Is it right for celebrities to make a lot of money? Essay -- essays re

Over-Paid, Yet Under Rated   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Growing up in America, many people are unaware of what is really occurring around them. People are so into their televisions, and their jobs that they fail to recognize the amount of work that is put into making this country as wonderful as it is. However, many people complain about the wages they receive hourly at work, or the salary they earn every month. Some complain that it is too low, and others complain about the taxes that are deducted, and how they do not have money to spend for occasions like Christmas, or even vacations. Then those same people sit at home, watch television, whether it is a basketball game, a game show, or even a soap opera, and complain about why those actors, athletes, and entertainers earn so much money, when they do not do as much as doctors, and teachers do. They complain about soccer players that are paid more monthly than doctors do yearly. They complain about singers that are paid for lip singing on stage, fooling many people. Ev en with their complaints, they sit down and watch the football game, watch the concert, and support actors, entertainers, and athletes. Why should those actors, entertainers, and athletes be paid that much money when they do not shape our future like teachers do, or save lives like doctors do? Unfortunately, for those people who complain, it is because of people like that, which cause people like Britney Spears, and Shaquille O’Neal to have more money than some people can count. It certainly is not fair that famous people such as Shaquille O’Neal, and Britney Spears earn so much money, but people cannot complain about it not being fair because unfortunately America is a very entertainment filled country, and almost everyone in the country has a favorite singer, band, athlete, team, or sport that they support, by either purchasing clothing, albums, tickets to the games or concerts, which makes the famous person earn that high amount of money.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The music industry is a very large industry in America, and it seems to be growing larger and larger year by year. A person may not have to go through four years of college to be able to sing a song, but either way they must work to earn what they do. An example of that would be the famous rapper Eminem. While growing up, Eminem had to work to support his mother because his f... ... so the people who complain will stop complaining about how those famous people get money, but will then begin to complain about why there are no good shows, or sports, or movies to watch on television any longer. There will always be complaints, but those who complain should be aware that they are the ones that cause those actors, actress, athletes, and entertainers to have the amount of money that they do. Works Cited Lawson, Terry. â€Å"’8 Mile’ Strikes Gold at Opening.† Detroit Free Press 11 Nov. 2002. 24 Nov. 2003. . Reinhold, Eric J. â€Å"A Game Plan for Working with Professional Athletes.† Journal of Financial Planning. Jun. 2000. 26 Nov. 2003. . Rovell, Darren. Official: Beckham Not Nearing Lifetime Adidas Deal. 11 Aug. 2003. 25 Nov. 2003. . Salary Cap for 2003-04 Season set at $43.84 Million. 15 Jul. 2003. 24 Nov. 2003. . Salomon, Yves Erwin. â€Å"Eminem, Mariah Carey & Jay-Z Make Top 10 of ‘Rocks 50 Richest 2003’ List.† Launch Music on Yahoo. 18 Mar. 2003. 25 Nov. 2003. . Specialists, not Generalists, Taking Home More Pay. American College of Physicians. 25 Nov. 2003. . Wilson, Bernie. â€Å"Bryant: ‘Terrified’ for case’s effect on family.† USA Today. 4 Oct. 2003. 25 Nov. 2003. . Is it right for celebrities to make a lot of money? Essay -- essays re Over-Paid, Yet Under Rated   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Growing up in America, many people are unaware of what is really occurring around them. People are so into their televisions, and their jobs that they fail to recognize the amount of work that is put into making this country as wonderful as it is. However, many people complain about the wages they receive hourly at work, or the salary they earn every month. Some complain that it is too low, and others complain about the taxes that are deducted, and how they do not have money to spend for occasions like Christmas, or even vacations. Then those same people sit at home, watch television, whether it is a basketball game, a game show, or even a soap opera, and complain about why those actors, athletes, and entertainers earn so much money, when they do not do as much as doctors, and teachers do. They complain about soccer players that are paid more monthly than doctors do yearly. They complain about singers that are paid for lip singing on stage, fooling many people. Ev en with their complaints, they sit down and watch the football game, watch the concert, and support actors, entertainers, and athletes. Why should those actors, entertainers, and athletes be paid that much money when they do not shape our future like teachers do, or save lives like doctors do? Unfortunately, for those people who complain, it is because of people like that, which cause people like Britney Spears, and Shaquille O’Neal to have more money than some people can count. It certainly is not fair that famous people such as Shaquille O’Neal, and Britney Spears earn so much money, but people cannot complain about it not being fair because unfortunately America is a very entertainment filled country, and almost everyone in the country has a favorite singer, band, athlete, team, or sport that they support, by either purchasing clothing, albums, tickets to the games or concerts, which makes the famous person earn that high amount of money.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The music industry is a very large industry in America, and it seems to be growing larger and larger year by year. A person may not have to go through four years of college to be able to sing a song, but either way they must work to earn what they do. An example of that would be the famous rapper Eminem. While growing up, Eminem had to work to support his mother because his f... ... so the people who complain will stop complaining about how those famous people get money, but will then begin to complain about why there are no good shows, or sports, or movies to watch on television any longer. There will always be complaints, but those who complain should be aware that they are the ones that cause those actors, actress, athletes, and entertainers to have the amount of money that they do. Works Cited Lawson, Terry. â€Å"’8 Mile’ Strikes Gold at Opening.† Detroit Free Press 11 Nov. 2002. 24 Nov. 2003. . Reinhold, Eric J. â€Å"A Game Plan for Working with Professional Athletes.† Journal of Financial Planning. Jun. 2000. 26 Nov. 2003. . Rovell, Darren. Official: Beckham Not Nearing Lifetime Adidas Deal. 11 Aug. 2003. 25 Nov. 2003. . Salary Cap for 2003-04 Season set at $43.84 Million. 15 Jul. 2003. 24 Nov. 2003. . Salomon, Yves Erwin. â€Å"Eminem, Mariah Carey & Jay-Z Make Top 10 of ‘Rocks 50 Richest 2003’ List.† Launch Music on Yahoo. 18 Mar. 2003. 25 Nov. 2003. . Specialists, not Generalists, Taking Home More Pay. American College of Physicians. 25 Nov. 2003. . Wilson, Bernie. â€Å"Bryant: ‘Terrified’ for case’s effect on family.† USA Today. 4 Oct. 2003. 25 Nov. 2003. .

Dispersion and Deviation

In the world of data analysis, it is important to take note of the variability of data values for computation. Technically, variability provides an outlook whether there is a certain condition that data follows to achieve a certain computational characteristic. It comes from the root word â€Å"varied† and depicts a notion to analyze whether data sets are varied from each other or not. Usually, variability can be structured among randomly selected numerical values and intends to measure how spread out a group of data is (Lane, 2003).Dispersion is considered to be a measure of variability because it provides a big picture of how scattered the data values are. In gathering data sets, there is always a possibility for the numerical values for them not to align in a certain average. Therefore, dispersion gives the researcher an idea how widely dispersed each of the data is with respect to each other. Another measure of variability is deviation. Deviation is the actual distance of a measurement data from the average of the whole data set or the Mean (Wiley, 2000).There are two forms of computational deviation, the variance and the standard deviation. The variance is the average of the squared deviation measured from the population or sample average (Star Trek, 2007). Meanwhile, Standard Deviation is the variance’s square root. In the research that intends to provide alternative Treatment Educational Course for Parents of Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, the possible areas where variability can be seen is with regards to the variables involved under measurement.There might be some variations about the effect of the parents’ gender to nurturing their child with ADHD. Variation between the male and female perspectives can be measured by using implicit data acquisition such as surveying, interviewing or experimental design. Another possible source of variability can be considered in the education background of the parents. Peo ple who were able to complete their education and people who have not will more likely result to some variations with their answers on the surveys, evaluations and impression on the proposed alternative treatment for ADHD. References Lane, David (2003). Measures of Variability. Retrieved November 6, 2008, from Connexions Web site: http://cnx.org/content/m10947/latest/ Star Trek, (2007). Statistics Tutorial: Measures of Variability. Retrieved November 6, 2008, from Star Trek Web site: http://stattrek.com/Lesson3/Variability.aspx Wiley, (2000). Statistics Measures of Variability. Retrieved November 6, 2008, from CliffsNotes Web site: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/WileyCDA/CliffsReviewTopic/Measures-of-Variability.topicArticleId-25951,articleId-25906.html

Review Questions for Business Management Essay

1) What is resource overallocation? Resource leveling is the project management function of resolving project resource over-allocation. By definition over-allocation means that a resource has been assigned more work than can be accomplished in the available time as dictated by the resource’s calendar definition. In most scenarios, over-allocations can be remedied manually by extending tasks or moving them to accommodate the resource’s availability 2) What is resource leveling? When performing project planning activities, the manager will attempt to schedule certain tasks simultaneously. When more resources such as machines or people are needed than are available, or perhaps a specific person is needed in both tasks, the tasks will have to be rescheduled concurrently or even sequentially to manage the constraint. Project planning resource leveling is the process of resolving these conflicts. It can also be used to balance the workload of primary resources over the course of the project[s], usually at the expense of one of the traditional triple constraints (time, cost, scope). 3) Under what circumstances would you want to manually resolve conflicts? You can resolve resource conflicts or overallocations by using the resource-leveling feature in Microsoft Office Project. Leveling works by splitting tasks or by adding delay to tasks until the resources that are assigned to those tasks are no longer overloaded. Because of these changes to the tasks, leveling can delay the finish date of some tasks and consequently also the project’s finish date. When it is leveling, Project does not change who is assigned to each task 4) What would be the caution of adding more resources to a task to resolve resource conflicts? As you assign resources to tasks, Project checks the resource’s calendar to make sure that the resource is working. However, Project doesn’t assess whether the resource is already obligated when you assign the resource to a new task; Project enables you to make the assignment. Be aware, though, that the additional assignment may lead to overallocating the resource. Overallocation occurs when you assign more work to a resource than the resource can accomplish in the time that you’ve allotted for the work to be completed. 5) What would be the caution of rescheduling a task to resolve a resource conflict? To get the best performance and results from resources (resources: The people, equipment, and material that are used to complete tasks in a project.), you must manage resource workloads to avoid overallocations (overallocation: The result of assigning more tasks to a resource than the resource can accomplish in the working time available.) and underallocations (underallocation: Assigning a resource to work fewer hours than the resource has available.). If you change resource assignments (assignment: A specific resource that is assigned to a particular task.), check the effects of your changes on the overall schedule (schedule: The timing and sequence of tasks within a project. A schedule consists mainly of tasks, task dependencies, durations, constraints, and time-oriented project information.) to make sure that the results meet your project goals.

Free Essays on “A Scarlet Ibis“ Literary Essay

Prompt: In the story â€Å"The Scarlet Ibis† James Hurst uses setting imagery to parallel characterization. The two aspects of characterization that are reflected through the author’s use of setting imagery are [ the hopes and dreams] and [the disappointments] of the main characters. In â€Å"The Scarlet Ibis† by James Hurst, setting imagery is used to parallel the characters’ moods. He uses these forms of nature to reflect both [ the hopes and dreams ] and [ the disappointments ] of the main characters. [ The first illustration of setting imagery is when Hurst describes the hopes and dreams, the hopes of Doodle being able to walk, and how it became reality. ] { Doodle had a title of being â€Å"Handicapped† hanging over his head. } { The brother had a problem with having a â€Å"Handicapped† brother, so he set out to teach him [ Doodle] how to walk. } James Hurst, describes when the dream of having Doodle be able to walk becomes a reality here, â€Å"Finally one day, after many weeks of practicing, he [ Doodle ] stood alone for a few seconds. When he fell, I grabbed him in my arms and hugged him, our laughter pealing through the swamp like a ringing bell. Now we knew it could be done. Hope no longer hid in the dark palmetto thicket but perched like a cardinal in the lacy toothbrush tree, brilliantly visible. â€Å"Yes, Yes,† I cried and he cried it too.† This passage shows how the brother’s dream went from hope to reality. The brother and his family thought that Doodle would never be able to stand on his own, let alone walk. Doodle’s walking wasn’t very important, but since the dream had existed in his brother’s head for weeks, Doodle made his brother’s dream become a reality. It is this picture of setting imagery that James Hurst has built his story around that continues the hope and dreams of the main characters’, both as a dream and now a reality for the family to remember. This very moment is a moment that Dood... Free Essays on â€Å"A Scarlet Ibisâ€Å" Literary Essay Free Essays on â€Å"A Scarlet Ibisâ€Å" Literary Essay Prompt: In the story â€Å"The Scarlet Ibis† James Hurst uses setting imagery to parallel characterization. The two aspects of characterization that are reflected through the author’s use of setting imagery are [ the hopes and dreams] and [the disappointments] of the main characters. In â€Å"The Scarlet Ibis† by James Hurst, setting imagery is used to parallel the characters’ moods. He uses these forms of nature to reflect both [ the hopes and dreams ] and [ the disappointments ] of the main characters. [ The first illustration of setting imagery is when Hurst describes the hopes and dreams, the hopes of Doodle being able to walk, and how it became reality. ] { Doodle had a title of being â€Å"Handicapped† hanging over his head. } { The brother had a problem with having a â€Å"Handicapped† brother, so he set out to teach him [ Doodle] how to walk. } James Hurst, describes when the dream of having Doodle be able to walk becomes a reality here, â€Å"Finally one day, after many weeks of practicing, he [ Doodle ] stood alone for a few seconds. When he fell, I grabbed him in my arms and hugged him, our laughter pealing through the swamp like a ringing bell. Now we knew it could be done. Hope no longer hid in the dark palmetto thicket but perched like a cardinal in the lacy toothbrush tree, brilliantly visible. â€Å"Yes, Yes,† I cried and he cried it too.† This passage shows how the brother’s dream went from hope to reality. The brother and his family thought that Doodle would never be able to stand on his own, let alone walk. Doodle’s walking wasn’t very important, but since the dream had existed in his brother’s head for weeks, Doodle made his brother’s dream become a reality. It is this picture of setting imagery that James Hurst has built his story around that continues the hope and dreams of the main characters’, both as a dream and now a reality for the family to remember. This very moment is a moment that Dood...

International PepsiCo. Company

International PepsiCo. Company Introduction Every organization is expected to undertake strategic analysis to determine its market position as well as its current and anticipated performance. Through the application of different environmental analysis tools, managers are able to determine the strong and weak points of an organization. One of the activities carried out by organizations is scenario analysis.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on International PepsiCo. Company specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Scenarios are used to map the future based on uncertain and predetermined elements. These elements are explored with the aim of helping an organization to seek solutions to some of the foreseen problems which may have an effect on the company. The purpose of the current essay is to undertake a scenarios analysis and offer their respective strategic responses in respect to PepsiCo Company. The first task involves the development of three future sc enarios and strategic responses for PepsiCo. Scenario one predicts no major future changes scenario in the external environment. Scenario two predicts negative future changes in the external environment. Scenario three predicts positive future changes’ in the external environment. The second task of the essay involves evaluating the contribution of scenario planning to effective management. Introduction to the PepsiCo Company PepsiCo Company is a multinational company whose headquarters are in Purchase, New York (Berch, Montoya Sawayda 2010, p.1). The multinational company operates in the drinks and beverage industry. The company which was formed as a merger between Frito-Lay Inc and Pepsi-Cola is a major competitor of the Coca-Cola Company. PepsiCo has a presence in 200 countries across the globe. Some of the areas where it has subsidiaries include Africa, Asia, Middle East, Europe, and Australia, among others. Globally, the company is second after Coca-Cola in the food and beverage industry. Over the years, the company has undergone several mergers and acquisitions which have promoted its success and presence in the international markets. Through M A, the company has been able to diversify in its areas of production. For example, PepsiCo product base has expanded to increase products like snacks and foods (Berch, Montoya Sawayda 2010, p.1), PepsiCo competes with Kraft Foods.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The company has diversified its product mix where majority of the product mix are foods and the rest are beverages. Both carbonated and un-carbonated beverages are available although the carbonated beverages no longer dominate the market. Despite the success of the company, it has in the recent past been involved in challenging situations like environmental problems such as pollution and disposal of its biodegradable wastes (Berch et al. 2010, p.8) Rationale for its selection PepsiCo Inc is a large US company which controls about thirty six percent of the US’ drinks market (Berch et al. 2010, p.1). The company operates in an industry that is greatly affected by season. For example, most of the drinks are drunk seasonally and more so during summer. As a result, the company has to undertake a scenario analysis in order to determine its current and future operations. Furthermore, the company is normally faced with stiff market competition from Coca Cola, the number one market shareholder. Following the recent global market financial crisis it is imperative to acknowledge that PepsiCo was financially affected by the crisis. According to a case analysis by Berch and colleagues (2010), the operations of PepsiCo in the beverage industry has been faced with a lot of controversies. For example, the company has been accused of engaging in price wars with its main rival Coca Cola, contamination, and false labeling of its products. To remain relevant in the industry, there is need for PepsiCo to undertake a scenario analysis which would assists in strategic management. Scenario Analysis Scenario analysis has been described as the process by which several informed, alternative, plausible and â€Å"imagined alternative future environments in which decisions about the future may be played out, for the purpose of changing current thinking, improving decision making, enhancing human and organization learning and improving performance† (Chermack 2004, p15).Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on International PepsiCo. Company specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In this case, environmental scanning is an essential process which enables the success of scenario planning or analysis. Different factors in the external environment are considered in the process. To better conduct scenario analysis, SWOT and PESTEL analytical to ols have been adopted. On the one hand, the PESTAL analytical tool looks at the external environment on which the organization operates. Some of the elements analyzed include economic, political, technological, legal, social, and environmental factors that could have an impact on an organization. On the other hand, the SWOT analysis is normally concerned with the future opportunities available to an organization, as well as the threats that such a company may anticipate in the future. Scenario 1: no major future changes Competition in the beverage and drinks industry is not expected to change a lot in the future. Since the inception of the PepsiCo, its major competitor has been the Coca-Cola Company in as far as drinks are concerned (LTONEWC FIASCO 2005, p.34). On the other hand, Kraft Foods has been the major competitor of PepsiCo in the food snacks industry (Marketing Teacher Ltd, 2012). The current competition in these two industries is less likely to intensify hence the trend ca n be classified as stagnant. For instance, a new entrant into the industry would normally be required to have substantial amounts of capital and infrastructure. This creates stronger market entry barriers which prohibits other companies from entering the market. As a result, competition is not expected to increase greatly as the two companies enjoy some kind of monopoly. The company has a strong brand which ensures that the company stays competitive in the market.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Although other companies like Nestle and Groupe Danone may try hard to compete, the brand of PepsiCo is a worldwide brand, well known and diversified brand (Marketing Teacher Ltd, 2012). With more than 60 brands, the company is well placed in the beverage and food industry. As such, other brands from emerging companies are less likely to influence the drinks and the food snacks industry. Scenario 2: negative future changes One of the major negative effects that PepsiCo is expected to encounter in the future is the government regulations and laws. These could either be from the political or the legal environments. In the 21st century, there is an increased awareness on the environmental changes, health and safety issues. In the future, laws and regulations related to the three fields are likely to change, thereby affecting the operations of PepsiCo negatively (Marketing Teacher Ltd 2012). For example, environmentalists and communities have been complaining on the environmental damage s Pepsi has especially in India (Berch et al. 2010, p.6). Pepsi has been accused of using chemicals in its products which jeopardizes the health and the safety of human beings. If the government imposed bans or restrictive measures on Pepsi then the company is likely to lose the second largest market in Asia after China. This will definitely affect the company operations, market share, and sales negatively leading to lose. The changes in laws could also be future changes in taxation requests, tax rates and ecological laws. All these will negatively impact the company. A memorable incidence is when the company was accused of using pesticides in its bottled water drinks (Berch et al. 2010, p.6). As a result, the company was partially banned in five Indian states. This is an indication of the excepted laws and regulations regarding the environment, safety, and the health of the customers. With these noticeable incidents, the company is faced to face the same bans in different countries if it engages in similar unethical issues in the future. Environmental laws are aimed at ensuring environmental conservation, and these are also expected to rise in the near future. As such, PepsiCo may be affected negatively bearing in mind that the company’s products are developed and packaged in plastic bottles which are non-biodegradable. For example, Aquifina is a bottled water drink packaged in plastic bottles. Upon use, people discard the plastic containers anywhere thus causing environmental contamination. So far, international environmental watchdogs have been calling for the ban of these plastics as they cause landfills and other pollution-related problems (Berch et al. 2010, p.10). Other emerging concerns on laws and regulations are the labeling of water containers. For example, although labeling laws are not very strict in the United States, countries in the Middle East and Asia have strict relations which are expected to increase in the future. Scenario 3: posit ive future change Increased market base: PepsiCo has the likelihood of witnessing an increase in its market base in the future. This is because the company has diversified its operation through the incorporation of bottled water and snacks. So far, the company has a presence in two hundred countries in the world. In 2009, the company announced its plans to expand in countries with already existing operations (Berch 2010, p.3). Through the use of its adoptable expansion strategy, the company is expected to continue expanding in the years to come. Some of its brands like the Cola diet have been increasing in terms sales and popularity. This increase has been necessitated by the fact that people have become self conscious on their health and well being. As the awareness continues to take place, the brand will catch many people. As such, its market share will increase as its customer base increases. With a broad product base, the company will expand its market share. The diversification of the company’s products to include foods and snacks has prompted its future increase in market base at present and in the future. According to Berch et al. (2010, p.7) the company is on the verge of developing health products and health foods. For example, the company has been planning to invest over USD 10 billion to support the production of healthy snacks. This trend will have positive future changes on the market base of PepsiCo. This is based on the fact that many people are becoming health conscious which represents a new untapped market. In the future, the company expects to reap over USD 30 billion in this new market (Berch et al.2010, p.7). Healthier PepsiCo snacks which incorporate the demands of the health conscious customers are more than likely going to expand the market for PepsiCo. The current collaboration with researchers from Mayo Clinics and the WHO promises to develop new healthier products which will see the market of expand its market share. The bottl ed water and food snacks have a perfect market in the US which is anticipated to get the attention of consumers (Marketing Teacher Ltd 2012). As such, the sales of the organization are anticipated to increase and so is its market share. The company has also been experiencing high returns from the diet Cola. With the trends continuing the same as they are, the company will experience an increase in market share in different parts of the globe. Proposed strategies for the scenarios The negative scenario of change in the regulations and laws regarding aspects of environment, health, and safety will definitely have negative effects if the company does not put into place strategic mechanisms. The company will have to set a legal team which oversees that all the ethical and legal regulations in different countries are followed. In the process, it will ensure that the mentioned accusations are not witnessed in the future. In case of changes in the operational laws and regulations, the comp any will have to comply with the set rules and regulations. By following the laws and regulations, the company will be able to keep off from legal battles and bans. As such, its operations will continue to be operative. Health, safety, and environmental laws are increasing and are expected to increase in the near future. PepsiCo will have to carry tests on its products before entering in the market to avoid the repetition of past incidents in India. The strategy will ensure that the company does not get a bad reputation, calling back of products and face bans in major markets. Environmental conservation initiatives could be taken in future to conserve the environment. In order to solve these ethical related dilemmas, it is necessary that PepsiCo takes â€Å"different levels of government into account, as well as the concerns of NGOs† (Berch et al. 2010, p.6). This strategy will involve all the stakeholders and deal with any negative repercussions. Furthermore, the company cou ld carry thorough stakeholder orientation with the aim of discovering ethical course of action and avoid the uncalled bans. The company can develop biodegradable PepsiCo drinks bottles which would ensure environmental safety and avoid similar incidents to the one faced in India in 2006. This would reduce environmental pollution and ensure safety. Additionally, the dream machine project currently present in US could be initiated in other countries. This would encourage customers to discard their products wastes in a more planned manner which ensures conservations. On the issue of labeling the drinks bottle, the company needs to follow the regulatory laws and regulations in every country. Positive changes are expected in the future in the external environment in which PepsiCo operates. The market share for PepsiCo may increase in the future given that people are becoming health conscious. To accommodate the anticipated positive change, the company has invested a lot in research and de velopment. Therefore, the organization should continue to invest in R D in order to come up with products that can accommodate the expected changes in the future. Furthermore, the organization has already started collaboration with WHO and Mayo clinic to develop snacks and foods which are health conscious. The same has been done on the drinks sector. In the future, the same processes are required to continue to meet the anticipated changes. Contribution scenario planning make to effective strategic management To begin with, strategic management has been described as the process by which organizations manage the relation with the current environment while aligned to the organization mission (Sung 2004, p.12). It can also be defined as the manner in which a balance is maintained between strategies and the internal activities to manage the external environment. Therefore, to achieve the definition and the purpose of strategic management, scenario planning has to be carried out. This e nsures that the relationship between the organization and the changes anticipated in the future is monitored. With the changes exhibited in the external environment, managers depend on the scenario planning to plan future planning of the organization. One of the major benefits associated with scenario planning is the ability to help an organization information center from repeating past mistakes (Schoemaker 2011, p.43). As such, the organization’s strategic management team thrives to develop ways of mitigating the anticipated future negative scenarios. For example, PepsiCo scenario planning will assist the organization avoid past mistakes related to ethical issues and regulations. When an organization knows the anticipated change, it carries out up-front investment. As such, an organization avoids unnecessary thinking of the anticipated future problem change like laws and regulations. This saves the company time, energy, and costs that would result from the anticipated change if it was not carried up-front. As part of strategic management, planning prepares an organization from possible changes (Schoemaker 2011, p.43). As such, a company like PepsiCo would be in a position to reduce overexposure. Uncertain risks associated with resources and capitals are reduced if scenario planning is carried out in advance. The investment of the present and the future depends heavily on scenario planning for efficient and effective decision making process (Van Der Heijden 2011). Strategic decisions made by the strategic management team should depend on facts and collected data on external environment. As a result, the decision making process is improved since the management is aware of the possible future external environment changes (Schoemaker 2011, p.43). Managers are assisted as they are made to think in a certain systematic way. For example, through scenario planning, managers are provided with the possible predetermined changes which a manger cannot ignore or re ject. Compared to the traditional method of decision making, scenario planning is much better and effective process (Schoemaker 2011, p.43; Van Der Heijden 2011). Uncertainties resulting from different variables are easily adjusted at the same time without any difficulties. Issues of imperfect reasoning and bias by the managers are overcome through the use of this method. Scenario planning influences strategy development positively. For example, the management is forced to think beyond the current position and situation of the company. This enables the company to focus on the future of the company. Van Der Heijden (2011) adds that the process of planning energizes the management system of an organization. Attention is paid while the top management team is making decisions. Unlike in the traditional way of decision making and management, using the results of scenario planning enables the management to justify the operation on a single line or department (Schoemaker 2011, p.43). Scena rios provide contexts in which decisions are passed down the chain of command. Through the provision of a context for decisions and decision making, the communication process in an organization is improved. The decisions made are well communicated through set up channels which define the direction of an organization. Monitoring of weak signals and recognizing them until they are fully coalesced enhances corporate perception. For example, a company is enhanced to effectively incorporate any changes no matter how small it may be. This creates a corporate attitude that ensures that all problems have to be solved. As a result, strategic management process is improved. Van Der Heijden (2011) note that the commitment by a company to scenario planning makes it become part of the organization language. The reason behind this is the way in which a complex inter-disciplinary reality is transferred in effortless manner. As part of the strategic management, an organization has to ensure that it educates its managers to make quality scenarios. Consequently, the organization is in a better position to make realistic decisions both in the present and in the future of the company. ‘Stretching mental model’ is achieved which is used by planners to determine the driving forces of an organization in respect to the business environment (Van Der Heijden 2011). In reference to the case study, PepsiCo would be in a position to know the drivers of its business in respect to the business environment. Leadership is an essential tool in strategic management which coordinates the different tasks of an organization. Van Der Heijden (2011) has advised that scenario planning acts as a leadership tool. Scenario process or planning reinforces the interests of the management. Consequently, the managers become involved in the process of developing scenarios in occasional basis thus improving their leadership qualities. As the process continues, managers get more involved in the pro cess of generating scenarios which becomes contextual and influential tool. Ideas are easily communicated enhancing development of projects. According to organizational theory, the external environmental creates pressure on the internal environment of an organization (Fuhs n.d, p.6). The different pressures on the organization can be determined through the use of scenario planning. The claim can be supported by the views of Van Der Heijden (2011) who adds that the scenarios analysis which was first carried out more than 35 years ago at Shell have enabled the company deal with any external pressures. Because of the benefits associated with the process, Shell has been carrying scenario planning even to-date. The purpose of scenario planning is to â€Å"envisage alternative views of the future in the form of distinct configurations of key environmental variables† (Grant 2003, p.494). Therefore, scenario planning enables organizational managers to get on thinking and have the ava ilable mental models of thinking changed to accommodate the specified changes. As a result, managers and strategic analysts are able to synthesize different knowledge coupled with sharing of information. Russell (2005, p.11) note that managers and team players are able to discuss the possibilities of the future in relation to the stated scenario. This allows the management to solve the problems and note the possibility of the anticipated future outcomes (Russell 2011, p.11). It should be noted that scenario planning does not give alternatives to the anticipated changes from the external environment. Chermack (2004, p.15) note that scenario planning is more of the intended outcomes of the external factors than offering alternatives. Conclusion In summary, scenario planning is an essential undertaking which plays an integral role in strategic management. In reference to the essay, PepsiCo which is a MNC is more prone to changes and pressures from the external market hence the need for scenario analysis. Essentially, with increased competition and changes in laws and regulation on the areas of environment, health, and safety, the organization is required to carry scenario analysis. Based on the analysis, the major negative changes in the future are change in the environmental, safety, and health related laws and regulations. These may reduce the sales and market share of the organizations. News markets segments are a positive change which PepsiCo is more likely to depend on in the future. However, the current competition trends are not expected to reduce or increase as the market has strong entry and exit barriers. The major benefits associated with scenario analysis/planning is enabling leadership and effective decision making process which aids in strategic management of an organization. Others include creation of effective communication of decisions from management to other departments in an organization. It also allows the development of the ‘stretching mental model’ which allows better thinking among the managers. As a result, corporate perception is enhanced which enables coalesce of weak points. Lastly, the leadership of an organization is developed as the managers develop the attitude of scenario planning. This promotes the process of strategic management in an organization. Reference List Berch, K, Montoya, J Sawayda, J 2010, PepsiCo’s journey toward an ethical and  socially responsible culture, http://danielsethics.mgt.unm.edu/pdf/PepsiCo%20Case.pdf Chermack, T 2004, ‘The role of system theory in scenario planning, Journal of Futures  Studies’, vol. 8, no.4, pp.15 3 Fuhs, C n.d, Toward an integral approach to organization theory: An integral  investigation of three historical perspectives on the nature of organizations, experienceintegral.org/uploads/media/Fuhs_Toward_An_Integral_Approa h_to_Org_Theory.pdf Grant, R M 2003, ‘Strategic Planning in a Turbulent Environment: Evidence from the Oil Majors’, Strategic Management Journal, vol. 24, no. 6, pp. 491-517 LTONEWC FIASCO 2005, Cola Wars: Coca-Cola vs. PepsiCo, http://media.wiley.com/product_data/excerpt/16/04717432/0471743216-3.pdf Marketing Teacher Ltd 2012, SWOT analysis PepsiCo, marketingteacher.com/swot/pepsi-swot.html Russell, L 2005, Leadership development. Alexandria, ASTD Press Schoemaker, P J H 2011, General environment, oup.com/uk/orc/bin/9780199581610/henry2e_ch02.pdf Sung, M 2004, Toward a model of strategic management of public relations: scenario  building from a public relations perspective, University of Maryland Press, Maryland. Van Der Heijden, K 2011, Scenarios: The art of strategic conversation, John Wiley Sons, Chichester.

How to Use the Rack Application in Ruby

How to Use the Rack Application in Ruby In the previous article, you learned what Rack is. Now, it’s time to start using Rack and serve up some pages. Hello World First, let’s start with a â€Å"Hello world† application. This application will, no matter what type of request it’s given, return ​with a status code of 200 (which is HTTP-speak for â€Å"OK†) and the string †Hello world† as the body. Before examining the following code, consider again the requirements that any Rack application must meet. A Rack application is any Ruby object that responds to the call method, takes a single hash parameter and returns an array containing the response status code, HTTP response headers and the response body as an array of strings. class HelloWorlddef call(env)return [200, {}, [Hello world!]]endend As you can see, an object of the type HelloWorld will meet all of these requirements. It does so in a very minimal and not terribly useful way, but it does meet all of the requirements. WEBrick That’s pretty simple, now let’s plug it into WEBrick (the HTTP server that comes with Ruby). To do this, we use the Rack::Handler::WEBrick.run method, pass it an instance of HelloWorld and the port to run on. A WEBrick server will now be running, and Rack will be passing requests between the HTTP server and your application. Note, this isn’t an ideal way to launch things with Rack. Its only shown here to get something running before diving into another feature of Rack called Rackup, which is shown below. Using Rack::Handler in this way has a few problems. First, it’s not very configurable. Everything is hard-coded into the script. Second, as you’ll notice if you run the following script, you can’t kill the program. It won’t respond to Ctrl-C. If you run this command, simply close the terminal window and open a new one. #!/usr/bin/env rubyrequire rackclass HelloWorlddef call(env)return [200, {}, [Hello world!]]endendRack::Handler::WEBrick.run(HelloWorld.new,:Port 9000) Rackup While this is quite easy to do, it isn’t how Rack is normally used. Rack is normally used with a tool called rackup. Rackup does more or less what was in the bottom section of the code above, but in a more usable way. Rackup is run from the command-line, and is given a .ru â€Å"Rackup file.† This is just a Ruby script that, among other things, feeds an application to Rackup. A very basic Rackup file for the above would look something like this. class HelloWorlddef call(env)return [200,{Content-Type text/html},[Hello world!]]endendrun HelloWorld.new First, we had to make one tiny change to the HelloWorld class. Rackup is running a middleware app called Rack::Lint that sanity-checks responses. All HTTP responses should have a Content-Type header, so that was added. Then, the last line just creates an instance of the app and passes it to the run method. Ideally, your application shouldn’t be written entirely within the Rackup file, this file should require your application into it and create an instance of it that way. The Rackup file is just â€Å"glue,† no real application code should be there. If you run the command rackup helloworld.ru, it’ll start a server on port 9292. This is the default Rackup port. Rackup has some more useful features. First, things like the port can be changed on the command line, or in a special line in the script. On the command-line, simply pass in a -p port parameter. For example: rackup -p 1337 helloworld.ru. From the script itself, if the first line starts with #\, then it’s parsed just like the command line. So you can define options here as well. If you wanted to run on port 1337, the first line of the Rackup file could read #\ -p 1337.

Annotated Bibliography Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Annotated Bibliography - Essay Example According to this model, the role of the nurse involves the identification of potentials, assets and strengths within the family setting and encouraging the family members to focus on them. The nurses also seek to convert deficits in the family to strengths. Through this model of nursing, families become empowered and can achieve much more in the promoting health. According to this model, health denotes a social phenomenon, and a behavioral code communicated within societal structures such as the family and community at large. This essay will provide an annotation of sources that provide relevant information for use in this research. Allen, F., & Warner, M. (2002). A developmental model of health and nursing. Journal Of Family Nursing, 8(2), 96-135. Summary This article provides one of the critical essays written by Allen Moyra, the developer of the developmental model of health and nursing. She sought to develop a model that would describe a relevant organization with the potential of bringing the family unit and health professionals into working to promote health. The McGill model, as it is also referred, is one of the models adopted by nurses in improving the efficiency of their services. This article highlights that families have potentials, assets and strengths that can play a critical in improving health. ... Allen highlighted that through this model of nursing, families become empowered, and can achieve much more in the promoting health. Critique and Annotation This article discusses the developmental model of health and nursing, a concept that Allen introduced into the nursing field in 1996 in a bid to introduce a re-orientation in the Canadian nursing practice. The author of the article held a PhD in education, masters and bachelor’s degree in nursing explaining her competence in describing the model. Assignment two seeks to define the developmental model of health and nursing. In this context, the article is very relevant because it offers a description of the model as developed by Moyra Allen, a description that targeted nurses in practice. The article defines the objectives of the model in nursing and defines the context into which it applies. In this article, there is an elaborate definition of health as a social phenomenon, which is the definition exhibiting relevance to th e McGill model of nursing. In order to define health in this context, she identified the difference between health and context, and highlighting the urgency of adopting healthy lifestyles. Moreover, the article is of great relevance in this research because it offers the core information that defines the model. The author describes the assumptions underlying the model, and outlines the significance of the family in fostering health. The author outlines the relationship between the nurses ‘role and the family in according health care. In the research, this paper will serve as a foundation in developing the context of the essay. Moreover, this article succeeds in outlining the organization required in practice guided by this article.