Ambient Temperature Definition in Weather

Ambient Temperature Definition in Weather In weather, ambient temperature refers to the current air temperature - the overall temperature of the outdoor air that surrounds us. In other words, ambient air temperature is the same thing as ordinary air temperature. When indoors, ambient temperature is sometimes called room temperature. When calculating the dew point temperature, the ambient temperature is also referred to as the  dry-bulb  temperature. The dry bulb temperature is a measure of the dry air temperature without evaporative cooling. What Does Ambient Air Temperature Tell Us? Unlike  maximum high and minimum low temperatures, ambient air temperature tells you nothing about the weather forecast. It simply tells what the air temperature is right now, outside your door. As such, its value constantly changes minute-by-minute. Dos and Donts of Measuring Ambient Air Temperature To measure the ambient air temperature, all you need is a thermometer and to follow these simple rules. Dont and youll risk getting a bad temperature reading. Keep the thermometer out of direct sunlight.  If the sun is shining on your thermometer, its going to record the heat from the sun,  and not the ambient heat in the air. For this reason, always be careful to place thermometers in the shade.Dont place your thermometer too low near the ground or too high above it. Too low, and it will pick up excess heat from the ground. Too high and it will cool from winds. A height of around five feet above ground works best.Place the thermometer in an open, well-ventilated area. This keeps the air circulating freely around it, which means it will represent the temperature of the surrounding environment.Keep the thermometer covered. Shielding it from the sun, rain, snow, and frost provides a standardized environment.Place it over a natural (grassy or dirt) surface. Concrete, pavement, and stone attract and store heat, which they can then radiate towards your thermometer giving it a higher temperature reading than the actual environment. Ambient vs. Apparent (Feels-Like) Temperatures Ambient temperature can provide a general idea of whether you will need a jacket or a sleeveless top, but it does not provide much information about how the weather will feel to an actual human being as she steps outside. Thats because the ambient temperature doesnt take into account the relative humidity of the air or the impact of the wind on human perceptions of heat or cold.   The amount of moisture (mugginess) or humidity in the air can make it harder for sweat to evaporate; this, in turn, will make you feel warmer. As a result, the heat index will increase even if the ambient air temperature will remain steady. This explains why dry heat is often less bothersome than moist heat. Winds can play a role in how cold a temperature will feel to human skin. The wind chill factor can cause the air to have a perceived lower temperature. Thus, an ambient temperature of 30 degrees Fahrenheit can feel like 30 degree, 20 degrees, or even ten degrees in a stiff breeze.

5 Key Components of Great Feature Stories

5 Key Components of Great Feature Stories Hard-news stories are typically an assemblage of facts. Some are better-written than others, but they all exist to fulfill a simple purpose- to convey information. Feature stories convey facts as well, but they also tell the stories of peoples lives. To do that, they must incorporate facets of writing often not found in news stories, ones often associated with fiction writing. A Great Lede A feature lede can set a scene, describe a place or tell a story. Whatever approach is used, the lede must grab the readers attention and pull them into the story. Heres a lede from a New York Times story about former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer and his meetings with a prostitute in a posh Washington hotel: It was after 9 on the night before Valentine’s Day when she finally arrived, a young brunette named Kristen. She was 5-foot-5, 105 pounds. Pretty and petite.This was at the Mayflower, one of Washington’s choicer hotels. Her client for the evening, a return customer, had booked Room 871. The money he had promised to pay would cover all expenses: the room, the minibar, room service should they order it, the train ticket that had brought her from New York and, naturally, her time.A 47-page affidavit from an F.B.I. agent investigating a prostitution ring described the man at the hotel as â€Å"Client 9† and included considerable detail about him, the prostitute and his payment methods. But a law enforcement official and another person briefed on the case have identified Client 9 as Eliot Spitzer, the governor of New York. Note how the details- the 5-foot-5 brunette, the room number, the minibar- build a sense of anticipation about the rest of the story. Youre compelled to read more. Description The description sets the scene for the story and brings the people and places in it to life. A good description prompts a reader to create mental images in their mind. Any time you accomplish that, youre engaging the reader in your story. Read this description from a St. Petersburg Times story by Lane DeGregory about a neglected little girl, found in a roach-infested room: She lay on a torn, moldy mattress on the floor. She was curled on her side, long legs tucked into her emaciated chest. Her ribs and collarbone jutted out; one skinny arm was slung over her face; her black hair was matted, crawling with lice. Insect bites, rashes, and sores pocked her skin. Though she looked old enough to be in school, she was naked- except for a swollen diaper. Note the specifics: matted hair, skin pocked with sores, the moldy mattress. The description is both heartbreaking and repulsive, but necessary to convey the horrific conditions the girl endured. Quotes While good quotes are vital for news stories, they are imperative for features. Ideally, a feature story should include only the most colorful and interesting quotes. Everything else should be paraphrased. Look at this example from a New York Times story about the bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City in April 1995. In the story, reporter Rick Bragg describes the rubble and the reactions of the firefighters and rescue crews responding to the scene: People could not stop looking at it, particularly the second floor, where a child care center had been.A whole floor, said Randy Woods, a firefighter with Engine No. 7. A whole floor of innocents. Grown-ups, you know, they deserve a lot of the stuff they get. But why the children? What did the children ever do to anybody. Anecdotes Anecdotes are nothing more than very short stories. But in features, they can be incredibly effective in illustrating key points or in bringing people and incidents to life, and theyre often used to construct feature ledes. Heres a good example of an anecdote from a Los Angeles Times story about the skyrocketing cost of fighting wildfires: On the morning of July 4, 2007, ranch hands were fixing a water pipe on private land in a narrow canyon off the road to Zaca Lake, about 15 miles north of Solvang.The temperature was headed toward 100 degrees. Rainfall the previous winter had been among the lowest on record in Southern California. Sparks from a metal grinder jumped into some dry grass. Soon flames were rushing through the brush toward Zaca Ridge.By the next day, nearly 1,000 firefighters were trying to box the fire into a small area. But late that afternoon, the Zaca made a run, moving east into Los Padres National Forest. By July 7, Forest Service officials realized they were facing a potential monster. Note how the writers, Bettina Boxall and Julie Cart, quickly and effectively summarize the genesis of a fire that plays a central role in their story. Background Information Background information sounds like something youd find in a news story, but its equally important in features. All the well-written description and colorful quotes in the world wont suffice if you dont have solid information to back up the point your feature is trying to make. Heres a good example of solid backgrounding from the same Los Angeles Times story about wildfires mentioned above: Wildfire costs are busting the Forest Service budget. A decade ago, the agency spent $307 million on fire suppression. Last year, it spent $1.37 billion.Fire is chewing through so much Forest Service money that Congress is considering a separate federal account to cover the cost of catastrophic blazes.In California, state wildfire spending has shot up 150% in the last decade, to more than $1 billion a year. Note how the writers marshal their facts to clearly and unequivocally make their point: The cost of fighting wildfires is rising dramatically.

Departmentalization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Departmentalization - Essay Example The importance of the departmentalization is to enhance the performance of the employees and to implement successful planning by the management to encourage efficiency. The significance of departmentalization is to improve efficiency of the organization through specifications. The efficiency and responsibility increases with the implementation of departmentalization, which facilitates the emotion of autonomy among the managers. Due to this form of management structure, every department has a manager and the responsibility is hence divided in the departments. The facility of appraisal, budget preparation and the supervision become easier and more effective after the implementation of the departmentalization (Anbuvelan 103-106). The purpose of the departmentalization is to ensure smooth administration at every level. It is the process of dividing the large organization into small functional groups for proper flexible administrations. The use of this form of organizational structure inc reases the efficiency of the employees. This makes the executives more responsible and helps in increasing the prestige and skills of the departmental heads. ... The study also explores the different forms of departmentalization used by different companies in the global context. TYPES OF DEPARTMENTALIZATION Departmentalization is the procedure of dividing the large organization into various small units. Every department has their own manager and specific work to increase the efficiency and its effectiveness. There are six forms of departmentalization with the aim to increase efficiency in the work environment. Functional Departmentalization. In this form of departmentalization, the grouping is done on the basis of the functional aspects. The grouping is done on the basis of skill and knowledge. The group or departments formed generally include the accounting, marketing and Information Technology (IT). This form of departmentalization is present in every organization. The basic organizational functions are done in this form of departments and through this form the nature of the business can be realized. In this departmentalization form, people with similar skills and knowledge perform the tasks and hence the focus becomes narrow which increases the efficiency level (Mahida 4-5). Advantages In this approach, the level of efficiency increases as people with similar skills work together and the knowledge shared enables to derive decisive benefits for the organization. Functional departmentalization increases the level of analysis because of the in-depth knowledge of the people in a department. It helps in facilitating easier coordination within the department and the organization. It also reduces the cost of repetition and minimizes the need for training (Pride, Hughes and Kapoor 196-197). Disadvantages In terms of disadvantages, it is at times observed that

Analyze a company's supply chain Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Analyze a company's supply chain - Essay Example This paper will provide an analysis of Walmart’s supply chain. Walmart is a retailing public, multinational corporation based in the United States and has several branches in different countries all over the world. In its branches, Walmart operates large warehouse stores and departmental stores. It is one of the largest public corporations in the world and employees more than 2 million workers worldwide. The multinational corporation was founded in the year 1962 by Sam Walton. Walmart was created on the basis of discount retailing, and this gave it advantage at a time when there was stiff competition. In 2008, Walt-Mart, rebranded to Walmart. The following are different stores operated by Walmart Supercenters, Neighborhood Markets, Express Stores, Marketside and web-based Walmart.com. Components of supply chain Production When it comes to supply chain, production is the first, essential component in Walmart. Walmart as an organization has based its strategic decisions pertaini ng to production on quality, capacity, customer needs, volume of goods and demand from the market. Problems that are present during the process of production are using raw materials of low quality, new technology and customer’s change in preferences and tastes. ... Walmart as an organization has emphasized on quality products, flexible prices and the development of velocity aimed at determining supply of raw materials, which will maintain low cost of production. A potential problem to Walmart in relation to supply is the issue of price consideration and supplier. The management of Walmart can solve this problem through developing flexibility, velocity and quality during the process choosing its suppliers. Managing this problem will ensure that production cost remain at a lower cost (Hugos, 2011). Inventory Through this component from the supply chain, the management of Walmart can determine the suitable level of inventory in the organization beneficial in increasing competitiveness. The inventory is effectively managed by Walmart’s Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology. Through this technology, day to day stocks are monitored, and daily remaining stocks are tracked. Problem in the management of inventory through the (RFID) tec hnology comes as a result of a lot of traffic in the network. A lot of traffic leads wrong interpretation of the processed information. Walmart can solve this problem through increasing the number of server bases and continuous advancement of (RFID) technology (Hugos, 2011). Location The physical site to which an organization has been located is crucial for the prosperity of an organization. The locations Walmart selects to put up its stores are determined by customers’ demands and satisfaction. Walmart ensures that an identified location for its production facilities and stores are close and convenient to the consumers. The problem with this component

Gas and oil prices Essay Example for Free

Gas and oil prices Essay Oil and Gas PricesOil and Gas 2There are many issues that cause the cost of oil and gas to increase. The main contributing issue to the increasing cost of oil and gas is supply and demand, when demand is greater than supply, the price of oil and gas will increase. The factors that affect supply include increased demand, problems with refineries and pipelines, and disruption to supply or threat of disruption to supply.With the increased demand for oil in the United States and other countries such as India and China; the extra demand for oil has put enormous pressure on available oil reserves. The Energy Information Administration stated, â€Å"If refinery or pipeline and/or reductions in imports cause supplies to decline unexpectedly, gasoline inventories (stocks) may drop rapidly. This may cause wholesalers to bid higher for available supply over concern that future supplies may not be adequate† (Energy Information Administration, 2008, para. 9). With this in mind, the other underlying factors that affect supply are disruption to supply or threat of disruption to supply along with The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries is an organization of oil producing countries which produces over 40% of the world’s crude oil and has two-thirds of the world’s oil reserves. This organization was formed in 1960 to regulate the supply of oil and to some extent, the price of oil. The organization includes Algeria, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela. Mouawad, J. stated, â€Å"The cartel has refused to pump more oil, fearing that any hasty move would lead to plummeting oil prices† (Mouawad, 2008 para. 19). With OPEC refusing to increase production and reserves being depleted, a conflict or threat of conflict can be an issue of concern.If there is a conflict or threat of war or conflict with the chance of a disruption in production in an oil producing country will cause oil and gas prices to increase. The most recent conflict that disrupted production is the attacks on the pipelines in Nigeria that caus ed Royal Dutch Shell to decrease exports due to damaged pipelines. Another recent conflict was the exports from Iraq being disrupted by Turkish and Kurdish forces. With these issues increasing the cost of oil and gas, consumers have to deal with the effects as well.With oil and gas prices steadily increasing with no relief in sight, consumers have had to cope with the many adverse effects of high oil and gas prices. There are many adverse effects of increasing oil and gas prices that  consumers have to cope with such as a change in lifestyle, change in shopping habits, and some drastic effects that include not paying utility or vehicle bills leaving some consumers with little options for getting to work. With the increasing oil and gas prices, consumers are left with less expendable income.Consumers are changing their lifestyle, shopping habits, and driving habits. Consumers are left changing their lifestyle by staying home more; therefore, they are eating out at restaurants less, cutting back on entertainment such as nights out at the movies. Consumers are finding themselves combining trips for errands which include paying bills, medical tri ps, and grocery shopping. Consumers are also making the decision of not travel long distances for vacation or decided on not taking a vacation altogether. These effects have consumers looking for alternative ways of travel and more fuel economical vehicles. Mouawad, J., Navarro, M. stated, â€Å"Americans have started trading their gas guzzlers for smaller cars, making fewer trips to the mall and, wherever possible, riding public transportation to work† (Mouawad Navarro, 2008, para. 7). These effects have consumers making adjustments to how they shop.With consumers being left with less disposable income they have changed their shopping habits by shopping online to save money on fuel by not leaving their home to go shopping. Consumers are finding themselves looking for and purchasing sale items whenever possible, purchasing bargain brand items instead of name brand items and shifting their automobile purchases towards vehicles with high fuel economy and away from the large SUV type vehicles which get less gas mileage. Some consumers have traded their SUV`s for smaller more fuel economical vehicles like the hybrid models and som e have bought motorcycles. With consumers in large suburban areas dealing with these effects, rural America is struggling with the effects of the increasing cost of oil and gas. In rural areas such as Mississippi, New Mexico, Montana, Wyoming, and North and South Dakota where consumers incomes are much lower and jobs are scarce, who mostly depend on pickup trucks and vans for transportation are going to extremes in order to cope with the high cost of gas. These effects have rural consumers borrowing money from their employers to help pay for the gas to get to work resulting in less money on payday, and changing jobs for shorter commutes. Some rural consumers find themselves hiring friends and family to drive them for errands due to their family or friends vehicle getting better gas  mileage, requesting buyouts from their employers, not making electric or vehicle payments, and some have gone as far as giving up meat so they can buy fuel.Indealing with these kinds of effects, rural consumers have made the diff icult decisions of changing their job for a shorter commute or moving closer to urban manufacturing jobs. Krauss, C. said. â€Å"Dick Stevens, president of Consolidated Catfish Producers, said that 10 workers walked into his office and volunteered to take a buyout rather than continue commuting from Charleston, Miss., 65 miles away† (Krauss, 2008, para. 24). With consumers continuing to cope with the effects of the ever increasing cost of oil and gas, businesses, both large and small are trying to adapt to the changes.

Hate Crimes in Canada Essay -- Racial Relations, Minority Victimizatio

According to Petrosino (2003: 10) hate crimes can be defined as "..the victimisation of minorities due to their racial or ethnic identity by members of the majority. " (p. 4) Hate crimes are also known as bias-motivated crimes because the crimes are motivated by a bias towards a person or persons including but not limited to those of a different gender, ethnic background, religion, or sexual orientation. Hate crimes are quite serious and have severe and long lasting-effects for the targeted victims. Due to the severe nature of the crimes many countries have strict laws in place to punish offenders. Hate crime is not widely discussed in Canadian society because it has not been a prominent issue until now. â€Å"..The extent of the problem in Canada was limited to a small number of persons, such activity could create a climate of malice and destructiveness to the values of our society (Cohen Report, 1966:24). As a result of the committee’s efforts, Parliament amended the Crimin al Code in 1970, thus rendering hate propaganda as a punishable offence (Law Reform Commission of Canada, 1986:7) There are several reasons why offenders commit hate crimes, they vary from case to case, however, one key element is fear which is caused by ignorance. The offenders fear the unknown and the competition they feel that exists, them vs. the ‘others’. When fear is accompanied by other factors it could potentially lead to a violent crime. â€Å"The Desmond 2 economic or social success some minorities have attained may result in increased feelings of resentment by members of the larger population. As Levin & McDevitt (1993:48) argue, resentment can be found to some extent in the personality of most hate crime offenders. It may be directed toward a part... ..., or might serve as an entire defence.† and aggravating circumstance is defined as â€Å"Circumstances that make a crime more serious in the eyes if others; in hate crime, for example, racism makes an assault more serious, resulting in a harsher sentence.† (McCormick. Siegel, 2007, p.114) Involvement of organized hate groups or their members, absence of motive and existing patterns of similar incidents in a particular area are signs that a bias-motivated crime may have occurred, this warrants further investigation. Often times the individuals are unaware that they are victims of a hate crime. It is not uncommon to have victims and offenders be a part of the same gender, race, sexuality or religion, it is not always about the common differences but the perpetrator's perception of ‘difference’.

Ebags Case Study

eBags Case Study BUSI: 2003 Operations Management 11/16/2012 The eBags Corporation The purpose of this paper is analyze the business operations of the eBags Corporation, and provide recommendations for both the European luggage market and footwear industry based on current strengths and weaknesses eBags demonstrates. Through research and analysis, as a group we will map out the managing growth of the eBags Corporation. eBags is known for their innovative breakthrough of one stop shopping for luggage such as traditional travel bags and suitcases in addition to travel accessories like handbags, computer cases, and briefcases just to name a few.Operations management is a key component to the success of the eBags Corporation, and eBags has demonstrated innovative and cost effective business strategies by utilizing cross functional teams within their organization. With business growing, eBags has been able to increase their manufacturers from 10 to 300 and product lines increasing from 10 00 Stock Keeping Units (SKU’s) to over 15,000 SKU’s (Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham, 2011).Due to the level of success eBags has accomplished they were able to create the eBags product line to consumers seeking low end luggage at an affordable price; the private label consisted of 1000 SKU’s held in a warehouse in Dallas, TX (Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham, 2011) With desires of expanding their business eBags faces a number of hurdles in deciding which line of business will best suit their organization, their suppliers and manufacturers, their customers, all while generating the highest profit for their company. eBags Current Product Flow Process AnalysisTo maintain competitive in today’s market companies need to implement effective process flows. With options such as assembly lines, continuous, batch flow, and job shop it is important for companies to chose the option that is best going to fit both production needs and budget constraints. M aking the wrong choice for the product flow process can be very costly for any company; however, implementing the right process can reduce costs and speed up production time. The purpose of eBags is to create one stop shopping for luggage needs and in order to do so a wide variety of products should be available to their consumers. Bag and their manufactures use a made to stock order fulfillment process, and with various manufacturers and the eBags private label produced, eBags felt best to utilize the batch flow or batch production product flow process. This allowed products to be produced in lower volumes while still offering consumers a wide variety of products to choose from. By utilizing the batch flow process, it requires the use of general purpose equipment that does not specialize in making one specific product, which if loaded to full capacity could create a jumbled flow of products (Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham, 2011).In order to maintain accurate inventory levels , eBags created the eBags Partner Network (EPN) which allows for the manufactures to post up to date product information to consumers ensuring that discontinued items don’t show available for purchase and consumers know the time needed for back order fulfillment. Analysis of eBags in the Footwear Industry and Recommended Product Flow Process Based on Type of Customer OrderWith such success rates in the luggage industry, eBags saw an opportunity to expand their business into foreign terrain, the footwear industry. With the footwear industry being a well known fragmented market, like the luggage market, allowing for flexibility to produce various different styles, designs, qualities, sizes, and colors while maintaining a competitive price. According to Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham (2011), the footwear industry is three times the size of the luggage industry, so venturing into this market would not be an easy task.Some of the challenges that eBags faced in this market t hat they did not in the luggage market included: making consumers aware of the ability purchase footwear through an online channel and consumers generally want to try their shoes on to make they are getting the right product before purchasing (Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham, 2011). However, eBags identified that if they could overcome the hurdles associated with this market they could expand even further with apparel and clothing which Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham (2011), described as the largest online retail market.With hopes to exploit the footwear industry with one stop shopping, eBags should continue to utilize the batch flow process for their product flow process of footwear. With the footwear industry being similarly fragmented to the luggage industry, by using the batch flow process eBags will be able to produce at low to medium volumes allowing for an equally wide line of products to choose from. This will allow customer to order multiple pairs of shoes simu ltaneously so they can try them one and decide which pair is going to best fit their style and comfort needs.With this approach, eBags can also implement the EPN with footwear manufacturers to ensure that up to date products are available eliminating issues of consumers trying to order out of stock or discontinued merchandise. Analysis of eBags in the European Luggage Market and Recommended Product-Process Strategy According to a 2002 report, â€Å"190 million internet users had spread across Europe and surpassed the 165 million internet users in the United States† (Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham, 2011, p. 513). Expanding the current line of business would be safe and effective business strategy for eBags with minor hurdles to consider.The luggage industry is not a foreign concept for eBags, so to be able to expand their products into the European market would require similar business strategies that they are currently using. No one consumer is the same therefore their product needs, including luggage will generally not be the same. The goal is to create one stop shopping for consumers in the European market for their luggage needs and in order to accomplish this, eBags will need to provide a variety of products and lines for their new customers to choose from.Some of the issues that eBags faces, according to Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham (2011), are language barriers involved in international shipping, shipping requirements, brand awareness, and maintaining the EPN. To overcome the hurdle of international shipping, eBags can create relationships with manufacturers domestic to the European market. eBags will be able to incur the cost of shipping without having to pay the expenses associated with international shipping unless they made their private label available to the European market.Also, this will allow eBags to mirror the drop ship model that contributed significantly to the success of their organization. To achieve the success eBag s is looking for in this market, it is recommended that eBags continues to utilize the batch flow process for product flow. This also allows for incorporation the EPN into the new market still allowing for their consumers to have up to date product information. This process will continue to meet the business needs of the luggage industry by producing at low volumes but offering flexibility to accommodate products that meet the low, middle and high end of the market.As with the American luggage industry, eBags products will use a made to stock order fulfillment and the manufacturer will be able to control the inventory by using the EPN. Customer Contact Matrix Analysis of eBags: Strengths and Weaknesses of eBags Processes The level of customer contact for eBags is low which puts them at the high end of a buffered system and the low end of the permeable system on the customer contact matrix. The eBags website is set up to help consumers be self sufficient during the ordering process f rom beginning to end, and because there is no interaction involved their customer service is buffered.In the event the consumer needs additional assistance, they can call the customer service center and the phone interaction would fall under permeable on the customer matrix. This can be considered as strength for eBags because â€Å"separating the customer from the service production system allows for greater standardization of processes and therefore better efficiency† (Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham, 2011, p. 91). eBags is able to focus their attention on product production and quality management of their products without having consumer interruptions.This is what Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham, (2011), refers to as variability from uncertainty, specifically arrival variability. With a made to stock fulfillment, consumers use the eBags website to choose from preselected inventory decided by the manufacturer. This process is also built to have low level custome r contact to eliminate the request variability, which puts eBags at the advantage of having a high efficient system because orders are completed away from the customer. Weaknesses with a low level customer ontact causes eBags to miss out additional business opportunities. According to Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham (2011), high customer contact allows for opportunities to up-sell the customer with accessories or additional sale items in creating more revenue for the company. If eBags entered the footwear industry, eventually expanding into apparel and clothing, they will miss out on great deal of potential revenue. Secondly, consumers who have difficulties navigating through the eBags website will cost eBags a sale resulting in loss of business.Analysis of eBags Use of Technology in Providing Competitive Customer Service Technology it vital to business of eBags as all of their business transactions occur through the internet, so it is important that eBags employs a high skill ed technology department to ensure business runs smoothly. The systematic technology used allows the consumer to filter their results by type brand, features, color, price, by size, etc, making it easy and quick to find the right product (Horwitt, 2011). To enhance the customer experience eBags has invested a great deal into the online shopping experience for their consumers.According to PRNewswire (2012), eBags has implemented the FreeFlow system, which has allowed them to provide better rich product information to their consumers with limited interruptions in website downloads. eBags also incorporated what is referred to as ColdFusion software, which will create the ultimate customer experience by creating personalized stores for their consumers (PRNewswire, 2012). The personalized store will track the customers spending habits and provide product recommendations based on previous purchased items. Another important way the internet is used to provide competitive customer service i s through the EPN.The EPN is a way to connect the consumer with up to date product information, and with the scorecard system the manufacturers can track product sales, returns, and customer feedback (Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham, 2011). Analysis of eBags’ Useof Three Aspects of the â€Å"Philosophy of Lean† Lean business practices are important to corporation survival in today’s business market. Companies are looking for ways to stay in business by bringing new products to the market with faster delivery times and higher standards of quality.In order to stay in competition with the surrounding market most of today’s businesses have incorporated lean thinking into their business practices by adopting some if not all of the five lean tenets. The five tenets are: 1) what about product or service creates value, 2) improve value stream for each product or service, 3) flow within a process is simple, smooth, and error free, reducing waste, 4) produce only what is pulled by the customer, 5) strive for perfection ((Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham, 2011).The first tenet that eBags demonstrates is creating both a product and a service that adds value for their consumers. eBags carries a wide selection of products and labels to choose from all while offering their customers the convenience to one stop shop from anywhere with an internet connection. This has saved eBags’ customers time and money from having to travel to a retail store that may or may not have what they are looking for.According to Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham (2011), this lean tenet has allowed eBags to compete on product breadth, selection, and convenience instead of price. The second tenet that eBags demonstrates is improvement of value stream mapping by incorporated the drop-ship model, which is another way putting the customer in contact with the manufacturer by eliminating the middleman. With the customer orders going directly to the manufac turer, eBags was able to eliminate the middle man (retail merchant location), and create a direct customer-manufacturer relationship.The visual representation described on page 509 of Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham (2011), shows the customer placing their order on the eBags website, eBags then sends the order to the manufacturer electronically, the manufacturer ships the merchandise to the customer, eBags provides the customer with the shipping tracking number and customer is billed for the merchandise, the manufacturer sends eBags an invoice, and finally the manufacturer is paid.The third tenet seen by eBags is the creating simple, smooth, and error free process flows that reduce waste, which can be seen through the incorporation of EPN. Because this system allows the manufacturers to control inventory levels eBags has been able to avoid any waste associated with inventory costs and reduce overhead costs. Also, according to Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham (2011), eBags was able to effectively market their products by removing items that were out of order or discontinued. Bags’ Service Blueprint for Current Product Line Analysis and Recommendation Regarding Business Process Reengineering The basic service blue print is as follows: Based on the group analysis of this service blueprint it is not recommended for eBags to consider a process reengineering. The goal of a process reengineering is to redesign and integrate the business process to increase customer satisfaction. eBags have set themselves apart from their competition with their service blueprint, and any changes can be considered a waste.Footwear Industry Quality Control Analysis and Recommendations The footwear industry is very different from the luggage industry, shoes will be on a person and a level of comfort is important when configuring quality control. One step in maintaining quality control in the footwear industry is to recruit manufacturers with reputable quality assurance guidelines such as material inspection, testing, and final inspections of product before shipped to the consumer. It is also important that the manufacturers hire knowledgeable, competent, and skilled staff to ensure that all quality standards are being met.A second step in quality control, according to Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham (2011), is to clearly identify the needs of the consumers. Once consumer needs are identified the consumer is not lost from the picture, consumer input is needed design specifications with the use of quality function deployment. This can also include information regarding consumer identified life expectancy of the shoes being produced consumers are not going to spend money on shoes that they are going to have to replace every 6 months. Malcolm Baldrige Award Analysis and Recommendation(s)Established in 1987, the Malcolm Baldrige Awarad was created to encourage businesses to strive for higher quality performance through management practices and im proved quality results (Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham, 2011). Spread between seven (7) categories: 1) leadership, 2) strategic planning, 3) customer focus, 4) measurement, analysis, and knowledge management, 5) workforce focus, 6) process management, 7) results; the Malcolm Baldrige Award allows for 1000 total points combined between the seven categories measuring quality assurance.As judges for the Malcolm Baldrige Award, our assessment of eBags Incorporated for this strategic award is as follows: Category and Items (2010):| Points| Comments| | | | | 1. Leadership| | | 1. 1. | Senior Leadership| 70| Senior management work collaboratively to analyze previous results and asses future business ventures| 1. 2. |   Governance and Social Responsibilities| 50| According to PRNews (2012), eBags partnered with Susan G Komen to create â€Å"pink program†. Over 900 pink items offered that eBags contributes 10% of retail sales to the Komen Foundation. | 2. Strategic Planning| | | 2. | Strategy Development| 40| Created one-stop shopping for consumers, incorporated the drop-ship model, and added EPN and vendor scorecard to website to keep consumers informed| 2. 2| Strategy Deployment| 30| Meeting to discuss future business plans for eBags (Footwear Industry or European Market) based on previous years sales numbers| 3. Customer Focus| | | 3. 1| Customer Engagement| 40| Customer engagement can be seen in what Yahoo (2012), called the â€Å"Bag an iPad† campaign that created flexibility in customer interaction by expanding to the channels that consumers use most to communicate. 3. 2| Voice of the Customer| 45| Voice of the customer can be seen through the EPN, manufactures and other consumers can read reviews and testimonials. This gives eBags an opportunity to learn what consumers want and make changes to their products and prcesses if needed. | 4. Measurement, Analysis, and Knowledge Management| | 4. 1| Measurement, Analysis, and Improvement of Organ ization Performance| 40| This category reiterates the EPN and vendor score card system. Manufacturers are able to measure performance and use feedback to incorporate innovated ways to increase sales| 4. | Management of Information, Knowledge, and information technology| 40| ExtractTarget program, consumers receive up to date product and sales information, consumer reviews, and receive discount coupons. | 5. Workforce Focus| | | 5. 1| Workforce Engagement| 10| No information provided to support this category| 5. 2| Workforce Environment| 10| No information provided to support this category| 6. Process Management| | | 6. 1| Work Systems| 30| Maintaining the internet to avoid congestion within the website.Flow of the drop ship model| 6. 2| Work Processes| 45| eBags work processes is reflected through their improvement of work systems. | 7. Results| | | 7. 1| Product Outcomes| 90| I believe eBags has a strong product outcome by offering the customers products in the high, middle, and lo w end of the market| 7. 2| Customer-Focused Outcomes| 70| The process of the drop-ship model from eBags demonstrates how effective the experience is with the company, from shopping, to delivery to the vendor getting paid. 7. 3| Financial and Market Outcomes| 65| The financial and market outcomes at eBags have been set by their determination to offer more than 700 different brands to its market. This is done through cross functional teams within each department of eBags| 7. 4| Workforce-Focused Outcomes| 65| | 7. 5| Process Effectiveness Outcomes| 70| The process of the drop-ship model from eBags demonstrates how effective the experience is with the company, from shopping, to delivery to the vendor getting paid. | 7. | Leadership Outcomes| 70| By utilizing cross functional teams to create efficient and effective product and process flows, eBags has been able to shine among the industry setting precedence for future businesses. | | | | | | Total | 880| | In conclusion even though eBag s has some strong characteristics that can be appreciated in quality management it also has some weaknesses that can be improved on. These weaknesses impede eBags attempts at trying to win the Malcolm Baldridge Award. Analysis and Recommendation(s) for eBags Supply Chain Improvements The supply chain of eBags has been slimmed down as low as it can get.By implementing the drop ship model and EPN, all those involved in the supply chain are needed and the current processes are keeping consumers happy with wide selections of merchandise that can fit any style. It is recommendation that eBags is not in need of improvement in structure or infrastructure. By maintaining cross functional teams in product and process development eBags can stay on top of the competition by implementing innovative ways to improve process flows. Conclusion Over the years eBags has made a big name for itself being named Internet Retailer Magazine’s Top 50 Websites (Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungusanatham, 2 011).With hopes to expand, eBags can venture into a brand new industry that can eventually open more doors or they can expand their current market into the unknown terrain of Europe. Both ventures will require cross functional teams to ensure that consumer wants and needs are addressed while creating process flows that will generate revenue for the company. Regardless of the industry eBags continues to expand in, the use of batch flow process and made to stock order process will accommodate any needs within any industry. Bags has set precedence for their innovate ways of conducting business such as with the drop ship model, EPN, vendor scorecard system, private label, and one stop shopping with the use of technology. eBags has also adapted well to current business practices and implanted the five tenets of lean which was a vital part of their success during a time of economic crisis. By conducting all business transactions, eBags has been deemed a low customer contact company becaus e all contact is done through the eBags website or on the phone with customer service representatives.Although eBags is missing out on opportunities for up-sale because of limited customer engagement, they make up their losses by saving consumers time and money from having to travel for their luggage needs. eBags scored rather high with the Malcolm Baldrige Award but was not quite at the mark to win. The category that had the biggest impact was workforce focus and very little information was available to support a higher score in this category. eBags can work on all areas in this category for improvement to secure a win of the Malcolm Baldrige Award.References: PRNewswire. (2012). eBags. com Raises Breast Cancer Awareness Year-Round with Pick Pink Program. Retrieved November 9, 2012 from http://www. prnewswire. com/news-releases/ebagscom-raises-breast-cancer-awareness-year-round-with-pick-pink-program-57176017. html PRNewswire. (2012). eBags. com Redefines Customer Service with Cutt ing-Edge Internet Technology. Retrieved November 2, 2012 from http://www. prnewswire. com/news- releases/ebagscom-redefines-customer-service-with-cutting-edge-internet-technology-73251862. html Horwitt, E. (2011).The Systematic Web gets Down to Business. Retrieved November 3, 2012 from http://www. computerworld. com/s/article/9209118/The_semantic_Web_gets_down_to_business Schroeder, R. G. , Goldstein, S. M. , & Rungusanatham, M. J. (2011). Operations management: contemporary concepts and cases. (5th ed. ). New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. Yahoo Finance. (2012). eBags Boosts Fall Sales with New ExactTarget-Powered Cross Channel Marketing on Facebook, Email, and Mobile. Retrieved November 10, 2012 from http://finance. yahoo. com/news/ebags-boosts-fall-sales-exacttarget-153000369. html.

Impacts of mobile phone Essay

Mobile phones being one of the most successful inventions of the twentieth century has become a necessity in today’s world as the world is living in an electronic age where it has given birth to globalisation. The latest mobile phones consist of different functions such as surfing the internet or playing music , it is still mainly used as a form of communication which can be used anywhere at anytime. This is due to the fact that it has a unique networked system which needs no wiring , fixation or botheration. As our modern day society , the constant use of mobile phones have brought us a point where it is almost impossible for us to imagine our day-to-day life without it. Our society is oblivious to how much we depend on the use of mobile phones but we only realise that we need it in all spheres of our lives . It plays an important role in our lives especially around people we love especially our family . As a form of communication , it has brought us closer to our family in certain ways but yet it has also cause a disruption in family relationships. This essay will elaborate more on the how a mobile phone has both positive as well as a negative impacts in the relationship of a family. This modern gadget has done a massive impact on our relationships, especially family life. It has facilitate communication and help us keep in touch with our family even when not being physically together. In addition to that , it has allowed frequent and spontaneous communication between family members which causes an increase in people’s capacity to maintain emotional intimacy among themselves. Not only that , parents are able to know how their child is doing if they’re studying abroad. At least they would have a peace of mind knowing that their child is safe and that their child is just a quick phone call away from them. They can also feel better knowing that their child can either contact them or the authorities in cases of emergency. Read more:Â  Essay About Negative Effects of Smartphones on Youth However , when mobile phones are used excessively ,it will limit the time a person interacts with their family members physically as they tend to become oblivious of the surrounding especially people around them. This is due to being fixated on constantly checking for text messages , emails and chats as well as playing games and music. When these family interaction become limited , the family members tend to forget the importance of communicating with one another causing them to lose personal contact and listening skills which is essential in building a strong relationship with one another. In addition , parents complain about their children not answering their mobile phones. This causes the parent to feel frustrated and will eventually lose trust towards their child. To sum up, it will increase distress and cause a steep decrease in family satisfaction. In conclusion , mobile phones have its own positive impact as a strong communication device which makes family interaction between one another easier especially when family members are far away from each other. But if we wary and slither into dependency on communicating with our family using a mobile phone , then in the future, people will lose their ability to have a conversation and how they interact with each family member. This will open up a Pandora’s box , with time , it gets worse resulting in conflicts not resolved and non of the family members know much about each other. Since mobile phones have both positive and negative impacts we have to figure out ways of how mobile phones can enhance humanity and not degrade it.

Dunkirk And Its Significance Essays - Dunkirk, Huns, Free Essays

Dunkirk And Its Significance Essays - Dunkirk, Huns, Free Essays Dunkirk And Its Significance Being a blue blooded Brit, and all that, I decided to write my piece on how historians view Dunkirk. My earliest thoughts on it were shaped by early black and white war films; with noble Tommies against vile Huns, gallantly beating out their escape, while under heavy attack. The truth about the matter was far from straightforward, with a host of variables, as well as lots of good luck. For us Dunkirk- though admittedly a failure, we did flee the field after all- was an amazing feat of sheer courage, National spirit, as well as raw tenacity, refusing to kick the can despite every odd stacked against us- rather like in the Battle of Agincourt. As we all know the story, I see no point in telling a biased version of events, so I will go through the interesting books I found. Interestingly enough the authors generally focus on different themes, either the success or failures of a particular side. My first book (see bibliography for details),edited by J. R. M. Butler, is surprisingly objective for a UK Military series book. Admittedly slightly biased, yet at the same time remarkably fair to Germany in its appraisals. The book starts before the retreat, of the mining(with around 7000 mines) of the channel, so creating a protective passage to France taking place between 11th September to October. This was completely successful bar one U-boat which came though before its completion. Three tried to break through, the U 12, and U 40 being blown up the third grounded itself trying to escape the mine field to be shot by surface vessels. Then it describes as many of the books do how many men returned to safety(approximately 337,000), which was far in excess of their wildest dreams of only 45,000, at the very most. It goes on to praise the men involved, [It] is a classic example of co-operation by the three Services then before it goes on to talk about the Germans, reminds us of the ca sualties, the Navy lost 228 ships, 45 badly damaged. It gives reasons why the German tanks were not sent down to the beaches, which would certainly have destroyed the Allied troops. Hitler strongly said that, the tank arm must not be used for operations for which it is best suited. Under no circumstancesbe permitted to become entangled in the endless confusion of rows of houses in Belgian towns. Also, it is noteworthy that at the time neither Guderian nor Kleist when they saw the position at close quarters thought that tanks should be used to attack Dunkirk. The main reasons for the German failures are given as, Bocks inability to exploit the gap in the British left when the Belgian front was broken. And, The mistake of German High Command in thinking that Ostend was our most important evacuation port. It concludes quite rightly that though the Germans tried their best, they failed. Our next book is by Basil Collier, who despite his unfortunate name, gives us a very interesting insight to the air war, the priorities of the defense of England, and the tactical repercussions for both sides. The withdraw was given air support by Air Vice-Marshall Gossage, in charge of No.11 group, who were responsible for the air defense of South- East England. The problem for Gossage was not very easy, on the one hand he had the Air- Ministry, telling him to, protect Dunkirk with maximum strength, yet he also had to consider the very plausible chance that German bombers could pop up, and attack undefended tracts of land, if he moved his bombers from that region. The books conclusion was that, the effort made was about the biggest compatible with prudence. Gossage, did not concentrate squadrons in the area, preferring instead to fly up to an average of 300 sorties per day. The heroic pilots who were, almost at cracking point at the third day, kept up their efforts, the general cons ensus from the men on the ground seemed to be positive, a vital factor in the success of the mission. However the main bonus was that it boosted moral, for the Battle of Britain, which incidentally was another brilliant success for us,

Concentration and Molarity Worked Example Problem

Concentration and Molarity Worked Example Problem Question a) Explain how to prepare 25 liters of a 0.10 M BaCl2 solution, starting with solid BaCl2.b) Specify the volume of the solution in (a) needed to get 0.020 mol of BaCl2. Solution Part a): Molarity is an expression of the moles of solute per liter of solution, which can be written: molarity (M) moles solute / liters solution Solve this equation for moles solute: moles solute molarity Ãâ€" liters solution Enter the values for this problem: moles BaCl2 0.10 mol/liter times 25 litermoles BaCl2 2.5 mol To determine how many grams of BaCl2 are needed, calculate the weight per mole. Look up the atomic masses for the elements in BaCl2 from the Periodic Table. The atomic masses are found to be: Ba 137Cl 35.5 Using these values: 1 mol BaCl2 weighs 137 g 2(35.5 g) 208 g So the mass of BaCl2 in 2.5 mol is: mass of 2.5 moles of BaCl2 2.5 mol Ãâ€" 208 g / 1 molmass of 2.5 moles of BaCl2 520 g To make the solution, weigh out 520 g of BaCl2 and add water to get 25 liters. Part b): Rearrange the equation for molarity to get: liters of solution moles solute / molarity In this case: liters solution moles BaCl2 / molarity BaCl2liters solution 0.020 mol / 0.10 mol/literliters solution 0.20 liter or 200 cm3 Answer Part a). Weigh out 520 g of BaCl2. Stir in sufficient water to give a final volume of 25 liters. Part b). 0.20 liter or 200 cm3

Human resources case study assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Human resources case study assignment - Essay Example IN 2013 total revenue generated by Babcock was 3.2 billion pounds. Trust to bring best of the products, service and long term value for shareholders. Very important issue which I see in Babcock is gender ratio in employees, majority of the employees are male and only 20% of employees are female which is not a very good number. Female representation in any organization gives a softer image to the world and another aspect is that female empowerment shows a much positive approach of an organization. Babcock should focus on this female hiring to market Babcock in business sector. Another negative point of Babcock is that they are resistant to change, business sector has one rule and that is adaptability, business growth depends upon upgrading and adapting new styles trends and procedures if they are good for company so Babcock needs to expand business by taking Babcock to different countries. This report will focus on flaws which are present in Babcock’s structure and if they elim inate those flaws then Babcock will grow as double speed as it is now. To conduct any research work it is necessary to review the literature of the study. The literature review provides us information about the work done in the specific area with theoretical framework on which the suggested solution of the problem can be built. The literature on the problem is somewhat dispersed from different sources to get a better understanding of the problem under study (KRÄMER, RINGLING & YANG, 2006). A brief review of the literature is given as: A student accountant( September 2008) in his paper explained how business process is important for defining business strategy and suggested ways through which organization can analyze performance of their already existing policies and procedures and how they can change and improve the existing system in order to meet the

Human resource problems - Google Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Human resource problems - Google - Essay Example trying to find ways to improve its workforce performance this could be effective through smart hiring, Google has to investigate how to improve managers. Improper hiring may lead to everything that will follow to be less fine. They should seek for a way to recruit the best candidates. Going to the data to find the optimal number of those to interview to Identify top talent and not running them off too arduous of a recruiting process. It can be discovered that the group hiring barred too many personal preferences in the process and an algorithm reviews declined resumes to get outlined applicant and bring them back to the rotation. Also on the other hand Google should investigate the lifestyle of the candidate before recruiting them in the social media such as; Facebook, Twitter, Instagram among others to be sure of their public images and how they participate in them (Youndt, et al. 866). Since recruiting and training cost incur some of the significant costs to the corporate, it has to consider keeping the existing talent to make the system affordable route to success. Google has to do crunching of the numbers to recognize which employees are expected to leave so that they can preclude the unwanted abrasion. Through this, they could be able to improve retention by more than 35%. This will also enable the company to retain the excellent employees who have set good standards in their performance; through this the company may improve its quality of performance and even improve it as time goes by (Collins, et al. 745). Managing the top leadership team; the most effective ways of the best leadership which most of the employees prefer is through one-on-one coaching, personalized response and interest in the employee personally has a positive impact on retention and job approval. Managers are rated two times annually by their staffers to fill the Google data machine and make certain all is well. Also, the managers could treat the employees through giving them some