Sony’s Environment Analysis

Executive Summary Sony Corp. acquired Ericsson’s shares in their 50-50 joint venture Sony Ericsson early this year and rebranded it into Sony Mobile, a wholly own subsidiary of Sony Corp. The aim of this audit is to analysis current situation of Sony Mobile and suggests how Sony Mobile could compete in such competitive market It started with analysis about the mobile phone market. It then gave an overview about Sony Mobile and STP analysis. This audit used Porter 5 Forces to analyse the current situation of Sony Mobile.PEST and SWOT analysis were used to determine the external macro and micro environment and Sony Mobile’s internal strength and weakness. It also analysed Sony Mobile’s main competitors in the industry and used the marketing mix to analyse its marketing strategy. Finally, the audit gave evaluation of the current situation and gave recommendations. Industry Background Market Size: The global mobile phone industry consists of all analog and digital ha ndsets used for mobile telephony (Marketline, 2009). Mobile phone industry is a very fast growing and competitive industry with many big players like Nokia, Samsung, LG, HTC, RIM, Apple, etc.According to International Telecommunication Union (2011), total number of mobile subscriber worldwide has reached 5,981 millions. The breakdown of subscription by regions extracted from ITU is as follow: Source: ITU Gartner, the world's leading information technology research and advisory company, in its report in 2012 reported that total number of mobile phone shipped in 2011 is 1,775 million units. Total sales of smartphone in 2011 have reached 491. 4 millions, around 27. 7% of total mobile phone sales. (IDC, 2011) Market Growth In 2012, mobile phone industry operating profits rose more than 44% annually (Strategy Analytics, 2012).This is a very impressive growth for any industry thanks to the creation and expansion of 3G and 4G net-works. That led to the demand for 3G and 4G mobile handset g lobally. Total number of mobile phones rose by 11. 1% (Gartner, 2012) and total number of smartphone rose by 61. 3%. (IDC, 2012) Market Trend In 2007, the first iPhone was introduced to the market and it changed the game. Apple created a new trend to the mobile phone industry, the trend of smartphone. Since then to now, Apple has sold more than 200 million iPhones, customers started to pick up smartphone instead of feature phone and producer started to follow the trend.Samsung came up with its Galaxy series, Nokia with its N series, etc. Currently, iPhone and Galaxy from Apple and Samsung are the two best-selling smartphone models worldwide. The two models are being priced quite high but multi-million of them have been sold. The two tech giant, Apple and Samsung continue to lead the market and enjoy the lion's share of global revenues and profits, thanks to the weak performance of other giant such as Nokia, Motorola and LG. Below chart showed the change in market share of top 5 smar tphone vendors. Market ShareNokia’s market share is declining year by year but still, it is holding the largest pie of the cake. Taiwanese mobile producer HTC, Korean giants Samsung and LG are becoming stronger and stronger, Research in Motion has always has its certain share in the market and Apple with its Swiss army knife iPhone, is becoming a biggest threat to all competitors in the industry. The market share of the industry is as follow: In such market, competing in this industry would be difficult enough, but to be a market leader will be even more challenging. Sony Mobile, successor ofSony Ericsson which has the financial support of Sony Corp. and the technology and market share of Ericsson, has always strived to be the top player in mobile industry. Company Background – Sony History Akio Morita & Masaru Iuka founded the Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo in 1946. It was then renamed into Sony Corp. in 1958 due to the belief that a company’s name should be as short and easy to remember as possible. Its headquarters is in Japan but its presence is all over the world and in almost any industry. Howard Stringer is currently appointed as Sony Corp. chairman and CEO.In 2001, Sony joint venture with Ericsson and introduce to the mobile phone industry a new player Sony Ericsson. The milestone marking the success of this joint venture is in 2003 when Sony Ericsson launched the camera phone. It was the combination between the famous Sony cyber shot digital camera and the Ericsson mobile phone technology. However, very soon after, in 2011, due to the significant decline in sales over several years, Ericsson wanted to withdraw from the joint venture. Taking the opportunity, instead of closing down Sony Ericsson, Sony bought Ericsson shares and it became a fully own subsidiary of Sony Corp.It is now dealing with over 2500 contractors worldwide. The current workforce of Sony is around 9400 employees under the leadership of Kunimasa Suzuki, the newly-appointed CEO of Sony Mobile Communications. Sales and Finance As indicated in its 2011 fourth quarter financial statements, Sony Mobile, formerly known as Sony Ericsson report a loss of 247 million euro. It is a decline of 374% from 2010. The lost was due to the rise in competitiveness of the market. It also reflect the unfavourable macroeconomic and the effects of the flood in Thailand in November 2011.The company have shifted from selling feature phones to smartphones. Its Android-based smartphone sales in the fourth quarter increased 65% year-on-year. Sony Mobile have the total units sale during the 2011 fourth quarter is 9 million, it is a decrease of 20% from last year. The decrease in sales is the result of the shift from feature phones to smart phones. The number of feature phones was significantly dropped due to the change in strategy but the increase in smartphone sale is too little to offset the loss in sales despite the fact that the sale in Xperia smartphones to date has reached 28 million.Sales for the quarter were approximately â‚ ¬1. 3 billion, 80% of which is from Xperia smartphones. This has emphasized the company's shift in strategy from selling feature phones to selling smartphones. The gross profit margin was 24%. It is a decrease compare to 30% the same quarter last year and 27% in the previous quarter. The decrease in gross profit margin show the difficulties of Sony in sales due to the increasing in market competitiveness with the rise of many innovative, creative and strong competitors such as Nokia, Samsung, Apple.The price competition is affecting Sony gross profit margin and it also one of the reason led to the loss of Sony Mobile during this quarter. Due to the difficulties and the shift in strategies and the restructuring program mentioned above, Sony Ericsson ended the quarter with a net loss of â‚ ¬207 million. Cash flow from operating activities during the quarter was negative Euro 26 million. External borrowings were Euro 19 milli on during the quarter. Total borrowings were Euro 742 million at the end of the quarter. Total cash balances at December 31, 2011 were Euro 442 million. Business objectives:Sony Mobile is aiming to challenge the market leaders in smartphone producers. They want to integrate Sony Corp. technology into their phones in order to compete with others smartphone vendor like Apple or Samsung. They want to gain market share any try to become number one market leader. â€Å"Sony will change† as quoted by the current President and the CEO of Sony Corp. , Sony is reinventing itself to deliver a new, unique and exciting experience for its customers around the world. Sony is now moving fully towards giving an all-in-one solution through its new array of smartphones powered by android operating system.SONY STP ALALYSIS (Segmentation Targeting and Positioning): In marketing most important things are the marketing segmentation and the marketing mix. Even if you come up with a best product and if you do not use the right marketing strategies the result can be devastating. Sony is one of the electronic companies in the world but it cannot be attributed just to the technology and the innovation. Sony's marketing segmentation consists of four different lines: 1) Mobile phones 2) Sony music 3) Sony pictures (Play Station) ) Electronics (TV, camera, walkman, computer, MP3 players) Source: http://www. consumerpsychologist. com/cb_Segmentation. html Segmentation: Sony takes an effort to understand its customers as much as possible. The marketing segmentation makes the process more efficient and effective. It divides the market into small pieces and targets people who belong to the same group and feel the same desire for a product. Sony mobile aims to target the mid-end to high-end market and they offer high quality product irrespective of the cost.Sony mobile works on the design of handset to make it more stylish. Segmentation can be done in four categories: * Demographic * Geo graphic * Psychographic * Behavioural Demographic: Marketers typically consider for a broader vision of socioeconomic characteristic as demographic variables. Demographic characteristic that marketers commonly use to segment markets include age, sex, race, education, occupation and social class. Sony mobiles have different variety of handsets. For example, Sony launched mobiles of different range i. e. Sony Xperia P, Sony Xperia S, Sony Xperia U.These new generation mobiles are targeted for young and middle aged people. As these smartphone mobiles have latest features like Reality Display powered by the Mobile BRAVIA ® Engine HD, Clear Audio and xLOUD Sony audio technologies, a next generation PlayStation for gaming, HD camera, and social networking. It is targeted for business people as it is said â€Å"Your office is where you are†, this shows that it has excellent business capabilities. Geographic: Market is divided into different regions as one or more geographic region s cause customers to differ from one region to other.Sony has different marketing strategies for different regions, as in some regions of India; more people are attracted for loud and clear music while some regions are more in social networking. For such regions Sony launched mobiles like Sony Xperia sola, Xperia P. Largest market segment is China with 1,023 million mobile subscribers. India is second with 919 million and USA top the three with 331 million subscribers. Psychographic: Psychographic factors are also been used to segment markets, as it is divided into lifestyle, motives, etc.Lifestyle analysis provides a broad view of buyers, as it is categorised like hobbies, sports, entertainment, social events, shopping and many more. For business driven customer, Sony came up with smartphone Xperia S as a tool for their business. Also for entertainment and social networking consumers, Sony’s smartphones include features to enable the same. Behavioural: Behavioural is classif ied in some categories like Brand Loyalty, Price Sensitivity, and benefit expectation. Some of the consumers look out for brand loyalty as, Sony designed the new Smartphone which target for such customers.As price is another factor, for which the consumers check, Sony came out with price of range S$650-S$750 for Xperia S, Xperia P which has latest features. Targeting: Sony mobile is currently trying to target mid-end to higher-end market by rolling out lower priced handsets. Sony mobiles use the newest and greatest technology to appeal to their customers. The people who are most interested in staying up to date with the newest technology are usually men of the ages 18-30. Sony mobiles are more targeting for entertainment with communication.They are targeting for young and middle aged group, who are more interested in new features and latest technology. Young aged group consumers i. e. 18-25, are more attracted towards Smartphone’s having features like entertainment, social ne tworking, and camera. For which Sony is targeting these age groups with Xperia’s new versions. Sony mobile communication is also targeting for business group consumers by using excellent business features. Positioning Sony Mobile is currently focusing only on the higher end of mobile phone, the smart phone segment. They position their product as high class mobile phones.With their continuous innovation in technology, they are trying to lower the cost and produce entry-level smart phone models (telecomlead, 2012) but the image of a higher class mobile phone is still their main focus. Sony Mobile has an advantage that they inherited the image and brand name of Sony Corp. When people think of Sony, they think of high class, innovative, high-tech and best quality product. Sony Mobile is trying to re-assure customer that image through their products. PORTER’s 5 PORTER’s 5 forces analysis helps to study the market’s structure which would identify the companyâ⠂¬â„¢s attractiveness and long-run profitability. . Threat of new entrants Considering the amount of capital required to setup a mobile phone manufacturing company, the threat of new entrants are relatively low. Though few companies crop up once in a while, it is not feasible to challenge big players such as Sony. 2. Bargaining power of suppliers Sony currently has got very limited number suppliers when it comes to their chips. Since android supports only specific number of chips, Sony needs to make sure that they maintain a good working relation with such companies. Qualcomm, NVidia and ARM are such company who provides required chipsets to Sony.But in terms of other parts for their mobile, they are flexible and for few parts such as camera, they have got their own manufacturing units. 3. Bargaining power of Buyers Like in majority of the companies, bargaining power of the buyers are the prime criteria to which the companies aim to cater. All the major companies are trying to endle ssly to the catch up with the customer’s demand through offering unique features. Each Customer perceive value in a different way, thus it is very important to keep up with the customer’s expectation. 4. Threat of Substitute Products/ServicesDue to high competition in the market currently, there are high numbers of choices a customer can make while selecting their mobile. Also there is no switching cost involved except for the cost of the mobile phone. Unless 5. Intensity of Rivalry among Competitors Competition is extremely fierce between the existing mobile phone manufacturers. Competitors such as Samsung, Nokia, HTC and LG are continuously coming out with new features in a regular interval. The competitors make sure their products stand out through actively promoting them even before the launch. PEST Analysis:This is a framework where the management/strategy consultants use to get an overview of the external Macro-environment in which the organization operates. PEST factors play an important role in the value creation opportunities of a strategy. These factors are usually being considered as either threats or opportunities. Political Factors: Political factors for Sony can be changed at any time. The Government holds the power to change any policies and regulations which may affect Sony at the time. Also the recession may become reduced, therefore resulting in better trades for Sony. Government decisions an affect the organization up to high extent. Even this would affect Sony’s competitors. The laws which can affect Sony Corporation would consist of new international policies. Internationally the Government may change or increase trading restrictions which would definitely change the way Sony works, because it needs to trade. Government also has the power to change minimum wage, tax, VAT etc. These are also the factors which lead Sony to rank low compared to other competitors. Sony Mobiles are present in many countries worldwide; the p olitical pressure in each of them would affect them one way or the other.Economical Factors: The economic growth has shrunk which means that the growth of the economy is negative. Economically, due to this many changes occur such as the interest and exchanges rates. Due to the recession being deducted in the near future exchange rates may also decrease, however steadily. Sony must be aware of any trading restrictions the Government has made. Since Sony is an international company the exchange rates is different to whichever country they trade with. If the exchange rates in different countries have changed, Sony works out what prices are their products being sold at and whether it would be worth it.Sony Mobile formulates new strategies with respect to segmentation and to check on with the new price of products being launched in different markets due to the changes in these exchange rates. Also low growth in the National income of most of the countries has been resulted in low demand of the firm’s products. Because of these increasing costs and problems Sony Mobile company had to reduce the size of its organisation as it was in the year 2010, the global economic climate has a negative effect on Sony mobiles and as a direct result of this it was necessary to rebuilt and reduce the size of the organisation around the world.Social Factors: Socially, Sony Corporation would be predicted to do well. The company has already gained a lot of reputation because of the quality products and services they provide. Technology has been improved by a mass majority. Sony may even have new competitors which may impact on them. Sony must ensure that they stay ahead of technology. They must be able to create revolutionary equipment for people because that what their company would rely on to stay alive. Companies such as Microsoft and Apple would also do the same. People have trends which Sony must learn so that they may create products which can relate towards them.For examp le, many young adults tend to listen to music; therefore Sony would create products which may allow people to listen to music anywhere at any time. People will have different tastes of style, trends, activities etc. Sony must also improve their work of ideas so that they can still please their customers and that they have adapted with the ageing of the company. Technological Factors: Having new technology Sony creates and innovates products for e. g. Sony’s 12MP camera in Xperia S and their Bravia engine based HD display. This is all possible due to the technological advances.With the latest technology it is possible for Sony mobiles to reduce costs, improve quality, and lead to innovation and new developments. These products benefit the company as well as its customers. Sony mobile works around the latest technology. In order to lead with their competitors they have to stay updated every time and regularly research and develop. It depends on technology so that it may provide efficient productivity of work internationally. Sony uses upgraded and new technology to increase its productivity level and to stay ahead of its competitors.Sony uses new technology to conduct its research and development which would help the business create new products using customer information and also by conducting market research. SWOT Favourable Sony’s presence around world is given the fact that it is one of those strongest established Japanese brand. It is present in almost all the countries around the world. Sony, established in 1946 one of those world renowned companies known for their innovation and quality of products till date. They have a very strong brand name and have a magnitude of products under their brand.They are the leaders when it comes to their display unit in the mobiles as well as the camera. Apple’s Iphone 4S and Samsung’s Galaxy SIII buy their camera unit from Sony. Unfavourable Unfortunately with the lack of innovation and not kee ping up with the competition, Sony is no more a leader or even in the top 5 of the mobile phone manufacturers in the world. With more people moving towards the smart phone segment, Sony has lost out to its competitors such as Samsung, Apple, HTC, etc. Sony’s adaptation to the latest mobile technology is also at its slowest.While its competitors are moving towards the next generation technology Sony is very slow with even announcing its next generation product roadmaps. Sony currently is lacking in innovation unlike till few years back. Despite having a previous generation technology their product pricing is a tad bit higher than its competitors. Opportunities Sony has got an opportunity to tap into the lower segment market with their high quality product offering. Currently all the mobile manufacturers are very focused in their higher end and higher mid value segment market.Sony who is already a marketing leader in portable gaming service can integrate such technology into th eir mobiles and offer a unique product which will set the apart from their competitors. While all of their products currently using Google’s Android OS, they should provide faster software updates to their products. These days the operating system used also one of the decisive factors while buying a mobile. Threat Currently Samsung, Nokia and HTC are aggressively releasing their new generation smartphones and promoting the same.While other manufacturers such as LG, Motorola and Research in motion are coming out with newer product of next generation smart phone in order to stay competitive. Sony’s market share is decreasing slowly and their advertisement campaign hardly has any reach to its target segment. Competitor Analysis For the completive analysis, we’ll look at the major mobile phone manufacturers in the market. We’ll look at their strength and weaknesses, strategy and objectives. Samsung Korean Giant Samsung is one of the leading mobile manufacture rs in the world.Currently Samsung is the world’s largest smart phone maker with the sales of 45 million smartphones in the first quarter of 2012. Samsung’s strong hold is with its mid segment to the high end segment products, comprising majorly of the smartphone sporting the Google’s Android OS. Samsung is aggressively competing with Apple in the top end segment of the smart phone. Samsung’s Galaxy S line is their flagship models and are one of the highest selling products in the smartphone industry. For the first quarter of 2012, Samsung holds a market share of 23. 5% and 29. 1% of global mobile phone market and global smart phone market respectively.Nokia Nokia is one of the direct competitors of Sony from the early days. Despite its declining market share, Nokia is still the largest mobile phone maker in the world. With its strong low segment models and the recent tie up with Microsoft for their Windows Mobile OS. Nokia is aggressively trying to get so me of shares in the smartphone market. They have already strategically placed their products in the mid segment and high end segment market, ranging from Lumia 610 to the Lumia 900. HTC HTC is next big competitor to Sony. HTC trademark comes from their very quick releases of the new generation products.HTC was the first to come out the initial batch of touch screen smartphones and also the first to come out with the mobile under Android platform. HTC’s current flagship product lines are their â€Å"One† Series and are aggressively promoting it all over the world. Their strategy is to release their product ahead of the competitors and gain a good amount of market share. HTC is project itself as a very good multimedia mobile and have acquired Beats Electronic. HTC also acquired majority of the stake in â€Å"VIA Technology†, one of the major chipset makers on July 6, 2011. MotorolaThe Patent powerhouse Motorola is also on decline with respect to its market share. Motorola lacks the consistency when it comes to their market share. The threat to Sony comes from the fact that Google has acquired â€Å"Motorola Mobility† and that in the near future it’ll revamped to compete with the bigger players including Apple. Currently Motorola is doing a fair amount of sales with its â€Å"Droid RAZR† product and has got couple of more release lined up for the next generation mobiles. Apple Competitor Analysis would not complete without analysing Apple. Apple’s dominance in the market with its IPhone is unbeaten.With their aggressive marketing and innovative design, they are in the lead along with Samsung. Apple currently sports a big fan following for their products and holds a very high market share in the smartphone and tablet segment. Despite having only very less number of products in their portfolio, Apple manages post a huge profit when compared to others. In the first quarter of 2012, Apple holds a market share of 24. 2% in the smart phone segment, an 88. 7% increase from the first quarter of 2011. This scenario is bound to continue for the upcoming years. Other Players:Research In Motion (RIM), LG, ZTE are other big competitors to Sony. ZTE and LG are holding a market share of 4. 8% and 3. 4% respectively in the global mobile phone market. Whereas, Research in Motion’s market share in the smart phone is down to 6. 7% and are planning on targeting the mass market instead of restricting themselves to the business class users. Thus from the above analysis, it is evident that Sony is facing with a high amount competition and is in a very tough spot. Marketing Mix Marketing Mix is a different kind of choices organizations makes in the process of introducing a product or service to the market.The 4Ps is one of the methods used to analyse the market mix. 5. 1 Product In the Fiscal year 2011, Sony began to shift the focus of its mobile phone business exclusively to smartphones. So currently Sony Mo bile Corporation has got a very low number of products under its wing. It has got only two product lines namely â€Å"BRAVIA† and â€Å"XPERIA† range of mobile phones. The â€Å"BRAVIA† branded line of phones are exclusive to their Japanese market and there are about five models under it. For rest of the world the â€Å"XPERIA† ranges of mobile phones are being sold.First introduced back in 2008, Sony after revamping their product line retained only this series which sports the Google’s Android OS. Sony currently has got about six models under the â€Å"XPERIA† series. Sony’s flagship model â€Å"Xperia S† comes with one of the best camera in the market with its 12 Mega Pixel Sensor. With their â€Å"Xperia† product line up, Sony is trying to offer an all-round functionality offering. It is also coming up with 7 new models which will target the various segment users. Sony also has got two Tablet models namely â€Å"Sony Tablet P† and â€Å"Sony Tablet S†. Currently all of Sony’s models are featuring android and are touchscreen.Sony also has got range of Accessories to support the functionality of their mobile phones such as headset, wrist strap and customized chargers. 5. 2 Price Pricing is one of the key areas to be successful in the market and is one of the frequently investigated marketing strategies as related with quality. The perception of Sony’s superior quality is still preserved with their current models and it comes at a higher cost of production. This makes their models costing higher than its competitor with the similar product. Currently Sony’s cheapest model comes at the cost of about SG$400 and their flagship model â€Å"XPERIA S† costing about SG$700. . 3 Place Sony currently retails its mobile phone through four primary channels – traditional multi-brand shops, retail chains, local stores and also through their exclusive branded stor es. Sony also sells their product online through their own web store and also through online e-commerce websites such as newegg (US), amazon (US), flipkart (India) and other country specific e-commerce portals. Sony also sells its product with tie up the national operators of the respective country. Sony mobile takes the inherent advantages of the Sony brand and strengthens the marketing field and publicity.Build an outstanding Sony branded shop in shop and point of sale and re-establish the brand image of Sony mobile market and marketing in a wide range. And realize the integration of other businesses with the Sony Group. It means selling the smart phones in Sony home appliances and other Sony line of business sales channels online shop. In order to achieve the effective integration – Sony mobile channels the resources to the Sony Group. 5. 4 Promotion Sony Mobile currently trying to establish its â€Å"Sony† brand name after the name change from â€Å"Sony Ericssonà ¢â‚¬ .Currently Sony is trying hard to be a follower and it is currently promoting its Xperia smartphone through various communications medium such as Television advertisement, press, Internet and social websites, and road shows. Sony is also actively sponsoring various public events and also through. They are also aggressively promoting their models through the network operators by providing the mobiles at a subsidized rate upon contract. Evaluation & Recommendation From the marketing audit, it is quite evident that Sony is currently facing lots of challenges, while trying to establish its revamped image with their smartphones.They have put in strategies to gain more market shares and introducing new smartphones to keep up with the recent market development. With its strong foundation, Sony can improve their positioning in the market with strategically placed steps. Sony need to focus on delivering products that would cater to wide segment of customers. They should make sure that they come out with latest technology products on par with its competitors. Sony should bring back their innovative culture they once had and focus on becoming the market leader.They should leverage on their strong foundation with the multitude technological products under them. Sony currently does not have any low cost solution; this is a very big shift from their previous strategy wherein they had products targeting all range of customers. It is recommended they try to focus on providing low cost solution and fill in the void. Currently all the major companies are focusing their resource to compete in the mid-range to high end mobile products, leaving enough opportunity in the lower end segment of the mobile market.With the right price to feature ratio in this segment, Sony can gain a very good market share that will enable to them to recapture their past position in the near future, especially in the developing countries like India where such low price solution will attract a huge number of customers. Though Sony has got an extensive distribution network, they can provide a direct to customer model through their website which can enable them to engage the customers directly without a need of the resellers; they are already doing such model through their direct stores.With more users opting to purchase their products through the e-commerce websites, such a solution will add some good value to the company. Sony should make sure their products are marketed properly such a way they highlight the target feature for the respective target group. Thus with right products and marketing strategy, Sony Mobile Corporation can make sure that they reach their objectivity of gaining more market share. LIST OF REFERENCE Fourth quarter mobile phone industry overview | asymco. 2012. Fourth quarter mobile phone industry overview | asymco. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www. asymco. om/2011/01/31/fourth-quarter-mobile-phone-industry-overview/. Global mobile statistics 2012 Part A: Mobile subscribers; handset market share; mobile operators | mobiThinking. 2012. Global mobile statistics 2012 Part A: Mobile subscribers; handset market share; mobile operators | mobiThinking. [ONLINE] Available at: http://mobithinking. com/mobile-marketing-tools/latest-mobile-stats/a#subscribers. Gartner Says Worldwide Smartphone Sales Soared in Fourth Quarter of 2011 With 47 Percent Growth. 2012. Gartner Says Worldwide Smartphone Sales Soared in Fourth Quarter of 2011 With 47 Percent Growth. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www. artner. com/it/page. jsp? id=1924314. Key Global Telecom Indicators for the World Telecommunication Service Sector. 2012. Key Global Telecom Indicators for the World Telecommunication Service Sector. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www. itu. int/ITU-D/ict/statistics/at_glance/KeyTelecom. html. Worldwide Smartphone Market Continues to Soar, Carrying Samsung Into the Top Position in Total Mobile Phone and Smartphone Shipments, According to IDC – prUS23 455612. 2012. Worldwide Smartphone Market Continues to Soar, Carrying Samsung Into the Top Position in Total Mobile Phone and Smartphone Shipments, According to IDC – prUS23455612. ONLINE] Available at: http://www. idc. com/getdoc. jsp? containerId=prUS23455612. Global Mobile-Phone Sales and Market Share: Summary – Bloomberg. 2012. Global Mobile-Phone Sales and Market Share: Summary – Bloomberg. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www. bloomberg. com/news/2011-11-15/global-mobile-phone-sales-and-market-share-summary-table-. html. Mobile Phone Industry Profits Surge 44% in Q1 2012 . 2012. Mobile Phone Industry Profits Surge 44% in Q1 2012 . [ONLINE] Available at: http://blogs. strategyanalytics. com/WDS/post/2012/05/30/Mobile-Phone-Industry-

Flags of Our Fathers & Letters of Iwo Jima

‘Flags of our Fathers’ is a movie directed by Clint Eastwood and takes place during World War 2 about the Battle of Iwo Jima. The film circulates around the five Marines and the lone Navy solider who raised the American flag on Mt. Suribachi. Although the photo was taken when they raised the replacement flag, since the military wanted to keep the original so politicians would not take it and put it in their home as a shrine. There were only three survivors out of the six that raised the flag, so they were shipped back to the United States.When they got back they travel the United Stated shaking people’s hands and telling them about the photo in order to raise money for the war. Throughout the trip Ira is constantly getting drunk and eventually gets shipped back to his unit as he wished since he made the General very angry. The remaining two soldiers continue to travel and raise money. After the war ends, all three finally get to go home. Although two of the soldie rs struggled with their life after the war, since one went on to become a school janitor and the other hitchhiked across the country and could not escape his past.While the other soldier bought a funeral home and ran it until he passed away, he was the only successful one. All three saw each other one last time at the unveiling of the Marines War memorial, which was a statue of the flag raising on Mt. Suribachi. ‘Letters from Iwo Jima’ was also another movie about World War 2 involving Battle of Iwo Jima directed by Clint Eastwood, except this film shows you the other side of the war. It shows you what the Japanese did to prepare for the war and shows there perspective of it.Although it mainly focuses on a few soldiers and one particularly, who was a just a young man who was a baker who got drafted. It starts off when Japanese soldiers were digging trenches on the beach then the General comes and changes everything. He tells to start digging tunnels for what they though t would be a better defense. Since the Japanese fleet was destroyed he did not think it was necessary to have trenches on the beach. Then the United States invaded Iwo Jima, they quickly over took the beach. Shortly after, they quickly took over all of Iwo Jima.The Japanese soldiers knew it was over so some started committing suicide but the young baker refused to and got away trying to save his own life. He then travels all the way across the island where he meets the general, who saves his life. In returning the favor, the general asks the baker to burn all his military documents and basically gives him a chance to go back to his family while he leads one last attack. He then burns all the documents like he was told but decides to put all the letters in a bag and buries them in the dirt so someone can find them.Some years down the road they are found and that is how the story is told from the Japanese point of view. ‘Flags of our Fathers’ and ‘Letters from Iwo J ima’ both take place during World War 2 which was from 1939 to 1945 but the battle both movies focuses in on took place on February 19th, 1945. The message Flags of our Fathers is that no matter who you are you can always make a difference. All it takes is faith, consistency and hard work. The flag raising was also very patriotic and it gave many Americans hope that we had won the war and it was over.Although they failed to realize what the Americans had to go through in the war, they just saw the picture and realized everything was fine and came up with their own story on what they think happened. While in ‘Letters of Iwo Jima’ the Japanese soldiers were also very patriotic I believe. The film shows you that you should never disrespect your country regardless of what type of situation you are in. You should always fight, stand up, and have pride for your country and never take the cowards way out. In the film ‘Flags of our Fathers’, I believe there is one bias.This is that the people of America mainly just paid recognition to the three soldiers who raised the flag and seemingly forgot about everyone else fighting in the war. Yes I am well aware of that the movie focuses on that flag raising, but they even said so in the movie that people saw the picture and assumed victory and came up with their own story about it. At first while watching the movie while reading the questions I thought it was pretty obvious that the two marines and lone navy corpsmen were the heroes of the movie but later on I found out that there were no heroes.In the final scene of the movie, the son of one of the soldiers states; there is no such thing as heroes and the soldiers were uncomfortable being called heroes, since heroes are something we create and need. It is a way for us to understand what is almost incomprehensible. How people could sacrifice so much for their buddies. They may have fought for their country but they died for their friends with a man in front and a man beside them. If we wish to truly honor these men, we should remember them how they truly were.After I heard that statement he made, it really opened up my mind and made a lot of sense. I strongly believe in that statement, they were just regular guys doing what they ordered to do. Then enemy in the film is clearly Japan since there is no other option. That is the country we are fighting in the war against. Yes, I believe both countries were treated fairly and there was no misrepresentation of history. I think Japan got what was coming to them and is a perfect example of the old saying â€Å"what goes around comes back around†.Since they attacked China several times and even had the courage to attack the United States when they bombed Pearl Harbor. So it is not United State’s fault they were beaten so badly in the movie because quite frankly, they started it but could not back it up. In ‘Letters of Iwo Jima’, it is hard to determine if there are any biases and I do believe that there is not any. Also, the heroes of this movie were also hard to determine. Although, I believe there were two different heroes on the Japanese side of the battle.I think the first hero was General Kuribayashi, since he saved Saigo who was the young baker’s life three different times. The first time being when he said unpatriotic things about Japan to his friend then the Captain overheard and almost killed him before the General stopped him. The second came when the same captain tried killing him again for not obeying orders when he left Mount Suribachi and the General saved him again. Then the third time was when the General told him to stay behind and burn all the war documents and letters while he led one last attack.Obviously, the second hero I believe was Saigo since he chose to bury all the letters instead of burning them, therefore people could know what really happened on Japans side of the battle because if had not hav e buried them, nobody would have never knew. The enemy is obviously the United States since they are the ones Japan is trying to defend their country from. Japan was treated fairly but they could not match up well with the United States since they started bombing all these countries and thought they were invincible and lost their Navy Fleet, which was the main reason why they lost the battle so quickly and easily.

Issues in Scottish Curriculum Design Essay

The way that any curricula is broken up into is two main ways; one being the curriculum in action, where the aims, content and experiences of the curriculum on paper are implemented in practice. The other is the curriculum on paper which is the ideology of what should be implemented in education across the board. The ideology in curriculum can be split up into four main categories. Most papers on this topic, agree to an extent what the four ideologies constitute of, but Schiro’s (2008) ideologies are the most commonly known. The ‘Scholar Academic’, the ‘Social Efficiency’, the ‘Learner Centred’ and the ‘Social Reconstruction’ ideologies are the four main categories explained in the Curriculum Theory that will be discussed in this paper in relation to The Curriculum for Excellence, the current curriculum in Scotland. The oldest of the four ideologies is the Scholar Academic ideology which focuses on the accumulation of knowled ge and understanding. The aim of this ideology is to pass on the knowledge of certain disciplines (subject areas), to allow there to be future scholars in that particular area and therefore, further develop understanding. The academic disciplines are the result of the culture’s compiled knowledge and understanding of each area, and with this in mind, the purpose of education is to assist pupils to learn this knowledge. The next ideology is Social Efficiency. This is pretty dominant in our curriculum today and means to prepare the learner for becoming an efficient and contributing member in society. The learner’s objective is to learn certain skills that will in turn achieve certain objectives that benefit society (Lorrie A. 2000). The individual will learn a mixture of knowledge and skills that can be put together, therefore making the skills more efficient and more beneficial to society. The learner centred ideology focuses more on the needs and interests of the individual rather than the c ontent they are to learn. The idea behind this theory is that learning will take place due to the interactions between the individual and their environment, therefore being more down to the experiences rather than the content. The newest of these ideologies is Social Reconstruction. This is where the social reconstructionists are aware of the problems in society and see the job of the educator to correct these problems in the classroom, hoping that it will reconstruct their society as it is (Groenke, S. 2009). The focus of the curriculum would not be based on knowledge but more of values and opinions that would benefit the society and make it attain the greatest satisfaction of its members. In ‘Building the Curriculum 3: A framework for learning and teaching’ it has examples of all four of the classifications of the curriculum ideology provided by Schiro (2008). It has examples of Academic ideology as it discusses the importance of knowledge and the ability and opportunity to increase the depth of knowledge already acquired as it states â€Å"Throughout a young person’s learning there will be increasing specialisation and greater depth, which will lead to subjects increasingly being the principal means of structuring learning and delivering outcomes.† (page 20, Building the Curriculum 3). From this quote we can relate the academic ideology through the concentration on developing knowledge further to specialisation in certain subjects, therefore being able to pass on the knowledge and allow it to grow from there. There are many examples of ‘The Social Efficiency Ideology’ in the paper as it focuses on health and wellbeing experiences and outcomes where the individual’s get the opportunity to gain skills that benefit the individual in life and work, but also the community around them. This is to help them become effective contributors in society: †¦support all children and young people in developing skills which they will use throughout their life and in their work, including the development of pre-vocational, enterprise and employability skills, personal skills, high levels of cognitive skills and the opportunity to put learning into a practical context. (page 15, Building the Curriculum 3) This example shows that the curriculum is aiming to encourage the learning of certain skills that will improve chances of employability and life skills that will help the young people settle into society and be able to play their part within it. The Curriculum for Excellence sees itself as being centred on the learner, and their individual needs. There are plenty examples throughout the paper of this ideology where the child is involved in what they are learning and setting themselves goals to achieve and having choice in what they learn within the curriculum, â€Å"All children and young people should experience personalisation and choice within their curriculum, including identifying and planning for opportunities for personal achievement in a range of different contexts† (page 17, Building the Curriculum 3). This quote shows that the idea of the curriculum is to give young people freedom to make their own decisions in what they are learning and at their own level. There are four capacities that make up the purpose of the curriculum that are described in this paper. ‘Successful learners’, ‘confident individuals’, ‘responsible citizens’ and ‘effective contributors’, are the capacities that the curriculum aims to enable young people to become. ‘Responsible citizens’ is a good example of The Social Reconstructive ideology as it explains how they will learn respect and about different cultures and how to behave responsibly within the community in all aspects (political, cultural or otherwise). As Building the curriculum states: †¦able to develop knowledge and understanding of the world and Scotland’s place in it, understand different beliefs and cultures make informed choices and decisions evaluate environmental, scientific and technological issues develop informed, ethical views of complex. (page 22, Building the Curriculum 3) Here in this example, it shows that the curriculum wants to provide young people with varied knowledge so that the decisions they make in the future will help to create a better society. The idea is to teach them about values and respect so that they may make better informed decisions as to what is best for the society around them. Building the Curriculum 3 contains examples of all four of the ideology categories, but there are two that are most prevalent, ‘Learner Centred’ and ‘Social Efficiency’. Upon examining the evidence in more depth it seems that the ‘Social Efficiency’ ideology is the most dominant within this paper. Its main focus is on preparing and equipping individuals for future endeavours. For instance, the skills needed for future work prospects upon which Kridel’s (ed.2010) summary, of David Sneddon’s idea of social efficiency, explains the curriculum as a way to make individuals efficient for work. As discussed by Arnoldy (online), social efficiency in education is more for the benefit of the social economy than for the individual, but contradicting that theory in this paper, are the examples of learner centred ideology that is dotted throughout. Though, combining these two theories, Valades’ (online) talks about the idea that to help out society, educating young people to learn and improve their skills and capabilities to help the community in the future, is the way forward. From Building the Curriculum 3 and having summarised that the main ideology behind it is focusing on preparing the individuals to become more efficient and productive for contributing to our society, we can see that there will be some implication for teachers. Teachers who have been teaching for years under the same curriculum will struggle to accept the new curriculum, if it is as completely different way to how they have been teaching before. Although the main focus of the curriculum in Scotland has been focused on preparing individuals for the future, it has not been focused on the more individual level. This may cause implication for teachers as they only have specific allocated times to be with classes and it will be hard to offer each individual, the time and attention they need to develop specific skills to the point of being efficient. The teacher will have to focus more on the experiences and outcomes the learners are objected to, to develop the skills needed for the real world. This causes some problems as it depends highly on what the school can afford to give in ways of experiences, as most of these will probably be met outside of school. So, teachers need to find a way of achieving the outcome of making the individual a more effective contributor to society by combining what they learn in and outside of the classroom. This would be a task for teachers, as the environment each individual they teach will be different and this therefore means that the teacher will have to find a way to combine these different environments or find a similarity and focus on that. Building the Curriculum 3 has some implication for teachers, but the focus being on social efficiency means that in some ways there are not so many changes from the past as at least for the last hundred years the school curriculum has been focused on making learners that will have skills that will help them achieve objectives that will make the society a more efficient place. A Comparative Overview of the Curriculum Ideologies – Chapter 6 http://www.sagepub.com/upm-data/47671_ch_6.pdf (visited 29th dec 2012) Critical Pedagogy and Teacher Education in the Neoliberal Era: Small Openings pp 3 Springer Netherlands, 2009 volume 6 Susan L. Groenke http://www.geocities.ws/rf_valades/index2.htm Social Efficiency Theory – SAVE SOMETHING TODAY Rodrigo Valades visited 29th dec 2012 The Role of Assessment in a Learning Culture Lorrie A. Shepard Vol. 29, No. 7 (Oct., 2000), pp. 4 American Educational Research Association http://www.sagepub.com/upm-data/47671_ch_6.pdf Chapter 6 – A Comparative Overview of the Curriculum Ideologies visited 29th dec 2012 Encyclopedia of Curriculum Studies edited by Craig Kridel SAGE Publications Inc 2010 Pg 4-7 Curriculum Theory: Conflicting Visions and Enduring Concerns, Schiro, M. (2008a) SAGE Publications, Inc Pg 199-245 Curriculum Theory: Conflicting Visions and Enduring Concerns Second Edition, Schiro, M. (2012b) SAGE Publications, Inc Building the Curriculum 3: A framework for learning and teaching, The Scottish Government, 2008

History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 7

History - Essay Example On the other hand, the issue of religious conflicts is also on the rise. Historical Perspective of Terrorism and Religious Conflicts 1. Terrorism Terrorism refers to the acts of warfare staged by a group of enemy combatants who usually targets a clique of people or institution in a bid to make the victim to give in to certain demands (Cole 2011). Take a case of the September 11, 2001 attack; the al-Qaida claimed responsibility for the attack and demanded that the United States desists from attacking Iraq. In the past, terrorists’ actions were quite predictable and as such, it was easier to thwart, there acts. However, terrorists have taken a new twist; they have gone viral to say the least. Terrorist of the 21st centuary have the most sophisticated weapons, which makes it hard to fight them. The Middle East has been the traditional territory of the terrorist where all the plans of terrorists are executed. Lutz & Lutz (2011) say that lately, the terrorists exits everywhere even in the place you least expect them. It is no longer a surprise to find that Native Americans have been assimilated into terrorism. Moreover, they execute terror attacks against their own country. Take a case of the September 11 bombing; some of the culprits were the Americans. The terrorist have taken terrorism a notch higher. They have incorporated nuclear weapons, biological weapons, and chemical weapons. Several attempts through both diplomatic and military intervention have been put in place to thwart the growth of such dangerous weapons (Cole 2011). These weapons are very dangerous and possess threat to the entire humanity. The nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons can wipe out man out of the surface of the earth. 2. Religious Conflicts Religious conflicts are rife in the society today owing to the religious intolerance among the various religious groups. A perfect example of religious conflict is the one pitting Christians against Muslims. Arab-Israeli conflict has dragge d on for decades and there is no end in sight. The Arab nations are at war with the Israeli and as such, they use Islam as an avenue to mobilize the Arabs against non-Muslim nations such as Israel. The Islam religion commenced around the 7th centuary in Middle East (Lutz & Lutz 2011). Mohamed, who would later introduce the concept of Jihad, started the religious outfit. The idea of Jihad was to spread Islam religion by the use of force. To date almost all Arab nations in the Middle East and Northern Africa profess the Muslim faith. The Islam have always been associated with the issue of violence popularly known as Jihad which champions for aggression against other religious groups such as Christians. It is worth noting that Islam extremists have gone to an extent of staging war against Christians through terror related attacks. In fact, the September 11 attacks show the extent to which Muslim extremist have taken the conflict between Christian and Muslims. Effects of Terrorism and R eligious Conflicts It is worth noting that terrorism and religious conflicts has adverse social, economic and political effects to the society today. The aftermath of terror attacks or religious conflicts is always greeted with loss of lives, injuries, and loss of property. The September 11 attack was an epitome of the adverse negative impacts to the society. Several people lost their lives resulting to untold metal torture and agony to their friends and relatives. Losing a loved

International human resource management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

International human resource management - Essay Example Social architecture is defined as a new organizational change management. The use of effective recognition program can help to reinforce the essential values of the company to life. The prime purpose of the project is to provide in-depth knowledge on one of the key duties of Human Resource Managementwhich is to build and create social architecture in multinational firms. The application of decentralization can redistribute people, power and functions from a chief authority. The development of social architecture enables to motivate each individual within an organization. The conscious design of an environment within the organization can modify human behavior to achieve certain goals (Tripples, 1996, p.2). In the modern era of globalization, it has become a pivotal objective of multinational firms to avoid pitfalls in a global workforce. It is vital for organization to build and design effective social architecture to foster a culture that can help to avoid pitfalls and develop successful strategy deployment (Soliman, 2009, p.17). Monetary, non-monetary incentives and employee appraisal can motivate employee for better job performance. According to Nora McKenzie and Andrew Ballentine, non-monetary incentives include promise of opportunity and flexible work schedule. Cash bonus, profit sharing and stock options are the monetary incentives (Jones, 1999, p.8). According to Abraham Maslow, the hierarchy of needs is a theory of human motivation. The approach of human resource management is to create an effective work environment can benefit multinational firms to make full use of the human resources.A motivating workplace environment can create a sense of excitement and enthusiasm among the employees. According to Karen Evans, the development of workplace environment can change the disposition of employees (Dunning, 2009, p.12). The application of decentralization can create better efficiency and

STEEPLE Analysis Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

STEEPLE Analysis - Research Paper Example The UK supermarket sector has been controlled by â€Å"Big Four’’ grocery companies like Tesco, Asda, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s (Sanderson, 2007). These companies collectively control 75.4% of the market share as of the year 2012 (Butler, 2012). Tesco has occupied 30.5% in terms of grocery retail in the market, whereas Morrisons has 11.7% followed by Asda with 17.1% and Sainsbury’s with 16.1% (Butler, 2012). As UK supermarket sector is based on both grocery and retail outlets, the rate of sales for both the products base have made certain impacts on the growth of the market scenario. The rate of sales in retails had enlarged by 5.4% in September 2011 as compared to September 2010 (Office for National Statistics, 2011). Non-retailing counters and automotive fuels selling capacities have improved to 15.5 and 2.8 percent respectively from 2010 in the year 2011. The paper intends to discuss on STEEPLE Analysis of the UK supermarket sector and evaluate the fac tors in the market which would impact in the organizations operating in the market. Moreover, the discussion also focuses on the assessment of the HR practices of one of the leading companies in the UK retail market, Tesco. Description of STEEPLE Analysis STEEPLE analysis is an instrumental analysis through which changes in the environment can be determined in correlation to the operations in the business sector. The analysis is based on different factors such as social, technological, political, economic, ethical, legal and environmental which have an impact on the operations of business in the UK supermarket sector. Social Factors In relation to the social factors, it is observed that there is a change in the buying pattern of different materials by the customers which significantly relates to the dimensions of lifestyle changes, alteration in income distribution and changes in living conditions. With the influence of these factors customers in the UK are favouring one-stop shoppi ng of products (Randall & Seth, 2011). A crucial issue in context is that there is a noticeable certain change in terms of social wants with the change in time because increasing number of customers nowadays are desiring to keep themselves abreast with the latest fashion and style statements. Consequently, the retailers functioning in the UK supermarket are concentrating rapidly on products which provide them value for money. The option of finding a variety of products within one-roof in a supermarket has also been a major draw for the consumers which in turn facilitate them meet their needs and desires (Defra, 2006). Moreover, certain pertinent social factors such as birth rates, household income, gender and religion among others have affected the retail giants like Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons in the UK supermarket. In relation to augmented birth rates, it can be ascertained that retailers like Tesco have started to increasingly focus on keeping an assortment of c hildren toys related products to open up a new target market for the company. Moreover, in the global operations companies such as Tesco need to operate keeping in consideration the religious contexts while offering products and preparing their advertisements so that the sentiments of the people in a foreign country do not get hurt. It can in turn affect their sales and profitability. Similarly, social factors such as gender and household income have also been taken into consideration by the retail companies while preparing their product assortment as products in varied price range have been a key consideration to attract consumers’ of different income range. (Tesco Plc, 2012). Sainsbury’

William Faulkner's Barn Burning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

William Faulkner's Barn Burning - Essay Example Faulkner has used the plot, and the interactions between the characters, to explain the concept of mental and emotional slavery in man. However, what strikes most in Faulkner’s story is the use of symbolism. Through different symbols in the story, the author has described the internal conflict that a human being experiences before he succeeds in getting freedom. Hence, it is a story of spirit of freedom in human beings. In the short story, Faulkner has also explained how slavery is not just situational in nature, but also psychological. The author has made an excellent use of symbolism to explain the nature of freedom in people’s lives. According to Faulkner, the strongest obstacles in achieving freedom in life is not the external circumstances, but the internal demons of emotional and psychological attachment to destructive and negative people in life, and hence, the only way for human beings to get freedom in life is to win over the internal demons, because they are m ore dangerous than the external circumstances of slavery. Symbolism The story ‘Barn Burning’ is an excellent work by William Faulkner, where he has used symbolism to explain the purpose of his story. Symbolism is a method of describing the essence of a story ‘indirectly’ through objects, events and actions of the characters in the story. In case of the short story ‘Barn Burning’, the author William Faulkner has used interesting symbols to describe the conflict, spirit of freedom, rebellion, and courage in human beings. Right from the first paragraph of the story, the readers sense the use of symbols in the story. The author has used symbolism not only through objects but also through the actions of the characters. The symbols that he has used are blood, Sartoris’s actions and peculiar behavior patterns of characters in the story. Blood Right from the beginning of the story, the author grips the attention of the reader by introducing him to the complex idea of smell and its associations in life. Human beings have a tendency of developing mental associations with things related to sensory objects. For example, if a person listens to a song that was his favorite in the childhood, then the memories of childhood floods to his mind and he relives the good and bad experiences associated with that song. Faulkner has used the ‘sense of smell’ as a symbol of conflict in the mind of Sartoris Snopes, a ten year old protagonist of the story. The story begins with the description of the court proceedings against Sartoris’s father, who is accused of burning the barn of his owner. The proceedings take place in a store where the tins of cheese are kept. The boy is shown going through an internal conflict through the sensation of smells. Sarty (Sartoris) is found torn between the smell of cheese and the smell of ‘blood’. Sarty is sure that he smelt cheese even though he is unable to read the letters on the tin cans. The smell is pleasant and he likes it. However, he is unable to enjoy the smell of cheese as it is polluted with the smell of ‘blood’. Here, the author has used ‘blood’ as symbol of ‘loyalty and duty towards the family’. The smell of blood is not ‘real’ but is a psychological symbol of ‘family’. Interestingly, the smell of blood that Sarty senses is also joined by the sense of fear. It reminds Sarty of the despair and grief that he has experienced. Sadly, the smell of cheese that he senses is momentary and comes intermittently. However, the smell of blood is permanent and consistent in his mind. The words ‘fierce pull of blood’ shows that Sarty is somehow being forced to be loyal to his family, and particularly, towards his father. The word ‘

A perspective of modern labour relations Orange Business Services Research Paper

A perspective of modern labour relations Orange Business Services - Research Paper Example According to the research findings it can therefore be said that Charles Leadbeater one of the world’s leading authorities on innovation and creativity in organisations said, the primary role of organisations is to get work done. This necessitates that (1) organisations must motivate its people to work so that they contribute most effectively to the collective behaviour; (2) coordinate the collective output to ensure that it fits together and takes place in the right order; and (3) they must innovate continuously by learning, adapting and evolving with the demand of the environment in which they operate and explore opportunities for change. Yet experience dictates that this seemingly simple analogy: motivate; coordinate; innovate is in fact is most complex task for corporates across continents and commerce, some of which apparently are in the state of civil war. As old industrial world recipes of organisation, work and leadership are gradually becoming passà ©, organisations are innovating to find newer ways of motivating, coordinating and innovating simultaneously with more and more open and networked organisations. Wikipedia, Linux, eBay, YouTube, and many more organisations operating in that direction have raised questions on the concepts of traditional, top-down closed organisations. Organisations are now moving from highly collectivised and unionised environments to highly individualist entities bringing newer realities for labour relations. Amidst this, the author made an attempt to get the current perspective of labour relations in a successful multinational technology enterprise – Orange Business Services. The author interviewed unofficially the officials engaged in labour relations division. The objective was to understand how an old world enterprise such as French Telecom has evolved its labour relations to become one of most successful branded service provider worldwide. The choice of Orange business services was obvious as it is a glo bal leader in communication services with a highly technical workforce that are able to deliver coherent innovative services in spite of working in areas such as cloud and convergence where organisational hierarchies are difficult to prevail . Besides, Orange with a clientele of over 3700 multinational companies in the sphere of collaboration, customer relationship management, mobility, M2M and vertical solutions was a fit case for the study as the company is a recipient of many awards and accolades including the Best Global Operator award at the World Communications Award for four consecutive years (2006-2009) (the only company to have this); and the ‘World Class’ ranking for superior customer satisfaction for the tenth consecutive time (SITA, 2011). 2. Labour relations at Orange Business Services The author interviewed the Labour Relations Manager of Orange Business Services, by a prior appointment in their newly acquired premises where nearly over 2000 employees in v arious cadres were engaged. This office now housed all the employees which were working in three different parts of the city. However, the Labour Relations Manager agreed for this interview on an informal and anonymous basis. For the purpose of referencing, he advised to approach the company headquarters and obtain permission prior to interviewing. However, due to paucity of time and the requirement being largely to meet academic needs, the author went ahead with the interviews. Due to this

Was it Right to Drop the Bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki Essay

Was it Right to Drop the Bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki - Essay Example Questions on the subject of those nuclear attacks are multifaceted. While it is frequently proposed that â€Å"The Bomb† was the only way to ensure a Japanese surrender, Japan was asking only one concession from the U.S. at the time – the emperor is allowed to remain as head of state. Had the U.S. agreed to this, might have the massive destruction of a principally civilian populace been avoided? Taking this into consideration, it is obligatory for history to question President Truman’s motivations for authorizing its use. Was it really necessary to use this swift resolution to the prolonged deadly war so as to ultimately save many thousands of lives, both American and Japanese, which surely would have been lost if the Americans invaded mainland Japan? Or was the reason, as has been theorized, a decision based more so on keeping the former Soviet Union from having input as regards to the partition of post-war Asia much as it had following the war in Europe? Critic s charge that even given that the first bomb might be justified, the extensive devastation along with the collateral and continuing damage was devastating enough. The second bomb was an unnecessary â€Å"overkill† and should not have been utilized. The main reasoning generally provided to use the bomb was that it saved many thousands of lives on both sides by eradicating the need to fight the Japanese on their homeland, a horrific prospect. When the battles for Okinawa and the Philippines were occurring, President Truman was contemplating a massive ground invasion of Japan’s mainland.

A Better Russian Space Program Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

A Better Russian Space Program - Essay Example This essay describes main events from the history of launchings and space researches in Soviet Union and modern Russia, such as the first artificial satellite called Sputnik 1 launching in 1957, the first man in space in 1961 and space launches lessening in 90th, because of economic issues, and later provoked by means of political disorder in the country. In 2000, as this essay states, Russia’s position on the world launching started to improve and moved in to top slot which it has detained ever since maintaining an average launching rate. But, sadly, in the last 2 years the Russian space program, once was the envy by the whole world, has been facing a number of problems, especially since huge financial effort on the already strained Russian space agency. Second part of this essay suggests the way Russia can improve it's own space program and what steps should it take, such as experiments with voyages to Mars, increasing their budget and developing a partnership program with NASA. In conclusion, this essay demonstrates the importance of what space agencies all over the world are doing daily. They are constantly researching and developing to better serve mankind's thirst for knowledge and comfort. This is why it is important to support and embrace space agencies at all times, for who knows what gifts they could bring us in the future. It also suggests, that Russia needs to work hard in making their space program the best, that it was in 1980s, and many believe that they can lead the way once more.

Art History Term Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Art History Term Paper - Essay Example These two paintings i.e. Picasso`s ‘Woman with a Mandolin’ and Modigliani’s ‘Portrait of artist`s Wife’ there is an inherent theme which implies that each person is subject to their own perception and same is the case with the artists; i.e. they paint their subjects not as an objective reality rather as how they perceive them to be. For this reason, both these paintings diverge from the standard paintings of their times which focus more on the sitter and less on their own sense of perception on these paintings. Thus, the paper will aim at exploring various dimensions to add depth to the thesis predicated here. Firstly, the point of concern with reference to these two paintings is the composition style which depicts their sense of perception. The painting by Picasso i.e. Girl with a Mandolin is composed in his classic cubist style which he was employing vehemently during the era. The paintings depict the subject via successive squares used as silhouette to give a distinctive touch to the painting. Though the composition style is simplistic, yet perspective is added by using minimalistic elements yet keeping a balance between the colors, shape and even the form of the painting. Similarly, the painting of Modigliani`s wife expresses modernity in modern style which is different from that of Picasso`s cubist one. He gives a sense of his own perception to him painting which may be characterized by elongated face and figures, also simple composition of his wife`s persona with little details in posture or expression. Therefore, a distinct character of the painter may be felt in these painters, ev en more than the character of the sitters. Picasso`s painting shows depth and simplicity, while Modigliani`s painting shows devotion and bohemianism, both being divergent from the composition styles of the popular artists. Both the paintings are similar in terms of composition when it comes to a thorough focus on shapes;

Brazil Will Eventually Become Economic Powerhouse Essay Example for Free

Brazil Will Eventually Become Economic Powerhouse Essay Currently, Brazil with its population hitting 186. 6 million has the ninth largest economy in the world (Jaeger, p. 2). Since the beginning of the 21st century the country has been enjoying a well-established economic stability, low inflation, high productivity rates and developing macro-economic infrastructure. Currently, Brazilian economic indexes are gradually improving in their dynamics, though some of them still remain on the average level for Latin American region. In particular, GDP growth in 2006 was hardly over 3% (Estevao). Since the middle of the last century Brazil was expected to develop shortly into â€Å"the world’s next economic power. † However due to two-decade long economic stagnation and financial crises in the mid-1980s Brazil has lost its positions and fell short of expectations regarding its economic development, especially in comparison with rapidly progressing economies of the countries in Asian region, such as China, Taiwan or South Korea, etc. (Adrogue, Cerisola Gelos, p. 3). Nevertheless, in the 1990s a series of well-planned governmental policies were implemented and Brazilian economy went through a number of structural economic changes, which allowed achieving certain stability, especially on macro-economic level. Therefore, country’s inflation was taken under control, external debt was considerably decreased, and numerous measures directed on reformation of financial infrastructure, liberalization of trade, achieving price stability and stimulating general economic growth were undertaken (Jaeger, p. 5-6). This way the country managed to improve its international image and gain a reputation of â€Å"trustworthy† nation again. As a result, since recent times Brazil has been receiving a lot of private investments. Foreign investors are attracted by high return of their funds and relatively low risks. Such significant factors, as good demographic situation in the country, high interest rates, stable political situation and prudent governmental policies regarding overseas trade, created absolutely favorable environment for foreign businessmen, who intend to invest their funds and start their businesses in Brazil. Good investment climate and economic stability are not the only factors determining future rise of Brazilian economy. In addition to that, Brazil is very rich with various natural resources. Those are, first of all, huge territories of arable lands available for cultivation of a great variety of crops. Moreover, there are large mineral and plant resources including iron, copper and even gold, which have not been even properly explored yet. That is why there are great opportunities for different industrial and agricultural companies in Brazil. Undoubtedly, there are some problems which require immediate attention and solution in order to fasten economic development and achieve high levels of social wellbeing. Those include corrupted educational system and problems with human capital, insufficient financial and fiscal systems, poverty and income disparities, etc. Certainly, such reforms are hard to implement within some short period of time, therefore, positive transformations are expected to become effective gradually. Nevertheless, modern Brazil can be called the â€Å"country of the future† with its huge national market, cheap working power, abundance of natural resources, and many other factors determining a large long-term economic potential of the country (Jaeger, p. 2). Great economic stability and openness, steady increase in manufacturing and consumption, establishment of new international trade connections and other fundamentals will definitely contribute greatly to future prosperity and economic power of the country. Works Cited: Estevao, Marcello. Brazil Seeks to Unlock Economic Potential. International Monetary Fund. 26 Feb. 2007. 25 Nov. 2007 http://www. imf. org/external/pubs/ft/survey/so/2007/CAR083A. htm. Jaeger, Marcus. Brazil: Economic scenarios for the next 15 years. Ed. Maria L. Lanzeni. Deutsche Bank Research. Frankfurt Am Main: Deutsche Bank AG, 2006 Adrogue, Richardo, Martin Cerisola and Gaston Gelos. Brazil’s Long-Term Growth Performance -Trying to Explain the Puzzle. International Monetary Fund, unpublished manuscript, December 2006.

The changing role of Human resource management

The changing role of Human resource management Human Resource Management is continuous and never ending process, the main aim of the Human Resource Management is to attain the goals of the organization and individuals. In addition organization goals are survival, growth and development to profitability, productivity, innovation, excellence, where as individual goals of the employee is job satisfaction, job security, high salary, fringe benefits, challenging work, pride, status, recognition, opportunity for the development of the organization and individuals. Earlier day of the business environment everyone is used personnel management, later on due to modernization the importance of the human resource management is increasing day to day and their role in the organization is established in to all other departments. (Corpuz, 2006) The features of the Human Resource Management Human Resource Management is a responsible department of all line managers and it is a function of staff managers in an organization Human Resource Management is managing the human resources at work Human Resource Management is the centric point of the organization and it interacts all types of functional management like production management, marketing management and financial management Human Resource Managements aim is securing employees co- operation in attaining the organizational goals (Corpuz, 2006) Functions of Human Resource Management The functions of Human Resource Management is classified in to two types, they are Managerial Function Planning: planning is most important concept in business management, where as Human resource management participation is also intended in the planning for the effective decision making Organizing: organizing is managerial function of the HRM, which helps the organization in organizing the works properly for the departments and the employee Directing: it is a managerial function of human resource management which leads in directing the work and motivating other for their involvement in the work Controlling: this is the most important concept of human resource management in controlling the work as well as workers (John, 2001) Operative Function Employment: Recruiting effective and efficient individuals with appropriate selection procedure and showing placement with proper induction and orientation Human Resource Development: Human Resource Development can be achieved by proper training with career planning and development and with associating with organizational growth Compensation: providing benefits and security to the individual for those who work in organization the benefits and securities like incentives, fringe benefits , bonus and social security (John, 2001) HRM strategy Strategy is plan of action of any work, where as human resource management strategies is managing the roles of the employee, developing and compensating for creating and developing the relation and effective utilization of the human resource with proper plan of action in achieving the organizational and individual goals and objectives. HRM strategy is classified in two types they are Functional strategy and Organizational Strategy (John, 2001). Human Resource Management Strategies for Modern organizations A employee should be with appropriate human resources for the better results Create corporate culture for individual excellence Rewarding the employee for meeting the organizational goals and objectives Employee development for successful accomplishing the roles Managing the organizational image with absolute usage of the resources Making employee reliable to adapt the change of environment of the business Facilitate management initiatives Managing the cultural transitions like mergers and alliances Replacement of top down interventions with companywide participation in addition of getting profits (Hendry, 1995) HR Value Proposition The Human Resource Value Proposition have some elements, that generates a strategic work design and it going the represent the characteristics of the Human Resources, this HR value proposition have major five elements, which encompass the Human Resources Function with in the organization perfectly. Five Element of HR value Proposition Five Elements of HR value Proposition Knowing External Business Realities Serving External and Internal Stake holders Crafting the Human Resources Practices Building HR Resources Ensuring HR Professionalism It is conceptual work force which drives the responsibilities of HR effectively Knowing external business realities like technologies, globalization, economics and demographics Serving external and internal stake holders like customers, investors, managers and employees Crafting the Human Resources practices, whereas like people, performance, information and work Building Human Resource strategy and organization Ensuring Human Resource Professionalism like as HR roles, competencies and development (David, 2005) LITERATURE REVIEW According to Pulapa Subba Rao, Human Resource Management is managing (planning, organizing, directing and controlling) the functions of employing, developing and compensating human relation and utilization of human resources with a view to contribute proportionate to the organizational, individual and social goals. Strategic Human Resource Management is course of action which is used to enhance the career development of the organization, recently Strategic Human Resource Management importance is increasing day to day due major issues in the organization and performance of the organization too. Here Human Resource manager should exactly match the strategies with the organization policies, usually human resource strategies are developed for what we know about the organization and what is the destination of the organization. Where strategic human resource includes about the recruitment, selection, training and development, compensation, performance appraisal, they major areas where Human Resource should be concentrated. Strategic Human Resource should change according to the environment of the organization. Strategic Human Resources are mainly concentrated on these features Development of the organization Expansion of the organization services Productivity and services of the organization Redirection of the organization Here productivity is leading to the development and expansion of the organization by proper strategic human resource management in the organization with effective and efficient human resource. (Mark, (1988)). Glueck defined the strategy as unified, comprehensive and integrated plan designed to ensure that the basic objectives of the enterprise are achieved. John and Richard define strategic management as the set of decisions and subsequent actions used to formulate and implement strategies that will optimizing the fit between the organization and its environment in an effort to achieve organizational objectives. Strategies of HR are devoted more time to boarder organizational issues, thereby improving its contribution to mission and vision accomplishment. In delegation OPMs 1997 special study, Deregulation and Delegation of Human Resource Management Authority in Federal Government, have not quickly approached to expected level, their obligation is that still most of HR are doing related HR works and they are never been centric of Human resource management activities, that why the organization molded the hr office for the accomplishment of the mission of the organization, while many of line managers are undergone for the interview about the HR activities no one is with proper answer, moreover HR work integrated with stimulated works like Recruitment and Selection, training and development, compensation and many more activities which have to look after by the HR official with proper strategy implementation in fulfilling (US Office of Personnel Management.(1999). In these modern days US adopting the variety performance enhancing or progressive Human Resource Management practices to improve their competitiveness in the global market, this type recommendation created professional in organization for betterment of their performance in their work culture. Here study is describing the HRM system and organizational performance. Many of organization adopting latest HRM system which going to impact the organization performance, with strategically conceptual frame works, these systems are going to enhance the employee skills and ability in work environment of the organization, apart from the employee are hired with highly sophisticated procedure of recruiting eligible candidates. By providing comprehensive training and development for employees after selecting them and also increasing the current employee levels of skills, abilities and motivating them towards the work, because skilled employees are very limited and they are not motivated properly tow ards the work definitely it going to impact on the performance of the organization. Finally HRM are result is measured on the out comes of the organization profits (John T Delaney, (1996). In business management of the world, since from 1980s, the importance of the Human Resource management role as increased dramatically, Human Resource Management Strategy has been achieving promptly because it providing for business firms to enhance the competitiveness and promote managerial efficiency. By effectively managing the human resource their should be efficient employee behavior in addition to reach the mission and objectives of the organization. HRM strategy provides a developed work force for the business competitive strategy, so that organizational goals and objectives are achieved in time. With effective Strategically HRM coordinates all individuals measure and implements them, so which directly influence the employee behavior in way which lead the competitive advantage to company. Recently many of organization adopting innovative procedures in recruiting and selecting individuals with effective and efficient HR strategy, which going to lead the organization with effecti ve work force apart from this there is measurement of organization performance through strategic HR. (Tung Chun Huang, (1999) In these recent years Human Resource Development has been under gone many modifications and changes adopting the changing business environment by allocating appropriate practices and strategies. There are many dimensions in Human Resource Development in business environment Human Resource Development is overall related to the business strategy and competitive advantage Human Resource Development is an investment in Human Resource capability rather than employee cost Human Resource Development is concerned with changes both in organizational level and individual level Human Resource Development is concerned with rectifying and enhancing the required levels to meet the present and future goals and objectives of the organization HRD is going to concentrate on the training and development program of the organization HRD is continuously concerned with organizational and individual learnings (Garavan, (1999)) JOB SATISFACTION ORGANISATIONAL COMMITMENT Job satisfaction is one of the major HR strategies of any organisation, when an individual satisfied with the job and work environment, then only they can translate successfully their efforts toward work, apart from organisational side HR should promote the promotions and appraisals to boost the performance levels of the individual, many of organisation need to improve the employee attitudes and job satisfaction, more over work culture should be effective and efficient to individuals for effective work for the organisation (Bratton and Gold, 2007). Organisational commitment should be match and coincide with the individual satisfactory level then only both of them are going be profitable, apart from this, the commitments which are going to associated should be achievable by the employees with satisfactory and employee also to be participated in the organisational commitment (Bratton and Gold, 2007). RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION PROCEDURES Recruitment should be done according to organizational needs and requirement through which resource are properly utilized, and recruitment should be done in time with in the low cost and selection is a major process where HR strategy importance is capitalized very because wel fare of the company based on the selection procedures and HR officials responsibility is to select the efficient and effective candidates those who are going help in organization enhancement (Gomez-Mejia, Balkin and Cardy, 2007). PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL SYSTEM CULTURAL INFLUENCES Performance Appraisal management system is most important procedure in HR strategies of all organization, according to performance level of the individuals their appraisal level also been designed for further encouragement in the work culture and culture plays a majority role in influencing the employee toward the work in organization, here HR strategy is going identified because many of HR official face difficult task over here to understand individual mindsets in the organization and cross culture and adopting different life style people at one desk, which is going to influence majority of peoples in work culture because of due globalization cross work culture is going to influence the attitudes and job satisfaction levels of the employee.( Gomez-Mejia, Balkin and Cardy, 2007) . WORK SITUATION INFLUENCES EMPLOYEE ATTITUDE SURVEYS Various HR practices such as pay, promotion, supervision, co workers, nature of the work etc. shows a major impact on the employee attitudes in an organization. Effective work culture, well designed compensation systems, effective supervision, effective coordination of co workers are the major aspects that bring changes in the employee attitudes in a workplace. Therefore the current HR strategies must be designed effectively in order to achieve better results form the employees and this will not only help the organization to improve its output but also will bring a change in the employee attitudes towards job performance and the organizational HR strategies Employee Attitude Survey is the most difficult task of the HR strategy, because HR official is to identify and to understand the various employeesà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢ attitudes and their behaviors in the work culture. Many of times many of higher officials are failed in indentifying the attitudes and behaviors of the individuals because individual mind set is going to vary according to influence of the work, work culture and the satisfactory levels, here HR officials importance is identified by the organization. .( Gomez-Mejia, Balkin and Cardy, 2007)

Enablers and Barriers to Nuclear Medicine

Enablers and Barriers to Nuclear Medicine Introduction: Nuclear medicine has emerged because of advances in the field of nuclear technology. This is a branch of medical studies that uses a small amount of radioactive substances, for purposes of diagnosing and determining the nature of disease that an individual is suffering from. This type of medical practice is normally used for purposes of treating chronic diseases such as heart diseases, cancer, neurological and endocrine disorders, and other abnormal conditions within the body of an individual (Moniuszko Patel, 2011). This field of nuclear medicine is used by a variety of medical experts, and this includes, oncologists, radiologists, gynecologists, radiotherapists, endocrinologists, etc. There are three major types of people who are working and under the field of nuclear medicine, and they include, the nuclear physician, the nuclear medicine technologist, and the nuclear pharmacist. The nuclear physicians are responsible in diagnosing and treating a patient. Furthermore, they have th e responsibility of carrying out research in this field of nuclear technology. The technician on the other hand, works with a patient, and he or she is a specialized individual who assists the physician in diagnosing and treating a patient. The pharmacist on the other hand, involves himself in the procurement, control, and distribution of radio-pharmaceutical products (Laake, Benestad Olsen, 2007). This is an indication that this field on nuclear medicine is an independent specialty, and well organized, and hence it can cater for the needs of its patients. This paper is a proposal on the researcher to be carried out on the enablers and barriers to the practice of nuclear medicine. This paper takes a stand that in as much as there are some factors responsible for promoting the practice of nuclear medicine, there are also some barriers. Research Problem: One of the major challenges facing nuclear medicine is based on the dangers of radiation. Radiation is a very serious issue, and can have a very negative impact on the health of an individual. This includes the development of chronic diseases such as cancer, which are always difficult to treat. Furthermore, it is highly expensive to train nuclear medicine experts, and this is the reason there is a shortage of nuclear medicine practitioners in the world (Moniuszko Patel, 2011). There is also a dilemma on where to place this field of nuclear medicine. This is because there is confusion on whether to categorize nuclear medicine under the field of medicine, or to give it an independent specialty. Failure to address these concerns and issues that are brought forth in regard to nuclear technology can have an impact in limiting the emergence and growth of nuclear technology in the world. It is therefore necessary for policy formulators to come up with methods and measures that can be used for purposes of encouraging the growth and use of nuclear technology (Prekeges, 2013). One method is to encourage extensive research in this field of nuclear medicine. Furthermore, there is a need of issuing scholarships to needy but bright students, so that they may pursue a study in the field of nuclear technology. Failure to achieve these objectives would result to limiting the growth and development of the field of nuclear medicine. This would in turn increase the deaths of people, because of an increase in the number of people suffering from chronic diseases or illnesses. It is therefore necessary to address the barriers to the practice of nuclear medicine, and create more enables to the practice. Aims of the Research: This research aims at achieving the following three aims, Analyzing the enablers to the practice of nuclear medicine. Analyzing the barriers to the practice of nuclear medicine. Coming up with a solution on how to practice nuclear medicine. Objectives of the Research: To analyze the various literatures concerning nuclear medicine. To understand the various barriers to nuclear medicine. To understand the various enablers to nuclear medicine. Having an understanding of this concept of a nuclear medicine practitioner, from a primary source. Literature Review: Nuclear medicine is an important field of study, and this is basically because it helps in the treatment of chronic diseases. These diseases include diseases such as cancer, and other abnormal conditions (Feld Roo, 2003). Therefore, the practice of nuclear medicine is segmented in nature, and this includes professionals such as radiologists, cardiologists, neurologists, nephrologists, etc. Cardiology is also the largest profession in the field of nuclear technology, and this is as per the year 2013. Furthermore, nephrology is also a field nuclear medicine, and it is the largest growing field in this practice (Powsner, Palmer Powsner, 2013). The reason for the emergence cardiology as the largest field of nuclear medicine is based on the facts that there is an increase in aging population, cardiac ailments, and a preference for diagnostic procedures that are non-invasive. Cardiologists play a role in the treatment and diagnoses of these ailments (Donohoe Van Den Abbeele, 2011). Howe ver, there are a number of barriers that plays a role in affecting the efficient practice of cardiology. One major barrier to an efficient practice of this field of medicine is based on the fact that it is very expensive to train professionals in this field. Cardiologists are highly trained and experienced medical practitioners, and these skills are gained over a long period of time. This time factor and the amount of money spent in the training of a cardiologist, limits the number of people who can train and work as a cardiologist. Furthermore, there are numerous risks involved, for people practicing this type of medicine, and this includes the high rates of deaths for people suffering from the disease (Donohoe Van Den Abbeele, 2000). For instance, people suffering from heart failures have a high chance of dying, and this makes the efforts of an oncologist to be futile. However, scholar disagrees with this fact. This is mainly because of the view that oncologists play a significant role in protecting and preserving the lives of other people, or patients. Furthermore, scholar explains that the high costs depicted in training cardiologists, is based on the high costs of equipments used, and it is beyond the control of medical practitione rs (Elgazzar, 2011). Through these assertions, Biersack Freeman (2007) explains that the best method of solving issues regarding to the training of oncologists, is based on the intervention by the government. This involves lowering taxes on products and tools that can be used for purposes of cardiology. Another barrier to the practice of cardiology is based on the accessibility of the doctors responsible for practicing cardiology (Elgazzar, 2011). It is very expensive to access these doctors, majorly because of the high consultation fees that they charge. Furthermore chances are high that an individual may suffer from depression, majorly because of the high volume of work they are undertaking, and the minimal chances of survival that a patient has (Mettler Guiberteau, 2012). This depression is bad, majorly because it may lead to the development of chronic diseases such as heart attacks, and even the thought of committing suicide. In fields such as oncology, nephrology, and radiology, is also faced with a variety of challenges. These challenges emanates from an increase in the complex medical cases that emerge. However, the British government has realized on the challenges that exist, in regard to the practice of cardiovascular medicine (Cherry, Sorenson Phelps, 2012). Therefore, the government has resorted to resorted to the building of more institutions responsible for training experts in nuclear medicine, and this includes, fields such as radiology, oncology, cardiology, etc. In the year 2005, in a bid of the British government to enhance the practice of nuclear medicine, the government formed an organization referred to as the modernization of medical careers. This movement specifically targeted the field of nuclear medicine, and it sought to enact changes to this field, so that it would be easy for people wishing to pursue a career in it, to pursue it. This is an indication that the British government supports the development of the practice of nuclear medicine. Take for example in the year 2007. To the year 2010, the British government was able to change the curriculum used in teaching nuclear medicine, and reduced the number of years, from four to three years. This applied to cardiovascular medicine. The effect of this, is that it was able to make it possible for people studying cardiology to graduate after three years of intensive training, and hence filling in the gaps, that existed in the shortage of experts in the field of nuclear medicine (Dawson, 2002). Kuwait is also another country that is encouraging the development and practice of nuclear medicine. For instance, the government of Kuwait has established a cancer control unit that is responsible for using nuclear technology for purposes of treating its patients. This is an indication that the government of Kuwait values this field of nuclear medicine, and it has developed measures at promoting its practice. This is specifically, in the treatment of cancer (Ziessman, Omalley, Thrall Fahey, 2014). Methodology: This paper will use both primary and secondary methods of data collection. Under the primary method of data collection, this paper would use both surveys, and structured interviews. For instance in the process of data collection, the researcher would seek to interview various professionals in the United Kingdom and Kuwait, for purposes of finding out the level of satisfaction that they are deriving, through their practice of nuclear medicine. Primary Methods of Research: Interviews: The following are the questions that the researcher would use, for purposes of carrying out an interview, Interview Questions: What are the challenges you are facing, in your pursuit of the field of nuclear medicine? What conditions are making possible for you to practice the field of nuclear medicine? Why did you choose to practice this field of nuclear medicine? What policies do you recommend for purposes of improving the manner which nuclear medicine is practiced, this is with reference to United Kingdom and Kuwait? Who are the major stakeholders in this field of nuclear medicine? What are the qualifications for an individual to pursue a career in nuclear medicine? A detailed and careful answer to the mentioned questions would help in providing information that would meet the aims of this research. There are a number of advantages of using a structured interview for purposes of collecting information/data. One advantage is that the researcher will maintain a face to face conversation, and hence it would be easy to read the body language of the interviewee (Abramson Abramson, 2013). This is for purposes of getting any unwritten and unintended information that the interviewee did not want to convey. Another advantage of using an interview is based on the fact that it is possible to collect the right information and store it, without any distortion. This is by using a digital tape recorder, or a mobile phone. This data would later be used in the process of analyzing the results of the interview. Despite the advantages of using a structured interview, it has various disadvantages. One such disadvantage is the difficulty of finding the interviewee (Jacobsen, 2013). These people are very busy people; hence there is a need of making an appointment, for purposes of getting an interview with them. Furthermore, the appointments may be declined, and restructured, and this may have an effect of tampering with the timetable of the researcher. Another disadvantage is that carrying out an interview is an expensive process, mainly because the interviewee may demand some allowances for taking their time. Surveys: The use of surveys would also be a very useful method of carrying out this research. However, the researcher would use the online surveys for purposes of collecting data for this research. Online surveys are a useful method for data collection, basically because they have the capability of reaching a large number of people (Jacobsen, 2012). The target group for these surveys would be doctors and other people in the field of nuclear medicine. The major disadvantage of the use of online surveys is based on the fact that chances are high that the target population may ignore them, hence failing to get the necessary information needed. To mitigate on this problem, the researcher would design only five questions that would be easy to answer. The following are the five questions contained in the online surveys, What are the barriers of practicing nuclear medicine? What are the enablers of practicing nuclear medicine? Who are the stakeholders in the field of nuclear medicine? How can we overcome the barriers of practicing nuclear medicine? Kindly provide at least two recommendations that can be used to encourage the practice of nuclear medicine. Secondary Methods of Research: The secondary methods of research in use would basically be library research. The researcher would rely on books, journals, and articles for purposes of collecting information on the enables and barriers in the practice of nuclear medicine (Mettler Guiberteau, 2012). Under books, the researcher would analyze various literatures on the practice of nuclear medicine. The focus of the researcher would be, on cardiovascular, radiology, and oncology medicine (Shi, 2008). This is because; these sections of medical practice constantly use the nuclear techno logy for purposes of treating their patients. The researcher would also use journals, which are very important tools of data collection. This is basically because they are peer reviewed, and hence the information contained in them is reliable and accurate. Time Frame: Conclusion: In conclusion, this research method aims at finding out the barriers and enables in the practice of nuclear medicine. It is important to explain that there are a number of careers in this branch of medicine, and these include, cardiology, radiology, oncology, etc. Nuclear medicine involves the use of radioactive elements for purposes of treating an individual, and hence it is an important method of treating chronic diseases. By understanding the various barriers that are affecting an efficient practice of this field of nuclear medicine, then chances are high that proper policies would be enacted, that would help in promoting its practice. References: Top of Form ABRAMSON, J., ABRAMSON, Z. H. (2013). Research methods in community medicine surveys, epidemiological research, programme evaluation, clinical trials. Hoboken, N.J., Wiley. Bottom of Form Top of Form BIERSACK, H. J., FREEMAN, L. M. (2007). Clinical nuclear medicine. Berlin, Springer. Bottom of Form Top of Form CHERRY, S. R., SORENSON, J. A., PHELPS, M. E. (2012). Physics in nuclear medicine. Philadelphia, Elsevier/Saunders. Top of Form DAWSON, C. (2002). Practical research methods: a user-friendly guide to mastering research techniques and projects. Oxford, How To Books. Bottom of Form Top of Form DONOHOE, K. J., VAN DEN ABBEELE, A. (2011). Case-based nuclear medicine. New York, Thieme. Top of Form DONOHOE, K. J., VAN DEN ABBEELE, A. (2000). 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New York, NY, John Wiley Sons.Bottom of Form Bottom of Form Top of Form PREKEGES, J. (2013). Nuclear medicine instrumentation. Burlington, Mass, Jones Bartlett Learning. Top of Form LAAKE, P., BENESTAD, H. B., OLSEN, B. R. (2007). Research methodology in the medical and biological sciences. Amsterdam, Academic. Bottom of Form Top of Form SHI, L. (2008). Health services research methods. Clifton Park, NY, Thomson/Delmar Learning. Bottom of Form Top of Form ZIESSMAN, H. A., OMALLEY, J. P., THRALL, J. H., FAHEY, F. H. (2014). Nuclear medicine: the requisites. Bottom of Form