UK Wrist Watch Industry | Marketing Strategy

UK Wrist Watch Industry | Marketing Strategy During late 2008 and 2009 confidence of consumer fell and people became more aware about their spending in watches and jewellery has not been immune to the economic climate. During 2005 jewellery and watches market grew by 10 % were it reaches to  £4.8 billion in 2010 and over next five year Mintel forecasts is 11%growth in watches and jewellery market. Hence 2011 is also going to be the year to invest in mens jewellery. Stephen Webster presented a strong case for mens jewellery at IJL in September 2010, and assuming male customer only want watches and the odd signet or chain could lead to missing out on a potential wealth of customer. Its not that male customers dont want it: they just dont know they want it. Men dont have thinking about what to wear as women do, explain Webster. But once a man is bejewelled, theres no looking back. They also dont wait for special occasions like woman do, and they can go from zero to jewellery enthusiast in no time. Market research company Mintels September 2010 report Watches and Jewellery Retailing UK found that 20% of male respondent said they like receiving jewellery as a gift, and 12% said that they had purchased all of their own jewellery. So the market is clearly there to be exploited. http://www.retail-jeweller.com/trends/in-with-the-new-2011-trends/5020089.article Rapid increase in gold prices and recession change many consumers mind to buy silver instead of gold, this trend is rising to nearly three in ten women with almost one in five people wearing silver jewellery than gold; particularly young people aged 15-24. Now days Consumers are willing to experiment and try new looks with little minimising their bank balances which means many costume jewellery items are affordable and easy disposable without denting their bank balance. Young aged under-35 is more open to pay large amounts for watches these are consumers who do not wear jewellery to express their individuality or to show their consumer spending power. As the research has should that 86% of consumers wear a watch, were 40% only buy a new watch when their old watch is broken. The new reason for purchase a watch could be watchs main function with health benefits as a new way of helping the consumer. http://oxygen.mintel.com/sinatra/oxygen/display/id=479809 Executive Summary: https://www.keynote.co.uk/market-intelligence/view/product/10331/chapter/0 Why buy me. Can be better explain by to fend off the competition by constant innovation, reinvigorate, recalibrate, update. Many brands and companies are continuously renovating their business and holding positioning themselves for growth. Positioning able offerings for brands and availability of product in the market. Several key target groups and users meet their needs as it reaches a certain mode of consumers and delivers benefits to them. Consumer and user are attributed by benefits and product as they are depended on how actual approach of a company or brands position communicates in the market place. As a result positioning or product of a company find one to keep further distance itself from competitors which is based on list of items, but very importantly in six key :, Distribution, Quality, Attributes, Product, Price and Usage Occasions. As compared to earlier times consumerism has undergone a sea change where the consumers are informed about the products. Hence, the market has become customer centric. Understanding the importance of customer is become the structure of business; in effects companies have started in regular basis i.e. repositioning exercise. In the recent times Titian Industries Ltd had a major brand repositioning exercise was planned more in order to provide more to its customers. Now the company holds new position. This study will help to understand the revived positioning strategies of Titan watches. An analysis of repositioning strategies of Titan also forms of the study. Firstly it is important to understand the overall wrist watch industry in UK. Secondly to study the brand positioning and re-positioning strategy of Titan wrist watches and to find out about the loyal customers of Titan watches as they are aware of the new positioning strategies of the company and how they used them. To study primary and secondary data have been used. Analysis UK wrist watch industry and brand repositioning strategies of TITAN Company has been analysed and completed on the basis of secondary data. Internet, journals, books and magazines have been used for this purpose. Project comprises conducting a questionnaire survey. (function() { var scribd = document.createElement("script"); scribd.type = "text/javascript"; scribd.async = true; scribd.src = "https://www.scribd.com/javascripts/embed_code/inject.js"; var s = document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(scribd, s); })() Introduction: 1.1 Theory and concepts: According to Peter Drucker A business has two and only two basic functions: marketing and innovation To maintain business relevance and market position, it is important to continuously innovate and invent brand image in the market to pace with change and intense competitive pressure in the marketplace. In this context, now days brand positioning and revitalization strategies have become a business vital part for battling brand erosion. Further heightened for brand repositioning is because of rising cost and high risk connected with launching a new brand in market. Increase in the cost and high risk related with launching a new brand that is a part of brand reposition. Brand reposition has received very importance in the marketing literature and treated as a difference of brand positioning. Reposition can be required as the market changes and new opportunities occur. In order to reach the customer which was never targeted at first can also be targeted with brand reposition. In order to change its image in the market it is important to focus towards brand repositioning, although it is one of the toughest and harder actions for repositioning of familiar brand in market. As per Solomon, essential part in the marketing efforts is position strategy because companies have to use the elements in the marketing mix to influence the customers understanding the position. There has to be several choices to be, so to as to be in more attractive and relevant position. It is important for the person who is reposition for the reposition to know and understand why reposition is necessary and its need, and if the offer is the one that will change or just the brand name. While repositioning it is important to undertake and understand all the risk factors that is likely to affect it in the market. A company risks its credibility and reliability more while repositioning its brand in the market and the need for a thorough strategy is very important to avoid any occurrence. Some analyst argues that to successfully reposition a established brand name is almost impossible because repositioning of a brand can make the most loyal customer to switch brand. If the brand is eroded then brand reposition becomes important. Numerous attempts to reposition brand in the market may fail which is testified by many company for example while soft drink has successfully been able to connect with the youth though they exist for 40 years in the market but at the same Levis, jeans has been losing its market share to newcomers such as The Gap despite numerous campaigns designed to reposition the brand trend. 1.2 Literature Review: The reposition strategy is defined into three stages that is: Introductory Elaboration Fortification This involves the introduction of a new or a repositioned brand, seeking underline the brands value over others, and to broaden the brand position. It is truly hard to change the customers perceived attitude towards a brand, and therefore the risk is great that the attempt to repositioning might fail. After rolling out the strategy, it is time to modify the proposition through update of the personality and through repositioning. There pros and cons with both of this segments and it is great significance that they are truly calculate when deciding the next step in the process. To understand it more deeply http://htmlimg4.scribdassets.com/55f3acalz4nfgla/images/10-81b5e3fa9c/000.jpg Figure 1: Stages in brand strategy development. When a company modifies or change something that is already there in the market established in the mind of the customer that is called as repositioning. Different profession and individuals have different meaning and understanding towards Repositioning. There are few different definitions and greater understanding about this concept: Repositioning is a change, principally about triggering the vision, mission and value in a new direction that is more suited f or the brand in the future- Brand manager consultant. Principally, reposition concerns changing the consumers perception of the brand PR consultant. Repositioning is built upon the change of unique and differentiated associations with the brand in some kind of direction; it is about having a balance between the category party and differentiation when using reposition strategies (Leading Brand strategies) From these definitions, it is obvious that reposition is about moving something to more attractive and relevant position. Reposition direction is often decided as to what a company wants to achieve. There is also a visible relation between price and quantity aspects. When a company perceives the market as a demand curve, the purpose is to down stretch or upward curve. When moving up and there is a need for reaching the premium segment and expand up wards. Figure: The principle of reposition. When striving towards a new position in the market, it is important to understand those consumers are limited. Peoples minds select what to remember and it is important to convince the consumers with greater arguments. The market always strive for change which is rapid and therefore repositioning can be necessary to meet these demands, newer and stronger arguments have to be established to convinced them to stay as loyal customers. As repositioning is a very complicated matter and therefore there are no detailed theories or models. Aim for repositioning is different for different person, and the only connection between all the different theories is that repositioning is moving something from somewhere towards a greater position at the market. Corstjens and Doyle (1989) identified three types of repositioning strategies: Zero repositioning, which is not a repositioning at all since the firm maintains its initial strategy in the face of a changing environment. Gradual repositioning, where the firm performs incremental, continuous adjustments to its positioning strategy to reflect the evolution of its environment; and Radical repositioning that corresponds to a discontinuous shift towards a new target market and /or a new competitive advantage. After learning the repositioning of several brands from the UK market, the following 8 types of repositioning have been identified. These are: Increasing relevance to the consumer Increasing occasions for use Making the brand serious Falling sales Bringing in new customers Making the rand contemporary Differentiate from other brands Changed market conditions A four phased brand repositioning approach can be followed to achieve the intended benfits- Phase I. Determining the current status of the brand Phase II. What does the brand stand for today? Phase III. Developing the brand positioning platforms Phase IV. Refining the brand Positioning and Management Presentation The advantages that can be derived from brand repositioning exercises can be summarized as: Value over others Updated personality Relevant position The risks associated with such strategies are: Loss of focus Neglecting original customers Losing credibility for the brand Confusing the brand Therefore, in order UNLEARN the brand positioning one must help the customer to know brand repositioning in more difficult than initially positioning. This can be done by: Carefully crafted communication New products, packaging Associations with other brands ( co- branding, co- marketing, ingredient branding, strategic alliances, etc) that reinforce the new brand positioning. This exercise is so critical to an organizations success that the organizations and leader in marketing/brand management should develop skill preferably with the help and facilitation of an outside brand positioning expert. Research Methodology: 2.1 Objectives To study the current scenario of UK wrist watch industry. To review the brand positioning strategies of different sub-brands of watches. To analyze the brand repositioning strategies of watches. To study consumer awareness and perception about the brand repositioning strategies of watches. This study will help to understand the gap in its communication strategy regarding brand repositioning exercises and the further measures to be taken for effective marketing communications. 2.2 Limitations: The study is confined to London area only There is possibility of sampling errors in the study The responses of the consumers may not be genuine Questionnaire may not be comprehensive 2.3 Sources of Data Collection: The relevant data was collected from both primary sources and secondary sources. The starting point of my information gathering has been the secondary sources such as internet, books, and journals and so on. Firstly, brand positioning and repositioning strategies of Titan, secondary sources such as internet, insurance magazines, and journals and so on. Then I conducted a consumer awareness survey on brand repositioning strategies undertaken by Titan watches in recent times. 2.4 Sampling: To conduct sampling of 50 loyal consumers of Titan and in the age group of 20 30 years for this study. Since Titan has taken up brand repositioning strategies since January 2011, consumers who have seen the previous and new campaigns have been targeted. 2.5 Primary data: Data was collected through an interview schedule, consisting of both open ended and closed ended questions. It consisted of the parameters like reasons consumers brand preference, recollection of earlier tagline and advertisement, brand ambassador of Titan awareness of new tagline and campaign featuring sportsmen and actors from International body and so on. The data was collected through e-mails, telephone contacts and one to one personal interviews. Industry Overview UK Watch industry: In 2004 and 2008 market report examines the jewellery and watches market in UK were fluctuated and fell by 2.8% and finish at  £4.33 billion in the review report. Large declined in 2008 contribute to the global economic downturn and UK recession which adversely effected nearly all UK industries. The only unaffected by the downturn was the luxury end of the market end, but by the 2008 and 2009 it begun to take effect on it. In recent year the jewellery and watches become increasingly competitive. Although this market have wide range of suppliers and retailers also online retailing have contributed highly for transparent for information on pricing and availability of products. This was a positive trend for small brands that was previously unable to deal with consumer directly. Some larger retailers and few independents have developed their transactional sites to deal with their consumer demand. The product which have high rate of consumer penetration with around a third of the UK population owning piece jewellery and watches. In 2009 downturn in UK economy shows that it will affect all areas of consumer spending and unlikely to show reversal in near future. It seems the concepts of a wrist watch have become that of a status symbol rather than a practical chronometer. According to a survey that suggest one in seven people in the UK has no need for watch, apart from as a fashion accessory. Gadgets such as iPods, laptops and mobile phone, represent threat to the watch industry, survey conducted by Mintel. Even in the age of iPhones, people spend huge amount of money on a quality time piece, with high-end brands such as Rolex and Tag Heuer adorning blinged up wrist of rappers, bankers and fashionistas alike. http://www.wharf.co.uk/2010/11/why-wrist-watches-are-dialling.html SWOT ANALYSIS OF THE UK WATCH INDUSTRY: Strengths: Watch industry is growing industry which faster rate As the population is rising, the watch market is also expanding Customers are not very price sensitive as far as quality watch is concerned Weakness: There is not much advertising done by watch industry No innovation in products There are few number of exclusive showrooms that reduces the consumers accessibility to the product There are few marketers, who are concentrated only upon a particular niche segment (Tag Heuer ) Opportunities: There is more need of fashionable luxury watch and fine luxury watch brands that can be targeted in UK, as customers are more like trendsetter and fashionable. UK especially London is a metropolitan city which makes it more attractive for the new company. Youth are more brand conscious than their predecessors. That leads to the expansion of the market for branded watches. Threats: There are many foreign players entering in the race Too many players will dilute the market and the profit margin. Mobile phones acting as substitutes of the watches. The Indian watch industry began in the year 1961 with the commissioning of the watch division of Titan. The first watch model manufactured by HMT was the Janata model in the year 1962. HMT was the leader in the watch market till the Tatas formed Titan watches in association with Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation in the year 1987. They took a major strategy decision, which later changed the face of the Indian watch market to manufacture only quartz watches. Liberalisation in 1992 and removal of quantitative restrictions due to WTO has opened the doors for many the Indian market viz. Tissot, Swatch, Omega, Rado, TAGHeuer. The import duties on watches are falling which makes the Indian market look attractive for the global majors like Casio, Swatch and Citizen. Company Profile: Overview Titan is one of the largest watch producer in India and sixth largest in the world. Titan manufactures over 7 million watches per annum and have 65 million customer. In 1984 titan was established as a joint venture between the Tata Group and Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation. Manufacturing in a state- of -the art at Hosur, Tamil Nadu the company brought the large change in Indian market, by offering quartz technology with international styling. By understanding the different segments in the market, the company launched its second brand Sonata watch, as value brand for those who like styled watches with affordable prices. In last two decade the company has build an very good impression in watch business to become Indias largest manufacturer and world largest sixth manufacturer of watches. This was mainly because good formidable distribution network. Being one of largest retail chain of exclusive retail showroom for watches called The world of Titan spread over 100 towns. Titan have branches over 30 countries, its also have multi brand outlets named Time Zone, service centres and dealer outlets. The company has watch plant at Dehradun (UP) and Baddi (Himachal Pradesh) and electronic circuit boards in Goa. The promoters held majority stake of the company, with Tidco having 28% of the shares and Tata Group companies owing 25% of the shares and the public sharing holding around 28% in the company. The rest of the stake held by the foreign institution, non resident Indian, mutual fund and other institution. It also acquiring a license for global brands such as Tommy Hilfiger and Hugo Boss, while. It has also in its portfolio its first Swiss Made watch brand Xylys. In 1995 the company capitalize to brand Tanishq as diversified into jewellery in fragmented market operating no brand in urban city. Also in 2005 the company launched its second Jewellery brand, GoldPlus, as using its opportunity for capitalizing in small town and rural India. Its also diversified into fashion Eyewear by launching Fastrack Eye Gear sunglasses as well as prescription eyewear. TITAN WATCHES: BRAND POSITIONING STRATEGIES Overall strategies: Since from the beginning Titan has been positioned as a premium brand, because its high quality products for its customer. Titan is struggling to have a strong brand image in UK market due to its numerous sub-brands that caters to different segments in India. It follows different positioning strategies; these strategies can also be analyzed as given below: Attribute Positioning: The company launched first quartz watches to Indian market as its product. The company successfully penetrate the market by this launch, under this strategy came Raga, Classique and Regalia. Classique positioned as style corporate wear that leaves a quiet definite impression and qualities of function. Regalia ranger represent the elegant-wear. Raga is an exclusive watch as positioned. The Raga and silver Raga collection of style, delicate and feminine with each piece unique truly. User Positioning: Titan provides to several user groups children (the Dash), sportspersons and adventurers. The fastrack range is seen as being modern and related to present time, reliable and sturdy. The advertising, packaging and merchandising of this range is young, cool and vibrant. Benefit Positioning: Titan offer many deals to differentiate its offering on the basis of superior style and attractiveness which is offered by Digital range fastrack. Competitors Positioning: Titan had to encounter the threat with the entry of several foreign watchmakers into the market; most the entrants are catering to the upper end of the market Omega, Cartier etc. Quality or Price Positioning: In the overseas market, especially in Europe where it is competing with Swiss and Japanese watches, it is position itself as value-for-money (less than Swiss watches and higher than Japanese), by giving attractively styled and of good quality. TITAN WATCHES: BRAND RE-POSITIONING STRATEGIES FOR GLOBALISATION Titan has managed to get fair market in Middle East and Africa but its failure in Europe was a downturn for the Company as the return was not as good as investment made for the expansion. Titan has decided to revamp its flagship watch brand in Europe mainly in UK. Titan wants to reposition it more youthful and relevant to the changing times. Titan has entered the International markets in 1989 through the export of watch movements. Titans first global footprint was placed in the UAE the largest market in the Middle East then it moved towards Egypt, Oman, Saudi Arabia and few markets in Africa. Though it faced strong competition, it reached the sales of 100,000 watches within a year of its launch. It started to move globally and moves towards Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Maldives and Nepal. After its extensive survey, it concluded that it needs good reason to stock the brand. Titan needs to re-position its brand image in the UK market. And so Titan decided to against soft option of driving its globalization through private label exports. It would launch its product under its own brand with market positioning Therefore Titan found a massive advertising campaign to create brand awareness. It also participated in the fair which showcases the worlds biggest watch brand in the world. http://www.moodiereport.com/images/luxury_watch_tables_jan10_04.jpg http://www.moodiereport.com/images/luxury_watch_tables_jan10_05.jpg CONCLUSION: The suggestions to improve consumer awareness about brand repositioning strategy of Titan are as follows: To increase its visibility, Titan Company can sponsor events similar to fashion shows which all latest designs launched are displayed. This is important as it has a great effect on different segments of the customers in different ways. It is important to have Tie up with radio channels and television to broadcast and telecast its advertisement about various sales promotion from time to time. RD needs more investment as customer expectations are changing rapidly. It should focus more on introducing more varieties and luxury items in the market at regular interval. Introduce exclusive collection for working women which is more contemporary and complements any fashion styles. Tie up with international watch brands to make the product stronger in the market. To use internet to spread awareness among consumer about the brand. (function() { var scribd = document.createElement("script"); scribd.type = "text/javascript"; scribd.async = true; scribd.src = "https://www.scribd.com/javascripts/embed_code/inject.js"; var s = document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(scribd, s); })() Terry Hills framework: Corporate objectives Terry Hills framework: Corporate objectives Friction materials is enjoying a new lease of life as seen by their ability to make substantial profit partly due to the renaissance of the motorbike (scooter) as a source of transportation by the middle aged. Thus the corporate objectives are: Gain market share in the OE market through manufacture and supply of DBP in 2 years. Entering the Far East market as a Long Term Strategy to increase profitability and to wrestle for International Market Share in 3 years Superior Product Performer thereby securing the contract on a Long term Basis Improve Research and Development for the OEM for incremental business. Increase ROCE to 30% 3 years. Increase Profit Margin to 30% in 3 years. Increase ROI to 40% in 3 years. Order Winners and Qualifiers Criteria Discussion of the Criteria and the Implication for Operations BRAND IMAGE This is true for the motorcycle manufacturing company as demonstrated by their attention to detail and their strong Quality Policy and culture. It is therefore pertinent for Friction materials to maintain their already lofty heights of Quality to be able to tap into the sea of opportunities of OEM. For the AM, it is a guide to the potential customers of the qualities attached to the brand. With a Quality rating in the industry, the brand image does help win some of the customers over to the product range. For the SM, Brand Image could play a role in the choice of the DBP because the customers may want the best quality DBP for their automobiles which would help in marketing (word of mouth). This is a strong basis for our core competency being retained rather than outsource. COST For the OEM, Cost is the major order winner here as the company has to be highly competitive on cost to ward off potential competitors from the market. But with the prospect of Research and Development for new ways of making DBP, Friction Materials would be able to charge pre For the AM, Cost is highly competitive as well. The company must be able to get DBP to the market at affordable prices as the company has to be highly competitive on cost to ward off potential competitors from the market. For the SM. Cost is not competitive and almost not relevant. The cost of the DBP should be reasonable enough and not charge ridiculous amounts though the customer is willing to pay for the value of the DBP. Q QQ QQ: Performance quality flexibility in design dependability and volume are sensitive order qualifiers such that a drop in one of the characteristic specification could cost them the order. These criteria are key to their winning over the OE market thus we have a QQ which denotes (order loser). On the long run (3 years on) some of the values would change because Friction would have acquired a certain volume of market share and the direction of the market would tend to shift. For instance with a breakthrough in RD, the value of design flexibility and cost would change. This signifies that For design flexibility, it would be a new order winner, a display of our competency and thus they would be able to charge premium price, or at least increase the price of supply. Cost would be a dominant order winner as competitors would seek to drive down cost hence stiff competition. On the other hand, Q is not as sensitive as QQ. You would not lose the order if you cannot meet the demand. For Instance the durability of the DBP is a qualifier because it must be able to perform for a period of time but not too long to be considered absurd. 2 years is good but no one would want to design DBP for 10 years so if the life span of 2 years is attained then it is fine. For instance delivery speed is not required as you would have agreed to sign the deal to deliver at an agreed period failing which you would be fined. MARKETING STRATEGY SWOT Analysis Strengths Credible supplier network Modern managerial input Good debtor to creditor days Good current Ratio; indicates cash flow Ability to expand current location Centralized location to market and to ports for export Fully depreciated machine cost, hence they machine cost  £0 Skilled Labour force as can be seen in Specialist Manufacture Brand Image recognition for quality Close relationship with the tool specialist fabricators. Weakness Inventory levels Friction between top management (cronton and whitson) Long changeover period on press machine Poor personnel management Poor use of work packages leading to unused raw materials Underutilization of MRPII systems Inability to do online payment Poor space utilization Over reliance on entry into OE market Opportunity Potential global leader in OEM Local sourcing of materials (when they gain social status) DBP direct supplier to industry manufacturers thus increasing market share Expansion of production range Threat Competitive Labour Market Stiff competition from the Far East Potential Environmental threat on noise and waste disposal MARKETING STRATEGY Expansion of Market channeled to an increase in both local and global supplies of DBP. Revolutionize the OEM to a Quality competitive market based on cost management. Improve Research and Development capabilities After sales customer feedback as a way of getting closer to the customer and improving on quality and performance. MANUFACTURING STRATEGY VERTICAL INTEGRATION This is the level of incorporation in a supply chain for the various stages of the supply process. It could be forward or backward integration. A vertical integration could be to bolster the technological front based on competition or for to emerging markets. Make / Buy: The make or buy analysis is a strategic analysis that helps top management to decide what they want to produce, what they want to stop producing or what they want to outsource to a third party. In practice, core competence is not outsourced because that is the uniqueness of the product; if you let it go, you could just be setting up future competition for your company. The various decisions taken and the reason are as follows; For the supply of raw materials; a single supplier was preferred. This would prevent re-testing for the quality of the supplied materials as the testing phase takes a couple of weeks to get the right mix for the required braking performance. This would increase lead time and consequently reduce the ability to deliver on time. It also helps reduce the variation in quality that could arise from multiple sourcing For the mixing operation, that is the core competence and could be detrimental to the growth and the corporate objectives of the company. For the Press Operation, the Press tool manufacture is done by a local specialist firm. This could lead to delays in taking up the tool fabrication hence building up lead times for the OEM. When the design team finishes the design, they would have to wait for the Press fabricators to be available to work. Communication gap is also a threat to the smooth running of the design of the tool for the OEM. The specialist firm is also prone to take over by large BP manufacturers who are direct competitors and once competitive advantage is lost to them, it affects the market share of the OE and consequently the ability for Friction Materials to compete. Thus the decision is to Vertically Integrate the Local Specialist; this helps build competitive advantage in the OE market. For the baking operation, it would be kept in house. Outsourcing baking increases the time the operation takes; from 3 hours to a potential 5-6 hours. The cost of transport, labor and the payment of the operation together with the time trade-off make it very complicated and unsuitable for outsourcing. The chemical properties of the brakes at high temperatures could be altered during transportation and thus could lead to a failure in testing which results in the company losing the order. It is therefore a critical operation in-house and not outside. For the machining operation, the decision is to be kept in house. This is because an automated 100% dimensional check is required after machining. If you machine in house, there is a greater chance of achieving that accuracy than to outsource to a specialist that could be overlook little details that could lead to test failure. Since the machines are running at full capacity, an extra machine is required for the OEM manufacture. The machine would be second hand quality as accustomed to the company. The fully depreciated machines make extra budget available for this purchase and would in no time be fully depreciated as well. Thus we practically are paying less to do more. For the painting, the operation would be carried out in house. The reason is to be in control of the goods produced. Also the painting operation is a low skilled task hence a contract staff could be employed for the sole aim of painting. This helps specialization on the long run and reduces costs due to transportation and material handling. It also reduces labor cost as the company is only bound by the contractual agreement without benefits. For the packaging, the short term objective would be to continue in-house but re-brand the lot size so as to accommodate more DBP. This reduces the burden of having to pack several hundred of DBP at any time. The lot sizes could be increased and standardized as there is no obligation to supply with the current range of boxes but simplifies the current packaging operation. This helps reduce the number of boxes supplied for packaging and hence the time and cost of transportation and material handling. However the long term plan would be to source for a packing company that would agree to package as close to our production site as possible. This helps free up space for increased production and other value added work. FACILITIES The design of the operation would take into consideration the item to be produced, vary the different possible ways to produce it and come up with the best and most efficient way of producing it. The characteristic of the operation is determined by the 4 Vs VOLUME HIGH LOW HIGH LOW VARIETY LOW HIGH VARIATION LOW HIGH VISIBILITY The OE market involves long production runs with product specification and low variety, there is need to implement a high volume low variety manufacturing process which is the category of the OE market. Volume: This is the production capacity within a particular time frame. The volume is set prior to production in order to plan for capacity. The current forecast of 150,000 in the first year is a high volume compared to the normal few hundreds that are currently produced. Therefore it is a high volume process operation and adequate capacity should be provided as required. Variety: this can be described as the different combinations of products that a production process can accommodate. There is limited variation in the demand of DBP for the OEM due to the standardized requirements. Basic changes can be made in the design but it is practically the same spine and technology that is used. This depicts a low variety production. Variation in Demand: This is the ability of the production process to change with little notice to the forces of demand and supply or product design and specification. Orders are requested a year prior to production thus a stable demand profile which makes effective capacity utilization probable. Therefore it is a low variation demand production. Visibility or Customer Interaction: this could be described as the level of participation of the customer in the production process. The ultimate goal of any production of the process is to satisfy the customer. Since the customer is not expected to be at the factory every time, we settle for a low visibility production process. This has no bearing on the type or quality of DBP produced as the company would be ratified fit for the production of the OEM before proper production can commence. Location The current location of Lutterworth is perceived as a central location both to the potential and to the international market. The town has a rich history of manufacturing work and is in a central location for transportation of finished goods and raw materials and assess to the factory very easy. It is also close to a large motorcycle manufacturer who is the potential customer. This is an ideal location for a growing company and the rate of development could become attractive for immigrants due to the emerging facilities. TECHNOLOGY Product Profiling The product profiling approach is an analysis understands the requirements for production and the characteristics available for each process to meet production specification. A comparative analysis helps in process choice the layout structure to adopt. Original Equipment Manufacture would be done through the batch production process. The process type helps utilize the standardized production format due to low variety. It also helps improve the efficiency of production and spreads the overhead costs over more units. The Specialist Manufacture is a jobbing type process while the Aftermarket production is Batch Production therefore if we go for a flow line production process; it would impede our production process. Thus if for OEM, a flow line is chosen then Specialist Manufacture must be outsourced to compensate for the complexity of the production process. However the Specialist manufacture is the core competence of Friction Materials and to let go of it would be synonymous to throwing your market share away. If a competitor comes by and vertically integrates that section of your company, then there is a potential buy-out of Friction Materials. Therefore it was sensible to use a flexible Bach production process currently which could move into a flow production process with enough investment to justify the resources required to change it. Process Choice Project SPECIALIST PARTS AFTER MARKET Jobbing ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT Batch Line Continuous High Volume Low Alex and Terry Hill 2009 Volume High Low Low High Low Variety Fixed Position Process Cell Feasible Flow Product High High Low Regular Flow Dr Watt 2010 However, for a long-term capacity planning, investment decision and availability of funds could make OEM be more flow line suited. This occurs when there is a huge volume to justify the investment and good forecast of an emerging market hence a growing demand and a comfortable market share to control. The OEM batch process tends towards the flow line production section. Process Choice SPECIALIST PARTS Project AFTER MARKET Jobbing ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT Batch OEM Line Continuous High Volume Low Alex and Terry Hill 2009 CAPACITY A capacity strategy is a review of how the personnel would work effectively with the resources and machinery available. For the OEM, there is a predictable demand known a year prior to production, hence a level capacity strategy typifies the production. There is no lead or lag in production and demand hence the make to order plan. LEVEL CAPACITY PRODUCTION The capacity is set at 3000DBP per week at standard working week of 40hours. This helps both capacity and personnel utilization and a tight budget schedule. If there is a change in capacity planning, shift hour or overtime can be used to compensate for such. However this plan is for the current production target of 150000. INFRASTRUCTURE HUMAN RESOURCES These are specialists in the area of recruiting people for various job functions. From a manufacturing point of view, an IE is the right person for this task. This is because he has been trained to understand the right work contents the workforce required to achieve maximum capacity utilization and the performance measurement attached to each job function. However the HR specialist understands how to tie the salary structure and the benefit (both money and material) attached to him. Therefore the strategy would be to employ the unskilled workforce and train them to a basic minimum skill level required to do the basic non skilled operations like printing, packaging and painting and machining while we use a higher wage structure to lure the skilled workers; should we need them. The unskilled workers could be temporary workers or permanent workers depending on the requirements while the skilled workers would be made permanent to increase core competency. Periodic training like safety and their specific job functions would be necessary to update the level of skill and technology across board. PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT THE BALANCED SCORE CARD It is a framework that converts the vision of the company into performance measures that can be interpreted and monitored. The mission statement should thus be seen as the action plan that drives the company on the journey to the destination it hopes to achieve in future. LEARNING AND GROWTH FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE CUSTOMERS PERCEPTION AND EXPECTATION INTERNAL STRUCTURE AND INFRASTRUCTURE STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES Fig : The balanced Score Card Slack, chambers Johnston 2007 Strategic Objectives Strategic Measurements Core outcomes Performance Drivers 1 Financial Increase Profitability Increase Revenue Project Cost Reduced Cost Compete Based on Cost Operational Efficiency 2 Customer Increased market share Share of segment % presence in the OE sector Customer satisfaction Customer feed back % satisfaction, positive feedback 3 Internal Revenue mix Research and Development collaboration Prototype designs success rate Increase ROCE High ROCE Higher utilization of resources 4 Learning and growth Employee capability Staff productivity Reduced scrap rate Upgrade of facilities Systems Audit Improved cycle times Adapted Balanced Scorecard, Kaplan and Norton 1996 Financial perspective Growth: The dream of every business is growth; and so is Friction Material. The growth of the company is the gate way to expansion in other markets and could be a factor in increasing the Market share which has been set as at 2 years. Increased Profitability: The profitability of a company is its ability to satisfy the demand of production; output, overheads and cost of production and still make a margin. Most businesses are set-up with an aim to make money; either primary or secondary. Friction Materials made profit this year and the OEM is a lee-way to guarantee constant volumes of production and with a high efficiency system, the OEM would be the source of revenue for the company. This is because the OEM has a huge potential to turn the fortunes of the company around from a small company to a Large company with huge revenue and large market share. In an emerging market like the OEM, the first to enter the market usually dominates a great percentage of the market share. Therefore it is pertinent for Friction Materials to be in the market as one of the pioneer members. The OEM would generate huge revenue as they have a huge volume of production thus reducing the cost accrued to the production costs and overheads and consequently drives d own the cost of production and hence increases profitability Profitability of the OEM is vital to the existence of the company as it helps to generate a funds through production that could be ploughed back to the operation of the other product range and with good decision making and investment policies; the company will be transformed into a World Leader in the manufacture of DBP. Profitability of the company also helps it satisfy its personnel commitment; paying of salaries and bonuses to the workers for increased motivation. If a business is not profitable, the management of the company could struggle to pay wage and this would ultimately impact on the shop floor reducing the productivity of the workers; as most workers would lack the motivation to continue work without pay. Ultimately the customers; the motorcycle manufacturers would get affected as Friction Materials could end up not meeting the demand target and are imposed heavy fines. Gradually the company would lose its competitiveness and could end up being bankrupt if it continues to fail to meet the target. The contract would be cancelled and the production would be hampered. The end result could be the administration of the company, since it cannot meet its basic obligation. Cost Reduction Sustaining growth is all about meeting the expectation of the shareholders, those responsible for the investing money and time to the success of the company. In Sustaining the growth of the company, good asset utilization and cost reduction policies like getting depreciated machines to work effectively, helps to reduce the overheads and unwanted cost attached to the daily running expenses of the company. The OEM is a cost-competitive market and imploring a strategy to drive down cost is worthwhile. Trade-offs associated with low cost production should be properly weighed before decisions are made else it could eventually cost more; both for the cost of rework and the excess and unnecessary man-hours used. For instance, if the cost of a standard back plate is $10 and you get a supplier for $6, it is possible that the manufacturer might not be able to meet production target. So if you hire him for your supplies and he fails to deliver, in panic, you might need to get another supplier w ho would end up charging you more than it would cost and you might have to run extra man-hours to cover up for production time lost. All these could cost more compared to the stable $10 who is guaranteed to deliver when needed. Customer Perspective Increased market share The market share is a portion of a business sector where you dominate. In reality, big companies like McDonalds have almost all the market share between them leaving the remaining for smaller companies. The idea is that every company sells a particular volume of the product in the market. Companies with dominant shares sell high volumes of stock periodically. Friction Materials has market share as one of its targets because it aims to be a profitable business. If they can churn out large volumes of DBP and exhaust their production capacity in terms of sales; then they would be able to get the overhead cost driven low. This helps put the Cost reduction strategy in check and increases the viability for profit making. A large market share increases the brand image of the company and opens doors for wider reach to the Far Eastern and Global markets on a whole. It also helps increase the possibility of dominating the Local market. Based on the operational capabilities of the company and the entry into the OEM market, Friction Materials could boast of a sizeable market share so far as other factors are favorable. With percentage market share dominance, plans like marketing drive sales promos and exhibition events like auto fares can be used to boost their brand image and ultimately sell the product to the market. The market share volume determines the amount of profit and volume of DBP that could be sold over a period of time. Customer satisfaction Customer is king, should be at the back of the mind of every employee of Friction Materials. This is because the customer makes it possible for the employee to be paid; if the DBPs are not quality ones or the customers are not satisfied, they could easily turn to a competitor and this affects the market share of the company. Since we regard the customer as king, and production is based on customer needs; it is imperative that Friction Materials delights its customer base by going the extra mile to meet with them, to have a personal experience with them. This helps the company reach out to potential customers and at the same time get a good understanding of the performance of the DBP in the market and ways to improve the current production specifications and designs without altering the standard specification requirement for manufacture. It also helps identify potential areas of strengths and weaknesses as emerging opportunity that abound but have not been fully utilized. For the OEM to succeed, the customer must be delighted exceptionally and satisfied with the unique qualities of the DBP else Friction Materials would lose ground to their competitors and could lose their competitive advantage to poor human relationship. Therefore the company should make the customer the aim of the production process and in pleasing a customer that could be a potential chain of new customers. It is widely said that it costs a lot to get a new customer compared to retaining one of them. Thus it is more profitable to secure already existing customer base by delighting them exceptionally while looking for incremental business than to look for more business and neglect current customer base. Internal Process Perspective Research and development For Friction Materials to remain relevant in the OEM, the RD team would be expected to design and develop new lines for production. The ability to meet this requirement is one of the basic tasks of Friction Materials as an OEM. Therefore it is an important aspect of the company that needs to be restructured. Currently, there is no department for RD and since it is a major requirement by the contractor, a new R and D department be formed. The design engineer as well as the local specialist firm that was integrated needs to be incorporated in this department to work together for the progress of the company. A good R D enables breakthroughs which can yield huge revenue. Similar to this is the Astra Zeneca R D who charge premium price for discoveries in their RD that are able to sail through to the production stage. RD also increases skill level of the company and takes the competitiveness to a higher level. Thus it gets to a point where they could re-define the characteristic qualities of performance of DBP as seen by the 5 seconds telephone response employed by Zenith bank to attend to customer enquiries. High ROCE: A high ROCE for Friction Materials signifies a good balance of employee strength. The ROCE is a financial tool used to understand the extent of effective utilization of resources. If the employees are trained well and given the right resources to work with and appropriate incentives and benchmarks to go with, then they would be well motivated to achieving company targets. When the targets are met, they can be used as benchmarks to be built upon. With a steady growth rate in ROCE, investment on raw materials, machines and personnel would be justified. Productivity, efficiency and proper scheduling of the production process are the hallmark to achieving a high ROCE. An Acid test ratio can be used to measure the liquidity of the company, the more liquid a company is; the stronger it is. Thus using a benchmark as a source of strength makes the top management of the company a focused one. Growth Employee capability reskilling people Upgrade of facilities buying new machines ORGANIZATION The organizational structure of Friction Materials should change from a process based leadership to a functional matrix organizational structure where the operations personnel have easier access to top management for decision making and policy formulation. For a small company like Friction Materials, the Organizational hierarchy is very visible. Too many management port-folios or positions; as is seen here, creates a communication problem such that escalating issues or problems as seen on the shop floor could take a while before it gets to the appropriate table and this makes flexibility very low. If friction arises between the managers, it could trickle down to the shop floor. Besides there is unclear definition of roles and responsibilities and this is a potential disaster because of the ownership of responsibility for failure or damage. Thus instead of creating an operations unit, they are building a potential silo. This hampers effective communication between the operations crew. The dual role for the sales manager could also be detrimental to the progress of the company as there might be sub-optimization of the sales department and biased decision making; should he be in contest with another manager. There should be a common focus of top-management on the direction, aims and objectives and the vision should be shared collectively. Time out on team building and holiday trips could be scheduled to help foster relationships of employees of Friction Materials. Having grudges against people is a reality of life, but when it affects the productivity of the company, it becomes questionable. Job roles and functions should be well defined and the performance; measured. This helps make the workers responsible for the daily activities and could improve productivity. A good reward and compensation scheme (bonus) could be employed but it must be properly structured to avoid sub-optimization of departments or resources. PRODUCTION AND PLANNING CONTROL The planning and control system of Friction Materials Ltd is the MRPII but is underutilized at the moment as there is no skilled clerical worker that can handle the software. The clerical workers need to proceed on a flexible training schedule to learn the latest version and application of the MRP II system. There should also be an online order and portal system where purchase orders and payments can be made and reduce the over reliance on the telephone order or fax as there could be ambiguity in communication. The capacity planning features of the MRP II system was not in use and the WIP records for an on-going production process is not recorded which makes it almost impossible to be able to plan for adequate capacity and schedule for raw materials hence the high inventory levels. A kanban pull system can be implemented for the production of the OE market to meet production targets until a full scale imp

Importance of International Marketing

Importance of International Marketing Jump to: SWOT Analysis | External Analysis | Marketing Mix Analysis International marketing is an important aspect of a businesss planning process if they wish to go global. Today, almost every marketing organisation, large or small, is touched in some way by global competition- from the America florist that buys its flowers from Dutch nurseries, to the Melbourne clothing retailer that sources its merchandise in Asia, to the American electronics manufacturer competing in its home markets with giant Japanese rivals, to the Australian consumer goods designer leading the way with new products for international markets. Kotler P, Brown L, Adam S, Burton S, Armstrong G (2007). Before an organisation makes the decision to go global and sell its products to a new market they must research their potential markets in terms of the political and legal environment, the economic structure of the market and who the organisation will market its products to and how it will do this. This essay focuses on why international marketing is important and how an organisation can seek out opportunities and eliminate threats. Body Kotler P, et al (2007) states Marketing is an organisational function and a set of processes for creating, communicating and delivering value to customers and for managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organisation and its stakeholders. Managing the consumer relationship as well as the stakeholders requires understanding the different needs and wants of the different parties involved. The consumers want the best quality product at the cheapest price however this comes at a cost for the organisation because they also have a duty of care in managing the relationship with the stakeholders for example the shareholders who want to make a high return on their investment. Businesses wanting to move their products in the global market use International marketing when they gather information about their target market. The information gathered would include such things as; the demographics of the market, the current political environment, what economic system the country operates under and the culture of the country. International marketing is essential for businesses to survive in the global marketplace. Not taking international marketing seriously could lead to the business failure in their overseas markets. However using the right tools the organisation can avoid this. Why is International Marketing important? International marketing is important for businesses wanting to grow in the global market where businesses compete for consumers last dollar. International marketing looks at what it currently does e.g. who they market to, how they do this. However in the global sense, it looks at what it has to change to get the new market and what can it keep the same as back home. What other competition exists in the new market, what laws exists that may affect the businesses operations, how can the product adopt the different culture. Market Opportunity The business may use a SWOT analysis to determine what its current position is in the market place is. The SWOT analysis looks at the organisations internal and external factors and assess what it needs to do to increase the strengths and eliminate the weaknesses and use the opportunities available to decrease any threats. Internal S: Strengths This includes the businesses capabilities, for example experience and knowledge in the market place, whether the organisation has any competitive advantage, for example the right people working for the organisation, the quality of the product and at a price that its competitors cant beat. Another factor to consider is the brand image, whether the brands image is established or not, and whether it is easy to recognise. W: Weaknesses This may include gaps in the capabilities of the organisation, for example, a lack of cash flow, a lack of knowledge in the certain area or a lack of leadership. External O: Opportunities An opportunity can be that the organisations products or service can fill a niche in the market place, the new market maybe closer to the businesses supply chain resulting in a lower cost for the product. T: Threats The political structure of the market, the legal barriers, changing customer expectations. Economic environment There are four main types of economic structures: Market capitalism, centrally planned socialism, centrally planned capitalism, and market socialism. As described by Keegan Green (2005) Market capitalism is an economic system in which individuals and firms allocate resources and production resources are privately owned. Therefore consumers decide what goods they desire and firms determine what and how much to produce; the role of the state is to promote competition and ensure consumer protection. This is currently the most common economic system around the world. Countries operating under Market capitalism are the easiest to get into, but also have the most competition, which means businesses wanting to move into countries with market capitalism will have to put the time into looking at whether the organisation has any sources of competitive advantage, and if it does not, what it can do to be able to gain a competitive advantage. As described by Keegan Green (2005) Centrally Planned Socialism is where the state has the broad power to serve the public interests as it sees fit. State planners make top down decisions about what goods and services are produced and in what quantities and therefore consumers spend their money on what is available. Organisations wanting to move their products and/or services into countries that operate under centrally planned socialism have to have a clear plan for its entry into the marketplace. There will be less economic freedom in centrally planned socialist countries because the state makes the decision on who receives resources. This is the most difficult market to get into due to the controls placed on organisations by the state. If an organisation is wanting to operate in this particular marketplace, it may have to enter into a partnership agreement with the government. Political Risk factors As stated by Kotabe and Helsen (2008) the political environment in every country is regularly changing. New social pressures can force governments to make new laws or to enforce old policies differently. Policies that supported international investment may change towards isolationism or nationalism. The environment in each target market should be analysed to determine its level of economic and political risk and opportunity. Organisations moving into the global market, it must assess the political risk, the organisation must be aware of the history of the political and economic structure of the country as well as the current systems which the country operates under. Political risk is the risk of a change in the political environment or the governments policy, which could adversely affect a companys ability to operate effectively and profitability. If the political risk is too high in a country, foreign investment is going to be low. Some of the political risks involved for international marketing are; The political structure of the country; how rapidly are the government of the country is changed. This factor relates to the governments polices and the level of bureaucracy involved in the system. Other factors include how prevalent corruption is in the normal day to day operations of the business. This will affect the businesses ethical and social responsibility and may have a negative on its brand image. An example of how the political situation can change rapidly and have a negative impact on organisations is Cuba. Under the Batista dictatorship foreign investment, mostly from the United States of America flowed in, eventually reaching around 2 billion dollars. However communist revolutionaries commanded by Fidel Castro seized Havana and overthrew Batista in 1959, and proceeded to nationalise much of the assets owned by foreign investors. Market segmentation Markets consist of buyers, and buyers differ in one or more ways. They may differ in their wants, resources, location, buying attitudes and buying practices. Because buyers have unique needs and wants, each buyer is potentially a separate market. Organisations have to choose parts of the market which they want to target rather than competing for the entire market; this is what market segmentation is, breaking the market into different groups of people, based on their needs and wants, as well as what makes them want to buy a product. This all allows the organisation to determine who their products are aimed at. Demographic segmentation This involves dividing the market into groups based on each demographic variable, for example, the age, gender, family size, family life-cycle, income, occupation, education, religion and nationality of individuals who buy the businesses products. For example Chinas population is 300 times larger of New Zealands. Therefore the organisation must break these groups of the potential buyer of the product. Behavioural segmentation Behaviour segmentation focuses on whether or not people buy and use a product, as well as how often and what quantity consumers use or consume. Researching this information about the new market, the business may find opportunities such as there is a niche in the market that consumers look for in a product. Behavioural segmentation is about the potential benefits people look for in a product. Psychographic segmentation Psychographic segmentation involves grouping people in terms of their attitudes, value, and lifestyles. This information is usually obtained through surveys and questionnaires and other types of studies. Marketing Mix Product Introducing your product in the international market comes with a whole new marketing mix analysis. When opening an organisations product to a new market the organisation has to assess what the product is, what it stands for and how the organisation is going to market this product. If there are already similar products in this market, how is the business going to different the product from its competition? The brand image of the product may be a source of competitive advantage to the organisation. Whether the product is locally made or made in another country, is all part of the brand image. This plays out in the perception that if a product is made in Asia, it might not be of the same quality as it would be if it was made in New Zealand. Going into a new market, the organisation has to take into account the religion and the culture of the country. For example selling NZ pork in Indonesia; Indonesia is the largest Muslim country in the world. How does an organisation market this product? Through the market segmentation, the organisation should be able to break down different groups of people in that country for example how many non-Muslims live in that country, which can help the organisation market its product. The organisation must also figure out how it can do this without upsetting the main religion of the country. Price Selling the product at the right price that best suits the product. Going to a new market the organisation may have to change its pricing strategies to match the country. This all depends on several factors, such as how much competition there is in the market, whether the product the organisation is selling is in a low income area, which would have the result of many people not being able to afford to buy the product if it is too expensive. Promotion When an organisation is promoting their product and/or service in the international marketplace, it has to consider factor such as, what the organisation does currently to promote its product/service and how or if they can change this form of promotion to reach a new target market. The type of promotion that the organisation used domestically may not work the same in the foreign marketplace due to different demographics, culture etc. When Fisher Paykel launched its product line in China earlier this year, they launched it at the biggest appliance show in China, knowing that there would be a lot of viewers and potential buyers of their products at this show. Placement Placement is the distribution of an organisations product and is an important aspect of entering a foreign marketplace. In order to sell their products an organisation has to have an effective distribution network, and establishing one can often be a very expensive and time consuming job. One way to gain a distribution network is to acquire wholely an existing business that sells a competing product. Conclusion International Marketing is important for businesses that are thinking of going global or already have. How the organisation reached its target market domestically may not work the same in the new marketplace. There are different tools that the businesses can use to find opportunities, and also many strategies to use in the new marketplace which will improve the chances of a return on the time and money the organisation invested in its new marketplace Before entering the new marketplace the organisation may carry out research to find out which countries will provide the best return for the organisation, this can be done by analysing the countrys economic system and the level of political risk present. An organisation may use a SWOT analysis to look at its current internal and external environment. A SWOT analysis will outline the organisations strengths, whether it has any competitive advantages and if so how can they use this to their benefit. The SWOT analysis also highlights the organisations weakness and any opportunities threats that may arise for the organisation. The organisation may use market segmentation as another tool to analyse who its target market is through demographic, psychographic and behavioural segmentation, as well as who may use their product/service, when they may use the product/service, how this product could be used and why and how it can reach all of its target market. Another tool that the organisation may use is a marketing mix analysis, this analyses what its products are, what pricing strategy it will use in the new market, how the organisation can promote the product, whether it will keep the same promotion method as it does domestically or promote it differently and how will they get the products to the consumers. International marketing is more than just selling your products in a new marketplace, it is about building relationships with the consumers, for the organisation to do this it must understand what the needs and wants of their consumers are, and at price will they pay to get this. Reference Keegan, W.J., Green, M.C. (2005). Global Marketing. (4TH ed.). Upper Saddle River, N, J: Prentice Hall. p. 151, 154,155,228,235,237,49 Kotabem M., Helsen, K. (2008). Global Marketing Management. (4TH ed.). Hoboken, N, J: John Wiley Sons, Inc. Kotler, P, Brown, L, Adam, S, Burton, S, Armstrong G. (2007). (7TH ed.). Frenchs Forest, NSW; Pearson Education Australia. p.25, 7

Working With Special Needs Students Changed My Life Essay -- Community

"Love cannot remain by itself — it has no meaning. Love has to be put into action and that action is service." - Mother Teresa Boom! A toy dashes across the room and slams against the nicely painted wall. A blood curdling scream comes racing through the room and my eyes rush towards a small little body sprawled out on the carpet. The body is tossing and turning about, kicking its arms and legs. While to some this predicament may seem unnerving, to me it is a normal night at OSEP. This past year I was giving the opportunity to volunteer at OSEP, a program for special needs children and their siblings. The OSEP program provides a safe place twice a month for special needs children along with their siblings, which allows their parents a few hours to relax and have a night out. Most parents of special needs children can not find babysitters who are willing to watch their child, so OSEP gives parents that chance to have a small break. In the OSEP program there is a variety of different children I had the privilege to come in contact with; these children range from mental retardation,...

Essay --

A common meta-narrative surrounding the American Civil War deals with each side's motivation for fighting: the North fought to preserve the Union, while the Confederacy fought to preserve â€Å"states† rights, which tends to deemphasize the role that role racial slavery played in the nation’s history. In addition, when slavery is discussed, it is removed from political discussion and the North is often glorified for fighting for black American interests, eventually minimizing the racial tension that fraught the United States, in both the North and South. This paper will thoroughly describe the non-racial knowledge that has been subjugated around the Civil War, connect this knowledge to the grand narrative of this nation's history, and discuss how it problematizes general knowledge by deemphasizing its significance in America's history, ultimately outlining that ignorance of race relations in this country has only led to more racial tension. First, analyzing the story behind the Northern and Southern motivation for the war shines light on how and why the knowledge subjugated around the Civil War commonly minimizes issues like slavery and racism. Deemphasizing slavery by focusing history on the idea that the North fought to keep states united and that the South seceded in the name of states’ rights does two important things. First, it diminishes the role racism played in American history and it also allows racism to be hidden behind states’ rights rather than discussed in honest terms. The North did fight for unity among states, but such unity called for an economy that did not rely on slave labor (Zinn 177). The South did secede claiming states’ rights, but those â€Å"rights† were to own property as they wished, that is to say human beings ... ...ended but race discrimination is an issue that is still going on in this country. Racism has been significantly reduced but unfortunately many individuals still have to face this problem. African Americans are not the only individuals that are affected by racism today. Individuals of many other races are also affected by this issue The struggle over racial slavery may be the predominant theme in American history (Loewen 137) and should not be ignored or downplayed in any degree. Although the causes of racism are a complicated historical issue, it is important to understand the dynamic interplay between slavery as a socioeconomic system and racism as the overlying ideological system (Loewen 143). The ideological system of racism has long outlived the socioeconomic system of slavery (Loewen 144) and learning from history in this way helps to prevent repetition of it.

Anxiety, stress and burnout in nursing Essay

Anxiety, stress and burnout in nursing is a significant issue, which affects many nurses during their professional career (McVicar, 2003). Graduate nurses transitioning from university education to a hospital setting face additional causes of stress and new challenges at this time and require accommodating measures such as a supportive work environment (Chang & Hancock, 2003). At present the nation is experiencing a severe nursing shortage that is impacting greatly on the work conditions of nurses that remain (Chang & Hancock, 2003). In this critical appraisal stress and burnout will be defined, as will all major terms throughout this paper. The author will discuss the critical nursing shortage and describe the symptoms of stress and burnout. Causes of burnout and stress will be discussed in relation to the graduate and experienced nurse. The author will present and discuss stress and burnout prevention strategies. Throughout this essay empirical evidence will be used to demonstrate validity of concepts. A literature search was conducted using computerized databases that were searched over the time period 2003-2008 and included Academic Search Premier, psycINFO, Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, EJS E-Journals Database, Professional Development Collection, Medline, Health Source: Nursing/Academic Edition, Health Source: Consumer Edition and Cinahl. Key words searched included burnout, nursing, anxiety, stress, shortage, graduate, and strategies. Stress is thought to be connected to an individual’s response to specific demands, if the individual assesses the demand as beyond their resources this generates a stress response (Clancy & McVicar, 2002, as cited in McVicar, 2003). Stress responses include variation in an individual’s biochemical, physiological and behavioural processes (Billter-Koponen & Freden, 2005). According to McVicar (2003) the ability of the individual to handle the stress response is dependent on specific experiences, coping mechanisms and the environment where demands are produced. Stress is usually part of a larger problem and is noted as the first phase of a ‘chronic process’ (Gillespie & Melby, 2003). If severe stress and anxiety persist without interventions being implemented this may lead to burnout, which is typically characterized by emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation and reduced personal accomplishment (Maslach & Jackson, 1986 as cited in Chang &  Hancock, 2003). Chang, Daly & Hancock et al., (2006) suggests that stress from work reduces the quality of work environment, job satisfaction, psychological wellbeing and physical health on nurses. Since stress has been identified as prevalent in nursing there have been various research studies discussing the causes and impacts of stress (Billter-Koponen & Freden, 2005). As well as the effects of work place stress on nurses, there is the larger issue of the consequences for the health care system, with many nurses finding the only way to cure burnout is leaving the workforce, this is further impacting the serious shortage of nurses world wide (Chang et al., 2005; Edwards and Burnard, 2003 as cited in Chang, Bidwell & Huntington, 2007). A literature review of stress in nursing by Chang, Hancock & Johnson et., 2005 commented that currently the severe shortage of nurses in Australia is the largest since World War II and reports that by 2010, there will be a shortage of approximately 40, 000 nurses (RMIT University, 2003 as cited in Chang, Hancock & Johnson et al., 2005). A report by AIHW (2005), found that the nursing work force has persisted to age, with the average age of nurses increasing from 42.2 years old in 2001 to 45.1 years old in 2005 and the amount of working nurses aged over 50 years has increased from 24.4% to 35.8%. The older population of nurses will eventually be leaving the profession in years to come when the shortage of nurses is at its worst, this will further compound the issue (Janiszewski Goodin, 2003). The Australian government has responded to the issue of an aging workforce by encouraging older nurses to continue with further study and actively discouraging them from retiring (Wickett, McCutcheon & Long, 2003). After many years of decline of enrolments to tertiary nursing courses there has been a considerable influx of applicants, this is thought to be created by the governments increasing media campaigns to generate interest in nursing as a career, however, the boost in enrolments does not necessarily solve the nursing shortage as the larger issues of why retention of nurses has not been successful have not been addressed and media campaigns could almost been seen as a ‘band-aid’ covering up the larger problems (Wickett, McCutcheon & Long, 2003). The nursing shortage has seen many ‘unskilled’ workers entering the aged care sector as a ‘substitution’ of registered  nurses; currently the aged care system is overwhelmed with demand and †˜patient complexity’ (Wickett, McCutcheon & Long, 2003). Duffield & O’Brien-Pallas (2002, as cited in Wickett, McCutcheon & Long, 2003) suggest three main reasons for the growing nursing shortage, these include, personal issues that pertain to stress, burnout and an inadequacy of balance in their personal lives. Secondly Duffield & O’Brien-Pallas (2002, as cited in (Wickett, McCutcheon & Long, 2003) cite organizational and management issues, which relate to workplace violence, either verbal or physical between patients or staff, as issues of concern in retention of nurses as well as professional issues with dissatisfaction stemming from the ability of the nurse to provide quality of care in circumstances of high demand (Chang, Hancock & Johnson, 2005; Wickett, McCutcheon & Long, 2003). These unresolved problems contributing to the nursing shortage emphasize the urgency of studying the nursing profession and environment so that the sustainability of the health care system can continue (Chang, Hancock & Johnson, 2005). There are multiple symptoms of anxiety and burnout, as noted, prolonged stress and anxiety can result in burnout. Physical effects of stress include persistently elevated arterial blood pressure, indigestion, constipation or diarrhoea and weight gain or loss (McVicar, 2003). In cases of severe prolonged stress physical effects can progress to clinical hypertension, gastric disorders, nausea, fatigue, headaches and exacerbated symptoms of asthma (McVicar, 2003; Billter-Koponen & Freden, 2005). The possible cause of fatigue in severe stress and anxiety is high levels of cortisol, which is a hormone that can be produced in excess when a person is stressed leading to cortisol affecting sleep patterns and resulting in sleep difficulties (Billter-Koponen & Freden, 2005). According to Hugo (2002, as cited from Billter-Koponen & Freden, 2005) symptoms of stress in European countries are rising, in 2003 over 5,000 nurses in Sweden were sick for over 30 days with approximately 40% of the diagn osis for the long-term absence from work being emotional exhaustion (burnout), the 2003 statistics were reported to have increased by 20% from the previous year. Billter-Koponen & Freden (2005) suggests that the larger proportion of demands for nurses are psychologically related and in turn this creates more psychological  disturbances than physical symptoms. The three core elements of burnout; emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation and reduced personal accomplishment can produce various psychological effects. Emotional exhaustion may occur when the nurse experiences the inability to function professionally at a psychological level, the symptoms may include depression, sleep disturbances and the inability to control emotions (Maslach et al., 1996 p.4 as cited in Gillespie & Melby, 2003; Patrick & Lavery, 2007). A nurse who develops depersonalization may have feelings of irritability, anger and a general negative attitude towards clients, according to Leiter (1993, as cited in Patrick & Lavery, 2007) depersonalization transpires from a need to create distance from the work that is emotionally draining (Maslach et al 1996 p.4. as cited in Pa trick & Lavery, 2007; Chang & Hancock, 2003). Reduced personal accomplishment can create feelings of inadequacy, self-doubt, low self-esteem and the predisposition to view their level of skill and care negatively (Chang & Hancock, 2003; Patrick & Lavery, 2007). These symptoms are especially worrying as they can reduce quality of care and decrease patient satisfaction (Janssen et al ., 1999; Garrett & McDaniel, 2001 as cited in Chang & Hancock, 2003). It is generally accepted that nurses who are excessively stressed or experiencing burnout typically have poor job satisfaction, high absenteeism rates and many nurses contemplate leaving the profession altogether (Larson, 1987; Callaghan & Field, 1991 as cited in Chang & Hancock, 2003). A qualitative study by Billter-Koponen & Freden (2005) interviewed nurses about their own experiences regarding work place anxiety, stress and burnout, the nurses commented they felt ‘powerless’ to avoid burnout and had inadequate time or energy to take on patient demands. The nursing profession involves demands beyond clinical technical skills, teamwork and constant care of patients; the role of nursing requires a high level of ‘emotional labour’, which can lead to many complex causes of stress and burnout (Phillips, 1996 as cited in McVicar, 2003). Gillespie & Melby (2003) found that the length of shifts and shift patterns, which included night duty contributed to emotional exhaustion, personal relationship problems, difficulty concentrating and fatigue. Similarly, Efinger et al., (1995 as cited in McVicar, 2003) reported shift work as  having a negative influence on social and personal aspects of the nurses’ lives, it was also mentioned that night shift work was particularly draining in terms of physical health and disrupted family life. Furthermore a study by Chang, Daly & Hancock et al., (2006) consisting of 320 randomly selected Australian registered nurses who were listed on the New South Wales registration board database found that workload was the most common source of stress with indications that high workload negatively affected the mental health of nurses. Chang, Daly & Hancock et al., (2006) also comment on the legal requirements of providing a safe work place in which workers are not under excessive stress, which is affecting their mental health. However, a study by Patrick & Lavery ( 2007) based on a random sample of 574 division 1 Victorian Australian Nursing Federation members were surveyed on burnout in nursing stated that hours worked by nurses have a weak correlation with emotional exhaustion. Yet it could be argued that these results are not a true indication of full-time nurses feelings as 65.73% of the participants worked part-time or casual nursing roles with the average amount of hours that nurses worked in this study being 32.17 hours, which amounts to a ‘lower average’ than full time work (Patrick & Lavery, 2007). A cross-sectional study by Spooner-Lane & Patton (2007) found that nurses who worked full-time experienced higher levels of emotional exhaustion compared to part-time or casually working nurses. Increases in workload exist in other areas such as recent updating of technology, extra responsibilities, paper work and increasing staff shortages (Chang & Hancock, 2003). A study by Gillespie & Melby (2003) that consisted of a triangulated research design, which incorporates both qualitative and quantitative methods as well as using questionnaires, focus groups and interviews found that staff shortages were cited numerous times as a significant cause of anxiety and stress. The nurses specifically identified the use of agency staff as a concern as many nurses expressed the issue of spending valuable time assisting agency staff in locating equipment and explaining the way that particular ward operated (Gillespie & Melby, 2003). A nurse that was interviewed in Billter-Koponen & Freden’s (2005) study reported trying to bridge the gap of time lost from extra demands by coming in early, working through meal breaks, and staying back to work longer. Nurses interviewed in  Gillespie & Melby’s (2003) study also stated that ‘junior nurses’ were forced to take on roles beyond their experience. A focus group by the Australian Governmen t further reports levels of growth in turnover and the increased amount of more acute patients as a source of stress due to staff levels remaining stagnant while demands escalate (Chang & Hancock, 2003). Considering levels of demand are high and staff levels are not increasing as well as substituting agency staff or pressuring junior staff to meet senior roles these pressures would certainly contribute to anxiety, stress and potentially, burnout. Role ambiguity can be described as insufficient information about specific responsibilities and roles that a nurse must undertake (Chang & Hancock, 2003). Role ambiguity can occur in the form of objective ambiguity, which arises from ‘lack’ of information for that particular role, and subjective ambiguity, which is associated with the ‘social’ and ‘psychological’ features of ‘role performance’ (Kahn et al., 1964, as cited in Chang & Hancock, 2003). Chang & Hancock (2003) conducted a qualitative study of 110 tertiary nursing graduates from 13 institutions across New South Wales, Australia who work in one of four teaching hospitals about role stress in graduate nurses, the participants were surveyed during 2-3 months of working and then again between 10-11 months. Chang & Hancock (2003) reported the graduates experienced role ambiguity within the first few months of working and this continued throughout the 12 months as well as being a contributor to lower job satisfaction. However, Chang & Hancock’s (2003) study was limited due to the use of self-reporting by the graduates, which is subjective and not objective data. Patrick & Lavery (2007) suggests role ambiguity is an extra stressor as graduates endeavor to fulfill their expected roles whilst experiencing new challenges. Role overload typically occurs whilst graduates are learning time management skills and learning new roles (McVicar, 2003). Chang & Daly (2001, as cited in Chang & Hancock, 2003) identify that role overload can intensify the effects of role ambiguity. Chang & Hancock (2003) found that role overload became a larger contributor to stress than role ambiguity in nursing graduates after 10-11 months of working. Gillespie & Melby (2003) notes a significant difficulty for graduate nurses  as they transition into a hospital environment as opposed to learning at university, this ‘gap’ between skills learned in theory within university education and the ability of realistic demands within the hospital environment could present additional stress on the graduate nurse. Madjar et al., (1997 as cited in Chang & Hancock, 2003) describes this as the ‘theory-practice gap’, which causes a clash between personal standards and own values (Jasper, 1996; Reutter et al., 1997 as cited in Chang & Hancock, 2003). Patrick & Lavery’s (2007) study supports this ‘theory-practice gap’ and goes on to further state that nurses who acquired their nursing degree at a university have higher levels of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization than hospital-trained nurses. Graduate nurses also report low levels of confidence, lack of support, unrealistic expectations of other clinical staff, unexpected work situations, adjusting to shift work and the increase in responsibility as added sources of stress (Chang & Hancock, 2003; Kelly, 1998 as cited in Chang, Hancock & Johnson et al., 2005; Patrick & Lavery, 2007). Allenach & Jennings (1990, as cited in Chang & Hancock, 2003) explain that stress from these new challenges includes anxiety. It could be assumed that normal stressors that affect all nurses regardless of age and experience affect graduate nurses as well as other specific experience- related stressors. Patrick & Lavery (2007) found that age and experience was negatively associated with burnout, suggesting that young and inexperienced nurses have a higher rate of burnout compared to older and more experienced workers. This finding is consistent with Spooner-Lane & Patton’s (2007) study of 273 nursing staff, which reported age as a signif icant indicator of burnout. Jackson et al., (2002, as cited in Chang, Hancock & Johnson et al., 2005) suggest nurses are at risk of workplace violence in the forms of verbal or physical violence from their patients, relatives and staff. Participants from Chang, Daly & Hancock’s et al., (2006) study completed four different questionnaires regarding workplace stressors and findings suggested workplace conflict between nurses and physicians was a significant cause of stress. According to Ball et al., (2002, as cited in McVicar, 2003) conflict between staff has become a more important issue throughout the previous 10  years. Due to the nature of nurses’ work where patients’ emotions are highly sensitive, as they may be scared or have a higher expectation of required care than they are receiving, nurses can be venerable to violence and research by Carter (2000, as cited in Chang, Hancock & Johnson et al., 2005) comments workplace assault is more common for nurses than any other health professi onals. The consequences of workplace violence are increased levels of anxiety, high levels of sick leave, lower levels of job satisfaction, burnout and lower retention rates (Jackson et al., 2002 as cited in Chang, Hancock & Johnson et al., 2005; RCN, 2000 as cited in Gelsema & Van Der Doef et al., 2006). The flexibility of working hours and shift patterns was a significant cause of stress for nurses, it would be safe to assume that greater flexibility in working hours could possibly reduce stress, assist nurses in achieving a more balanced life as they contend with family and other personal pressures. Strategies to achieve greater flexibility in working hours will require a concentrated effort by management and staff to achieve ‘equity’ when allocating shifts and empowering nursing staff to have preferences regarding overtime and in particular, night shift (McVicar, 2003). The workload of nursing is consistently reported to lead to an increase in anxiety, stress and burnout, therefore lowering workload would be a reasonable intervention, however workload is a complex issue which includes determinants that can be influenced by the individual or organization in which they work (Gelsema & Van Der Doef et al., 2006). The main issue that needs to be addressed is to ensure staffing levels are sufficient for that particular setting, this would greatly reduce pressures relating to patient care and reduce the incidence of staff working outside of their roles (McVicar, 2003). Other measures such as time management skills and delegation skills may further assist in reducing workload pressures. Hayhurst, Saylor & Stuenkel (2005) recommends further research into workload pressures that are associated with specific specialty areas so that programs can be implemented to target the needs of that specialty. In Chang & Hancock’s (2003) study of role stress and role ambiguity in  Australian nursing graduates it was noted that graduates experienced a high level of role ambiguity in their transition from university to the workplace. A study by Mrayyan & Acorn (2004) assessed nursing students to determine causes of burnout and invited students to suggest solutions to stressors affecting burnout. The nursing students highlighted role ambiguity as a contributor to stress and suggested a comprehensive update of job descriptions that included the scope of practice, skills and experience needed, explanation of knowledge required and a regular assessment if changes of the job expectations change. Greenwood (2000. as cited in Chang, Hancock & Johnson et al., 2005) reported that preceptor programs, orientation programs, ‘open communication’, and staff development considerably aids graduates transition and experience of role ambiguity throughout the year. Violence in the workplace in the form of verbal abuse from other colleagues is a negative experience for nurses and is the cause of significant amounts of anxiety and stress Chang, Daly & Hancock et al., 2006). McVicar (2003) suggests that conflict with staff is the responsibility of management, nurses and all other professionals. Tourangeau & Cranley (2006) advise that relationships with co-workers have a potential influence on the retention of nurses and suggests further strategies, which include praise and recognition of co-workers as well as team building strategies that increase social interaction. A qualitative study by Abuairub (2004) surveyed 303 nurses from various locations throughout the world on the effect of social support from co-workers in which, participants who ‘perceived’ having additional social support from co-workers reported lower levels of stress. Abuairub (2004) comments that extra social support from co-workers may assist in creating a more friendly and pleasurable working environment as well as nurses feeling they could call on co-workers for assistance. Graduate nurses would benefit from social support as they are constantly challenged and require guidance from all staff. Chang, Daly & Hancock et al., (2006) further support the notion of social support by reporting that a positive social climate can decrease levels of stress and ‘prevent’ burnout. The leaders of the work  environment need to foster a more socially supportive culture by demonstrating co-operation, encouraging teamwork, social equality, supportive attitudes and ed ucation about stress education and helpful coping mechanisms (Abuairub, 2004; Hayhurst, Saylor & Stuenkel, 2005). Coping strategies can be defined as psychological and ‘behavioural efforts’ to control demands that are considered as â€Å"exceeding the resources of the person† and are either problem focused which attempts to deal with or alter the problem that is the source of the stress or emotionally focused which attempts to ease ‘emotional distress’ (Lazarus and Folkman 1984, p. 141 as cited in Chang, Daly & Hancock et al., 2006). Chang, Daly & Hancock et al., (2006) comment that many studies suggest problem-focused coping to be more effective in preventing burnout than emotion-focused coping. It would be beneficial to address coping strategies with nursing staff to educate them about different methods and to assist them in recognizing coping methods that are unhelpful so that they may employ personal control to their responses of stress (Chang, Bidwell & Huntington, 2007). These strategies would greatly assist nurses in reducing stress and burnout as well as providing graduate nurses with a firm foundation of clear guidelines and support. In conclusion, the nursing profession is under high demand as our population is growing older and the acuity of patients is increasing. To ensure sustainability of the nursing profession it is essential that graduate nurses are supported in their transition from university to a hospital environment so they continue to remain in the profession. To retain more experienced nurses there must be change within nursing environments and organizations to create a more flexible and supportive workplace. The main causes of anxiety, stress and burnout have been well documented, and it is the implementation of strategies that is lacking. Further investigation into the effectiveness of prevention strategies for burnout should be explored, as better working environments will encourage more people and ex-nurses into the profession and therefore lessening the staff shortages that directly contribute to anxiety, stress and burnout.

Learning curve Essay

The term â€Å"the learning curve† has a popular, well-known meaning in American culture. In consideration of how and when you start to examine the way that term is used, most people discover that the primary and perceived meaning of the term really doesn’t make any sense. If the curve is drawn on a chart which tracks resulting knowledge against time spent learning, it might look like the Tetris © (a popular logic game) graph here to the right. By visual consideration, the chart is steepest at the beginning, when a person first starts learning how to play Tetris. The beginner usually gains knowledge quickly, learning the game in just a few minutes. Though there is much to learn, the player will never learn as quickly as he or she did at the beginning learning how to play the game. | Here is another example: I believe that most people would consider the process of blowing leafs out of their yards with a leaf blower is very simple, but is that the instance? For many, regardless of education and or experience, it only takes about two minutes to get up and running blowing leaves. Additional knowledge milestones await most people after they have invested more time, such as â€Å"flushing corners†, â€Å"minimizing blowback†, and â€Å"blinding the cyclists†. | On the charts shown in this article, the knowledge milestones are made up and arbitrary, however labeling the vertical axis can be challenging. For most people, learning can be a series of successes, but it can also be a slow refinement of technique. It isn’t really accurate for a person to say they are still learning to dribble a basketball when many NBA professionals with years of experience are still refining the process. | Shown to the right is an expanded timeline on the basketball learning curve. Many of the knowledge milestones on this chart can’t really be learned in an hour. Most people can and do learn that they exist, but are not able to actually perform them for another year. | This quest for adequate understanding was spurned by my desire to identify activities which have a shallow learning curve. If steep learning curves are grueling, then shallow ones must be enjoyable, right? Shown here on the right is a graph for the learning curve of World of Warcraft. It is definitely enjoyable. Maybe the vast number of things to learn makes it so compelling, or the timed-release of new experiences. Speed of learning is probably not the best way to determine whether or not something is fun. | Another example. Learning to drive a manual transmission. Learning to drive a manual transmission is difficult because it requires a certain level of knowledge and skill before it can be done at all. The payoff, and true measure of success, is learning it well enough to dare to venture out into real traffic on a person’s own. In consideration of the aforementioned graph, it is cognitive to most people that in many examples of learning, there is only one real milestone to be reached. | This final graph compares the learning of two different students, and it is the only chart where the idea of a â€Å"steep learning curve† actually makes sense. The lower (green) section of the graph represents the state of being unable to perform a certain task. The upper section represents the state of being able to perform it. The orange line student can be said to have a steep learning curve. The sample student crossed the threshold into â€Å"able† after one day of learning. The red line sample student had a shallow learning curve. Said student needed four days to become able to adequately learn and or retain the learned knowledge. Posters note: I found the foregoing article one day while doing research on different learning styles. The original post on Cockeyed. com I believe was meant to be satirical, however in my opinion the information is highly beneficial in understanding the original author’s perspective on how many people learn. In considering the authors said perspective, I truly believe he or she has captured what many people today consider the â€Å"learning curve† process. Please write me with any comments, questions and or concerns. William Lucas (sixsigma@earthlink. net)| |