Environmental and strategic analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Environmental and strategic analysis - Essay Example This is due to its low cost strategy. Like any other company, when the management makes decisions it has to be guided by different factors that directly or indirectly affect the company. All organisations are affected by external and internal factors and like any other company, Ryanair is not left behind. It is advisable for the airline to use the PEST analysis to view its policy making strategies thus look at how the company is performing to ensure that it does not lose market. Such analyses will ensure that the management is able to keep, ignore and adapt strategies to make the company more competitive and unique (West, 2007). The paper will examine Ryanair airline by using Porter’s 5 forces and McKenzie 7s framework. To understand how Ryanair Airline has been able to survive to the resent times it is advisable to use Porter’s 5 forces analysis to critically examine its strategies. The strategy and its concepts came from Michael Porter. The 5 forces were derived from Industrial Organisation economics which generally helps a company to know its intensity in competition moreover show what attracted the company to join the market. It should be noted that the amount of profit is what attracts the company to the market whereas unattractiveness is simply the implementations of poor strategies that lead to a loss. According to the forces, when a company approaches pure competition it means that it is becoming unattractive. According to Porter such implementations are referred to as micro environment which are within the company and they do affect how a company is able to reach its customers. Customer service provision is what brings about profit in the company (McGahan, 2004, pp. 203-205). The st ages of the framework are discussed below step by step. According to the strategy, a company can decide to offer products or services that will act as substitutes to change the demand of its customers. The

Early Childhood Education Past and Present Essay Example for Free

Early Childhood Education Past and Present Essay In order to decide how past philosophies, theories and educational models have influenced present ideas and practices related to early childhood education, we must first decide where we would like to begin. I will start with the ideas of Aristotle, because I believe his ideas on â€Å"mimesis† or imitations are evident in the evolution of early education, and will always be an integral part of effective learning. Once we understand that children learn and practice what they see in others, we begin to realize the need for dedication and devotion from parents and teachers. Aristotle was a student of Plato who argued for the early removal of children from their parents so that they could be cared for in a school like setting. (Schwartz 1997) As we look back at history itself, we can see that the role of childhood education has been dependent upon the immediate needs and beliefs of a particular society. There have also been many individuals in the past 200 years who are responsible for creating theories and philosophies based on their observations of children and what is vital to them as they develop into adults. However, it is important that we recognize how new ideas are not formed independently, but built upon old ones. As educators, we must utilize what we notice to be effective, as well as the things that impacted us most as children in an educational setting. The strategies and philosophies that I’ve implemented in particular are borrowed from several individuals including Erikson, Vygotsky and Gardiner. Erikson’s psychosocial theory covers eight stages, each one built upon, and reliant on its predecessor. The first four are of greatest relevance, but the remaining four are worthy of a close look because it is important to know where you’re going when deciding upon the best way to get there. These stages also remind me of the importance of satisfying basic need, and of considering children as little people who need to believe in success before they can achieve it. It’s one of the reasons why I would occasionally go to recess with my students. I was able to observe how they treated and responded to others in a seemingly more relaxed, social setting. For some children, recess is by far the most stressful twenty minutes of the day. The incredibly minimal amount of time given to my students was another reason I felt it was necessary to attend. I could get a kick ball game set up so they could make the best of what little time they had. However, I must be honest, I still love to play, and demonstrating good sportsmanship and a competitive spirit to my kids was as important as the preparation for any test we had to look forward to. Lastly, I had a sixth grade teacher who used to do the same thing and I remember it vividly and extremely fondly. I find Gardiners’ theory of multiple intelligence extremely helpful while building confidence in kids whose gifts were not overly apparent on the field at recess. I have and will always encourage students to recognize and display these gifts while still maintaining a certain degree of humility. (Hyson 2004) I’ve always kept examples of completed activities inside and outside my classroom and anywhere else I could find space in order to, among other things, initiate discussions about pride as well as humility. Our classroom clearly demonstrated the fact that comfort and familiarity were held in high regard. An equal emphasis was placed on respect, and this is the word that was constantly spelled out on the board. As my class or one of my students showed an obvious lack of respect, one of the letters would be erased. They would be put back as we were respectful of one another, and if the word was entirely spelled out on Friday afternoon, we would have a â€Å"social gathering† for the last half hour of the day. If we were to walk into most, if not all early childhood educational settings, we would find many things that were initiated or influenced by past theorists or philosophers. We would notice blocks or other creative building materials. There would be areas to encourage cooperative learning, and most would reflect what is thought to be developmentally appropriate for the range of members in the class. When determining what types of play are developmentally appropriate, we need to consider all individuals, and the fact that differences will exist. Members of a class who are either gifted or struggling should not have to suffer because of what is thought to be developmentally appropriate. These differences should be expected, utilized and appreciated. Computers, for example, will run programs with varying degrees of difficulty depending upon what is developmentally appropriate for an individual. As concerns continue to grow over bridging the gap between early education students, government intervention has and will continue to grow. An increase in assessments is inevitable, and even smaller amounts of time will be devoted to active learning, exploration and play. The changes that in fact need to be made are those that reflect the ideas of the great minds of theorists who dedicated their lives in order to determine the most effective methods of early childhood education.

Performance Enhancing Drugs

Performance Enhancing Drugs Should Performance Enhancing Drugs Be Illegal? There are many different types of ‘performance enhancing drugs. Athletes commonly use performance enhancing drugs to boost endurance, strength, adrenaline, energy, stamina and concentration. This essay will elaborate on reasons as to why performance enhancing drugs should be illegal in all codes of sport, specifically. These three main reasons include the effects performance enhancing drugs can have on an athletes person, integrity of athletes and sporting events or meets. As well as disadvantages other competitors, who choose not to use performance enhancing drugs, experience and are not creating an even playing field. Sporting competitions and events are at their most competitive and entertaining when all athletes are using their naturally abilities and not relying on performance enhancing drugs to power their efforts. Sporting competitions are supposed to be a showcase of a persons natural ability, their mental strength and how far they can push their bodies whilst performing against some of the best athletes in the world. Sporting competitions should not allow the use of performance enhancing drugs because they change the natural ability and make-up of the athlete and their performance, possibly awarding the athlete with untrue medals and prizes for their supposed achievements. Athletes not using performance enhancing drugs, whether this is due to the athlete not wanting to risk their health by taking performance enhancing drugs, not being able to fund the taking of drugs or just because they think it is wrong, can be disadvantaged compared to athletes who do take the drugs. These specific athletes have the tendency to have higher achieving, performance enhancing drug using, athletes chosen over them for positions in teams and events. This then causes non-drug taking athletes to spend less time practicing their chosen sport, to lose money if competing in professional competitions, to lose mental and physical strength as well as compromise personal success. Also a majority of division one competitions involve teenagers as well as adults. Taking performance enhancing drugs for a teenager would have a worse side affect on their body than it would on an adult. Sportsmen who use performance enhancing drugs may suffer physical effects including liver and kidney damage, baldness, skin discolouration, testicular shrinkage, a higher voice, infertility and breast growth. Women however, may experience liver and kidney damage, deepening of the voice, breast reduction, menstrual cycle irregularities and facial hair growth. As well as these physical effects, men and women both can be subject to emotional distress, severe mood swings, hallucinations and violence on and off the field. Performance enhancing drugs, if taken by an adolescent, can cause long term health problems and stunt the persons further development. A recent study of high school students in America shows that statistics on students who used steroids rose from 1.2% of 40 kids to 1.7% of 40 kids in one year. Therefore, performance enhancing drugs can cause complications on an athletes health, mentally and physically, are untrue to what sporting events are about and their ethics and disadvantage many athletes as well as imbalance the playing field. All of these reasons strongly indicate that performance enhancing drugs should be illegal in all codes of competitive sport. Bibliography: unknown, January 25th 2001, Drugs: An Athletic Wrecking Ball, [online accessed 31/05/2008] URL:http://www.thepost.ohiou.edu/archives/archives3/jan01/012501/editorial.html unknown, May 5th 2008, Academics Defend use of Performance Enhancing Drugs, [online accessed 31/05/2008] URL:http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/academics-defend-use-of-performanceenhancing-drugs/2008/05/04/1209839456349.html Jeff Wilson, January 28th 2005, Performance Enhancing Drugs Have Potentially Damaging Effects, [online accessed 31/05/2008] URL:http://observer.case.edu/Archives/Volume_37/Issue_15/Story_44/ Kathy Henry, unknown, Performance Enhancing Drugs-Athletes Should be Allowed to use Them, [online accessed 31/05/2008] URL:http://ezinearticles.com/?Performance-Enhancing-DrugsAthletes-Should-Be-Allowed-to-Use-Themid=719944 unknown, unknown, Performance Enhancing Drugs, [online accessed 31/05/2008] URL:http://www.termpapers-termpapers.com/dbs/f4/sjf202.shtml Mayo Clinic staff, December 26th 2006, Taking Performance Enhancing Drugs: Are You Risking Your Health?, [online accessed 31/05/2008] URL:http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/performance-enhancing-drugs/HQ01105 John W Orchard, Peter A Fricker, Susan L White, Louise M Burke and Deborah J Healey, May 9th 2005, The Use and Misuse of Performance Enhancing Substances in Sport, [online accessed 31/05/2008] URL:http://www.mja.com.au/public/issues/184_03_060206/orc10359_fm.html

Organizational Change Essay -- Business, Interventions

Organizational change is an important part of organizational management and leaders cannot ignore the inevitability of having to manage change within their organizations. In addition, a global study that was conducted with over 2,000 organizations showed that 82 percent had implemented major information system change, which entailed other changes in structure, technology, and people as well (as cited in Robbins & Coulter, 2007). Therefore, it is imperative that managers and organizations understand how to increase their chances of having successful change programs. Diagnosis The first step in designing a change program is to understand what the problem or issue is that needs to be changed. This is referred to as diagnosis and is very important in making sure that the situation is fully understood so that an appropriate plan can be developed that will achieve the desired outcomes. In addition, diagnosis helps the organization determine what the scope of the issue is and how to make a change that will result in the desired outcome. There are several ways to receive the needed data to conduct a diagnosis. The organization can conduct attitude surveys, they can use direct observations, interview key individuals within the organization, develop workshops and review documents and records (Gibson et al., 2009). Unfortunately, many organizations do not take their time with this step which can result in flawed conclusions on the true nature of the problem, not understanding what their desired outcome from the change is, or not identifying the right intervention for the change. Therefore, it is very important to collect the needed information from various sources to determine the nature and scope of the issue or p... ...nforcement (Gibson et al., 2009). Conclusion The concept of change is relatively easy to understand, but making a change within an organization is complicated and involves numerous variables. First mangers need to use a systematic approach to determine the issues. They have to develop a course of action that resolves the issue, makes sure that everyone understands the issue, and the need for change. Mangers have to then move everyone to the new behavior using learning principles of training, demonstration, motivation, and empowerment. Finally, there must be feedback on how the change worked, make any needed adjustments, and reinforce the new behavior so old habits are eliminated. Change is an important part of all organizations and mangers that are able to develop and implement effective change programs will be valuable members of their organization.

Intercultural aspect of culture Essay

During the first day of the workshop, I did not completely understand the real meaning of culture. I did not even have a single definition for the term culture. Many questions came into my mind such as, â€Å"What is culture? What are the factors that create culture? What is the scope of culture? Does culture improve itself or not? Although, I started the inquiry on the concept of culture without certain answers for these questions, I had figured them out step by step during that day. I started to find answers for most of the questions that I faced. I finally understood what culture was and why different people with different cultures had different behaviors. By understanding the factors that influenced culture, I started to learn its importance to the parties who got involved in particular conflicts. Throughout that day, I comprehended why people with different cultures got involved in particular conflicts and what were their objectives. I started to give answers for these queries. They might need someone whom they can air their grievances or opinions with. Moreover, they might only wish that others would respect their culture as it was. In the role play, I learned that listening skill was very helpful in making the parties who were involved in the conflict feel better. Also, they should be given the chance to continue telling their stories without any interruption. I had also learned that I could be able to interact with them simply through body language such as moving my head up and down which tells, â€Å"I understand you. Keep going. † Furthermore, these skills would give me the chance to get as much information as possible and understand the parties’ cultures. Personally, I think that having much understanding of other cultures using the skills mentioned earlier would help me adapt with their behaviors and become more flexible when dealing with them. Culture’s factors such as religion, climate and geography play very significant roles in parties’ behavior. These explain why different countries have different cultures. Finally, all ideas and skills that I had learned during the first day of the workshop let me pay a close attention on understanding other cultures, respecting their beliefs and values as I want other people do the same thing when they cross my culture. I would try to use these ideas and skills in my daily life – simply by listening to other people and respecting them. Before evolving an intercultural model of conflict resolution it is important to understand and identify aspects of culture that lead to creation of the framework of conflict. The cultural spectrum holds different shades for a person, a society and a nation, accordingly helping each of them to assimilate and adapt to a common identity that is defined and shaped by culture (Holliday, Hyde and Kullman, 2004). In the process of evolving this collective identity, culture transcends its traditional role of providing an aggregate set of beliefs, customs, norms, values, ethics, traditions, moral, social and legal codes, perceptions, and philosophy, to become the overall physical framework for the society to function. Culture attains a real form, rendering a three dimensional living space for people to experience its living force ((Holliday, Hyde and Kullman, 2004)). Culture is strongly related with geographical setting of a place, religion, ethnicity, and race, explaining why different countries have different cultures, and also why places on seashore share common elements of culture that is quite different from culture of mountainous places. The imprinting of culture on ways a person thinks, acts, perceives the environment and models his/her reaction is very strong and virtually indelible, determining every aspect of human behavior and giving rise to cultural identity in addition to individual and national identity. Although the classic rational choice framework says that people are independent in choice of their behavior and approach towards events, its seen that at subtle levels the structural model provided by culture acts as final determinant in predicting a person, a society and a nation. Although culture is dynamic, evolving and continuously upgrading itself, in essence, these changes occur within the context of culture’s own timeframe. One of the most important contribution of culture to human civilization is the orientation provided towards other cultures, making the culture in question receptive, tolerant, indifferent or outright hostile towards different cultures. Societies are seldom mono-cultural, displaying a range of cultural traits, achieved through generations of trades, contact, and cross cultural mixing (Holliday, Hyde and Kullman, 2004). However, although for people belonging to a particular culture, their culture would hardly seem complex, the cultural realities are hidden beneath the surface, difficult to observe and discern from outside. These improper understanding and imperfect perceptions of culture often give rise to conflict when different cultures are required to meet or come across.

Biography of Henry Avery, the Most Successful Pirate

Biography of Henry Avery, the Most Successful Pirate Henry â€Å"Long Ben† Avery (c 1659–1696 or 1699) was an English pirate, plying the Atlantic and Indian Oceans and making one big score: the treasure ship of the Grand Mughal of India. After this success, he retired. Little is known for certain of his ultimate fate. Contemporaries believed that Avery took his loot to Madagascar where he set himself up as a king with his own fleet and thousands of men. There also is evidence, however, that he returned to England and died broke. Fast Facts: Henry Avery Known For: Most successful pirateAlso Known As: Long Ben, John AveryBorn: Between 1653 and 1659 in Plymouth, EnglandDied: Perhaps in 1696 or 1699 in Devonshire County, England Early Life Henry Avery was born in or near Plymouth, England, sometime between 1653 and 1659. Some contemporary accounts spell his last name Every, while some references give his first name as John. He soon took to sea,  serving on several merchant vessels as well as ships of war, when England went to war with France in 1688, and a few slave ships. In early 1694, Avery took a position as the first mate aboard the privateer vessel Charles II, then in the employ of the king of Spain. The mostly English crew was extremely unhappy with their poor treatment and they convinced Avery to lead a mutiny, which he did on May 7, 1694. The men renamed the ship the Fancy and turned to piracy, attacking English and Dutch merchantmen off the coast of Africa. About this time, he released a statement declaring that English vessels had nothing to fear from him, as he would attack only foreigners, which clearly wasnt true. Madagascar The Fancy headed to Madagascar, then a lawless land known as a safe haven for pirates and a good place to launch attacks in the Indian Ocean. He restocked the Fancy and had it modified to be swifter under sail. This improved speed began paying dividends immediately, as he was able to overtake a French pirate vessel. After looting it, he welcomed 40 new pirates to his crew. Then he headed north, where other pirates were amassing, hoping to loot the Grand Mughal of Indias treasure fleet as it returned from an annual pilgrimage to Mecca. Indian Treasure Fleet In July 1695, the pirates got lucky: the great treasure fleet sailed into their arms. There were six pirate ships, including the Fancy and Thomas Tews Amity. They first attacked the Fateh Muhammed, the escort ship to the flagship, the Ganj-i-Sawai. The Fateh Muhammed, outgunned by the large pirate fleet, didnt put up much of a fight. There were 50,000 to 60,000 British pounds in treasure aboard the Fateh Muhammed. It was quite a haul, but it didnt go far divided among the crews of six vessels. The pirates were hungry for more. Soon Averys ship caught up with the Ganj-i-Sawai, the powerful flagship of Aurangzeb, the Mughal lord. It was a mighty ship, with 62 cannons and 400 to 500 musketeers, but the prize was too rich to ignore. During the first broadside they damaged the Ganj-i-Sawais main mast and one of the Indian cannons exploded, causing mayhem and confusion on deck. The battle roared on for hours as the pirates boarded the Ganj-i-Sawai. The terrified captain of the Mughal ship ran below decks and hid among the concubines. After a fierce battle, the remaining Indians surrendered. Looting and Torture The survivors were subjected to several days of torture and rape by the victorious pirates. There were many women on board, including a member of the court of the Grand Mughal. Romantic tales of the day say that the beautiful daughter of the Mughal was on board and fell in love with Avery and then ran off to live with him on a remote island, but the reality was probably far more brutal. The haul from the Ganj-i-Sawai was hundreds of thousands of pounds in gold, silver, and jewels, worth tens of millions of dollars today and possibly the richest haul in the history of piracy. Deception and Flight Avery and his men didnt want to share this prize with the other pirates, so they tricked them. They loaded their holds with loot and arranged to meet and divide it, but they took off instead. None of the other pirate captains had a chance of catching up with the speedy Fancy, which headed for the lawless Caribbean. Once they reached New Providence Island, Avery bribed Gov. Nicholas Trott, essentially buying protection for him and his men. The taking of the Indian ships had put a great strain on relations between India and England, however, and once a reward was put out for Avery and his fellow pirates, Trott could no longer protect them. He tipped them off, however, so Avery and most of his 113-man crew got out safely. Only 12 were captured. Averys crew split up. Some went to Charleston, some to Ireland and England, and some remained in the Caribbean. Avery himself vanished from history at this point, although according to Capt. Charles Johnson, one of the best sources of the time (and often thought to be a pseudonym for novelist Daniel Defoe), he returned with much of his loot to England only to be later swindled out of it, dying poor in perhaps 1696 or 1699, maybe in Devonshire County, England. Legacy Avery was a legend during his lifetime and for a while thereafter. He embodied the dream of all pirates to make a huge score and then retire, preferably with an adoring princess and a large pile of loot. The idea that Avery had managed to get away with that booty helped create the so-called Golden Age of Piracy as thousands of poor, abused European seamen tried to follow his example out of their misery. The fact that he supposedly refused to attack English ships (although he did) became part of his legend, giving the story a Robin Hood twist. Books and plays were written about him and his exploits. Many people at the time believed that he had set up a kingdom somewhere- possibly Madagascar- with 40 warships, an army of 15,000 men, a mighty fortress, and coins bearing his face. Capt. Johnsons story is almost certainly closer to the truth. The part of Averys story that can be verified caused great headaches for English diplomats. The Indians were furious and held officers of the British East India Company under arrest for a while. It would take years for the diplomatic furor to die down. Averys haul from the two Mughal ships put him at the top of the earnings list for pirates, at least during his generation. He took in more loot in two years than pirates such as Blackbeard, Captain Kidd, Anne Bonny and Calico Jack Rackham- combined. Its impossible to know the exact design used by Long Ben Avery for his pirate flag. He only captured a dozen or so ships, and no first-hand accounts survive from his crew or victims. The flag most commonly attributed to him is a white skull in profile, wearing a kerchief on a red or black background. Below the skull are two crossed bones. Sources Cordingly, David. Random House Trade Paperbacks, 1996.Defoe, Daniel (writing as Capt. Charles Johnson). A General History of the Pyrates. Edited by Manuel Schonhorn. Dover Publications, 1972/1999.Konstam, Angus. The World Atlas of Pirates. Lyons Press, 2009.Henry Every’s Bloody Pirate Raid, 320 Years Ago. History.com.John Avery: British Pirate. Encyclopedia Britannica.