users in the country, Dialog Telecom is maintaining a customer base of 4million users, and 500,000 3g uses in the country, with 50,000 in the Colombo Metropolitan. Their competitor contains 2million users and a small amount of 3g users, at this rate Dialog is having a heavy customer base which gives them an advantage when selling the product to them. 3. Increasing Market Share It is expected that the Dialog will be in a position to sustain their market share which is about 60% of the countries mobile sector market. The Dialog has already brought in a substantial reduction in their rates and services with a view to attract more customers as their competitor launched it 8months before them. This strategy would definitely show tangible results towards expanding their market share. 4. Locking Competition The Dialog has been the leader in providing mobile telecommunication services in Sri Lanka, having a market share of 60%. So, the balance 40% is being shared by three operators namely, Mobitel, Tigo and Hutch. These three operators are not in a position to compete with Dialog for the simple reason that the Dialog has advanced very much technologically with a higher turnover and producing the services at a very low cost. So, competing with Dialog is not an easy task for these three competitors. But when Airtel comes into the market with attractive packages it is expected that Airtel might penetrate into the market and capture the market occupied by the three operators to a greater extend. But the Dialog will remain still competitive and will be able to sustain their position. Apita computer naha Concept Few days after launching the product the company realized that they needed to cater its products furthermore; its then when they came up with this idea of Apita computer naha, which caters the market of people who dont have computers. This concept contains a coupled offer of DELL laptop with the HPS device, this make a lot of sense when catering to that set of people. This was given out at the most reasonable price of Rs 83,000/-, on a monthly installment basis of Rs 6977/- with Windows Vista or Rs 6477/- with Ubuntu. Dialog broadband main target in this marketing campaign was the university students and the users in the outer range of Colombo. Price wars Dialog Telekom is the leading telecommunication service provider amoung other telecommunication service providers in Sri Lanka. Their main goal is to provide the service to the cheapest rate not the very cheapest but up to some extend with a quality of service. When considering the 3G wireless internet the main compititor for dialog telicom is mobitel. They are providing the same service as Dialog. But when considering the prices of both service providers dialog gives away the service for the lowest rate. Eg: Dilaog provide E220 HSPA modem only for Rs 5490/-. But mobitel provides the same devise for Rs 19500/-. So thers big price gap between both dialog and mobitel. For my concern customers will attarct towards dialog because of their cheapest rates and the best quality of the service. However dialog has become the market leader in the telecommunication industry because customers are really happy with their service. They treat their customers really well. They believe that the company will get profits only if they able satisfy their loyal exsisting customers as well as thire new customers. Below u can see the price rangers of both dialog and mobitel packages and devises. Dialog offers Unlimited Mobile Internet for a monthly rental of just Rs. 2,990/-. Sign up for 6 months and be eligible to purchase an E220 HSPA modem for Rs 5490/-.But this is for General usage. They have introduced a promotion for university students. That is for the monthly rental of Rs. 1500/- sign up for 6 months and be eligible to purchase an E220 HSPA modem for Rs 5400/-. For my concern its a very valuable deal. Monthly fee entitles customer to internet usage of unlimited duration and unlimited data volume (download/upload) however subject to a Fair Usage Policy (FUP) whereby download/upload speeds would be reduced relative to their maximum levels following monthly usage exceeding 5GB. The FUP is designed to ensure that the customers receive the best service because minimum customers usage is high. Mobitel has introduced wide range of packages as well a devises for wireless internet facility for users. Mobitel has introduced wide range of packages for wireless internet facility for users. SWOT Analysis SWOT is a strategic method which the organizations use to know what are the Strength, Weakness, Opportunity and Threats involved in the business. Strength and Weakness are organizations internal issues. Opportunity and Threats are organization external issues. SWOT Analysis of Dialog Strength First GSM service provider in Sri Lanka Wide product range Skilled and dedicated Management team Island wide network coverage Strong customer base and public relations Cooperate business knowledge is high Reasonable price rage Weakness Front office employee turnover is high Comparing with competitors price should be improved Confusion and less motivation amongst the employees Less towers to get proper coverage Opportunity Reduce the price of the fixed lines Using advanced technology Introducing more value added services (VAS) Introducing new packages and other services. Having more towers to get better signal or coverage Threats Competition amongst other GSM service providers in Sri Lanka. Terrorism in Sri Lanka Changes in social, political, economic inside the country Changes in technology Changes in customers needs Research Methodologies A research was done with the Head of Corporate of Dialog Broadband Mr. Ravi Sivasithamparam, to get an overall idea on the product, the Strategies used by the company to market the product and the key to gain competitive advantage. v Research methods Questioners Interviews Online research Identified strategies after the interview v Strategies Rogers Diffusion Curve Ansoffs model Research Methods Questioners I contacted Mr. Ravi Sivasithamparam the Head of Corporate Service of Dialog Broadband on an informal conversation via telephone to grasp an idea on the related topic. He was very humble in explaining the Strategy used by the company, and how the product is marketed, the market segmentation, the marketing strategy, and services provided by them to the existing customers. Questioners Ø What is Dialog 3G High Speed Internet? Dialog 3G High Speed Internet is a high speed data connectivity service which will enable you to download and upload large files at very high speeds no matter where you are provided that you are within the 3G coverage. 3G High Speed Internet is powered by HSPA-one of the latest evolutions in wireless data transfer technology Ø What is HSPA? HSPA (High Speed Packet Access) combines the features of HSDPA (High-Speed Downlink Packet Access) and HSUPA (High Speed Uplink Packet Access) enabling you to access data at speeds up to 7.2 Mbps Downlink and up to 1.98 Mbps Uplink, on devices supporting HSPA. Ø When talking about the competitive advantage what is the main advantage over your competitor? When talking about competition our main plus point is the price that we have set to our customers, we have located them into two sections, the General mass and the University students. We provide them with a different range of packages according to their budget, which our competitor has not come up with until now. Ø How has IS helped your organization with launching the product? This has also played a key part when we were to launch the product, with the help of IS we were able to track the 500,000 3g users in the country. And 50,000 regular 3g users from the Colombo Metropolitan. This was the key reason we first target our product launch to the Colombo Metropolitan. IS has also helped us in setting the price for our users, according to their sector Ø What are the startegies used in Dialog? Mainly the Rogers difussion Curve and the ansoff model.This is a new product to a current market. Ø What is Rogers Diffusion Curve? Everett Rogers defines diffusion as the process by which an innovation is communicated through certain channels over time among the members of a social system. Rogers definition contains four elements that are present in the diffusion of innovation process. The four main elements are: Innovation An idea, practices, or objects that is perceived as knew by an individual or other unit of adoption. Communication channels The means by which messages get from one individual to another. Time The three time factors are: (A) Innovation-decision process (B) Relative time with which an innovation is adopted by an individual or group. (C) Innovations rate of adoption. Social system A set of interrelated units that are engaged in joint problem solving to accomplish a common goal. Ø Mobitel also providing the same service, What