Racial Diversity in Society Worksheet Essay

African Americans are more involved in the American political process than other minority groups in the United States, because, as indicated by the highest level of voter registration and participation in elections among these groups in 2004. African Americans have achieved higher levels of education than immigrants to the United States. African Americans also have the highest level of Congressional representation of any minority group in the United States. A large majority of African Americans also support the Democratic Party. In the 2004 Presidential Election, Democrat John Kerry received 88 percent of the African American voters compared to 11 percent for Republican George W. Bush. Historically, the African Americans who supported the Republican Party only votes were because of the Republican President Abraham Lincoln due to him helping grant freedom to American slaves. At the time, the Republicans and Democrats represented the sectional interests of the North and South, respectively, rather than any specific beliefs, and both Republicans and Democratic were represented equally in both parties. The African American trend of voting for Democrats can be traced all the way back to the 1930’s during the Great Depression. When Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal program provided economic relief to African Americans; Roosevelt’s New Deal coalition turned the Democratic Party into an organization of the working class and their liberal allies, regardless of region. The African American voters became even more exclusively Democratic, when Democratic presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson pushed for the civil rights legislation during the 1960s. After over 50 years, the marriage rates for all Americans began to decrease while the divorce rates and out-of-wedlock births have increased. These changes have been the greatest amongst the African Americans.

Mgt3202 (Change and Organization Development)

Issues (Change and Organizational Development) As  organizations evolve and come to be seen as dynamic, coping systems, the concept of how they change and methods by which they manage change has continued to be refined. (Rafe Harwood, ND) The organizational change can be structural change, technology, people or task. Managing a process of change in an organization can be a highly complex task and is often essential for effective organizational development (OD).The forces to boost the change in an organization are the Nature of the Workforce, Technology, Economic Shocks, Competition, Social Trends, and World Politics. Organizational Change entails thoughtful planning and sensitive implementation, and above all, consultation with, and involvement of, the people affected by the changes. (businessballs. com, 2012) * The observations made and any problems or issues reported by the people interviewed. Mr. NG KIAN BOON mentioned that his company, MITSUGOLD SDN. BHD. as experienced in chan ging organizational structure in terms of downsizing, he emphasize downsizing of his company is not shutting down the entire business or not because of not making profit within the organization, but to concentrate on the core and essential part of the business, and also to reduce the operating cost as they outsourcing to a real estate agency to help them do product promotion, marketing, and in house sales. He said that operational costs like computer, stationery, advertisement cost, space rental, utility bills and wages can be reduced when apply outsourcing.Moreover, real life example was given by him in his company, one of the tactful and experienced salesperson who already worked in MITSUGOLD SDN. BHD for more than 20 years ago since the company was established as a small size property developer. The woman is very used to do the sales work and she couldn’t do anything else except promoting project. As the world are changing more towards on high technology, most of the prese ntation are conducted by Microsoft PowerPoint and more visualize software as a presentation tools to give the potential buyer a clearer image of the product (eg.Residential unit) to attract them rather than the traditional ways of sales technique like verbally explained to them. As there is natural resistance over the organization change, MITSUGOLD SDN BHD will offer those employees a remuneration allowance to those does not want to change or couldn’t cope with the change. Whereas for those employees are willing to change, they will be offered a new job in other department or even promotion of the position, and also the training program. * The different perspectives on the situation which can be generated using Organization Behavior Theories and insights. The evaluation of the options for different potential recommendations & The chosen recommendationsReferences: Rafe Harwood, Organizational Change in Today's Economy, Rafe Harwood, year (Nil), online (accessed on 30th Oct 2012) available at: http://www. unfortu. net/~rafe/links/change. htm Businessballs. com, change management, Businessballs. com, 2012, online (accessed on 30th Oct 2012), available at: http://www. businessballs. com/changemanagement. htm http://managementhelp. org/organizationalchange/index. htm

Barbara Norris: Leading Change in the General Surgery Unit Essay

Barbara Norris facing many difficulties. The GSU which she lead is currently short-staffed and does not perform as she expected. Her staffs have low morale and low motivation to do their daily job. On top of that, there is a cultural issue where confrontation, blaming, and favoritism are typical in her unit. She also facing a budget problem where overtime has been eliminated due to cost cutting measure implemented on the hospital. The budget cut make it difficult to Barbara to allocate a right personnel in case of some staff take a personal or vacation leave. In many cases, she has to rely on nurses from general float pool to cover the staff on leave, but this often lead to negative effect to her staff dynamics because the substitute nurses is not familiar with the GSU. There are three broad problem Barbara has to solve: lack of collaboration and teamwork, staff conflict either within her unit or within the hospital, and lack of transparent performance appraisal procedures. All of this three issues need to be address simultaneously to ensure that the unit perform as Barbara expected. It is evident that there is conflict between junior nurses, senior nurses, and PCAS’s which lead to ineffective collaboration among them. Junior nurses feels like the don’t belong to the team and they don’t get positive feedback from senior nurses. On the other hand, senior nurses feels that many junior nurses and PCA’s are incompetent and feel overwhelmed to support them. To solve this issues, Barbara need to redefine a clear role among the nurses and make sure that the role is properly understood by all her staff. In redefining the role, she must include advice from her staff to ensure that the role definition fit within her unit. She also need to develop a transparent communication mechanism to solve any role discrepancy within her unit. To address the performance appraisal issues, Barbara needs to start creating a transparent review process. Although she still facing a budget constraint, she can utilize non-monetary approach to reward her staff. This can be in form of formal recognition in staff meeting or announcement of monthly best-staff. Although it would not directly impacted to her staff salary, it can be a great motivational tools for the junior staff to feel recognized. Barbara should also make a system where senior nurses can have a positive feedback in performance review by helping a junior nurses. Whenever possible, Barbara should persuade the hospital director to increase her unit budget.If approved, she could make a proper  adjustment to the staff salary and position based on their previous performance.

A Comparison of Athens and Sparta Research Paper

A Comparison of Athens and Sparta - Research Paper Example It was at this time that Athens emerged as the most powerful of the city states. The city emerged as the cultural capital of the entire Greek world and it was the cradle of contemporary western science and philosophy. The Athenian empire reached its zenith during Pericles’s life time. The city was full of splendor and Athenians themselves believed it to be the ‘City of God’. On the other hand, Sparta represented to a totally different world. It had its own philosophy about administration, military, education and marriage. It also differed from Athens on ideas about the nature of relationship with other Greek empires. Although Sparta was a strong military state, it was content to remain in its territory and didn’t indulge in warfare for acquisitions of new territories. On the other hand, Athens had expansionist policies. It wanted to get hold of more and more Greek territories. This expansionist policy of Athens, proposed by Pericles, led to war between the two states which ended with the defeat of Athens. Athens suffered defeat at the hands of Sparta. Although Athenians were world renowned for their superior naval units, they succumbed to the Spartan military expertise. The reason for Spartan victory can be attributed to the upbringing and training of the Spartan soldiers. This demands an in-depth investigation into the similarities and dissimilarities of the two states. The Spartans differed from Athenians in many ways. The main points around which the commonalties or differences between the two states can be discussed are Economy, Art, Lifestyle, Women, Military and Sexuality. The economic or financial policies of a nation or state depend on the nature of politics prevalent in the country. Athens and Sparta were similar on this feature because both the state’s governments were elected by people. While the Athenian government pioneered the democratic system, Sparta was a military aristocracy (McNesse, 31). In Athens, participa tion came from all walks of life. Although there were restrictions on women, men were free to discuss new ideas in the assembly. On the other hand, Sparta had much more inflexible political framework. Its own ideologies and policies made Sparta politically and economically less active. Out of the two, Athens was more economically active. It was at the centre of a great trading network that dealt with goods from as far the Britain in the west to India in the east, bringing untold wealth into the city. This trade and Athens’s expansionist ambitions led to the building of Athenian naval empire which stretched across the Aegean Sea. Agriculture was the mainstay of Athenian economy. It also prospered because of the profits brought by mining and metal crafts. As said earlier, trade also played an important part in Athens’ economy. This is a feature where there lie stark differences between the two empires. In Sparta, economic activities were carried outside the city while th ere was no such thing with Athens. Sparta also lacked a currency system, a system which was very well developed in Athens. This meant that Sparta not only had very less interaction with the outside world, it also lay dormant as far as trade was concerned. Art is a dimension where the two empires Athens and Sparta differed a lot. During the period of coexistence of Sparta and Athens, Athens produced some of the greatest sculptors and philosophers of all time. Socrates, Phidias and Plato were philosophers who still represent the immortal soul of Greek and art and Philosophy. On the other hand, Sparta was only concerned with its military glory. Although early Sparta produces marvelous pottery, it was no match to Athenian art and mathematics.

Operations and Quality Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Operations and Quality Management - Assignment Example Visibility: It is perhaps not very necessary for the kitchen and preparation areas of the restaurant to be highly visible to the customers. Medium visibility would be an ideal option in this case. However, since the entire kitchen is "on display" to the customers, there is a high degree of visibility. Variation: There will be a fairly high variation in demand for the dishes at the restaurant. Thus, Yo! Sushi will have to establish corresponding operations to match the variations in demand. There should be a constant check on the demand and other factors should be adjusted accordingly. Yo! Sushi's operations signify that is has a "service shop" process type for the food production based on customer demand. Keeping into view the 4V Profile of the restaurant, this process type complements the profile more than contradicting it. The only setback is that there are a moderate number of transactions and thus the applicability of the service shop process type would be slightly off the mark. However, the other characteristics conform to the 4V profile and complement it. The combination of a cell layout, product and functional layout strategy at Yo! Sushi's makes it very efficient and resilient for change. It is quite optimized and there are few, if any, chances for a change that would make it more effective. For one, the cell layout strategy means that there are tables categorized into cells for each group of 4-6 people that the conveyor belt also caters to. Secondly the product-layout strategy is due to the fact that there is a conveyor belt mounted to the central zone of the restaurant running across it catering to the customers. There is a combination of an assembly line and a fixed-cell layout buffering concept in the kitchen and dining areas making the design suitable for flexible operations. The functional layout is overlapping the cell and product layouts and thus the existing layout of Yo! Sushi is quite comprehensively designed and is in no need of change for the better. The existing technology to process menus and automated handling of demand is a first-class example of how the layout is effective and that there are no changes needed at the moment. The job design is greatly affected by the 4V profile and the aspects of the layout implemented at Yo! Sushi. The fact that there is a great deal of emphasis on quality and flexibility, there is a corresponding effect on the job design: the menu attendants are expected to be flexible and carry out tasks beyond a specific well-defined horizon. They are expected to be aware of the processes in and out of the kitchen in order to make up for any absentees or to complement the short-comings of a particular process or person. The health and safety implications also

BUSINESS TAXATION ( Uinted KingdomTAX System ) Essay

BUSINESS TAXATION ( Uinted KingdomTAX System ) - Essay Example This often inclusive of the value, which the item was sold at. According a journal therefore understanding the different forms of taxation and meeting their obligations is of great importance to any business. One can save money by understanding what taxation involves in a given type of business whether a sole trader or partnership. As stated in the Tax Advisor (2012), a businessperson would also take advantage of any exemptions that they might be entitled to which would at the end boost the business. This paper will explain the terms and concepts in business taxation that will aid a clear understanding; it will assess the consequences that come as a result of incorporating a sole trader business, recommendations to the trader and finally whether the business qualifies for capital gains tax incorporation relief. A sole trader is a person who runs and operates a business on their own. The sole proprietor is liable for all the assets and liabilities of the business. Moreover, sole traders have full control of their business with all the profit. In 2012, The Tax Chartered Advisor stated that the taxation system for a sole trader in the UK allows one to complete a self assessment of their business. In this form, the sole trader is allowed to show total expenses, the total income and then subtracts to get the losses or profit for the business. Should the company show a loss then it does not owe the government otherwise, the business is taxed depending on the profits earned. An incorporated company is a form of business that is owned by one person who is the director with employees working for the company. This type of business is not solely owned by one person and decisions regarding the company are made as a group. With the new tax rates that were released in the UK, it has been realized that the best way to save money by avoiding paying a lot of taxes is through the start of companies. According to Payroll Practitioner (2009), the tax

French Discussion (Choosing a cadidate for a job) Essay

French Discussion (Choosing a cadidate for a job) - Essay Example et culturels, comme  «Ã‚  Communautà © et Diversità ©Ã‚  !  Ã‚ », un grand projet annuel qui rà ©unit des politiciens, hommes daffaires, des personnalità ©s culturelles et des reprà ©sentants des plusieurs organisations non-gouvernementales pour un dialogue sur les problà ¨mes plus importants de la socià ©tà © comme la pauvretà ©, la violence et la discrimination, en proposant des solutions concrà ¨tes pour ces problà ¨mes et en donnant des fonds matà ©riels pour les solutionner. Il a des bonnes recommandations et il nous a laissà © une bonne impression aprà ¨s l’interview, parce qu’il est enthousiaste, à ©nergique, il dit qu’il aime le travail, en plus, il n’est pas marià © et il affirme qu’il peut donner tous son temps pour accomplir sa tà ¢che. En plus, ses connaissances d’anglais sont bonnes, il a prix des courses pendant trois ans. Le deuxià ¨me candidat est Mademoiselle Annette Girard, 22 ans, licencià © en gestion à ©conomique, spà ©cialisation entreprise, mais elle a fait des cours parallà ¨les pendant deux annà ©es pour obtenir une diplà ´me en administration touristique. Elle a fait parti de diffà ©rents projets culturels, parmi lesquels le projet europà ©en  «Ã‚  Discover the Culture  Ã‚ » (Dà ©couvre la Culture), qui a eu lieu en Lituanie pour deux semaines. En plus, elle a gagne le premià ¨re place dans le concours international  «Ã‚  The People Speak  Ã‚ » (Les Gens Parle), en consà ©quence elle a participe dans la confà ©rence internationale organise dans le sià ¨ge des Nations Unis à   New York- un dialogue sociale et culturel entre les jeunes reprà ©sentants de 13 pays. Elle est une personne dynamique et captivante et elle n’est pas marià ©e, donc elle peut consacrer tout son temps à   diriger le projet. Elle a travaille comme organisateur des à ©và ©nements dâ₠¬â„¢entreprise, mais elle a beaucoup d’expà ©rience en travaillant avec des personnes qui viennent des pays diffà ©rents. Ses connaissances d’anglaise sont trà ¨s bonnes, elle a le premier certificat Cambridge et des trà ¨s

Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 34

Assignment Example These fresh looks at my paper and professor comments have allowed me to achieve better papers. I now have the confidence to turn in professional college papers. Referencing was another aspect of this course that really helped me. Every course I take in my current and future educational career will require college level referencing. The referencing became easier with each paper. I have learned skills that will help me complete papers in my other classes. Since I now know the referencing system and how to cite without plagiarizing, I look forward to assigned papers. Learning referencing has given me the confidence to turn papers, essays, and other assignments without worrying about being a plagiarist. Finally, the discovery that I can interpret literature has surprised me. During high school literature bored me. I can honestly say that the reading in this course has intrigued me. I see literature in a different light. It is no longer boring words written by authors, but stories that I can really get into. This course has allowed me to learn basic essentials that I need for other classes in my educational career. Without proofreading, editing, referencing, and interpretation, my education would be a struggle. I am glad for the opportunity to learn these aspects of the English

Interrogating Thomas Paine's Agrarian Justice Essay

Interrogating Thomas Paine's Agrarian Justice - Essay Example In addition, all sermons that do not have this purpose should be considered as nonsense and hypocritical. I believe Paine is among the greatest theorists of the modern age; he never supported feudalism and aristocracy instead he supported egalitarianism. I would identify two principles that would be extremely applicable in justice; people ought to behave as a unit and not as individuals. Considering Paine’s argument, it is upon the consciousness of justice that the revolution energy will emerge and multiply natural resources such as vegetation. It is the process of unjustly obtaining resources through the name of civilization that has made people either extremely poor or affluent. The success of any plan that is beneficial to the society depends on the number of individuals interested in supporting it, brought together with the justice of its principles. Poverty according to Paine is not in the natural state of things since it gets created by the so called civilized life. He b ased his arguments upon concerns about the extreme sides of poverty and wealth that have since emerged in the evolution of the present modern society, and their impact on personal anguish and social wreckage. He says that has worked in two ways; ensuring one portion of the society is much wealthier and the other more wretched (Thomas 7). The rich continue getting richer while the poor get poorer. This can be witnessed in many capitalist countries where economic inequalities have sparked economic revolution, for example, in France during Paine’s period. Similar conditions led to the outbreak of the French revolution. He states that the most prosperous and miserable man of the entire human society is found in the civilized countries. He observes a condition that generates the equivalence between progress and civilization (Thomas 6). It is not clear whether civilization has promoted or injured the general happiness of man. Paine is interested in showing the greatest divide betwe en the rich and the poor in the construction of state affairs. Both men and women must assume responsibilities for their functions within the society. He describes civilization as an artificial or constructed condition, and that it results from human will and choice (Thomas 8). Furthermore, he strives to use that essential truth in the progressive enhancement of the poor and civilization as a whole. Paine describes civilization as a construction he needs to further differentiate from the previous state of affairs which he refers to the natural state - mythical original state in which humans initially existed on the planet. Paine believes that the Indian people of Northern America represent the  ideal  natural  and primitive state of man (Thomas 7). He argues that the spectacles of human misery present in Europe cannot be found among the Indians. Paine views The Indian condition as neither enriched by factors of civilized progress as the European upper and middle classes nor as degraded by poverty as the poor in Europe; the life of an Indian is a progressive holiday, compared to the poor of Europe; moreover, it appears to be object when compared to the rich. Thomas Paine uses the Indians to demonstrate egalitarianism that he can relate with the natural state (Thomas 7). This helps him to show the extreme poverty of modern society as the interference of the natural order of things. Personally I do not believe that civilization has created out rightly negative things. Through civilization, we have seen

Haunted House Essay Example for Free

Haunted House Essay â€Å"Come on you big baby† my friend Ron said. It was Friday the 13th and we were at a real life haunted house. It wasn’t one of those haunted houses they put together for Halloween; it was a real life haunted house. Let me start at the beginning. It was Thursday the 12th and me and a couple of my friends decided we were going to go for a walk down the scariest street in the neighborhood, the town, and maybe even the world. Rumor had it that more than 50% of the houses had murders occur in them. We wanted to check out the Cortez house where a family of 15 had their parents go crazy and started hitting their children from the age of five to the age of 19. â€Å"I dare Shawn, Austin, and Kate to spend the night in the Cortez house† Ron said. Me, Shawn, and Kate all said â€Å"ok†. But then it went even further â€Å"you have to do it tomorrow on Friday the 13th. We all agreed that was a crazy idea considering no soul has ever gotten within ten feet of that house and lived to tell the story. Maybe a ghost took them away. Maybe the ugly tattered green and yellow worn shades blinded them, maybe the howling wolf whenever somebody walked by did the trick. We all said that we would meet back up here tomorrow after school got out to discuss the matter, after all it was only Thursday. When I got home my mom asked me â€Å"Austin it is midnight and you have school tomorrow where were you at† I smiled and lied â€Å"I was just hanging out at Ron’s house mom. † â€Å"Ok† she snapped, â€Å"just don’t be late again on a school night†. â€Å"Sorry, mom. Oh yeah, mom can I spend the night at Ron’s house tomorrow? I asked. â€Å"yes, I will take you over there when I get off work. † This morning I got up and went to school. Then we all met at the haunted house to discuss who was going to do it. Kate and I agreed to it and Ron said he would join, but Shawn didn’t want anything to do with it. â€Å"Come on you big baby! † Ron said. Then Shawn said â€Å"No, I would rather live past the age of 15! †, then he ran home and now he is probably playing Xbox 360. We all brought bats and racquets to protect ourselves. Okay we were going in. I was in front of the pack. I didn’t look scared but I was just trying to stand tall and be a good leader for my friends. When we got to the steps we could hear the many mice below it. By now Kate was already crying. â€Å"Keep calm Kate. † I said, â€Å"I won’t let anything happen to you. † She quieted down and we headed in. Right when I got through the door I felt the thickly woven spider webs on my face. I saw a huge group of black widows crawling towards us. I started swinging trying to protect my friends and most of all me. We killed most of the fist sized ones then we proceeded to the kitchen where we found snakes coiled around everything. I could smelled their reptilian skin and its sliminess. We slowly backed away and decided we would head upstairs and find where all of us would sleep. We found one room that was relatively clean and one that seemed to be in perfect condition, as if someone had recently lived here. Ron told us that he had to go to the bathroom and we said we would protect the door. Ten minutes later we hadn’t heard a peep from him so we went in. He was nowhere to be seen. â€Å"Guys. † We heard a voice beneath us yell â€Å"look under the rug, it’s amazing down here. We lifted up the rug and found a secret passage. It looked like it was supposed to be an old fashion garbage shoot. We slid down and to our surprise we were in a room filled with treasure. We all filled our pockets and made our way back to the room. We then realized someone else must’ve found the gold and was living here, if this was the case we had to get out before the treasure hunter came back and found us stealing. We went home and showed our parent what we found they took it to the bank and got millions. Mom you never go back to that terrible job anymore. We all moved into the â€Å"haunted house† and lived there for the rest of our lives.

The Value Chain Analysis: Sony

The Value Chain Analysis: Sony According to Porter (1985, cited in Gershon and Kanayama, 2002:115), strategic planning is a set of managerial decisions and actions that determine the long-term performance of an organisation. Lasserre (2003:33) agrees with this suggesting further that a company business strategy is a set of fundamental choices which define its value proposition to the market, how it intends to build and sustain a competitive business system and how it organises itself. This means in order for Sony to regain its global competitive advantage it has to develop effective business strategy, which will provide the organisation with clear direction, tactics, improved communication and as a result better organisational growth and performance (Yavitz and Newman, 1982:10). However, in order to develop and implement right strategic decision Thompson and Martin (2005:138-141) suggest that organisation have to pay attention to internal and external analysis. Conversely, they suggest that whilst analytical frame works can provide valuable insight into many issues, by themselves they cannot provide the answers. Consequently, they provide a base for evaluating the effectiveness of current and proposed strategies. Internal Factors/Analysis In order to develop the right strategy the organisation has to take into account several internal factors that may affect business environment. (Thompson and Martin, 2005:145-155) For example, analysis of strengths and weaknesses focuses on internal factors that may give Sony certain advantages in meeting the needs of its target markets, such as ability to (re)act to environmental influences quicker than competitors. (SWOT, PESTEL, Porters 5. Appendix 1) Culture For example, understanding core competencies and culture will enable Sony to boast its organisational performance and thus increase its market share. Hofstede (1991:50) agrees with this suggesting that strong culture enables employees to see the goal alignment and thus motivates them to higher levels of performance, as shared values make people feel good about the organisation and commit their capability and potential sincerely for the company, as a result, creating competitive advantage for the organisation. Deal and Kennedy (2000:3-20) agree with it, suggesting that the more highly successful companies are those that exhibit a strong organisational culture. They also identify several component parts to a solid organisational culture, including values, heroes, and rites and rituals. For example, values are the intrinsic beliefs that members hold for an organisation. It can be said that Sony displays many features of a traditional Japanese company, for example there is a sense of fam ily and/or missionary passion that is decidedly Japanese in approach. Most of Sonys top officials are also Japanese and together they share in the companys collective mission. Sony also carefully grooms its future leaders over many years of service. However, writers like Bennis (1986, Cited in Armstrong, 2006) oppose that the single most important determinant of corporate culture is the behaviour of the chief executive officer, as the CEO is the person most responsible for shaping the beliefs, motivations and expectations for the organization as a whole. The importance of the CEO is particularly evident when it comes to the formation of business strategy, for example, CEO Nobuyuki Idei has embraced the principle that digital communications must be at the centre of Sonys competitive business strategy (Digital Dream Kid, 1996). Disregarding of contrasting views, the above suggests that it is crucial for Sony to maintain and take pride in its organisational culture, as it will provide Sony with competitive advantage through attracting, motivating and retaining the best talent, promoting organisational values and believes, as well as promoting the spirit of innovation (SWOT, Appendix 1), as it will help the company to grow and develop, and thus achieve further organisational development. Resource Based View In order for Sony to achieve competitive advantage and organisational development, it may be suggested the organisation applies the Resource Based View (RBV) to strategy, which deals with the competitive environment facing the organisation taking an inside-out approach (Johnson et al, 2005:114). Henry (2008:129-150) agrees with this suggesting that RBV emphasises the internal capabilities of the organisation in formulating strategy to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage in its markets and industries, suggesting further that in some cases organisational capabilities may allow it to create new markets, such as Apples iPod and Toyotas hybrid cars. This means that by analysis internal capabilities Sony can determine the strategic choices it can make in competing in external environment. Thus, for example, analysis (SWOT, PESTEL and Porters 5, Appendix 1) suggests that Sonys strengths lies with its brands strong name and reputation for innovation and excellence, thus it may be sug gested that by reducing portfolio of electronic goods and focusing attention on fewer products and new technologies, for example in TV market, organisation may once again become market leader. However, Henry (2008:150) critiques that RBV shows very little on the vital issues of how resources can develop and change, or become redundant over time. Priem and Butler (2001, cited in Henry, 2008:150) agree with it, proposing that RBV lacks detail and therefore is difficult to implement. Latter suggests that although RBV may offer a good insight into current resource situation, other analytical tools have to be used to ensure a correct picture of internal environment, such as, for example, Value Chain Analysis. Value Chain Analysis Porter (1985, cited in Thompson and Martin, 2005:251) argues that in search for competitive advantage a firm must be considered as part of a wider system suppliers, firm, distributors, consumers a supply chain, which is a process by which cost savings and service differentiation can be achieved. As part of the process of evaluating the strategic competences of the organisation a resource audit can provide substantial insights into the competitive possibilities open to the organisation. The model against which to do this is Porters value chain (Appendix 2). Thus, value chain analysis may provide Sony with a framework for evaluating relative significance of various activities undertaken by an organisation, from the perspectives of cost and value added (Robson, 1994:41). By applying the results of SWOT and Porters 5 Forces Analysis to Value Chain of Sony it can be suggested that the organisation focuses on high-quality/high cost exclusive products, offering its customers excellent fol low-up Service afterwards. This suggests that Inbound Logistics and the retail Operations must be tightly managed to keep the cost of production and delivery down, and thus offer a higher profit margin. SWOT and Porters 5 also suggest that Technology Development and Engineering would have to be reorganised in order to be able to keep up with progress of the industry, and thus competitors. In order to achieve this, it could be suggested that Sony should reduce the portfolio of extensive product range and focus attention on best-selling and most promising products. Robson (1994:45-48) suggests latter can be achieved by applying the Boston Matrix to product portfolio, as well as undertake the analysis of Core Competences offered by Prahalad and Hamel (1990, cited in Robson, 1994:46-48) (Appendix 3). Similar to Inbound Logistics, it could also be suggested that Sonys Outbound Logistics, such as warehousing and distribution, would have to be re-organised in order to achieve most cost eff ective outcome. SWOT, PESTEL and Porters 5 also suggest that Sony possess brilliant opportunity for Marketing and Sales, as the organisation owns Sony Entertainment and thus, is able to use media productions as an extensive free advertising for its product range. For example, using Sony laptops and other gadgets in new 007 blockbuster, to re-introduce the organisation to world-wide audience, as well as indirectly advertise its products. The analysis of Support Activities, based on the outcome of SWOT, PESTLE and Porters 5 also suggests several recommendations. For example, being global organisation, Sony suffers from a duplication of workforce (Human Resource Management). Thus, to reduce replication it could be suggested Sony performs major reductions in global workforce (Ferrari, 2012), which could potentially lead to easier flow of communication, and thus, quicker strategic and general day-to-day responses, and as a result, help return company to profitability. For Technology Development and Engineering analysis suggests that it may be worth drastically reducing product portfolio (particularly portfolio of TV models). This could potentially drastically improve Research and Development, allowing it to keep up with technological progress, and giving it time to work on new technologies. Baring in mind the above analysis, Henry (2011:112) suggests that organisations value chain activities represent the cornerstone of competitive advantage. And recommends that its value chain should not be seen as a series of independent activities, but as a system of interdependent activities, where each value chain activity is related to the others by way of linkages in the value chain. For example, Toyotas just-in-time production reduces inventory and material handling. Therefore Sonys competitive advantage can derive not only from the activities themselves, but also from linkages between its different activities, internal, as well as external. (Henry, 2011:112) External Factors Stakeholders and Corporate Social Responsibility Foot and Hook (2008:23) suggest that there is a wider group of stakeholders that may affect business strategy. For example, apart from the shareholders, workforce, suppliers and customers, organisation may also be affected by local communities, government, and pressure groups. As Johnson et al (2005:585) suggest it is impossible to meet the demands of all the stakeholders, as they invariably conflict. This suggests that Sony must prioritise stakeholder demands and thus, balancing out competing requirements create a strategy that will satisfy main stakeholder groups, will be in line with the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) of organisation, and in its turn relate to the culture in which the organisation is operating. Thus for example, as it is the core corporate responsibility of Sony Group to the society to pursue its corporate value enhancement through innovation and sound business practice, the organisation conducts CSR activities with a focus on sustainability in two areas t rying to ensure sustainability of its business operations, as well as striving to contribute to the realisation of a sustainable society. For example, Sony has established effective systems for corporate governance and compliance to ensure sound business practices, such as, eco-friendly product cycle from the materials Sony sources, recycles and reuses in manufacture, to the development of smaller packaging that takes less space for more energy-efficient transportation. Sony also believes in the importance of fostering diverse and lively workplaces and employees with a high level of social awareness, which in effect contributes to employee loyalty and thus, reduces staff turnover, which in its turn contributes to competitive advantage of organisation. (Sony, 2012) Conclusions Business strategy is a set of vital choices which define its value proposition to the market, how it intends to build and sustain a competitive business system and how it organises itself. In order to gain competitive advantage organisations may use internal and external analytical tools that will help build a good picture of environment of given organisation. These tools, such as SWOT, PESTEL, Porters 5, RBV and Value Chain suggest that Sony remain a reputable brand, and providing a new strategy and allowing restructuring of the business, may help it regain its competitive advantage in global market. Sony also fully recognises that its business activities affect both society and the environment in direct and indirect ways, thus takes steps to minimise that impact to the best of its ability. Recommendations In order to regain its competitive advantage, it can be proposed that Sony undertakes a drastic restructuring of its business model. For example, it can be suggested that the company will benefit from either minimising the amount of factories across the globe and removing factories from areas affected by hurricanes and floods in order to minimise production costs. Conversely, as more value-added component sourcing, production and logistics may be outsourced to contract manufacturers and trading partners. Portfolio of goods (especially electronic goods, and TV market) have to be reduced, allowing RD to focus on bringing excellence to Sonys customers, keeping up with technological advancement and boosting competitiveness of products. The television business may also enhance integration with Sony ´s mobile products and network services, as it aims to offer unique user experiences, drive hardware differentiation and enhance the attractiveness of Sony ´s television line-up. Now owning 100% of Sony Ericsson, with own tablets, VAIO PCs and TVs, Sony can increase product appeal by offering its customers special programmes only available to share between those Sony products (to gain market-share of Apples iPhone, iPod and Apple Mac). A previous culture of inflexibility in product demand forecasting needs to be replaced with product demand sensing and response capabilities linked to constantly changing consumer needs and market trends. Through developing these new strategies, accelerating selection and focus, Sony can invest in core and new businesses which could help to transform organisation into a more profitable structure with competitive advantage against its competitors. 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This is highlighted by the fact that the company was labelled in a 2011 survey as Asias most valued brand (Fatakia, 2012) Sonys culture is aimed at nurturing talents, where organisation helps its employees to foster working practices that help to regularly replenish energy and build physical, emotional and mental resilience. Sony culture emphasizes a spirit of freedom and open-mindedness, and a fighting spirit to innovate as well as takes a Worksmart approach to help employees achieve an acceptable work/life balance (Sony, 2012) The company has established a broad sales network, registered in approximately 200 countries and territories (Tang et al, 2012) One of Sonys greatest strengths is their ability to produce innovative, quality products, or as Sonys web page states Sony innovations ´ have become part of mainstream culture (Sony, 2012) The company is synonymous with technological excellence and has a rich heritage of technological expertise. Besides creating the VCR, Trinitron, and Walkman, the company facilitated in development of the magnetic recording tape, the compact disc, and the Blu-Ray disc, used today as a medium for high-definition video playback. Its latest innovation, a Crystal LED television, was well received at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas (Fatakia, 2012) Out of all its products, Sonys success with the PlayStation is most notable it has been successful since launch, and still sees tremendous consumer demand as by 2000, it was accounting for a third of Sonys operating profits (Glendinning, 2012) Sony has a number of Japanese and foreign patents, and is licensed to use a number of patents owned by other organisations. Sony considers their overall license position beneficial to their operations (Tang et al, 2012) The release of PlayStation 2 triggered a high rise of shares ($300 per share, an all-time high) Sony has a strong position in the entertainment industry with Sony Music and Sony Pictures, which has been beneficial to the company by off-setting losses in its electronics/consumer-products division Sony also provides financial services, such as life and auto insurance and banking, that accumulate Weaknesses The high cost of media production, especially in its television business, as well as loss of market share to cheaper manufacturers, such as LG and Samsung, has affected the companys pricing strategy. In addition, instead of forecasted loss of $2.7 billion during the fiscal year that ended 31 March, the organisation is now expecting to suffer a loss of $6.3 billion due to cumulative losses of consolidated deferred tax returns and additional tax expense for the transfer of profits between Japan and selected Sonys overseas subsidiaries (Sony, 2012) While diversifying into too many business segments, Sony has shifted its focus from its core competency making great consumer-electronic products. This has resulted in a distortion in Sonys brand. Apple, which is also in the consumer electronics space, has managed to focus on just a few products, build competency, and make them incredibly successful (Fatakia, 2012) Furthermore, the product lines have few connections between themselves, and therefore do not generate many network externalities or cost advantages (Tang et al, 2012) The current financial performance of organisation is weak, showing high liquidity risks, decreasing sales, slowly recovering profitability, low operating efficiency, underperforming stocks, and low investor confidence (Tang et al, 2012) The current management team has been relatively conservative, with departments working in silo, which led to little, if no flow of communication. While restructuring has frequently been implemented, it was usually done on a small scale. Strategically significant mergers and acquisitions were seldom conducted (Tang et al, 2012) As Sony expanded into more segments and geographic locations, they became more sensitive to exchange rates and interest rates that are exogenous factors out of Sonys control (Tang et al, 2012) Japanese laws and the countrys lingering culture of lifetime employment limit the ability of Japanese firms to close plants and shed jobs, thus resulting in incapability of the organisation to quickly adapt to fast-changing market environment, thus resulting in further financial losses Opportunities The company has the opportunity to enter the healthcare-imaging sector, as in September Sony agreed to invest 50 billion yen in Olympus, the worlds biggest maker of endoscopes. Under agreement, Sony will by 11.46% stake and become the largest shareholder in two steps. The two companies are planning to set up a joint venture by December 31 to develop, make and sell new endoscopes and other medical devices (Yasu, 2012) Sony Google TV, and particularly Nexus Q has a potential of regaining its TV market as, in comparison to Apple TV, Roku and similar products, Q is the only product that combines streaming internet content to a TV with a built-in 25 watt-per-channel sound amplifier that can run two sets of speakers. And its the only streaming TV product that allows itself to be controlled by more than one device simultaneously. And one thing Google has been making a point of saying about the Nexus Q, that Apple cannot say about any of its products, is that it is Designed and Manufactured in the USA, thus making it more attractive to those customers who are concerned with the ethics behind product manufacture (Kosner, 2012) As the organisation wanted to integrate its phone division with its mobile games machine and tablet computer units, the purchase of full control of mobile phone maker Sony Ericsson may give Sony the opportunity to act independently and innovate its smart phone and tablet market. The transaction that also includes patent, which is an important component of success in the smartphone arena, as it can give organisation the right to block sales of the competitors and vice-versa. With already established network of marketing, distribution and retail channels, it may help push through the products much quicker (Singh/BBC News, 2011) The company can take advantage of its movie and music business along with its experience in the gaming space to deliver value-added content to support and integrate its product line. It has talked about doing this with a four-screen strategy, which looks like a good concept (Fatakia, 2012) Kazuo Hirai, appointed CEO of Sony in February 2012, might bring changes to the company. His expertise in computer entertainment and PlayStation might bring more focus to the firms product lines (Tang et al, 2012) Threats As many of Sonys manufacturing plants are located in Japan, area that is prone to tsunamis and earthquakes, the company faces a constant threat of damage to the facilities and machinery and thus, disruptions in production line, which may lead to further loses of operating profit Organisation faces strong price competition from competitors such as Samsung, LG and even Tescos own electrical goods line Technika, who are gaining attraction from customers with lower-cost products such as televisions and mobile devices (Fatakia, 2012) Introduction of Apple TV, interactive television increased falling demand on Sony products as consumers switch to Apple (Kosner, 2012) Foreign exchange rate fluctuations can affect financial results because a large portion of Sonys sales and assets (more than 75%) are denominated in currencies other than the Yen (Tang et al, 2012) Threats from hacking attacks. Hacking attack on the companys PlayStation network resulted in leakage of confidential customer data, such as credit-card information As the global recession continues, consumers are no longer spending much money on electronic products, as they now have smartphones to satisfy most of their needs (Kosner, 2012) Sonys business restructuring and transformation efforts are costly and may not attain their objectives (Tang et al, 2012) PESTEL Analysis Political Businesses can be affected by many aspects of government policy. In particular, all businesses must comply with the law. They must also consider the impact of any forthcoming legislation on their operations. Subsequently, this may require taking action before the legislation comes into effect. (The Times 100) One issue that affects manufacturers and retailers of electronic goods is the disposal of these products. Thus, recycling is high on the public agenda. There are government initiatives to promote more recycling, which are often backed by legislation. (The Times 100) As the global recession had a negative effect on the economy of many countries, governments had to adopt a nationalist approach in an effort to stabilise their domestic economy and become more self-sufficient, by for example, raising trade barriers, such as taxes, tariffs and quotas. (Business Europe, 2009) This means Sony, alongside other multinational organisations was affected by decrease in exports and/or heavier import/export costs which may have reduced its global profits. The Government also has the power to change minimum wage, tax, VATs and other expenditures. This means even higher expenditures that, as the report shows, may be critical for the bottom line of the organisation. (Sony, 2012) Economic The global recession has been a threat to Sony since 2009, as Consumer Electronics for Bloomberg Business Week reported on July 30, Sony posted a $271 million operating loss for the April-June quarter, down from a $772 million profit in the same quarter a year ago, revenues dropped 19%, to $16.8 billion with the forecasts for an operating loss of $1.16 billion in the fiscal year through March 2010. (Consumer Electronics, 2009) Additionally, the strength of the yen against the dollar and the euro has reduced Sonys exports making products less competitive and as a result reduced organisational revenue, especially in overseas markets (Sony Annual Report, 2009; Hall, 1992) Social One of the most important social trends of new generation is the development and increase in use of internet activities, such as online shopping, social networks and media on-demand. The Net Generation also demands its products to perform fast (Tapscott, 2009:15), and be of high-quality and multi-functional (Sonny Annual Report, 2009). As the new generation likes to be creative and be able to personalise its products, the technology have to offer high quality art applications that will allow them to do so. As video games are gaining an enormous place in society most kids are exposed to video games in some sort of capacity growing up, Sony have to ensure that their technology does not lose competitive advantage to their opponents, such as Wii (Nintendo) and/or Xbox (Microsoft). Technological The electronics industry is very well known for the fast development of the cutting edge products that facilitate our everyday life and business. Introduction of the internet, smartphones, as well as recent development of TVs that are connected to the internet shows a direction for smart, multi-functional devices. This means, in order for Sony to keep up with its main competitors, such as Apple, the organisation has to adopt the same strategies and be able to offer its customers high quality multifunctional products. Environmental Electronic devices that improve our quality of life are at the same time posing a great threat and contribute immensely towards global warming (East, 2007). Almost 50 million tons of electronic products are disposed of each year, and the figure continues to grow as the lifespan of new devices continues to fall (The Video Game Industry). As a leader in the consumer el