Media Relations Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 9

Media Relations - Assignment Example Then he further attained a Masters in Communication with a concentration in Public Relations. The student has received a scholarship as a protocol supervisor, who works with the delegation in Shura Council, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (WAPTAC, 2013). During his study period, he was actively involved in essential conceptualization of English skills such as reading, writing, grammar, as well as, listening amongst others. Besides, he participated in other elementary university studies that embrace psychology, cultural anthropology, both Canadian and American studies. In addition, he enriched his studies by handling academic research papers presented in different formal settings, but most of all improved his speech work by participating in English classroom debates (WAPTAC, 2013). Up on his appointment at the diplomat of Shura council, Riyadh Saudi Arabia, he is entitled to make arrangements on both local and international levels for visiting delegations. Moreover, he is in charge of press conferences while making drafts and summary of reports concerning the latest events of the organization across the world. His priority is to ensure the right accommodation and transport for the visiting delegations while coordinating all scheduled appointments and he is highly adaptive to various cultural settings. Consequently, he is partly engaged as an editor of Al- Eqtesadiah Newspaper, where he collects, examines and interprets news while maintaining sharp criticism with colleagues and professional experts in the same

How are the banks affecting the US economy thanks to the TARP and Essay

How are the banks affecting the US economy thanks to the TARP and other bailouts from the US government - Essay Example This research report looks into the bank effects on the United States Economy, after the bailout plan, and how the banks have coped with the plan in their economic functions which according to Fusan, R., (2008, pg 1095), include netting and settlement of payments, through collection and paying agents for customers, clearing and settlements of payments which enables them to economize on reserves held for such settlements of payments, since inward and outward payments offset each other. They also play a vital economic role in credit intermediation, through borrowing and lending back-to-back on their own account as middlemen. Therefore, with the economy maimed to the point where the bank roles were threatened, the Government through its responsibility as the economic overseer intervened to allow them to borrow more on demand debt as well as short-term debt and to provide more long term loans. The borrowed money would mainly maintain cash reserves, invest in marketable securities that can be readily converted into cash if needed and raising replacement funding as required from various sources such as whole sale cash markets and securities market (Fusan, R., 2008, pg 1102) According to Alfred and Yalata, (2009, pg 300), the banks that agreed to receive preferred stock investments from the US Treasury included Goldman Sachs Group Inc, J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., Morgan Stanley, Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc., Bank of New York Mello

Social Networking Crisis Communication Assignment - 1

Social Networking Crisis Communication - Assignment Example In order to determine the most efficient medium of communication researchers conducted several case studies across the world. The first instance was carried out on a gun shooting incident in Virginia Tech. During this case study, the researchers conducted online monitoring of the newsfeeds from the affected institution. The online monitoring began one hour after the shooting. The participants of this research study lacked knowledge that their activities and posts were under study. In addition, the researchers went back and conducted interviews five days after the shooting incident. In Colorado’s case, the researchers created an informative and detailed timeline of the communication. The timeline was divided into two sections that are the official communication and unofficial communication. Under the formal communication part, the researchers had columns for university website and emails. On the other hand, under the informal communication sector, the researchers had two column s for Facebook and Flickr photos. In another case, study Southern California. The researchers monitored the posts and relevant messages from the fire crisis that rocked two counties that are Santa Barbara and San Diego. The researchers followed the local news websites and the online social media such as Facebook, Craigslist, and Flickr Photos. In addition, researchers conducted surveys and interviews in the affected areas ten days after the incidence. Furthermore, in the case of the earthquake in China, researchers monitored the social media news a minute after the incident. They keenly followed the posts on China most famous social site that is Tianya forum- a site with over 20 million users in China.

General insurance Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

General insurance - Assignment Example Following are the three ways to deal with insurable risks 1. Personal factors of the driver such as age, gender, marital status is considered before deciding the premium. Young people who have had driver’s training are considered less risk and hence given a lower premium. Similarly people who have had no accidents while driving are also considered less risk. Thus the personal characteristics are considered while calculating the premium. 2. Type of car is also an important factor while calculating the premium because of the variation in the repair cost. A powerful car will have increased liability and higher accident benefits premiums. 3. Use of car is another important factor in determining the premium. If more than one person drives the car and car is driven for long kilometers can also affect the risk. Similarly car used for home purpose has different premium than a car used for business purpose. Answer: A  personal property floater is a policy that has taken into consideration  all of the  insureds  property  in any location, and irrespective of where the insured is at the time of  loss. This is an all  perils  coverage  that  doesn’t provide coverage for certain events, such as war

Idealism in Realistic Context Essay Example for Free

Idealism in Realistic Context Essay Human idealism is a predominant theme in contemporary literature. Movies such as â€Å"Superman,† â€Å"Star Wars,† â€Å"Armageddon,† â€Å"Charlie’s Angels,† etc. have impressed the world with their portrayal of ideal human qualities as characters deal with social and personal conflicts of everyday life. The same theme can be found in the stories of Kincaid, Crane and Chabon. The stories titled, â€Å"Girl,† â€Å"An Episode of War,† and â€Å"The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay,† present the protagonists’ struggle towards idealism in a realistically imperfect society. Idealism, as the American Heritage Dictionary defines, is â€Å"the act or practice of envisioning things in an ideal form† (Answers. com). This idea is in contrast with realism, which represents â€Å"art or literature of objects, actions, or social conditions as they actually are, without idealization or presentation in abstract form† (as mentioned in Answers. com). In the three stories mentioned, human characters are expected to attain ideal qualities to compensate the flaws of society. While they are depicted with idealism, the stories present at the same time the real status of society characterized by discrimination, death, and superficiality. Primarily, the society, with its history, culture, and norms, establishes limitations and requirements for human characteristics. These requirements are directly established in Kincaid’s, â€Å"Girl. † In this piece of work, the mother embodies the society in setting standards for women. She orders her daughter what to do, from washing clothes, cooking pumpkin fritters, soaking salt fish, ironing her father’s clothes, to making ends meet (17). Although these requirements are set by a mother (Moore 2008) adhering with these is similar to fulfilling requirements set by society. Since the story does not specify a character’s name, it can be inferred that the author addresses the female population in general, and thus exempts the opposite gender of the said responsibilities. Therefore, while ideal qualities are expected of a girl, the standards disparage the female gender. In Crane’s â€Å"An Episode of War,† the situation of the characters demands them to have courage in spite of personal fears of death. Seeing the lieutenant’s blood gushing out of his body, the soldiers are confronted with the reality of death. Despite their fears, they need to show courage in the midst of disaster because it is what society expects of them. Similarly, the lieutenant has to face his fate with a brave heart because there is no place for cowardice in the military service. At the end of the story as he denies his pain and says, I dont suppose it matters so much as all that (11), the lieutenant submits to the standards of courage set by his society. In Chabon’s â€Å"The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay,† the author presents a different style in embodying the society it portrays. It uses the characters’ concepts of the world expressed in their dialogue. In the story, Sammy and Joe are seen brainstorming about a hero they would like to create. Both have the same notions of a hero based on what society has taught them. Based on their conversation, a hero is one who has supernatural qualities like Superman, but must be purpose-driven like Batman to ensure that people would love him. The making of a hero thus projects the idealism in the minds of the two characters. As they construct their own hero, the two present the expectations that each of them has learned from the society. Evidently, the concept of human idealism which asserts compliance with the rules of society makes the characters lose their self-identity in the process. In the first piece, as the girl does all of what the society (or the mother) expects of a daughter, she loses the opportunity to design her life according to her own plans. In other words, the ideal characteristics that she is expected to have all lead to losing her right to live and design her own life. The tasks that she is bound to accomplish each day thus prevent her from doing things that she wants or needs, such as attending school. In sum, these tasks imply stereotyping and gender discrimination. Stereotyping is very obvious as the story relates all the responsibilities a girl should do in a household. By advising a girl how to cook, iron clothes, or serve dinner, the mother implies limiting the girl to household chores and discouraging her from pursuing education and profession. In the second story, the loss of identity is vividly illustrated. The situation itself calls for pretense and deceit. As the men in the battlefield witness the wounding of the lieutenant, they suddenly grow strange, and at once become unable to face the situation. Besides the sergeant who nervously assists the lieutenant, the rest of the men are astound and do not know what to do. Their silence as the lieutenant is carried back to the camp explains the sudden strangeness that they feel. Idealism prevents them from expressing fear or disgust even at a very crucial moment. In contrast, if the soldiers were only imbued by realism, they would have expressed sentiments, or some would have backed out from their mission. However, due to idealism, they choose to pretend and bear the sacrifices brought by war. In the third story, as Sammy and Joe strive to construct a superhero, they lose their own human identity in the process. The superficial qualities they want their superhero to possess deconstruct their human characteristics. Accordingly, this motive suggests their wish for supernatural strength and escape from the ordinary ways of the world. Therefore, while they aim for a newly constructed identity, Joe and Sam attempt to abandon not only their own human characteristics but everything associated with it, including their society. Such attempt can be due to the difficulties they encounter in life, although there is no mention of this in the excerpt. The three literary pieces from contemporary literature present different struggles of the characters in the society they live in. Highly imbued by idealism, the characters show the reality of every person to attempt to adhere to the expectations and standards of society. Like many of us, although they experience the loss of identity and other social struggles, they still continue to face the challenges of life, the ideal requirements that social reality demands.

Bio-fuels Essay Example for Free

Bio-fuels Essay Advantages: The actual aim of biofuels is to be carbon neutral. Potentially they can reduce greenhouse gas emissions when you compare them to conventional transport fuels, but this ability depends on the way you produce these biofuels. In reality biofuels aren’t carbon neutral because they actually require energy to grow the crops and to convert them into fuel. However, biofuels could still be more environmentally friendly then other fossil alternatives. They can save up to 60% of the carbon emissions compared to fossil fuels, and second generation biofuels can offer savings of about 80%. Another advantage of biofuels is that they save money of drivers. Governments have introduced many incentives to drivers of the well-known green cars who are based on emissions, who come with reduced taxation. And because the petrol prices are rising, if you then would replace the petroleum with a renewable energy source it should actually offer high savings at the pump in the long term, especially when the availability of biofuels will rise. Disadvantages: However, there have been some arguments that biofuel isn’t as positive as it had been portrayed and thought of. The following points are some of the several concerns about biofuels: * Biodiversity: This has been feared a lot lately, because when adapting more land to produce the crops needed for biofuels, the consequence would be that more habitats would be lost for animals and wild plants. * Food versus fuel debate: Another concern is that if biofuels become attractive for farmers they’ll decide that they may want to grow crops for biofuel production instead of for food production. If less food is produced that will lead to the increase of prices and also cause a rise in inflation. A way to counter this problem is by second generation biofuels which use waste biomass, but then again that will also impact the habitat of many organisms. Due to the food price increase, around 100 million people are at risk and then especially in the developing countries. * Carbon emissions: Most of the investigations do indicate that by burning biofuels it does actually reduce the greenhouse gas emissions when you would compare it to petroleum and diesel. But lately studies have been published that show that the burning of e.g. corn can contribute as much to nitrous oxide emissions than cooling through fossil fuel savings. * Non-sustainable biofuel production: Many first generation biofuels aren’t sustainable. And it is necessary to create biofuel production that doesn’t affect the production of food and also what doesn’t affect any other environmental problems. And because there has been lots of criticism of the production of non-sustainable biofuels many governments have switched their support to sustainable biofuels and other alternatives. Why controversial? Biofuels have been blamed for pushing up the food prices, that they couldn’t meet the environmental standards, they themselves have caused for the demand of water and nitrate fertilizers and they have encouraged the destruction of natural habitats e.g. the rainforest. And still it’s an controversy which governments have been struggling to solve. What has also been revealed is that the companies who actually use biofuels haven’t been able to fully report the sustainability of them. But even though we associate environmental damage with the production of biofuels we should not immediately think that all biofuels are bad. The production of biofuels is still developing, and as new fuel technologies are being made the situation could radically change and we may be able to adjust the impact on the environment to a small percentage. After having seen the positive and negative sides of biofuels you could wonder is biofuels are really worth it. On one hand they could actually reduce the carbon emissions and help save you some money. But they also negatively impact the habitat of many species and aren’t necessarily efficient enough at producing the energy that they are required to make. So there are two completely different sides to biofuels which explains why the topic biofuels has been so controversial lately in the 21th century and why we are all now discussing if we should go on producing biofuels or not.

Globalisation And Fierce Competition Causing Shorter Product Life Cycle Business Essay

Globalisation And Fierce Competition Causing Shorter Product Life Cycle Business Essay In an era of globalisation and fierce competition, the introduction of products with shorter and shorter life cycle and the heightened expectations of customers have forced companies to invest in and focus attention on their supply chain. Companies must be able to configure and utilize worldwide resources to keep up with the competition. It involves sourcing products from most appropriate manufacturing facility, keep balance between inventory, transportation and manufacturing cost and match supply and demand under uncertainty (Simchi-Levi, Kaminsky Simchi-Levi 2003). With the significant increases in different products, coupled with demands for higher throughput and reduced inventory, postponement will be one of the strategies used by the companies. The aim of this essay is to examine into the link between postponement and warehousing. The purpose of this essay is to discuss how a warehouse may play a role in postponement. This essay will begin by understanding the concept of postpo nement, the need and usage of postponement and types of postponements with different postponement activities and its lead time and cycle time restrictions. It will then look into the topics of inventory and warehousing such as the roles of the warehouses and the distribution methodologies. It will conclude by linking the use of warehouses in the practice of the postponement strategies. Concept of postponement Postponement is first implemented in manufacturing processes to reduce cost of inventory and improve service level within the company while the product variety increases. The concept of postponement is to delay the change in form, identity and place to the latest possible point until customer commitments have been obtained (Battezzati Coletta 2008). It is by exploiting the commonality between items and by designing the production and distribution process so as to delay the point of differentiation (Tayur, Ganeshan Magazine 1999). Postponement is closely intertwined with modularization where products in a certain product family are designed where all of them consist of different standardized units. With modularization, combination of different standardized sub-components allows the producing of different end products (Dekkers 2009). The form, function and place of the product are altered and is in contra with the push systems in which goods are manufactured entirely in anticipation of future customer orders and stored downstream without customers formulated specifications (Hoek 1997). Anderson (2004) wrote that postponement is a mass customization technique that is applicable for certain products that can have their variety postponed until just before shipping. Hoek (1997) illustrated a list of methods for achieving mass customization: Create products and services that are customizable by customers (involving design function) Modularize components to customize finished products and services (involving the manufacturing, distribution, marketing function and the product design). Provide quick response throughout the value chain (involving the design, manufacturing, distribution and marketing function). Customize services around standard products or services (involving the distribution and marketing function). Provide point of delivery customization (involving the marketing function). The need and usage for postponement Hoek (1997) stated that the application of postponement strategies is increasing in the practice of international business. Final processing or manufacturing activities are moving either upstream from national operations or downstream from global production plants. The biological products life cycle of product is the concern in respect to inventory risks and this is in contrast with electronics industries where short product life cycles in the market are a key driver of postponement. Postponement reduces the uncertainty and risks coupled with product variety. In additional, it saves costs and adds values to the supply chain by eliminating obsolete inventory and making the product to customers specification more easily (Baluch 2006). The accelerating need for simultaneous product differentiation, rapid delivery, regional product variation and competitive cost levels are also the factors that led to the usage of postponement strategy (Hoek 1997). Types of postponements Bowersox and Closs (cited in Hoek 1997) stated that there are three generic types of postponement: form, time and place postponement. Form postponement refers to the postponement of final manufacturing or processing activities; time postponement refers to the delaying of the forward movement of goods until customer orders have been received; place postponement refers to the positioning of inventories upstream in centralized manufacturing or distribution operations to postpone the forward or downstream movement of goods. With the combination of time and place postponement, it is referred to as logistics postponement. An example is whereby in centralized European distribution structures where goods are stored at a limited number of central locations and shipped to customers on the basis of actual orders. Depending on the type of final manufacturing operation, the type of product and market, Cooper (cited in Hoek 1997) specified four possible final manufacturing structures in postponement: unicentric manufacturing, bundled manufacturing, deferred assembly, deferred packaging. In unicentric manufacturing, the final stage of manufacturing is delayed until the point of consumption (Tayur, Ganeshan Magazine 1999). This type of postponement is used through integrated manufacturing in a global manufacturing plant, distribution to order, for global brands with standard formulation and peripherals for example CPUs. In bundled manufacturing, it is forecast-driven where final manufacturing in a continental plant, for products with a global brand, standard peripherals and different formulation, for example TVs. In deferred assembly, it is order-driven where final manufacturing or processing in the international distribution channel, for products with a global brand and different formulation and peripherals. Lastly on deferred packaging, it refers to packaging and configuring shipments in a local warehouse, for products with a global brand, standard formulation and different peripherals (Hoek 1997). Postponement activities Zinn and Bowersox (cited in Hoek 1997) presented in another fashion that focus on the activities. Five types of postponements are listed: labelling postponement, packaging postponement, assembly postponement, manufacturing postponement and time postponement. According to Hoek (1997), labelling and packaging postponement is related to the level of postponement in deferred packaging, both impacting the place and form of the finished product. For assembly and manufacturing postponement, it is in related to bundled manufacturing and deferred assembly where both impacting the form and place of the finished product and also its function. The distinction between assembly and manufacturing postponement is the use of various sourcing locations and the resulting converging stream of goods. Manufacturing postponement operation is obligated to have a complete job-shop layout in manufacturing postponement which contrasts to assembly postponement systems where products are sourced mainly from one source, only some peripherals or additives may be sourced locally. And lastly on time postponement, it is related to the level of postponement in unicentric manufacturing, in which the place of the finished goods in the supply chain is impacted. Examples of postponements strategies Robeson, Copacino and Howe (1994) have shared some examples of different postponement strategies used by various companies. Benetton have used manufacturing postponement or bundled manufacturing where the fabrics are dyed after the completion of the stitching processes, in which they are more able to react quickly and ship products of greater variety. Dell Computers is one of the examples where its standardised sub-components are kept standing by and the product is assembled upon order as part of the assembly postponement or deferred assembly structures. Hewlett Packard is another company that uses the packaging postponement strategy or deferred packaging where it handles the multilingual requirements of its customers through packaging postponement by including an instruction manual relevant to the language of the customer at the point of sales. An example for labelling postponement is for companies in food industries. Labelling is postponed until food marketing companies buy and bra nd it at different times during the year according to product and market conditions. Labelling postponement minimizes the risk of inaccurate forecasts on inventory and economizes on canning production during a busy season. Lead time and cycle time restrictions in postponement The evolution of a products variety, volume and weight throughout the process influences the extent to which it is possible to save transportation and inventory carrying costs by postponing variety, volume and/or weight increase. Short lead times may not require anticipation if final manufacturing can be performed within short cycle times. Manufacturing postponement is possible only when required lead times allow for a number of days additional lead time on top of transportation times. Products or activities can be performed with short lead times or cycle time for assembly postponement. Similarly on packaging and labelling postponement, it is more focused on rapid lead times. However, because of cycle time restrictions on form postponement, very short lead times is impossible and may also require very localized distribution channels at the extreme positioning inventories very close to customers in local depots (Hoek 1997). Inventory and warehousing According to Baker (2007), inventory cost took up 13 percent of the total logistics costs while warehousing accounted for a further 24 percent in the survey of logistics costs in Europe. Being significant in cost terms, warehousing play an important role in modern supply chain for better customer service. Product availability is being a key service metric and warehousing is being critical to the success of failure of many supply chains. Waters (cited in Baker 2007) indicated that increasing globalisation has led to longer supply lead-times which conventional inventory control theory resulted in greater levels of inventory to provide the same service levels. With the addition of more distant supply lines, there is a possibility of increasing variation in supply lead-time and increased the amount of safety stocks. Another factor is the transport economies of long distance movements where cost economies are be achieved by despatching in larger quantities with full container loads that i ncreased cycle stocks. Main role of warehouses According to Frazelle (2002), there have been with all the initiatives in e-commerce, supply chain integration, efficient consumer response, quick response and just-in-time delivery, the supply chain connecting manufacturing with end consumers can never be so well coordinated that eliminate the need of warehousing. The role and mission of warehouse operations are changing and will continue to change dramatically in the modern supply chains. Warehouses play several vital roles such as: Raw material and component warehouse: For holding raw materials at or near to point of induction into a manufacturing or assembly process Work-in-process warehouse: For holding partially completed assemblies and products at various points along an assembly or production line Finished good warehouse: For holding inventory to balance and buffer the variation between production schedules and demand Distribution warehouse and distribution centres: For accumulating and consolidating products from various points of manufacture within a single firm, or from several firms, for combined shipment to common customers. Fulfilling warehouses and fulfilling centres: For receiving, picking and shipping small orders for individual consumers Local warehouses: For distributing in the field in order to shorten transportation distance to permit rapid response to customer demand Value-added services warehouses: For serving as a facility for product customization activities to be executed, such as packaging, labelling, marking, pricing and return processing Dekkers (2009) added that these raw materials, work in progress and finished goods are stored in the warehouse to feed into production or to satisfy customer needs. The need of carrying inventories is due to the uncertainty in supply, future demand and lead-times that companies are faced with. Carrying inventories is in order to be use as buffer between different demand and supply rates. Also in the situation where suppliers have problems with delivery or qualities of materials, raw materials held in inventory can avoid stock-outs situations. Work in progress inventories are maintained because of the poor maintenance, unreliable working or fast schedule changes. Carrying inventories is also to provide for anticipated changes in demand and supply where there may be a drastic change in price of availability of raw materials or planned market promotion or where business is seasonal. According to Bask (2001), all manufacturing is executed before the products are distributed to the decentralized distribution system close to customer in a full speculation postponement strategy. Companies can have a more cost-effective production and purchase in producing or purchasing materials in lots. Due to ordering costs, quantity discounts and transportation cost in large lots, economies of scale are achieved as large standardized product lot-sizes can be manufactured and distributed. On the other had, the logistic postponement strategy differs from full speculation strategy with decentralised distribution system by using centralized inventory in which finalized products are distributed to a larger geographic area. Inventories were reduced with the advantage of high in-stock availability. Thereafter, products are transported in large lot-sizes to centralized warehouse, through with increased onward distribution costs compared to the decentralised system. Other roles of warehouses According to Baker (2007), the role of warehouses is theorised in many text books that the key warehouse functions are inventory holding and the servicing of customer orders from that inventory. Drucker (cited in Baker 2007) have stated that other roles for warehouses are being seen to be increasing important as they changed from holding yards to switching yards. Higginson and Bookbinder (cited in Baker 2007) listed of the roles of distribution centres as: Make/break-bulk consolidation centres for consolidating customer orders together into one delivery to gain transport economies. Cross-dock centres for satisfying customer orders from another source (e.g. a manufacturing plant) by passing through the distribution centre within a few hours Transhipment facilities for changing transport mode (e.g. from large line-haul vehicles to smaller delivery vehicles). Assembly facilities on which the final configuration of the product to individual customer requirements can take place. Product-fulfilment centres for responding directly to product orders from the final consumer (e.g. as internet fulfilment operations). Returned goods depots for handling unwanted and damaged goods, as well as goods returning under environmental legislation such as for product recovery and packaging waste. Miscellaneous roles, such as customer support, installation and repair services. Baker (2007) commented that a number of the above roles may be associated with some of the concepts, such as agility, production postponement and time compression and are recognised as increasing trends in warehousing in current modern supply chains. Conclusion Some business models particularly applicable to fashion and high-technology industries, they are suited to identify consumer trends and rapidly pushing product directly to the market. The use of flexible manufacturing systems, production postponement and the centralisation of inventory are put in place for this cause. With postponement strategies in place, it would be possible to identify the trade-offs between inventory and other supply chain elements, such a purchasing (e.g. bulk discounts on goods at lower unit purchase prices), manufacturing (e.g. lower production costs through less frequent change-over and hence larger batch sizes) and transport (e.g. full container load transport at lower unit transport costs) by utilizing the roles of the warehouse that may include a mix of elements such as inventory holding, order consolidating, cross docking and postponement activities.