Unit 1 Case Study Assignment 1 Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Unit 1 Case Study Assignment 1 - Coursework Example The suggest details are 1 gigahertz 64-piece processor, 4 gigabytes of RAM and 500 gigabytes of hard circle space. The working frameworks they can look over are windows 7 or windows 8 which are running a current Microsoft office programming, for example, Microsoft Office 2010 or 2013. An antivirus program, for example, Kaspersky or Norton is a helpful extra. There are a few kinds of server brands to look over, for example, Dell, IBM and Oracle. The base equipment for 5-25 clients is a server with a 2GHz, 64 piece processor, 2GB memory (RAM) and a 160 Gigabyte hard plate (Micorsoft, n.d.). The suggested equipment is a 3.1 Gigahertz, 64-piece processor, 8GB RAM and a 500 Gigabyte hard plate. The suggested server programming is Windows Server 2012 Essentials which is worked to provide food for private company conditions (Technet, n.d). Adaptation to internal failure requires that there is an extra part that takes over in the event that the first part falls flat. To make the server deficiency open minded suggest choices are: having save memory modules in the event that the memory comes up short, organizing interface cards(NICs), having a repetitive exhibit of reasonable circles (RAID), having a double force flexibly and having two servers bunched so they show up as one

Ethics of Freezing and Buying Eggs

Morals of Freezing and Buying Eggs $15,000 infant is an intriguing case to consider for me, I have a ton of individual emotions on this and I am going to attempt to put aside some of them so as to have a new point of view, I do in any case, see myself being extremely inclination on this subject in any case so I am sorry early and furthermore you may gain proficiency with some stuff about me in this paper. To the extent the particular advantage of freezing eggs, I don't think this is an advantage medicinal services associations ought to think about contribution in any capacity. To start with, I think it will be too expensive to even consider providing for females who really need the method done.ã‚â Second, I dont figure numerous ladies will nibble on this offer, particularly since there is such a low possibility of really imagining along these lines. In the event that you take a gander at age alone, and IVF, the rates get lower as they get more seasoned as odds of origination in any case. Taking a gander at the IV F medications that utilized new incipient organisms from non-giver eggs, the quantity of ladies younger than 35 who conceived an offspring utilizing IVF was about 40%, contrasted and just 31% for ladies between the ages of 35 and 37. Just 3.9% of 42-year-olds got pregnant because of IVF treatment. (Christensen, 2014) I think it is a squandered advantage when there are different concentrations around there that could be utilized as an advantage. I do feel that including benefits for working mothers to remain at home longer would be extraordinary, or reception help for the individuals who cannot get pregnant at all or even IVF for the individuals who battle to get pregnant. To make this a little close to home I will broadly expound on myself and battles with barrenness. I was hitched for a long time to an Australian person preceding my present relationship. We had attempted four of the five years endeavoring to get pregnant. It eventually cut off our association. After various fruitfu lness expert and a huge number of dollars we discovered it was the blend of both of us together. So we investigated the subsequent stage of having children, which for us, was IVF. Not exclusively did our protection not spread IVF they didn't cover any of the fruitfulness master either. So we chose to go the appropriation course which likewise was using cash on hand. We concurred that our qualities werent so better that we had than make an infant in a test tube when there were such a significant number of children out there requiring homes. The last class we took as a prerequisite for selection my ex concluded that not exclusively did he not have any desire to receive, he was additionally finished with the relationship. Clearly it was not intended to be and I am in the best spot ever because of that choice and I have no second thoughts of any of it, I have a stunning 7-month old infant now and things turned out to be the manner by which they should. Nonetheless, that battle to me is very genuine. I will never comprehend this being an advantage and a chance and not barrenness master, IVF, appropriation, and so forth. I do know there are organizations that exist that do have a portion of these advantages. Which is fabulous. Nonetheless, the ones contribution this advantage in my eyes it benefits just a single individual and that is the organization. They are offering to offer ladies the chance to concentrate on their vocation as opposed to a family to profit the organization themselves. So they dont need to stress over maternity leave from top entertainers or ladies stopping and failing to come back. I can comprehend the managerial point of view of this and I attempt to take a gander at it with a receptive outlook and without passionate reasoning. Notwithstanding, I return to the point that on the off chance that they are so ready to assist ladies with expanding their time of mother hood however not ready to aid them turning into a mother in different manners the n it truly isn't an advantage for ladies, particularly most of ladies. In the event that the DHHS orders these advantages I figure the effect on organizations would be huge. In the first place, it will be exorbitant. The demonstration of IVF alone is around $10,000 for one attempt and there are various couples who might make the most of this chance. The normal expense of one IVF treatment in the United States is $12,400, and that is without the additional medications the couple may require, as per the American Society of Reproductive Medicine. Frequently, couples will require more than one treatment to consider. (Christensen, 2014) If they make the most of the open door the following stage would be the measure of ladies ready to get pregnant now that were not previously, taking maternity leave and potentially in any event, leaving the place of employment field. The advantages to egg freezing be that as it may, would be advantageous to a great deal of organizations. Particularly for the ladies who are determined worker, organization changing, imaginative distinct advantages for the organizations. They would prefer not to place a slow down in that or have them change or surprisingly more terrible, leave for mother hood. I can let you know from individual experience that so far in my childs 7 months of life, my perspective is totally extraordinary. Not in any case just on a passionate or legitimate sense however in the manner that my cerebrum actually doesn't work the manner in which it did previously. I feel obfuscated, slow to talk rather than clever as I was previously, diverted, depleted, and so on. My mind truly doesn't fill in as speedy and I feel foggy now and again as though I have impaired. I had heard the term pregnancy cerebrum on and off again all through my pregnancy however then discovered that it truly kicks in after you have had a child and you are just getting 3-4 hours of rest a night aggregate for even the initial 7 months. I realized however this will in general wear off and leave following a year, and some of it sticks for eternity. With the entirety of that stated, ladies having babies in a place of intensity or advancement, could cause unexpected negative impacts for the organization they work for. So I can comprehend needing to postpone parenthood until your profession is settled and flourishing. There would likewise be an effect on the medicinal services industry here. The expense of these methodology are high, however on the off chance that the organizations are paying for them in any case it will cause a drive in the measure of individuals looking for proposals administrations, in this manner, gracefully and request changes and perhaps the expense of these administrations may in the end go down. We would likewise have more ladies having babies. specialists at these facilities performed 165,172 strategies, including IVF, with 61,740 infants conceived because of those endeavors in 2012. (Christensen, 2014) The effect on governmentally ordered paid family leave, FMLA would be pricey. Individuals use FMLA consistently. At some random time, 10.7% of the U.S. workforce is on FMLA leave. Truth is stranger than fiction, as indicated by FMLA Sources investigation, one in each 10 representatives is taking FMLA leave at the present time. Furthermore, that is the normal in certain businesses the number is far more noteworthy. For instance, in medicinal services associations and call focuses, the quantity of individuals on FMLA leave at a given time is as much as 30%. (Schappel, 2015) If you put that in numbers, explicitly the social insurance framework it would at last fail and be nonexistent. It would change the way FMLA is given out in the human services industry too. I think right now doctors are exceptionally indulgent on marking FMLA administrative work since it has no negative impact on them in at any rate. Nonetheless, when it turns into a money related thing, the organizations could star t to investigate suing doctors for giving FMLA when it isn't required. I figure it will likewise create an immense scene for organizations in the matter of having to payout FMLA for things that could have been forestalled, for example type two diabetes, lung disease from cigarettes, pregnancy, and so on. This may cause organizations and the medicinal services industry to focus on prophylactic consideration considerably a greater amount of than it as of now is. There are parcel of morals required here for everybody in the gathering. I read an article composed for NY times that brings up a great deal of substantial contentions with respect to why it could be unscrupulous to give this advantage to ladies. To start with, invigorating womens ovaries and recovering eggs is a fourteen day clinical procedure that isn't without clinical hazard. Offering or elevating it to ladies who may never require it ought to be done mindfully. Managers may have good motivations, yet no lady ought to experience a clinical methodology without exhaustive, educated assent acquired through conversation with a really target clinical professional㠢â‚ ¬Ã¢ ¦ there are different costs, including yearly stockpiling expenses. these keen, youthful, rich laborers share a great deal of qualities with perfect egg givers. At last, these unneeded eggs may wind up available. Also, in the event that you dont work for Apple or Facebook, need to safeguard your ripeness and need to figure out how to pay for it, you may be offered an egg-sharing choice. The entirety of this might be enticing for ladies, bosses and specialists the same, however it raises genuine moral, educated assent and strife regarding interest issues. (Crockin 2014) As she says, there are some genuine hazard in doing this, in addition to the results truly are not too encouraging. So morally you are putting ladies at higher hazard doing this strategy with a guarantee of an infant further down the road whenever reasonably the possibility is just at 30% that they become pregnant. So you are setting in a bogus expectation into ladies who in the end need to parent, they depend on you to offer these types of assistance so they can hold on to be mothers and afterward the opportunity arrives they decide to turn into a parent and their egg is a whole lot of nothing or doesnt take any of the occasions and afterward they have no kid all things considered. This would all be able to be pinpointed bac k to the business for luring them in the first place. As a CEO I would truly think about the need for this advantage, regardless of whether I can't help contradicting it. A portion of the things I would be taking a gander at and considering are the level of ladies mentioning it. On the off chance that it is such a limited quantity of solicitation that the effect wont damage or help in any case, I would deny the inclusion and solicitation a gathering clarifying why I denied it as an inclusion however offer up an investment funds plan set up that the organization would coordinate to a specific level of the reserve funds along these lines all workers would profit by some different option from one costly advantage offered out to choose not many. On the off chance that various ladies were keen on this procedure, I would figure ou

Fall 2010 Applicant Facts Post #1 COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY - SIPA Admissions Blog

Fall 2010 Applicant Facts Post #1 COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY - SIPA Admissions Blog I thought I might flavor the blog over the next few weeks with a few entries based on facts about our applicant pool for fall 2010.     It is hard to find a university with more international students than Columbia, and a graduate school more international than SIPA.   Columbia University ranks third in the United States in terms of international enrollment and SIPA commonly enrolls students from more than 100 countries per year. This year applicants hail from 99 different countries.   Also not separated out are Permanent Residents.   Many Permanent Residents represent countries not counted in the 99 you see reflected below.   The only reason the U.S. is blue is because the program I used categorized it as my home country no political undertones are implied =)

Physics Of Theoretical And Applied Information Technology

Journal of Theoretical and Applied Information Technology 10th May 2016. Vol.87. No.1  © 2005 - 2016 JATIT LLS. All rights reserved. ISSN: 1992-8645 www.jatit.org E-ISSN: 1817-3195 1 A COMPUTATIONAL HYBRID MODEL WITH TWO LEVEL CLASSIFICATION USING SVM AND NEURAL NETWORK FOR PREDICTING THE DIABETES DISEASE 1NASIB SINGH GILL, 2 POOJA MITTAL 1 Professor, Department of Computer Science Applications, Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak, Haryana, India 2 Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science Applications, Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak, Haryana, India Email: mpoojamdu@gmail.com ABSTRACT Data Mining is a collection of number of computational approaches. These approaches are used to develop Knowledge inference systems†¦show more content†¦INTRODUCTION Diabetes is one of the most common chronic, debilitating complex and intricate disease found in all age groups ranging from infants to old age people in all populations. Insulin is a vital and an essential component of our human body metabolism which is used for its proper growth. Diabetes may be caused due to inadequate production of insulin or inappropriate utilization of the produced insulin. In any of the situation, plenty of glucose is available in the blood stream which human body could not utilize it properly [1], resulting in the diabetes. Broadly, diabetes is categorized into two categories: Type 1 and Type 2. Due to insulin deficiency, Type 1 diabetes is caused, also known as juvenile diabetes. The only solution to this type of diabetes is to inject the required amount of insulin as supplement in the patient’s body. Whereas: Type 2 diabetes is more commonly known as Adult-onset diabetes. It is the most common type of diabetes, which usually develops at the age of 40 and older. According to Diabetes Atlas, it is estimated that about 194 million people worldwide are suffering from diabetes and it is estimated that this will increase to 333 million or 6.3% by 2025 [2]. Type 2 diabetes is spreading like an epidemic and constitutes about 85% to 95% of all diabetes in developed countries and even higher in developing countries [3]. Diabetes is taking shape of a serious global problemShow MoreRelatedCopper Iron Alloy Of Different Thickness By Electrodeposition Technique1153 Words   |  5 Pagesimages of Cobalt iron film exhibited nano crystallized structure and the variation of granular size as a function of the potential at which the film deposited. 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In the math department, it is guaranteed that the student has covered almost all the topics such as trigonometry, algebra, calculus, and geometry, along with chemistry, physics and biology. Finishing undergraduate school, a bachelor s degree in mechanical engineering is for entry-level mechanical engineering jobs. However, some graduates who have other talents or bachelor in different math and science topics can easilyRead MoreThe Effect Of Practical Work On Students Performance9732 Words   |  39 Pages EFFECT OF PRACTICAL WORK ON STUDENTS’ PERFORMANCE IN PHYSICS AT SECONDARY SCHOOL LEVEL IN MURANG’A EAST SUB-COUNTY, KENYA. MUCHAI AUGUSTINE NG’ETHE REG. No. E83/20087/2012 A RESEARCH THESIS SUBMITTED IN FULFILLMENT FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN THE SCHOOL OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATIONAL COMMUNICATION AND TECHNOLOGY OF KENYATTA UNIVERSITY JANUARY 2014 DECLARATION I declare that this research thesis is my original work and has not been presented for a degree in anyRead MoreEssay about Nanotechnology: The Key to a Better World1121 Words   |  5 Pagesscience, engineering, and technology conducted at the nanoscale which has the dimensions of about 1-100 nanometers can be applied to microscopic things and used in diverse fields of science, such as chemistry, biology, physics, materials science, and engineering. The idea of nanotechnology first appeared at a talk entitled â€Å"There’s plenty of Room at the Bottom† by physicist Richard Feynman in an American Physical Society meeting at the California Institute of Technology on December 29, 1959. 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The Death of Teaching Fellows Essay Samples

The Death of Teaching Fellows Essay Samples Top Choices of Teaching Fellows Essay Samples A good deal of people choose the teaching profession only because they think that all they need to do is teach for approximately seven hours per day, five days per week, and their occupation is finished. Actually, there's a laundry list of elements to consider and think about before you decide whether a teaching job is the proper career option for you. When it's the exact first time you are likely to use our article writing support, you almost certainly have a lot of questions. Eight CTCs, supplying a geographical spread and various innovative posts, were selected. A youthful person has the ability to act distinctively outside her or his companion bunch than inside it. For instance, if a kid spends 5 hours per day, 6 days per week watching television, this would alter a kid's perception of the actual world. In some cases, the moment he or she is labeled, the expectation of the child is lowered. It helps children learn in various forms, it lets them participate in various activities, and it enriches their education by enabling them to collaborate with people from all around the world. If teachers focus more on the caliber of education in schools, children would get a better opportunity to receive ahead. To some degree, the teacher isn't only a teacher but also a psychologist. Students cannot receive special education services till they are labeled. Fully being a happy high school student wouldn't be possible without my family members. Top Choices of Teaching Fellows Essay Samples Using technology has become part of our everyday routine. Utilizing reliable sources for research is vital. It offers capability for those users to use technology to be able to support various different learning paradigms. The independent remote unit operates using wireless signals and there's a chance of setting classroom response system with the assistance of mobile phones and extra software. There's almost no escaping from the fact that's generated by the researchers. It is the sort of human memory that doesn't have anything to do with person's semantic perception. The absolute most important is to locate the most suitable type of music for achieving a maximized relaxation response. Actually, you can make up any topic you want by yourself, as long because there is unlimited amount of those. Teaching Fellows Essay Samples at a Glance Educators also supply them with the guidance required in the undertaking. Introduction studies have suggested that working memory EDUCATION teaching a vital part in 2nd essay acquisition. Many SLA scientists have proposed that. Technology was incorporated into a selection of programs that were used in school settings. Simply be what you would like to be and see whether there's a fit. At any time you haven't ever purchased a paper on the internet you have to have a superb deal of questions concerning how your ord er is going to be handled. There's not any better way than the manner in which you decide to produce a first impression. Once you opted to try to find a service which has the ability to write essay for money, you should upload the essential information and fill in the purchase form. High school essays are structured very similarly irrespective of the topic and superior essay structure will let you compose an obvious essay that flows from 1 paragraph to the next. High school essay examples incorporate a selection of short essays like narrative, persuasive and analytical. Students are requested to explain, comment on, or assess a subject of study in the shape of an essay. High school students are needed to compose essays on a number of topics which at first may appear to have nothing in common. Make certain to read your essay and make certain it is logical. Writing a high school essay if you've got the tips about how to do essay effectively. At our essay assistance, essays are always delivered in a brief moment. The essay is easily the most important part of a university appllication, see sample essays ideal for applying to schools in the usa. Teaching Fellows Essay Samples: the Ultimate Convenience! Our writers make certain all your demands are met to get the standard of papers you want. Our task is going to be to be certain that we've got the resources to back up your request and your course would be a very good fit for the program. When you have landed your teaching job and have been there for a couple of years, you'll be up for tenure. The procedure for ordering our services has been made simple by the usage of simple measures that are simple to follow along with. You're late for an extremely important meeting. Reading responses will be assigned a mean of one every fourteen days. Writing Fellows can help provide the type of collaboration that students need to be able to improve. The best Fellows have good communication skills, ought to be simple to get along with, and ought to be responsible and dependable.

Polar Bears Free Essays

The different adaptations of the Polar Bears and Brown Bears Polar Bears: Polar bears mainly eat seals Paw pads with rough surfaces help stop the Polar Bears from slipping on the ice Polar Bears don’t swim The polar bear’s fat layer, which is three to four inches thick, not only protects it from the cold A polar bear is so well insulated that it experiences no heat loss. The bear’s blubber layer can measure 4. 5 inches thick. We will write a custom essay sample on Polar Bears or any similar topic only for you Order Now Polar bears have excellent underwater vision. They can spot food up to 15 feet away. They have sharp claws and teeth to eat prey Their ears have small surface area compared to body, reduces heat loss Thick white fur for camouflage and insulation Long legs for running to catch prey Brown Bears: They have thick insulating coats and tend to be large which helps them to keep their body heat They hibernate during winter. They have sharp claws and teeth which help them attack their prey. Adult brown bears are powerful; much of their diet consists of nuts, berries, fruit, leaves and oots. Bears also eat other animals. Brown bears can be recognized by their most distinctive feature, their shoulder hump. The shoulder muscle helps the bears to dig up roots and tear apart logs to find food. These muscles are located in the ‘hump’ of the brown bear. Brown bears can move rocks and logs and dig through hard soil and rocky ground using their long sharp claws when making their dens. They eat grass, fruit, insects, roots and bulbs of plants. How to cite Polar Bears, Papers

Response Paper Coffee Essay Example

Response Paper Coffee Paper Response Paper Getting coffee is hard to do Theres nothings better then starting your morning with nice warm cup of coffee its soothing, rich and full feeling whats even better is if you dont have to go through all the trouble in doing so. Stanley Fish talks about the process of getting a decent cup of coffee, he explains how easy it use to be of getting a cup of coffee and that now in days you have to know the process of getting coffee. I believe the purpose of this say is how something that was once so easy has been made difficult, and how difficult it Is to obtain a cup of coffee after buying. I thought this essay was very well written out and easy to write about. These days they have made almost every flavor of coffee out there from pumpkin, Iced, latte, mocha to even caramel and even more. Back then they didnt have as much of a variety It was very straight forward. Stanley fish even talks about how we pay a lot more for something that they dont even flash t even becomes a coordination problem because everything is placed in random orders and people are all trying to get these things like having to reach for lids, cup jackets, straws, stirrers, milk, half and half and a lot more and you have to make sure your coffee doesnt spill on you. In my opinion I think we shouldnt have to pay so much for something that should have already been done by the person making it for you so I agree with Stanley on this one. We will write a custom essay sample on Response Paper Coffee specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Response Paper Coffee specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Response Paper Coffee specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer I also agree on how we have made things so much more difficult then they actually are. But because of this we have more options to choose from like a pumpkin spice late, caramel Fran and mocha which all taste amazing and I honestly thank Struck for all of these options. I like how things are today Instead having very little options to choose from even though Its more straight forward and easy to choose from but I have no problem In waiting In line and having to scout for everything. It was very clear what the authors intentions were to prove how difficult we have made thing like a coffee. Response Paper 3 Coffee By Olivia-Fraser difficult it is to obtain a cup of coffee after buying. I thought this essay was very well of coffee out there from pumpkin, iced, latte, mocha to even caramel and even more. Back then they didnt have as much of a variety it was very straight forward. Stanley fish even talks about how we pay a lot more for something that they dont even finish today instead having very little options to choose from even though its more straight forward and easy to choose from but I have no problem in waiting in line and having

Et cetera, Re, and Sic

Et cetera, Re, and Sic Et cetera, Re, and Sic Et cetera, Re, and Sic By Maeve Maddox When the Latin-loving educated classes finally started taking English seriously enough to write their works in, they brought a lot of Latin terms with them. Some of the terms remain in the language, among them et cetera, re, and sic. Et cetera Commonly abbreviated etc., the Latin phrase et cetera is used at the end of a list to indicate things in addition to those already enumerated: When you go shopping, be sure to buy such staples as flour, rice, sugar, etc. In older texts, you may see it abbreviated as c. The symbol , called the ampersand, originated as a ligature for the Latin word et (and). Note: In writing and printing, a ligature is two or more letters joined together to form one character, like the letters e+t. Etc. is frequently misspelled as â€Å"ect† and mispronounced as [ek setera]. These errors can be avoided by noting that the first part of the phrase is et, not â€Å"ek.† The exact translation of et cetera is â€Å"and the others: et=and, cetera=the others. Re: Another Latin word commonly used in English is re. The Latin phrase â€Å"in re† means â€Å"in the matter of,† or â€Å"concerning.† Traditionally, the word has been written at the top of a letter, either in all caps or with an uppercase R and a lowercase e, followed by a colon: RE: Re: Until recently, Re: was understood as a way to announce the subject of the message to follow: Re: Your letter of May12, 2014 As is the case with many formerly familiar Latin expressions in English, the meaning of Re: has become blurred, and its use is shifting. Many web users believe that it is an abbreviation for regarding. Others use it in email subjects to mean â€Å"Reply.† Sic The Latin word sic in square brackets after a word in quoted material means that something in the quotation is in error. The writer quoting the material inserts [sic] to indicate that the misspelled word or inaccurate fact occurs in the original: The most usual use of [sic] familiar to the general reader is its use to signal a misspelled or word: According to the document, â€Å"Every store on Main Street has the responsibility to provide it’s [sic] own parking.† {Sic] is also used to signal an error of fact. For example: Simpson says, â€Å"In Malory’s Le Morte D’Arthur, that the young Arthur draws Excalibur [sic] from the stone and is recognized as the rightful king.† The error being flagged by [sic] does not point to a misspelling; it has to do with the fact that in Malory, the sword drawn from the stone is not Excalibur. Arthur obtains Excalibur much later, from the Lady of the Lake. Related posts on DailyWritingTips: Regarding Re: What Does Sic Mean? Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:36 Adjectives Describing LightExcited ABOUT, not "for" 50 Synonyms for "Song"

Definition and Examples of Janus Words in English

Definition and Examples of Janus Words in English Janus word is a word (such as cleave) having opposite or contradictory meanings depending on the context in which the word is used. Also called antilogy, contronym, contranym, autantonym, auto-antonym, and contradictanyma. Examples and Observations To weather can mean to endure or to erode.Sanction can mean to allow or to prohibit.Fix can mean a solution (as in find a quick fix) or a problem (left us in a fix).Clip can mean to separate (as in clip the coupon from the paper) or to join (as in clip the answer sheets together).Left as a verb in the past tense means to have gone; as an adjective, it means remaining.Wear can mean to last under use or to erode under use.Buckle can mean to fasten or to bend and then break.The verb bolt can mean to secure, lock or to start suddenly and run away.Screen can mean to conceal or to show.Fast can mean moving quickly (as in running fast) or not moving (as in stuck fast). The Verb Table in British English and American English In British English, when you table a document, you add it to the agenda for a meeting, usually by placing copies on the table at the beginning of the meeting because it was not ready in time to be sent out. In American English, however, when you table a document, you remove it indefinitely from the agenda. Writers on both sides of the Atlantic should be aware of this possible source of confusion.(R.L. Trask, Mind the Gaffe! Harper, 2006) Literally [T]his usage of literally [to mean figuratively] . . . is not the first, nor will it be the last, instance of a word that is used in a seemingly contradictory way. There are many such words, and they arise through various means. Called Janus words, contranyms, or auto-antonyms, they include cleave (to stick to and to split apart) . . . and peruse and scan (each meaning both to read closely and to glance at hastily; skim). Usage writers often criticize such words as potentially confusing and usually single out one of the meanings as wrong, the right meaning being the older one, or the one closer to the words etymological meaning, or the one more frequent when 18th-century grammarians began to examine language systematically.  (Jesse Sheidlower, The Word We Love to Hate. Slate, Nov. 1, 2005) Factoid [Factoid is a] term created by Norman Mailer in 1973 for a piece of information that becomes accepted as a fact, although it is not actually true; or an invented fact believed to be true because it appears in print. Mailer wrote in Marilyn: Factoids . . . that is, facts which have no existence before appearing in a magazine or newspaper, creations which are not so much lies as a product to manipulate emotion in the Silent Majority. Lately, factoid has come to mean a trivial fact. That usage makes it a contranym (also called a Janus word) in that it means both one thing and its opposite . . ..(Paul Dickson, How Authors From Dickens to Dr. Seuss Invented the Words We Use Every Day. The Guardian, June 17, 2014) Schizophrenic Words Best and worst both mean to defeat. Cleave means both to cling to and to split apart. Fast means both speedy and immobilized (as well as several other things). Dress means to put on apparel, as a person does, or to take it off, as is done to a chicken. And while you are reflecting on such oddities, you may as well know that bleach means also blacking; bluefish also greenfish; bosom also depression; emancipate also to enslave; and help also to hinder.​(Willard R. Espy, The Garden of Eloquence: A Rhetorical Bestiary. Harper Row, 1983)

Was Afghanistan Invasion of 1979 and Occasion and not the Cause of the Essay

Was Afghanistan Invasion of 1979 and Occasion and not the Cause of the End of Detente - Essay Example Among these treaties and agreements were the SALT 1, SALT II and the Helsinki Agreement which committed both countries to stop the production of missiles and nuclear weapons4. In 1979, Soviet invaded Afghanistan and this led to the total breakdown of the detente5. However, I consider that Afghanistan invasion as an occasion but not the ultimate cause to the end of detente. This is informed by an evaluation of the causes of Afghanistan invasion and the relations between the two superpowers preceding the invasion. Causes of Afghanistan Invasion In 1779 After the end of the Second World War, United States and Soviet Union were engrossed in arms race. Consequently, the two nations decided to come to start negotiations to limit the number of missiles and nuclear weapons that they could keep. These negotiations were held in two phases; SALT I which ran from 1969 to 1972 which culminated with the signing of Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty6. This was followed by SALT II which began in 1972 but was never ratified by the US Senate7. United States hoped that through detente, they would have a smooth exit from the Vietnam War8. United States History explains that the two countries viewed detente differently where United States expected that Soviet Union had agreed to a worldwide standoff9. On the other hand, Soviets saw it as their obligation to support revolutions in any part of the world where they considered that there was oppression10. According to United States History, these varying interpretations strained the relationship and detente broke down with Afghanistan invasion in 197911. Some people felt that the attack was an unprovoked invasion of a sovereign nation12. Guide to Russia.com describes that Berlin, Hungary, Cuba and Korea had adopted communism and Afghanistan was seen to following the way13. In December 1979, Soviets paratroopers landed in the capital city; Kabul. The country was already in tension following the prime ministers attempt to introduce western po licies and do away with the Muslim belief14. This had therefore infuriated majority of the Afghanistan since they had a strong Muslim tradition. Consequently, many Muslim leaders had been arrested while others had fled Kabul15. Furthermore, the communist government was also opposed to religion. Consequently, thousands of Muslims in Afghanistan joined a guerrilla force known as Mujahedeen which declared jihad war on all the supporter of the prime minister16. They wanted to overthrow the government. The Soviets came in to support the government of the Afghan but on 27th December, 1979; they shot dead the then prime minister Amin and replaced him with Babrak Kamal17. However, the position of the new leader entirely depended on the support of Russians. The war started but the Russian army could not march the power of the Mujahedeen since they had the knowledge of the terrain and were committed to the jihad war18. United Nations was opposed to the invasion and had called for Russian with drawal from Afghanistan in January of 1980 although the motion was vetoed by Russia. Following the invasion, America introduced a ban on export of grains to Russia, stopped further SALT talks and refused to participate in the Moscow Olympic Games that were due to be held in 198019. America did not intervene in the war since they viewed this as a chance to get intelligence on the Russian weapons in addition to the fact that

Zara Retailing Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Zara Retailing Analysis - Essay Example Key competitive advantage Among of Zara’s competitive advantages are its manpower and human resource management. It is noted that 80% of its employees were engaged in retail sales in stores and 8.5% were involved in manufacturing, design, logistics, distribution, and the remaining were part of headquarters’ activities. This only implies that Zara is good at optimizing its entire operation especially on its supply chain management. Zara is also aggressive in its expansion program considering that 80% of its capital expenditures is appropriated to new store openings, 19% on refurbishing and 10% on logistics. This is one of its competitive advantages because its renowned international competitors are not that aggressive in their expansion program. Zara is also known to consider great savings on employment. It tries to gain more in its manpower expenses by choosing personnel with substantial experience in the clothing industry but with a relatively cheap labor. This is one of the reasons why Zara is generating much competitive income in its operations compared to its competitors. The three international leading competitors of Zara are the Gap from the United States, Hennes & Mauritz from Sweden, and Benetton from Italy. Geographically speaking, it is an advantage for Zara because apparel disposal in 2000 is higher in Europe which is 34%, and followed by the United States which is 29% and in Asia which is 23% (Case 32: Zara: Fast fashion). Zara is based in Europe and this is an advantage on its part because of its proximity in the profitable market for apparel in the world. The proximity is an advantage because this has something to do with other strategic advantage when it comes to culture and understanding customer’s needs at the deepest level. In fact, it is in line with this that Zara has continuous innovation based on customer’s desires. Inditext’s financial comparison Shown in Table 1 are some of the indicators of the financi al performance of Inditex, Benetton, H&M, and Gap. Gap has the highest net operating revenue among the three other retailing companies which is an indication that it may either has more retail outlets than the other or it is really at its best in stimulating needs or demand for its product offerings. Next to Gap is H&M followed by Inditex and finally Benetton. The net revenue can be an indication of market share and in this case, Inditex is not far behind the Gap and H&M. The same trend goes on from gross profit margin until operating efficiency. The operating efficiency is the operating expenses as a percentage of net operating revenues. The above indicators are not enough to tell which among of the four companies have higher profitability. When it comes to profitability, Inditex is more profitable compared to Gap, H&M and Benetton. Inditex has 10.5% net profit margin which is an indication that it has substantially generated more profits. This is the effect of maximizing its opera tion and resources. In fact, its PPE (property, plant and equipment) as percentage of net operating revenue is also higher than the other retailing companies. This is another indication that Inditex has substantially maximized its operation and resources to the fullest compared to the other retailing companies. Table 1. Financial performance of Inditex and its three international competitors Operating results (â‚ ¬ Millions) Gap H&M Benetton Inditex Net operating revenue 15,559 4,269 2,098 3,250 Gross margin 4,656 2,204 909 1,687 Operating efficiency 27.4% 37.8% 29.7% 30.2% Net profit margin -0.05% 9.6% 7.1% 10.5% PPE (% of net operating revenue 30.2% 15.9% 34.3% 37.8% Zara’s fast response model Zara’s fast response model contributes to its competitive advantage. The market for young

SERVQUAL MODEL as a Service Quality Measure

SERVQUAL MODEL as a Service Quality Measure 1.0 Introduction A great deal of service-quality research in recent decades has been devoted to the development of measures of service quality. In particular, the SERVQUAL instrument (Parasuraman et al., 1988) has been widely applied and valued by academics and practicing managers (Buttle, 1996). However, several studies have identified potential difficulties with the use of SERVQUAL (Carman, 1990; Cronin and Taylor, 1992; Asubonteng et al., 1996; Buttle, 1996; Van Dyke et al., 1997; Llosa et al., 1998). These difficulties have related to the use of so-called difference scores, the ambiguity of the definition of consumer expectations, the stability of the SERVQUAL scale over time, and the dimensionality of the instrument. As a result of these criticisms, questions have been raised regarding the use of SERVQUAL as a measure of service quality. 1.1 The SERVQUAL scale When the SERVQUAL scale was developed by Parasuraman et al. (1985, 1988), their  aim was to provide a generic instrument for measuring service quality across a broad range of service categories. Relying on information from 12 focus groups of consumers, Parasuraman et al. (1985) reported that consumers evaluated service quality by comparing expectations (of service to be received) with perceptions (of service actually received) on ten dimensions: tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, communication, credibility, security, competence, understanding/knowing customers, courtesy, and access. In a later (Parasuraman et al. (1988) work, the authors reduced the original ten dimensions to five: (1) tangibles (the appearance of physical facilities, equipment, and personnel); (2) reliability (the ability to perform the promised service dependably and accurately); (3) responsiveness (the willingness to help customers and provide prompt service); (4) empathy (the provision of individual care and attention to customers); and (5) assurance (the knowledge and courtesy of employees and their ability to inspire trust and confidence). Each dimension is measured by four to five items (making a total of 22 items across the five dimensions). Each of these 22 items is measured in two ways: (1) the expectations of customers concerning a service; and (2) the perceived levels of service actually provided. In making these measurements, respondents are asked to indicate their degree of agreement with certain statements on a seven-point Likert-type scale (1 strongly disagree to 7 strongly agree). For each item, a so-called gap score (G) is then calculated as the difference between the raw perception-of-performance score (P) and the raw expectations score (E). The greater the gap score (calculated as G  ¼ P minus E), the higher the score for perceived service quality. Chapter 2: Literature Review 2.0 Introduction Despite the widespread use of the SERVQUAL model to measure service quality, several theoretical and empirical criticisms of the scale have been raised. Buttle (1996) summarised the major criticisms of SERVQUAL in two broad categories theoretical and operational. Theoretical issues comprise: Paradigmatic objections: SERVQUAL is based on a disconfirmation paradigm rather than an attitudinal paradigm; and SERVQUAL fails to draw on established economic, statistical and psychological theory. Gaps model: there is little evidence that customers assess service quality in terms of P E gaps. Process orientation: SERVQUAL focuses on the process of service delivery, not the outcomes of the service encounter. Dimensionality: SERVQUALs five dimensions are not universals; the number of dimensions comprising SQ is contextualized; items do not always load on to the factors which one would a priori expect; and there is a high degree of intercorrelation between the five RATER dimensions. Operational criticisms include: Expectations: the term expectation is polysemic; consumers use standards other than expectations to evaluate SQ; and SERVQUAL fails to measure absolute SQ expectations. Item composition: four or five items can not capture the variability within each SQ dimension. Moments of truth (MOT): customers assessments of SQ may vary from MOT to MOT. Polarity: the reversed polarity of items in the scale causes respondent error. Scale points: the seven-point Likert scale is flawed. Two administrations: two administrations of the instrument cause boredom and confusion. Variance extracted: the over SERVQUAL score accounts for a disappointing proportion of item variances. The above criticism will be discussed below. 2.1: Paradigmatic objections (Theoretical Criticisms) Two major criticisms have been raised. First, SERVQUAL has been inappropriately based on an expectations disconfirmation model rather than an attitudinal model of SQ. Second, it does not build on extant knowledge in economics, statistics and psychology. SERVQUAL is based on the disconfirmation model widely adopted in the customer satisfaction literature. In this literature, customer satisfaction (CSat) is operationalised in terms of the relationship between expectations (E) and outcomes (O). If O matches E, customer satisfaction is predicted. If O exceeds E, then customer delight may be produced. If E exceeds O, then customer dissatisfaction is indicated. According to Cronin and Taylor (1992; 1994) SERVQUAL is paradigmatically flawed because of its ill-judged adoption of this disconfirmation model. Perceived quality, they claim, is best conceptualised as an attitude. They criticise Parasuraman et al. for their hesitancy to define perceived SQ in attitudinal terms, even though Parasur aman et al. (1988) had earlier claimed that SQ was similar in many ways to an attitude. Cronin and Taylor observe: Researchers have attempted to differentiate service quality from consumer satisfaction, even while using the disconfirmation format to measure perceptions of service qualityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ this approach is not consistent with the differentiation expressed between these constructs in the satisfaction and attitude literatures. Iacobucci et al.s (1994) review of the debate surrounding the conceptual and operational differences between SQ and CSat concludes that the constructs have not been consistently defined and differentiated from each other in the literature. She suggests that the two constructs may be connected in a number of ways. First, they may be both different operationalisations of the same construct, evaluation. Second, they may be orthogonally related, i.e. they may be entirely different constructs. Third, they may be conceptual cousins. Their family connections may be dependent on a number of other considerations, including for example, the duration of the evaluation. Parasuraman et al. (1985) have described satisfaction as more situation- or encounter-specific, and quality as more holistic, developed over a longer period of time, although they offer no empirical evidence to support this contention. SQ and CSat may also be related by time order. The predominant belief is that SQ is the logical predecessor to CSat, but this remains unproven. Cronin and Taylors critique draws support from Olivers (1980) research which suggests that SQ and CSat are distinct constructs but are related in that satisfaction mediates the effect of prior-period perceptions of SQ and causes revised SQ perceptions to be formed. SQ and CSat may also be differentiated by virtue of their content. Whereas SQ may be thought of as high in cognitive content, CSat may be more heavily loaded with affect (Oliver, 1993). Cronin and Taylor suggest that the adequacy-importance model of attitude measurement should be adopted for SQ research. Iacobucci et al. (1994) add the observation that in some general psychological sense, it is not clear what short-term evaluations of quality and satisfaction are if not attitudes. In turn, Parasuraman et al. (1994) have vigorously defended their position, claiming that critics seem to discount prior conceptual work in the SQ literature, and suggest that Cronin and Taylors w ork does not justify their claim that the disconfirmation paradigm is flawed. In other work, Cronin and Taylor (1994) comment that: Recent conceptual advances suggest that the disconfirmation-based SERVQUAL scale is measuring neither service quality nor consumer satisfaction. Rather, the SERVQUAL scale appears at best an operationalisation of only one of the many forms of expectancy disconfirmation. A different concern has been raised by Andersson (1992). He objects to SERVQUALs failure to draw on previous social science research, particularly economic theory, statistics, and psychological theory. Parasuraman et al.s work is highly inductive in that it moves from historically situated observation to general theory. Andersson (1992) claims that Parasuraman et al. abandon the principle of scientific continuity and deduction. Among specific criticisms are the following: First, Parasuraman et al.s management technology takes no account of the costs of improving service quality. It is naÃÆ' ¯ve in assuming that the marginal revenue of SQ improvement always exceeds the marginal cost. (Aubrey and Zimbler, 1983., Crosby., 1979, Juran., 1951 and Masser., 1957) have addressed the issue of the costs/benefits of quality improvement in service settings.) Second, Parasuraman et al. collect SQ data using ordinal scale methods (Likert scales) yet perform analyses with methods suited to interval-level data (factor analysis). Third, Parasuraman et al. are at the absolute end of the street regarding possibilities to use statistical methods. Ordinal scales do not allow for investigations of common product-moment correlations. Interdependencies among the dimensions of quality are difficult to describe. SERVQUAL studies cannot answer questions such as: Are there elasticities among the quality dimensions? Is the customer value of improvements a linear or non-linear function? Fourth, Parasuraman et al. fail to draw on the large literature on the psychology of perception. 2.2: Gaps Model A related set of criticisms refer to the value and meaning of gaps identified in the disconfirmation model. Babakus and Boller (1992) found the use of a gap approach to SQ measurement intuitively appealing but suspected that the difference scores do not provide any additional information beyond that already contained in the perceptions component of the SERVQUAL scale. They found that the dominant contributor to the gap score was the perceptions score because of a generalised response tendency to rate expectations high. Churchill and Surprenant (1982), in their work on CSat, also ponder whether gap measurements contribute anything new or of value given that the gap is a direct function of E and P. It has also been noted that: while conceptually, difference scores might be sensible, they are problematic in that they are notoriously unreliable, even when the measures from which the difference scores are derived are themselves highly reliable (Iacobucci et al., 1994). Also, in the context of CSat, Oliver (1980) has pondered whether it might be preferable to consider the P E scores as raw differences or as ratios. No work has been reported using a ratio approach to measure SQ. Iacobucci et al. (1994) take a different tack on the incorporation of E-measures. They suggest that expectations might not exist or be formed clearly enough to serve as a standard for evaluation of a service experience. Expectations may be formed simultaneously with service consumption. Kahneman and Miller (1986) have also proposed that consumers may form experience-based norms after service experiences, rather than expectations before. A further issue raised by Babakus and Inhofe (1991) is that expectations may attract a social desirability response bias. Respondents may feel motivated to adhere to an I-have-high-expectations social norm. Indeed, Parasuraman et al. report that in their testing of the 1988 version the majority of expectations scores were above six on the seven-point scale. The overall mean expectation was 6.22 (Parasuraman et al., 1991b). Teas (1993a; 1993b; 1994) has pondered the meaning of identified gaps. For example, there are six ways of producing P E gaps of -1 (P = 1, E = 2; P = 2, E = 3; P = 3, E = 4; P = 4, E = 5; P = 5, E = 6; P = 6, E = 7). Do these tied gaps mean equal perceived SQ? He also notes that SERVQUAL research thus far has not established that all service providers within a consideration or choice set, e.g. all car-hire firms do, in fact, share the same expectations ratings across all items and dimensions. A further criticism is that SERVQUAL fails to capture the dynamics of changing expectations. Consumers learn from experiences. The inference in much of Parasuraman et al.s work is that expectations rise over time. An E-score of seven in 1986 may not necessarily mean the same as an E-score in 1996. Expectations may also fall over time (e.g. in the health service setting). Grà ¶nroos (1993) recognises this weakness in our understanding of SQ, and has called for a new phase of service quality research to focus on the dynamics of service quality evaluation. Wotruba and Tyagi (1991) agree that more work is needed on how expectations are formed and changed over time. Implicit in SERVQUAL is the assumption that positive and negative disconfirmations are symmetrically valent. However, from the customers perspective, failure to meet expectations often seems a more significant outcome than success in meeting or exceeding expectations (Hardie et al., 1992). Customers will often criticise poor service performance and not praise exceptional performance. Recently, Cronin and Taylor (1992) have tested a performance-based measure of SQ, dubbed SERVPERF, in four industries (banking, pest control, dry cleaning and fast food). They found that this measure explained more of the variance in an overall measure of SQ than did SERVQUAL. SERVPERF is composed of the 22 perception items in the SERVQUAL scale, and therefore excludes any consideration of expectations. In a later defence of their argument for a perceptions-only measure of SQ, Cronin and Taylor (1994) acknowledge that it is possible for researchers to infer consumers disconfirmation through arithmetic means (the P E gap) but that consumer perceptions, not calculations, govern behavior. Finally, a team of researchers, including Zeithaml herself (Boulding et al., 1993), has recently rejected the value of an expectations-based or gap-based model in finding that service quality was only influenced by perceptions. 2.3: Process orientation SERVQUAL has been criticized for focusing on the process of service delivery rather than outcomes of the service encounter. Grà ¶nroos (1982) identified three components of SQ: technical, functional and reputational quality. Technical quality is concerned with the outcome of the service encounter, e.g. have the dry cleaners got rid of the stain? Functional quality is concerned with the process of service delivery, e.g. were the dry cleaners counter staff courteous? Reputational quality is a reflection of the corporate image of the service organization. While technical quality focuses on what, functional quality focuses on how and involves consideration of issues such as the behaviour of customer contact staff, and the speed of service. Critics have argued that outcome quality is missing from Parasuraman et al.s formulation of SQ (Cronin and Taylor, 1992; Mangold and Babakus, 1991; Richard and Allaway, 1993). Richard and Allaway (1993) tested an augmented SERVQUAL model which they cl aim incorporates both process and outcome components, and comment that the challenge is to determine which process and outcome quality attributes of SQ have the greatest impact on choice[1]. Their research into Domino Pizzas process and outcome quality employed the 22 Parasuraman et al. (1988) items, modified to suit context, and the following six outcome items: (1) Dominos has delicious home-delivery pizza. (2) Dominos has nutritious home-delivery pizza. (3) Dominos home-delivery pizza has flavourful sauce. (4) Dominos provides a generous amount of toppings for its home-delivery pizza. (5) Dominos home-delivery pizza is made with superior ingredients. (6) Dominos prepared its home-delivery pizza crust exactly the way I like it. These researchers found that the process-only items borrowed and adapted from SERVQUAL accounted for only 45 per cent of the variance in customer choice; the full inventory, inclusive of the six outcome items, accounted for 71.5 per cent of variance in choice. The difference between the two is significant at the 0.001 level. They conclude that process-and-outcome is a better predictor of consumer choice than process, or outcome, alone. In defense of SERVQUAL, Higgins et al., (1991) have argued that outcome quality is already contained within these dimensions: reliability, competence and security. 2.4: Dimensionality Critics have raised a number of significant and related questions about the dimensionality of the SERVQUAL scale. The most serious are concerned with the number of dimensions and their stability from context to context. There seems to be general agreement that SQ is a second-order construct, that is, it is factorially complex, being composed of several first-order variables [2]. SERVQUAL is composed of the five RATER [3] factors. There are however, several alternative conceptualizations of SQ. As already noted, Grà ¶nroos (1984) identified three components technical, functional and reputational quality; Lehtinen and Lehtinen (1982) also identify three components interactive, physical and corporate quality; Hedvall and Paltschik (1989) identify two dimensions willingness and ability to serve, and physical and psychological access; Leblanc and Nguyen (1988) list five components corporate image, internal organisation, physical support of the service producing system, staff/customer interaction, and the level of customer satisfaction. Parasuraman et al. (1988) have claimed that SERVQUAL: provides a basic skeleton through its expectations/perceptions format encompassing statements for each of the five service quality dimensions. The skeleton, when necessary, can be adapted or supplemented to fit the characteristics or specific research needs of a particular organization. In their 1988 paper, Parasuraman et al. also claimed that the final 22-item scale and its five dimensions have sound and stable psychometric properties. In the 1991b revision, Parasuraman et al. found evidence of consistent factor structure à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ across five independent samples. In other words, they make claims that the five dimensions are generic across service contexts. Indeed, in 1991, Parasuraman et al. claimed that SERVQUALs dimensions and items represent core evaluation criteria that transcend specific companies and industries (1991b) [4]. 2.5: Number of dimensions When the SERVQUAL instrument has been employed in modified form, up to nine distinct dimensions of SQ have been revealed, the number varying according to the service sector under investigation. One study has even produced a single-factor solution. Nine factors accounted for 71 per cent of SQ variance in Carmans (1990) hospital research: admission service, tangible accommodations, tangible food, tangible privacy, nursing care, explanation of treatment, access and courtesy afforded visitors, discharge planning, and patient accounting (billing)[5]. Five factors were distinguished in Saleh and Ryans (1992) work in the hotel industry conviviality, tangibles, reassurance, avoid sarcasm, and empathy. The first of these, conviviality, accounted for 62.8 per cent of the overall variance; the second factor, tangibles, accounted for a further 6.9 per cent; the five factors together accounted for 78.6 per cent. This is strongly suggestive of a two-factor solution in the hospitality industry. The researchers had initially assumed that the factor analysis would confirm the [SERVQUAL] dimensions but this failed to be the case. Four factors were extracted in Gagliano and Hathcotes (1994) investigation of SQ in the retail clothing sector personal attention, reliability, tangibles and convenience. Two of these have no correspondence in SERVQUAL. They conclude the [original SERVQUAL scale] does not perform as well as expected in apparel speciality retailing. Three factors were identified in Bouman and van der Wieles (1992) research into car servicing customer kindness, tangibles and faith [6]. The authors were not able to find the same dimensions for judging service quality as did Berry et al. One factor was recognized in Babakus et al.s (1993b) survey of 635 utility company customers. Analysis essentially produced a single-factor model of SQ which accounted for 66.3 per cent of the variance. The authors advance several possible explanations for this unidimensional result including the nature of the service, (which they describe as a low-involvement service with an ongoing consumption experience), non-response bias and the use of a single expectations/perceptions gap scale. These researchers concluded: With the exception of findings reported by Parasuraman and his colleagues, empirical evidence does not support a five-dimensional concept of service quality. In summary, Babakus and Boller (1992) commented that the domain of service quality may be factorially complex in some industries and very simple and unidimensional in others. In effect, they claim that the number of SQ dimensions is dependent on the particular service being offered. In their revised version, Parasuraman et al. (1991b) suggest two reasons for these anomalies. First, they may be the product of differences in data collection and analysis procedures. A more plausible explanation is that differences among empirically derived factors across replications may be primarily due to across-dimension similarities and/or within dimension differences in customers evaluations of a specific company involved in each setting. Spreng and Singh (1993) have commented on the lack of discrimination between several of the dimensions. In their research, the correlation between Assurance and Responsiveness constructs was 0.97, indicating that they were not separable constructs. They also found a high correlation between the combined Assurance-Responsiveness construct and the Empathy construct (0.87). Parasuraman et al. (1991b) had earlier found that Assurance and Responsiveness items loaded on a single factor and in their 1988 work had found average intercorrelations among the five dimensions of 0.23 to 0.35. In testing their revised version (Parasuraman et al., 1991b), Parasuraman and colleagues found that the four items under Tangibles broke into two distinct dimensions, one pertaining to equipment and physical facilities, the other to employees and communication materials. They also found that Responsiveness and Assurance dimensions showed considerable overlap, and loaded on the same factor. They suggested that this was a product of imposing a five-factor constraint on the analyses. Indeed, the additional degrees of freedom allowed by a subsequent six-factor solution generated distinct Assurance and Responsiveness factors. Parasuraman et al., (1991a) have now accepted that the five SERVQUAL dimensions are interrelated as evidenced by the need for oblique rotations of factor solutionsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦to obtain the most interpretable factor patterns. One fruitful area for future research, they conclude, is to explore the nature and causes of these interrelationships. It therefore does appear that both contextual circumstances and analytical processes have some bearing on the number of dimensions of SQ. 2.6: Contextual stability Carman (1990) tested the generic qualities of the SERVQUAL instrument in three service settings a tyre retailer, a business school placement centre and a dental school patient clinic. Following Parasuraman et al.,s suggestion, he modified and augmented the items in the original ten-factor SERVQUAL scale to suit the three contexts. His factor analysis identified between five and seven underlying dimensions. According to Carman, customers are at least partly context-specific in the dimensions they employ to evaluate SQ. In all three cases, Tangibles, Reliability and Security were present [7]. Responsiveness, a major component in the RATER scale, was relatively weak in the dental clinic context. Carman also commented: Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry combined their original Understanding and Access dimensions into Empathyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ our results did not find this to be an appropriate combination. In particular he found that if a dimension is very important to customers they are likely to be decomposed into a number of sub-dimensions. This happened for the placement centre where Responsiveness, Personal attention, Access and Convenience were all identified as separate factors. According to Carman, this indicates that researchers should work with the original ten dimensions, rather than adopt the revised five-factor Parasuraman et al., (1988) model. 2.7: Item loadings In some studies (e.g. Carman, 1990), items have not loaded on the factors to which they were expected to belong. Two items from the Empathy battery of the Parasuraman et al., (1988) instrument loaded heavily on the Tangibles factor in a study of dental clinic SQ. In the tyre retail study, a Tangibles item loaded on to Security; in the placement centre a Reliability item loaded on to Tangibles. An item concerning the ease of making appointments loaded on to Reliability in the dental clinic context, but Security in the tyre store context. He also found that only two-thirds of the items loaded in the same way on the expectations battery as they did in the perceptions battery. Carman supplies other examples of the same phenomena, and suggests that the unexpected results indicate both face validity and a construct validity problem. In other words, he warns against importing SERVQUAL into service setting contexts without modification and validity checks. Among his specific recommendations is the following: We recommend that items on Courtesy and Access be retained and that items on some dimensions such as Responsiveness and Access be expanded where it is believed that these dimensions are of particular importance. He also reports specific Courtesy and Access items which performed well in terms of nomological and construct validity. Carman (1990) further suggested that the factors, Personal attention, Access or Convenience should be retained and further contextualised research work be done to identify their significance and meaning. 2.8: Item correlations Convergent validity and discriminant validity are important considerations in the measurement of second-order constructs such as SERVQUAL. One would associate a high level of convergent validity with a high level of intercorrelations between the items selected to measure a single RATER factor. Discriminant validity is indicated if the factors and their component items are independent of each other (i.e. the items load heavily on one factor only). Following their modified replication of Parasuraman et al.,s work, Babakus and Boller (1992) conclude that rules for convergence and discrimination do not indicate the existence of the five RATER dimensions. The best scales have a high level of intercorrelation between items comprising a dimension (convergent validity). In their development work in four sectors (banking, credit-card company, repair and maintenance company, and long-distance telecommunications company) Parasuraman et al., (1988) found inter-item reliability coefficients (alphas) varying from 0.52 to 0.84. Babakus and Boller (1992) report alphas which are broadly consistent with those of Parasuraman, varying from 0.67 to 0.83 (see Table III). In their 1991b version, Parasuraman et al. report alphas from 0.60 to 0.93, and observe that every alpha value obtained for each dimension in the final study is higher than the corresponding values in theà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦original study. They attribute this improvement to their rewording of the 22 scale items. Spreng and Singh (1993), and Brown et al., (1993) are highly critical of the questionable application of alphas to difference scores. They evaluate the reliability of SERVQUAL using a measure specifically designed for difference scores (Lord, 1963). Spreng and Singh conclude that there is not a great deal of difference between the reliabilities correctly calculated and the more common [alpha] calculation, an observation with which Parasuraman et al., (1993) concurred when they wrote: The collective conceptual and empirical evidence neither demonstrates clear superiority for the non-difference score format nor warrants abandoning the difference score format. 2.9 Expectations (Operational Criticisms) Notwithstanding the more fundamental criticism that expectations play no significant role in the conceptualization of service quality, some critics have raised a number of other concerns about the operationalization of E in SERVQUAL. In their 1988 work, Parasuraman et al. defined expectations as desires or wants of consumers, i.e. what they feel a service provider should offer rather than would offer (emphasis added). The expectations component was designed to measure customers normative expectations (Parasuraman et al., 1990), and is similar to the ideal standard in the customer satisfaction/dissatisfaction literature (Zeithaml et al., 1991). Teas (1993a) found these explanations somewhat vague and has questioned respondents interpretation of the expectations battery in the SERVQUAL instrument. He believes that respondents may be using any one of six interpretations (Teas, 1993b): (1) Service attribute importance. Customers may respond by rating the expectations statements according to the importance of each. (2) Forecasted performance. Customers may respond by using the scale to predict the performance they would expect. (3) Ideal performance. The optimal performance; what performance can be. (4) Deserved performance. The performance level customers, in the light of their investments, feel performance should be. (5) Equitable performance. The level of performance customers feel they ought to receive given a perceived set of costs. (6) Minimum tolerable performance. What performance must be? Each of these interpretations is somewhat different, and Teas contends that a considerable percentage of the variance of the SERVQUAL expectations measure can be explained by the difference in respondents interpretations. Accordingly, the expectations component of the model lacks discriminant validity. Parasuraman et al. (1991b; 1994) have responded to these criticisms by redefining expectations as the service customers would expect from excellent service organizations, rather than normative expectations of service providers, and by vigorously defending their inclusion in SQ research. Iacobucci et al. (1994) want to drop the term expectations from the SQ vocabulary. They prefer the generic label standard, and believe that several standards may operate simultaneously; among them ideals, my most desired combination of attributes, the industry standard of a nominal average competitor, deserved SQ, and brand standards based on past experiences with the brand. Some critics have questioned SERVQUALs failure to access customer evaluations based on absolute standards of SQ. The instrument asks respondents to report their expectations of excellent service providers within a class (i.e. the measures are relative rather than absolute). It has be

Recommendations: Project Management Essay

Obviously, the type of the organizational structure that MP used is Vertical Coordination. MP is a movie&record industry, so its product is relatively simple. Vertical Coordination is the most basic and ubiquitous way to harmonize the efforts of individuals, units, or divisions is to designate a boss with formal authority. In this structureï ¼Å'departments just focus on their core tasks, workers who have the same specialty are get together and seem to be more efficient. However, the MP’s that being typecast as solely a â€Å"music† or â€Å"black† production company would limit the industry’s opportunities and would leave the company vulnerable should the entertainment market shift. In order to achieve the company’s goal of product diversification, MP needs to change its organizational structure. Matrix Structure will be adjust to MP’s development because this form is common in the product diversification. At other production companies, executives generally had portfolios of projects which they personally developed. At MP, executives shared responsibilities on projects, often going to meetings for one another and consulting with each other. Therefore, although each project was the principal responsibility of a given executive, a number of executives might be working on the same project at the same time. Although this approach avoids the inconvenience to communication of each department effectively, But at the same time, it also causes the confusion of management and division of unbalance. So my recommendation is as follow: Unless getting the agreement from the meeting, the executives of each department are just focus on their cases.

Congressional District 41 Riverside - 1404 Words

California Congressional District: 41 Riverside In â€Å"Congress in Black and White,† Christian Grose discusses his theory of politics and the different methods of choosing a representative that will serve the majority and minority communities equally. He believes that the best way to choose a representative is based on the majority of the people within that community. For example, he states that the best person to represent the African American community would be another African American who can empathize with what the community experiences on a daily basis. He explains the two theories black majority versus black-influence districts. For example, the term white-majority has lost its emphasis over the year. Within California, you can†¦show more content†¦Within district we see that there is high percentage of Hispanic/Latino with a 55.9%, 26.1% White, 9.5% Black, 5.9% Asians, and finally 2.6% as other. (Wikipedia) From the data, we see that District 41 is heavily concentrated with Hispanic/Latino community. When District 41 first came to be we see that the first representative was a Democrat, Lionel Van Deerlin, who served from 1973-1975. After Deerlin’s time in office there was trend of Republican representatives lasted from 1975-2013. On January 3, 2013 when Mark Takano took office, he actually ended the Republican reign within District 41. We see that from 2008 to 2016 there is a complete shift within the congressional district. In the Statement of Vote for the General Election (2008), California Secretary of State Debra Bowen, issued the statistics from the election in 2008, 2014, and 2016. When looking at the data from 2008, we see that the data shows preferences to the republican candidate, Jerry Luis, who was ahead by more than 60,000 plus votes compared to his opponent. Jerry Luis with the winning popular voted of 159, 486 (61.7%) versus his opponent Tim Pence(Democrat) who received 99, 214 (38.3). After looking into the 2012 election we see a slight shift between both politi cal parties, Democratic candidate, Mark Takano won the election with a 103,578 (59%). In the 2016 election we a polar opposite of the 2008 election, the democratic candidate Mark Takano, onceShow MoreRelatedThe Government and Not-For-Profit Environment100975 Words   |  404 Pagesthis special tax should be accounted for in which of the following funds? a) General fund. b) Internal service fund. c) Capital project fund. d) Debt service fund. 15. Riverside Golf Course is a City-owned golf course that collects greens fees in amounts sufficient to cover its expenses. Riverside Golf Course should be accounted for in which of the following funds? a) Internal service fund. b) Enterprise fund. c) General fund. d) Special revenue fund. 16. To fulfillRead MoreThe Boeing Company 2007 Annual Report61846 Words   |  248 Pagesperformance through growth and productivity 21 Five-Year Summary (Unaudited) 22 Forward-Looking Information 23 Management’s Discussion and Analysis 39 Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk 40 Consolidated Statements of Operations 41 Consolidated Statements of Financial Position 42 Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows 43 Consolidated Statements of Shareholders’ Equity 44 Summary of Business Segment Data 45 Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements 74 Segment Information 76Read More_x000C_Introduction to Statistics and Data Analysis355457 Words   |  1422 Pageshas been on the faculty at Cal Poly since 1979, serving for six years as Chair of the Statistics Department before becoming Associate Dean. She received an M.S. in Mathematics and a Ph.D. in Applied Statistics from the University of California, Riverside. Roxy is nationally known in the area of statistics education, and in 2003 she received the American Statistical Association’s Founder’s Award, recognizing her contributions to K–12 and undergraduate statistics education. She is a Fellow of the American

Feudalism - Worldwide Political and Social System

Feudalism is defined by different scholars in different ways, but in general, the term refers to a sharply hierarchical relationship between different levels of landowning classes. Key Takeaways: Feudalism Feudalism is a form of political organization with three distinct social classes: king, nobles, and peasants.In a feudal society, status is based on land ownership.In Europe, the practice of feudalism ended after the Black Plague decimated the population. A feudal society has three distinct social classes: a king, a noble class (which could include nobles, priests, and princes) and a peasant class. Historically, the king owned all the available land, and he portioned out that land to his nobles for their use. The nobles, in turn, rented out their land to peasants. The peasants paid the nobles in produce and military service; the nobles, in turn, paid the king. Everyone was, at least nominally, in thrall to the king, and the peasants labor paid for everything. A Worldwide Phenomenon The social and legal system called feudalism arose in Europe during the Middle Ages, but it has been identified in many other societies and times including the imperial governments of Rome and Japan. American founding father Thomas Jefferson was convinced that the new United States was practicing a form of feudalism in the 18th century. He argued that indentured servants and slavery were both forms of yeoman farming, in that access to land was provided by the aristocracy and paid for by the tenant in a variety of ways. Throughout history and today, feudalism arises in places where there is an absence of organized government and the presence of violence. Under those circumstances, a contractual relationship is formed between ruler and ruled: the ruler provides access to the required land, and the rest of the people provide support to the ruler. The entire system allows the creation of a military force that protects everyone from violence within and without. In England, feudalism was formalized into a legal system, written into the laws of the country, and codifying a tripartite relationship between political allegiance, military service, and property ownership. Roots English feudalism is thought to have arisen in the 11th century CE under William the Conquerer, when he had the common law altered after the Norman Conquest in 1066. William took possession of all of England and then parcelled it out among his leading supporters as tenancies (fiefs) to be held in return for services to the king. Those supporters granted access to their land to their own tenants who paid for that access by a percentage of the crops they produced and by their own military service. The king and nobles provided aid, relief, wardship and marriage and inheritance rights for the peasant classes. That situation could arise because Normanized common law had already established a secular and ecclesiastical aristocracy, an aristocracy that relied heavily on the royal prerogative to function. A Harsh Reality The upshot of the takeover of the land by the Norman aristocracy was that peasant families who had for generations owned small farmsteads became renters, indentured servants who owed the landlords their allegiance, their military service and part of their crops. Arguably, the balance of power did allow for long-term technological progress in agricultural development  and kept some order in an otherwise chaotic period. Just before the rise of the black plague in the 14th century, feudalism was firmly established and working across Europe. This was a near-universality of family-farm tenure by conditionally hereditary leases under noble, ecclesiastical or princely lordships who collected cash and in-kind payments from their subject villages. The king essentially delegated the collection of his needs—military, political and economic—to the nobles. By that time, the kings justice—or rather, his ability to administer that justice—was largely theoretical. The lords dispensed the law with little or no kingly oversight, and as a class supported each others hegemony. Peasants lived and died under the control of the noble classes. The Deadly End Plague Victims Blessed by a Priest (14th Century Illuminated Manuscript). http://scholarworks.wmich.edu/medieval_globe/1/. Quibik An ideal-typical medieval village was comprised of farms of about 25–50 acres (10–20 hectares) of arable land managed as open-field mixed farming and pasturage. But, in reality, the European landscape was a patchwork of small, medium, and large peasant holdings, which changed hands with the fortunes of the families. That situation became untenable with the arrival of the Black Death. The late-medieval plague created catastrophic population collapse among rulers and ruled alike. An estimated number of between 30–50 percent of all Europeans died between 1347 and 1351. Eventually, the surviving peasants in most of Europe achieved new access to larger land parcels  and gained enough power to shed the legal shackles of medieval servility. Sources Clinkman, Daniel E. The Jeffersonian Moment: Feudalism and Reform in Virginia, 1754–1786. University of Edinburg, 2013. Print.Hagen, William W. European Yeomanries: A Non-Immiseration Model of Agrarian Social History, 1350–1800. Agricultural History Review 59.2 (2011): 259–65. Print.Hicks, Michael A. Bastard Feudalism. Taylor and Francis, 1995. Print.Pagnotti, John, and William B. Russell. Exploring Medieval European Society with Chess: An Engaging Activity for the World History Classroom. The History Teacher 46.1 (2012): 29–43. Print.Preston, Cheryl B., and Eli McCann. Llewellyn Slept Here: A Short History of Sticky Contracts and Feudalism. Oregon Law Review 91 (2013): 129–75. Print.Salmenkari, Taru. Using Feudalism for Political Studia Orientalia 112 (2012): 127–46. Print.Criticsm and for Promoting Systemic Change in China.