The Honest to Goodness Truth on Sustainable Agriculture Essay Topics

The Honest to Goodness Truth on Sustainable Agriculture Essay Topics The usage of manures and fertilizers helps to renew the fertility of the soil. In the old times of farming, farmers only needed to buy seeds occasionally since they could the seeds from the present crop. The farming has gotten more easy and convenient. As a consequence, agriculture may acquire negative affected and there can be acute lack of food leading to famines. Characteristics of Sustainable Agriculture Essay Topics The effect of agriculture on the nation's growth is definitely quite high and that is the reason why efforts will need to be made to improve it. Consequently our agriculture produce was very tiny. For example, say why it is an important branch of national economy. Besides, it contributes between 40 to 60 percent of the total GDP of most of the African countries. The 5-Minute Rule for Sustainable Agriculture Essay Topics Agriculture is known to be among the most essential financial purs uits. It also involves the breeding of animals. It is a massive part of our economy and our world. It is not only the major sector of the country but a powerful one as well. Farming may be an extremely hazardous and stressful career. Agriculture isn't just being a farmer, there are a number of other careers out there which deal with agriculture. The cost of an essay depends upon the total amount of effort the writer has to exert. Furthermore, the expert writer will assist with essay better than should you complete it by yourself within a couple of hours. If you're in college, you will need to compose a proposal essay. The essay help on the internet can be ordered and received even via your cellular device. There are moments whenever you are willing and can compose that essay in the simplest way possible. 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The Fight Against Sustainable Agriculture Essay Topics By comparison, organic foods exclude the usage of synthetic chemicals and offer a selection of advantages. Agriculture is quite an extensive field that works to help solve the world's problems in connection with hunger, health problems, and improving the standard of living, together with increasing the number of food for our growing population. This sort of agriculture includes the cultivation of crops that demand a good quantity of time and space for growing. The agriculture government supports financially has a huge influence on the food supply and human wellbeing. It was once thought to be about the ancient practice of farming, but in today's world it is now regarded as cutting edge technology. Conclusion With the advancement in technology, it has come a long way. Contemporary agriculture has vastly increased the quantity of food that farms are capable of producing with excellent gains in efficiency, but it may also have a big negative influence on the surroundings. The Good, the Bad and Sustainable Agriculture Essay Topics You might have to locate facts about the state of agriculture in the nation of your selection. Currently the world is experiencing lots of environmental challenges that are creating major social, economic and political consequences throughout the world. Complete enterprise report The enterprise report should incorporate the next sections. A stable agricultural industry has an important function to make sure t he food security of a nation. If you wish to purchase essay about agriculture, we are the team you would like to work with. Food security is thought to be one of the fundamental requirements of any nation. 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the Impact of Legal and Regulatory Framework on...

Name: Kelvin Tung Unit 13: Recruitment and Selection in Business Title: The Impact of Legal and Regulatory Framework on Recruitment and Selection Activities (P2) As recruitment and selection is very important part for any organisation, there will be a lot of legislation that every company will need to comply of. This is to ensure that the process is fair and that everyone can have equal access to job vacancies. They are quite a number of legislation that involves recruitment around the UK. Some of the legislations are also governed by the EU (European Union) as the UK is part of the EU. Some of the main pieces of legislation that are currently affecting the UK as part of the EU are briefly outlined here. All these laws will change all†¦show more content†¦Employees must be protected from discrimination, victimisation and harassment and can use an industrial tribunal to force employers to change the way they operate or to seek compensation. Direct and Indirect discrimination is also applied to the Race Relations Act. Direct discrimination would be a job that’s being advertised as only suitable for someone that has a black skin so it would discriminate against anyone that has a white skin. Indirect discrimination would be when a job requires somebody to be only fair haired so it would be fair haired so it would be discriminating against people who do not have fair hair. Equal Pay Act 1970 This act means that all men and women are to be paid equally. This includes all benefits, childcare allowances, sickness benefits and car allowances. This act makes sure that all men and women are paid the same amount of money when they are doing the same jobs, equivalent jobs and jobs of an equal value. Disability Discrimination Acts 1995 and 2005 These acts make it unlawful for any disabled people to be treated less favourably because they are disabled unless they are very good reasons. Reasonable adjustments must be made to premises so that the disabled applicants or workers are not put at any substantial disadvantages. Making reasonable adjustments may be adding ramps for wheelchair access or a hearing loop for a person who finds it hardShow MoreRelatedBTEC TEMPLATE unit 13 NEW1062 Words   |  5 PagesUnit 13: Recruitment and Selection in Business Assessor Date Issued Hand in Date Duration (approx.) Qualification suite covered Level 3: BTEC Diploma in Business Units covered Unit 13 Learning aims and objectives The aim of this unit is to develop learners’ skills and knowledge of recruitment and selection in business. Learners will do this through preparing the relevant documents used in the selection process, planning and taking part in mock interviews and researching the impact of theRead Morebailey bus and coach company1693 Words   |  7 Pageshelp him with recruiting the new Office Manager and he will send you an email detailing the duties for this new post. Ahmed’s email is given overleaf. EMAIL FROM HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGER From: Ahmed Fawzi To: {Learner.name} Subject: Recruitment of new Office Manager Hello Following our discussion yesterday, we need to recruit a new Office Manager. Frances Duggan has told me today that she does not wish to take on the new role of Office Manager. The responsibilities of the newRead MoreResourcing Talent1241 Words   |  5 Pageswill enable learners to understand the factors that impact on an organisation’s resourcing and talent planning activities. They will learn about the relationship between recruitment and selection by identifying the key stages in each separate but related process. The benefits to the organisation of attracting and retaining a diverse workforce will be emphasised. They will be able to make a positive contribution to the recruitment and selection process by developing their knowledge and skills in definingRead MoreRecruitment: Leadership and Development Needs Essay1104 Words   |  5 PagesAssessment Activity Front Sheet This front sheet must be completed by the learner (where appropriate) and included with the work submitted for assessment. Learner Name Date Issued Hand in Date Assessor Name Submitted on Qualification QCF BTEC HNC/HND Business Unit 14 Working With and Leading People Assignment 1 will give learners the opportunity to achieve: Learning Outcome 1 – Be able to use recruitment, selection and retention procedures Learning Outcome 2 – Understand the styles and impact of leadershipRead MoreHuman Rseource Management3924 Words   |  16 PagesManagement and Personal Management | 4 | 1.2 Functions of Human Resource Management | 5 | 1.3 Role of Line Managers in HRM | 6 | 1.4 Impact of Legal and Regulatory Framework | 7 | 2.1 Human Resource Planning | 8 | 2.2 Stages in Human Resource Planning | 8 | 2.3 Recruitment and Selection process change | 9 | 2.4 Effectiveness of Recruitment and selection techniques | 12 | 3.1 Link between Motivational Theory and reward | 13 | 3.2 Job Evaluation | 13 | 3.3 Reward Systems | 13 | 3Read MoreHuman Resource Management3860 Words   |  16 PagesAnalyse the impact of legal and regulatory framework on Harrods human resource management. 5 LO2 Understand how to recruit employees 6 P2.1- Analyse the reasons for human resource planning at Harrods 6 P 2.2 – Outline the stages that Harrods can adapt in planning human resource Requirements 7 P 2.3 – Compare the recruitment and selection process at Harrods with another organisation such as John Lewis, MS or Sainsbury etc. 7 P2.4 – Evaluate the effectiveness of the recruitment and selection techniquesRead MoreHrm Assignment2133 Words   |  9 Pagesthe HRM function contributes to the purpose of the organization 3 1.3 The role and responsibilities of line managers in supporting HRM 4 1.4 The impact of legal and regulatory framework in an organization 5 Task 2 6 2.1 2.2 General HR planning 6 2.3 The recruitment and selection process 7 2.4 Effectiveness of recruitment and selection 7 Task 3 8 3.1 Motivation of staff through reward 8 Read MoreHuman Resource Department Is One Of The Most Important Part Of An Organization2655 Words   |  11 Pagesmore respect for their role in the organisation from upper management. Other commentators note that there are important qualitative differences between personal management and HRM. According to these commentators, it’s a difference in the way the activities are approached. Task 1 P1.1-Differentiate between personnel management and human resource management Personnel management has to do with all manners of issues concerning the individual employee right from the appointment of the employeeRead MoreHuman Resource Management Essay4821 Words   |  20 Pages1.4 Analyse the impact of the legal and regulatory framework on human resource management†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. LO 2 Understand how to recruit employees 2.1 Analyse the reasons for human resource planning †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 2.2 Outline the stages in involved in planning human resource requirements 2.3 Compare the recruitment and selection process in two organisations 2.4 Evaluate the effectiveness of the recruitment and selection techniques in twoRead MoreRecruitment Of A Qualified Applicant Pool While Selection Involves Deciding On The Right Candidates For Entering The Organization Essay1504 Words   |  7 Pages Recruitment focuses on building a qualified applicant pool while selection involves deciding on the right candidates for entering the organization. A wide variety of recruitment strategies are available today, although smaller firms tend to restrict themselves to traditional approaches that are cost effective. This puts them at a disadvantage since they have to compete with larger firms in the job market. In the case of selection, some of the alternative approaches were listed in the earlier

My Struggle wiht Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) free essay sample

As I sat at my desk that night staring at some unfinished sheets of homework, my hands began to tremble. The incessant buzzing of my computer suddenly became two loudspeakers pounding in my ears. The shine of the desk lamp intensified to a blinding brightness. A swift surge of energy rushed up my entire body, followed by a gush of anxiety, and then a wave of excitement. I started to fidget restlessly. It was as if all the nerves in my body were being stimulated at once, as if every feeling and emotion possible were being felt. I knew all to well this raw feeling of Attention Deficit Disorder. I experience it every night when the second dose of my Adderall prescription wears off, leaving me to complete my daily tasks without medication. I could not take another dosage, since the pills, with their side effects of sleeplessness, extreme anxiety and migranes, and loss of appetite would kill me if I were on them 24/7. We will write a custom essay sample on My Struggle wiht Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page When I was first diagnosed with and given a prescription for a moderate-severe case of ADD in the third grade, I used to fall apart during these times. But now as I once again confront this daily struggle of dealing with the disorder, I am inclined to handle it in a different way, reflective of my development over the many years of adversity dealing with ADD. I committed myself to my prescription even after my parents stopped making me do so in middle school. But having to regulate my life accordingly with my daily medication agenda had prevented me making significant efforts to suppress the social and emotional problems that came with the medication. It was not until high school that I started making efforts to do so. Throughout the four years I participated in as many social activities as I saw fit for me and surrounded myself with friends. Swallowing my anxiety, I built bonds with teachers, and went in after every test to learn how I could improve my performance. Most importantly I became eager to learn and share my knowledge with others through discussions. I have come to treasure what I have accomplished academically. But on an even greater level I take pride in how well I have been able to balance being academically persistent with maintaining the humane side of me at the same time. I know that, as the price to treat this physical problem of ADD, the side effects of my medication will never completely go away. But this hasn’t discouraged me from trying. Moreover, it is not the medication or some other aspect of ADD behind my efforts and successes; the effects of my medication have remained the same since I started my prescription, and the symptoms of my ADD have not alleviated one bit. I am the one who has changed, who has taught myself that through endurance and persistence, there is no limit as to how much progress can be made. Even if hardship is physically inborn, as with the case of ADD, a happy life is still possible by simply resisting adversity, standing up to fight it no matter how many times it relentlessly slams you back down on the ground. Dealing with ADD has taught me that true contentment comes from each person’s never-ending journey to find ways to help themselves. Even as I end high school and enter college, I will always be looking for ways to improve my own life as well as the lives of as many others as I can, a journey that can bring to life only hope and goodness. So as I sat staring down at the unfinished worksheets in front of me, there was indeed something different about myself that prevented me from being intimidated from the sudden presence of ADD. This time, I pick up my pencil and with the smirk of a challenger accepting a challenge, confidently resume my study.

Speech Perception Essay Research Paper Speech PerceptionSpeech free essay sample

Speech Perception Essay, Research Paper Speech Perception Speech perceptual experience is the ability to grok address through hearing. Mankind is invariably being bombarded by acoustical energy. The challenge to humanity is to interpret this energy into meaningful informations. Speech perceptual experience is non dependent on the extraction of simple invariant acoustic forms in the address wave form. The sound # 8217 ; s acoustic form is complex and greatly varies. It is dependent upon the preceding and following sounds ( Moore, 1997 ) . Harmonizing to Fant ( 1973 ) , speech perceptual experience is a procedure consisting of both consecutive and coincident designation on a series of increasingly more abstract degrees of lingual construction. Nature of Speech Sounds Phonemes are the smallest unit of sound. In any given linguistic communication words are formed by uniting these phonemes. English has about 40 different phonemes that are defined in footings of what is perceived, instead than in footings of acoustic forms. Phonemes are abstract, subjective entities that are frequently specified in footings of how they are produced. We will write a custom essay sample on Speech Perception Essay Research Paper Speech PerceptionSpeech or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Entirely they have no significance, but in combination they form words ( Moore, 1997 ) . In address there are vowels and consonants. Consonants are produced by compressing the vocal piece of land at some point along its length. These sounds are classified into different types harmonizing to the grade and nature of the bottleneck. The types are Michigans, affricatives, spirants, nasals, and approximants. Vowels are normally voiced and are comparatively stable over clip Moore, 1997 ) . Categorical Percept Categorical perceptual experience implies definite designation of the stimulation. The chief point in this country is that the hearer can merely right distinguish address sounds to the extent that they are identified as different phonemes. Small alterations to the acoustical signal may do small difference to the manner the sound is perceived, yet other alterations which are every bit as little may bring forth a distinguishable alteration, changing the phoneme individuality. Peoples do non hear alterations within one phoneme class. Merely changes from one phoneme to another phoneme are detected ( Lobacz, 1984 ) . Although categorical perceptual experience by and large is considered to reflect the operation of a particular address decipherer, there is a strong indicant that categorical perceptual experience can besides happen in non-speech signals. Musicians are a good illustration of this. The favoritism public presentation of instrumentalists was better for frequence alterations that revised the individuality of the chord than for alterations that did non change the individuality ( Moore, 1997 ) . Categorical perceptual experience is non alone to speech, nevertheless it appears more often with address than with non-speech signals. There are three possible accounts for categorical perceptual experience. The first account suggests that consonants and vowels may be explained in footings of differences in the extent to which the acoustic forms can be retained in audile memory. Consonant sounds have a lower strength than vowels, fluctuate more quickly, and last for a shorter clip than vowels. Therefore, the acoustic forms of consonants often decay quickly. Another account is that boundaries, which separate one address sound from another, tend to lie at a point where favoritism is optimum. The last account is that it comes from experience with a individual # 8217 ; s ain linguistic communication. In this account it is believed that a individual learns to go to to acoustic differences that affect the significance of a word and disregard the differences that do non impact the significance. The natural effect of this is categorical perceptual experience ( Moore, 1997 ) . Brain Specialization Language maps are one-sidedly represented in one of the two hemispheres. It is most normally found in the left hemisphere. Therefore, the right ear will place address stimulations better than the left ear. This occurs because the nervous tracts cross from the ear to the encephalon ( Studdert-Kennedy and Shankweiler, 1970 ) . Interestingly, the left ear will observe tunes better than the right ear. Address is more readily decoded in the left hemisphere than in the right cerebral hemisphere. This is apparent in people with encephalon lesions. The left hemisphere plays a primary function in speech perceptual experience ( Moore, 1997 ) . Address Mode Speech manner is the perceptual experience of the restructured phonemes. If phonemes are encoded syllabically, they must be recovered in perceptual experience by a suited decipherer. Liberman ( 1996 ) stated that perceptual experience of phonemes that have been encoded may be expected to differ from the perceptual experience of the phonemes that have non been encoded and from non-speech. For illustration, the passage cues for /d/ in /di/ and /du/ sound like whistlings when taken out of address context. They do non sound like address or like each other. This illustration could include passage cues from many other phonemes. With simplified address of this sort, the hearer # 8217 ; s perceptual experience is greatly dependent upon whether the hearer is in address manner. It has been found that stimulation with spectral and temporal belongingss similar to those of address are learned more readily than stimulations that is simplified, provided that the speech-like stimulation is identifi ed as address by the hearer. Processes different from those underlying the perceptual experience of other sounds characterize speech manner. It is strengthened by recent findings that address and non-speech sounds are processed chiefly in different intellectual hemispheres of the encephalon ( Liberman, 1996 ) . Harmonizing to Moore ( 1997 ) , speech manner is unusual in that it operates for an full category of extremely complex and varied acoustic signals, whose chief characteristic is that a human vocal piece of land produced them. Cue Trading Several cues may signal a individual phonic contrast. Therefore, it is possible to show that when the perceptual public-service corporation of one cue is attenuated, another cue may take on chief effectivity in signaling the contrast under examination because both cues are equal. This is defined as phonic trading relation ( Luce A ; Pisoni, 1986 ) . In natural address about every phonic contrast is cued by legion distinguishable acoustic belongingss of the address signal. Harmonizing to Moore ( 1997 ) , a alteration in the scene or value of one cue, which leads to a alteration in the phonic perceptual experience, can be offset by an opposed scene of a alteration in another cue so as to keep the original phonic perceptual experience. This is referred to as cue trading or phonic trading. Cue trading by and large occurs in address stimulation, nevertheless one should non presume that trading dealingss neer occur for non-speech stimulations. Evidence has shown that trading dealingss can be found for stimulation that have some address like belongingss but are non really perceived as address. The world that trading dealingss differ depending on whether stimulations are perceived as address or non-speech, provides great support for the construct of a address manner of perceptual experience ( Moore, 1997 ) . Audiovisual Integration Speech perceptual experience is non entirely dependent upon what we hear. Other factors such as sight drama a major function in perceptual experience. For illustration, when perceivers are presented acoustically with /ba/ , but see a face stating /de/ , they will frequently comprehend the sound as /da/ . This sound is derived from uniting the consonant that they saw and the vowel that they heard. This consequence is typically experienced as somewhat imperfect by comparing with the normal instance in which acoustical and optical stimulations are in understanding. The perceivers can non state what the nature of the imperfectness is. They are non able to state that it is because they heard one thing and saw something else being said. The decision is the McGurk consequence. It provides strong grounds for the equality in phonic perceptual experience of two different sorts of physical information. Since the acoustic and optical stimulations are supplying information about the same phonic g esture, and it is the gesture that is perceived, the McGurk phenomenon is precisely what one would anticipate ( Liberman, 1996 ) . / gt ; It can be concluded that the motion of a talker # 8217 ; s face and lips can hold a strong influence on perceptual experience of address stimulation. Audiovisual integrating besides occurs for non-speech sounds. For illustration, sound localisation frequently is influenced by vision ( Moore, 1997 ) . Models of Speech Perception There are many theoretical accounts of speech perceptual experience. There is non one specific theoretical account that is by and large accepted. Three influential theoretical accounts being discussed are the motor theory, the cued based attack, and the TRACE theoretical account. Motor Theory In the motor theory the objects of address perceptual experience are the intended phonic gestures of the talker. Harmonizing to Liberman ( 1996 ) , # 8220 ; they are represented in the encephalon as motor commands that call for motions of the articulators through certain linguistically important configurations. # 8221 ; The hearer perceives the articulative gesture the talker is meaning to do when bring forthing the word or vocalization. In the motor theory, speech perceptual experience and address production are closely linked and innately specified. This theoretical account accounts for many speech perceptual experience features. However, the theoretical account does non stipulate how the interlingual rendition from the signal to the sensed gesture is accomplished, therefore doing the theoretical account incomplete ( Liberman, 1996 ) . The motor theory is in two ways motor. First, it is considered motor because it takes the proper object of phonic perceptual experience to be a mo tor event. Second, it assumes that versions of the motor system for commanding the variety meats of the vocal piece of land took precedency in the development of address ( Liberman and Mattingly, 1985 ) . Cue Based Approach In the cue based attack there is a sequence of stairss of processing. The speech signal undergoes analysis in the peripheral auditory system. The following measure is acoustic belongings sensors. This includes onset sensors, spectral alteration sensors, formant frequence sensors, and cyclicity sensors. These sensors compute relational properties of the signal. The following measure is an array of phonic characteristic sensors. They examine the set of audile belongings values over a ball of clip and do determinations as to whether a peculiar phonic characteristic is present ( i.e. nasality ) . All of these determinations are linguistic communication specific. In decision, it should be possible to happen a comparatively unvarying function between acoustic forms and perceived address, every bit long as the acoustic forms are analyzed in appropriate ways ( Stevens, 1986 ) . TRACE Model The TRACE theoretical account consists of a big figure of units, interrupt down into three degrees, which are the characteristic, phoneme, and word degrees. Each of these degrees contains extremely interrelated treating units called nodes. TRACE accounts for several different facets of human address perceptual experience. Like worlds, TRACE uses information from overlapping parts of the address moving ridge to place consecutive phonemes. The theoretical account # 8217 ; s inclination toward categorical perceptual experience is affected by many of the same parametric quantities, which affect the grade of categorical perceptual experience shown by worlds ( Elman and McClelland, 1986 ) . This theoretical account is considered a connectionist theoretical account, based on nervous webs. In the lowest degree, the nodes represent the phonic characteristics. In the 2nd degree the nodes represent the phonic sections. Last, the nodes represent the words. When a peculiar degree of activation i s reached the nodes are fired, which indicates that a characteristic, phoneme, or word is present ( Moore, 1997 ) . At the characteristic degree, there are Bankss of sensors for each of the dimensions of address sounds. Each bank is reproduced for several consecutive minutes in clip. At the word degree there are sensors for every word. The sensors are replicated across clip pieces. Unit of measurements with next centres span overlapping scopes of pieces ( Elman and McClelland, 1986 ) . When a node fires, activation is passed along to connected nodes. Excitant links exist between nodes at different degrees, which can do a node at the following degree to fire. There are besides repressive links between nodes within the same degree, which allows extremely activated nodes to suppress competitory nodes with less activity. This consequences in one node taking all the activity. The flow of activation is non merely from the characteristic sensors to the word degree. The excitant activation flows in both waies, which allows for information gathered at the word degree to act upon phonic designation ( Moore, 1997 ) . Like worlds the TRACE can non place a word until it has heard portion of the following word. It can, nevertheless, better find a where a word will get down when it is preceded by a word instead than a non-word. Although the theoretical account is influenced by word beginnings, it can retrieve from underspecification or deformation of a word # 8217 ; s beginning. The theoretical account is able to utilize activations of phoneme units in one portion of the TRACE to set the connexion strengths finding which characteristic will trip which phoneme. This theoretical account is called the TRACE because the form of activation left by a address input is a hint of the analysis of the input at each of the degrees ( Elman and McClelland, 1986 ) . Resistance of Speech to Corrupting Influences One factor that can greatly impact address perceptual experience is background noise. For satisfactory communicating, the signal to resound ratio should be +6dB. When this does non happen, speech perceptual experience drastically drops. Moore ( 1997 ) stated that at a 0dB signal to resound ratio word articulation scores reach 50 % . A 2nd factor, which may impact address perceptual experience, is a alteration in frequence spectrum. Many transmittals merely pass a certain scope of frequences. This may go forth some address signals out since information by the address moving ridge is non confined to any peculiar frequence scope. A 3rd factor is peak niping. If an amplifier is overloaded so the extremums of the moving ridges may be flattened off, therefore doing a loss in some of the address signal. This degrades the quality and naturalness of address, but does non greatly affect the intelligibility of address ( Moore, 1997 ) . Decision When discoursing address perceptual experience, one is seldom truly concerned about perceptual experience of address entirely, but in fact about indispensable facets of linguistic communication. Speech is a complex stimulation varying in both frequence and clip. A basic job in the survey of address perceptual experience is to associate address moving ridge belongingss to specific lingual units. A 2nd job is happening cues in the acoustic wave form that clearly indicates a peculiar lingual unit. Often times, a phoneme will merely right be identified if information obtained from a word or syllable is utilised. Address is perceived and processed in a different manner from non-speech stimulations, called address manner. Speech intelligibility is comparatively unaffected by terrible deformations of the signal. Speech is an effectual method of communicating, which remains dependable under hard conditions ( Moore, 1997 ) . Fant, G. ( 1973 ) . Speech Sounds and Features. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press. Liberman, A.M. ( 1996 ) . Speech. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press. Liberman, A.M. and Mattingly, I.G. ( 1985 ) . The Motor Theory of Speech Perception Revised. Cognition, 21. 1-36. Lobacz, P. ( 1984 ) . Processing and Decoding the Signal in Speech Perception. Helmut Buske Verlag Hamburg. Luce, P.A. and Pisoni, D.B. ( 1986 ) . Trading Relations, Acoustic Cue Integration, and Context Effects in Speech Perception. The Psychophysics of Speech Perception. Edited by M.E.H. Schouten. Moore, B.C.J. ( 1997 ) . An Introduction to the Psychology of Hearing. ( 4th ed. ) San Diego, CA: Academic Press. Stevens, K.N. ( 1986 ) . Models of Phonetic Recognition II: A characteristic based theoretical account of speech acknowledgment. Montreal Satellite Symposium on Speech Recognition. Edited by P. Mermelstein. Studdert-Kennedy, M. and Shankweiler, D. ( 1970 ) . Hemispheric Specialization for Speech Perception. Journal of Acoustical Society of America, 48. 579-592. 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HOW USEFUL IS THE TERM CULTURAL REVOLUTION essays

HOW USEFUL IS THE TERM CULTURAL REVOLUTION essays HOW USEFUL IS THE TERM CULTURAL REVOLUTION I propose to define and to argue the question "How useful is the term Cultural Revolution when applied to the Sixties?" My objective is to include examples from history, history of science and religion. Let us first consider Arthur Marwicks decision to periodise the sixties from 1954 to 1975 and Eric Hobsbawms periodisation (within his book Age of Extremes, written in 3 parts) with the sixties contained in the Golden Age. These dates of periodisation are certainly interesting hypothesis. War dominated the culture existing at the beginning of the 20th Century, i.e. the 1914-18 War, followed a few years later by the World War II 1939-45. Europe and Britain suffered massive losses of life. Then came the spread of Communism after the World War II. America became paranoid about the spread of Communism, and because of this entered into a war with Vietnam; with disastrous consequences; they lost hundreds of thousands of young men; and completely failed to stop the spread. The Vietnam war came to an end through people power. Country-wide mass protests were held; people were sickened by the numbers of lives lost, and they questioned the futility and morality of war Then came th e many threats of global annihilation by the so-called super powers (America and Russia). In Britain, children born at the end of the World War II were brought up in a stultifying economic and cultural environment. They were taught not to question; "seen and not heard.". Adherence was given to the churches strict moral teachings; and the class system was still very deeply entrenched in society. Sex was not discussed openly; therefore, many young people were sexually inexperienced and had little or no knowledge of contraception. Young unmarried women who became pregnant outside marriage were ostracised. The working classes at this time wer...

How to Answer the How Would You Fire Someone Interview Question

How to Answer the How Would You Fire Someone Interview Question It sounds counterintuitive to discuss firings in a job interview, right? Ordinarily, you might be asked to explain any firings in your own past- but you might also be faced with a question about firing others. Have you done it? How did you do it? If you haven’t done it, could you do it? How would you do it? Pretty macabre turn for the interview to take, but if it happens, don’t sweat it- here are some strategies you can use. DO understand why you’re being asked.It’s unlikely that the interviewer is thirsty for corporate blood, and looking for a kindred spirit. Rather, firing people is an unfortunate fact of life at any company. If you’re interviewing for any kind of management position, or a position that has the potential to grow into management level, it’s a valid test of your future management skills.If you recoil and say, â€Å"Oh, I could never fire anyone,† you could look like a pushover. If you go the opposite way and talk about how much you love firing people, you could come off more like a sociopath than a tough boss.DON’T try to seem like a shark.This isn’t a test to see how badass you can be. It’s a test to see how you would handle a real-life situation. You don’t get extra points for making the metaphorical fired person cry, so make sure you keep a neutral, professional tone. Very few companies are looking for a tyrant to fill a position.DO emphasize that you wouldn’t arrive at the decision lightly.Make sure the interviewer knows that you would monitor the situation closely, and fire someone as a last resort. This is kind of a backdoor test of your problem-solving skills. If you have a real-life example of having to fire someone in the past, talk about the process that led up to the decision, and how you handled it. If it didn’t have a great outcome, don’t lie- talk about what you’d do differently in the future.DON’T run down a laundry lis t of everyone you’ve fired.If you’ve left a ton of firings in your wake, that could be a major red flag for the interviewer: why has this person made so many bad hiring decisions that led to necessary firings? Instead of running that risk, use specific relevant examples that show the firing as a good management decision for the benefit of the company and/or your team. The interviewer is most interested in process here, so pick quality examples that don’t make you look like a manager who can’t manage a competent and harmonious team.DON’T be mean if you’re asked to â€Å"fire† the interviewer.If you’re asked to give a demonstration of a potential firing, be sure to be firm with the person and make the reasons clear. Don’t let the role-playing get loud or out of hand, even though it’s just for show. This is not the time to channel your inner Donald-Drumpf-circa-The Apprentice.So, to recap: be firm but empathetic in a ny examples you provide (real or hypothetical), and always emphasize the process you would use to arrive at the decision.

Choose one of the topics from assignment Criteria Essay

Choose one of the topics from assignment Criteria - Essay Example This is when trade unions negotiate on behalf of their members, which places workers in a much stronger position than one they would be in if they bargained individually. An example of such a union has been operating since 1919, named ILO (International Labor Organization), which defines its goal as: â€Å"The primary goal of the ILO today is to promote opportunities for women and men to obtain decent and productive work, in conditions of freedom, equity, security, and human dignity†(International Labor Office 1999). Different opportunities are offered to the workers upon their joining of these trade unions. For instance: creating better employment opportunities, promoting productive practices, providing training to adapt to technological and institutional changes, enhancing social protection, increasing safety nets and promoting social dialogue, thereby providing incentives for the workers to associate with the unions (Budd 2004a). On the other hand, the business environment itself has become pretty competitive and effective, whereby social welfare is replaced with economic welfare (Paul, et al. 2001), consumers have become more important than workers, and the work is viewed as yet another input to the production process (Budd 2004a). This situation poses a threat to employment issues, as debates over labor unions, wages, family or sick leaves, or work standards are reduced to debates over labor costs and their effectiveness (Budd 2004a). Hence, the workers have a full right to join these trade unions and actively seek to maximize their utility in proportion to the work they do. Also, in an attempt to achieve decent work, work which is not just viewed as economic activity but also is given a human face (i.e. embraced psychologically, rewarded materially, and responsible ethically or morally) (Budd 2004a), workers should join trade unions which do not just increase their efficiency but also make them more motivated, focused, satisfied and skilled hence b ringing benefits to the organization as well. Therefore, union memberships should not be prevented by the employees. John W. Budd, the professor of Industrial Relations Land-grant at University of Minnesota, stressed the fact that employment objectives should not just be focused upon efficiency, but also should be focusing upon the two equally important factors, equity and voice (Budd 2004b). Undoubtedly in this competitive world, organizations should strive to utilize their resources as effectively as they can (efficiency), but a sole focus on efficiency ignores the psychological and social part of the employment relationship which means that workers should be entitled to fair treatment or rights (equity) and they should also have a say in decisions (voice) as they are more aware of current ground realities (Budd 2004b). Equity includes minimum standards like minimum wages, maximum hours, minimum safety standards, protection against unfair dismissals or favoritism, and restrictions on child labor (Budd 2004a), hence protecting the workers from abusive and unfair employment practices, which prevailed in the early 20th century, such as long hours at low wages in unsuitable hazardous conditions (Kaufman 1993). Whereas, voice includes: fair speech, protection against unfair dismissals or grievance procedures, and direct or indirect labor participation in the decisions (Budd 2004b). Workers’

ITM501, Management Information Systems & Business Strategy, Mod 3 Case Essay

ITM501, Management Information Systems & Business Strategy, Mod 3 Case Assignment - Essay Example Many years ago there were vaccines discovered that prevented these two illnesses. Children before that were very ill when they got these diseases. Many of them died. After the vaccine was discovered and children were inoculated, both diseases virtually went away. However, later on parents decided not to get these vaccines because they did not trust them and both diseases began to come back and then were spread to others one at a time in daycares. That is the way a virus gets around in a computer group also. Not too long ago, as an example, a friend who takes care of a computer system in a hospital noticed a virus warning that kept moving around. Eventually it was everywhere. It was nearly impossible to get rid of. It got in through a computer that someone forgot to load the virus software on and that nurse had been out on the web. It was a very expensive mistake. The connection between a companys computer and home users is the same as my touching your hand and you passing me a virus. If you had flu shot and not got the virus, you would not have passed it to me. Virus software, of course, affects network security but so does malware (infoworld.com). Many IT specialists say that these are now worse than the Trojans were and are. Malware sends in search mechanisms that get deep into the computer information and pull out personal things like all your employees security information or the companys security information. These are set up, not by hackers but by people that are out there to make a profit on your information and it only takes visiting the web at the wrong site or downloading the wrong file. This is truly dangerous to your organization and to any of your employees that may be working from their own PCs at home. In todays world, we are all touched by computers and like keeping personal and important information that is in paper form secure, so is it

Ontela Picdeck Essay Example for Free

Ontela Picdeck Essay Ontela PicDeck creative approach to have cellular customers have the ability to automatically have pictures and videos directly sent to their computer. This reduces time needed and simplifying the strenuous act of doing it manually. The U. S mobile phone service industry earned 150 billion dollars in 2007 and growing. This technology has potential of playing a role in that with critiquing the marketing strategy they have approached the market with. It is essential for a better marketing strategy for Ontela to show customers so they can better understand the benefits and how to efficiently utilize it. The qualitative research segments best defined the customer expectations. Sarah, the parent, loved the fact the pictures â€Å"just appear â€Å"on the computer automatically. Steve, the young professional, looked to not always have to lug around the digital camera. Instead have a phone that can take care of both jobs. Regina, the teen, expectation exceeded both Steve and Sarah, but still within the abilities of PicDeck. Regina wanted to manage her pictures from her phone and monitor the pictures for her social networking sites. Herzberg’s 2-factor theory can be used in this instance. Using this theory to understand and distinguishing what motivates the purchase while staying â€Å"relevant†. In other words you must keep up with the recent trends like the social networking wave. These three segments all produce various expectations but all acknowledged the expectations of a simplified and quicker method to transferring pictures. These segments age groups and lifestyles greatly vary so the solution to market them must be more specified to that target group. The improvement of creating a more knowledgeable customer base will require a critiqued advertising campaign. In the case of Regina, advertising within the social networking programs like Facebook and MySpace. This advertising will catch the attention of these teen and inform them of the product. Specifically push the simplicity, timeliness, and how the pictures are still stored even when your cellular device is lost. For the younger generation and phones being a huge commodity, phones are constantly being stolen and lost. If interpreted right, then the teen will approach their parents to have their plan changed to include PicDeck. Then the parent will be informed and furthering the utterfly effect of a strict advertising scheme to the teenage target customers. This is how Sarah would be notified. Social is a major influence in customer behavior through family, friends, and reference groups. All play as contributors to trusting a buy of a product. Continuously for people who aren’t very tech savvy like Sarah and Steve; they do though always have an email and usually check it frequentl y. So a mass email to the entire customer base informing them of the new product. Steve would be influenced more by the occupation. Besides using this program for personal use, Steve would use this for his real estate job. To be successful in a job market like Steve’s you must influence your work with newer technology so you may keep up with competitors. â€Å"With PicDeck, work assignments are accomplished more efficiently and simply†, statements like this boost the products equity and what customers like Steve would want to hear. For a product to blossom you must target the younger generation first. With constant technology improvements it’s hard for the older generation to keep up. The younger generation is constantly working with the new technologies so you inform the younger generation and it will spread to older generations. Ontela has created an inferior product and now need to raise awareness of the tech advances this product has influenced. The magazine Telephony stated PicDeck to be â€Å"helping the bridge the gap between phone and PC†. Continuous advertising is needed in magazines for the working class people to involve this program into their workplace. For instance putting an ad in the magazine SkyMall. The magazine you see on every flight you’re on. This can target a business class customer base because the individuals who travel most are individuals travelling on business. And this is the only reading material on the plane.

Summary of Vietnam War :: Vietnam War Essays

Summary of Vietnam War Ngo Vinh Long   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In this reading, Long discusses the history of Vietnamese resistance to colonial and oppressive forces. Long states that American historians and statesman claim that other factors contributed to the disastrous conclusion of the Vietnam war, but that the real truth is that the American’s were not prepared to meet such a formidable foe. The Vietnamese had been resisting the Chinese for over 1,000 years and had held on; when the French arrived the same policy of resistance was practiced. Ultimately, due to the oppressive nature of the French and WWII, the French were ousted and a new communist government under Ho Chi Minh was established. Having just been under an oppressive force, and being very knowledgeable about how to deal with oppression, the American’s were caught by surprise. Ho Chi Minh   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the first set of readings, Ho Chi Minh calls upon Western powers to honor the principles of freedom they so ‘righteously’ proclaim. Speaking specifically to the French, Ho Chi Minh proclaims that the right of the Vietnamese people to be sovereign is inherent in the ideology of French ideology and he calls on them to follow through.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the second selection of reading, Ho Chi Minh recounts his eventual conversion to Marxist/Leninist ideals. He tells of his participation and final acceptance of communist ideals.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the final selection of reading Ho Chi Minh calls upon all the people of Vietnam to join in the fight for full independence. In this letter Minh appeals to heroes of the past who have resisted oppression and relates these heroes to the present struggle. Johnson   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In this selection of reading President Johnson is defending his Vietnam policy. This address by Johnson lays out many arguments for why the war in Vietnam is necessary; they are as follows: (a) the self-determination of nations; (b) aggressive forces; (c) communism as a menace to the world; (d) idea that everything operates like dominoes; (e) avoiding another Munich; (f) responsibility of the American people; (g) a â€Å"new deal† for third-world countries; (h) a better tomorrow for the world Scheer   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In this article Scheer explains why the US got involved in Vietnam. Three primary reasons were the imminent collapse of the French government, the success of the Viet Minh, and the instability of the puppet Diem regime. Duncan   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In this narrative, Duncan explains through various stories why he believes the war in Vietnam simply propaganda; he concludes his narrative by saying that it took him 10 years in the military to figure out that the government was feeding him lies.

Chapter 12 Zara

CHAPTER Marketing Channels Delivering 12 Customer Value PRE VIEWING We now arrive at the third marketing mix tool—distribution. Firms rarely work alone in creating value for customers and building profitable customer relationships. Instead, most THE CONCEPTS are only a single link in a larger supply chain and marketing channel. As such, an individual firm’s success depends not only on how well it performs but also on how well its entire marketing channel competes with competitors’ channels. To be good at customer relationship management, a company must also be good at partner relationship management.The first part of this chapter explores the nature of marketing channels and the marketer’s channel design and management decisions. We then examine physical distribution—or logistics—an area that is growing dramatically in importance and sophistication. In the next chapter, we’ll look more closely at two major channel intermediaries retailers and wholesalers. We’ll start with a look at a company whose groundbreaking, customer-centred distribution strategy took it to the top of its industry. Q uick, which rental-car company is number one? Chances are good that you said Hertz. Okay, who’s number two?That must be Avis, you say. After all, for years Avis advertising has said, â€Å"We’re #2, so we try harder! † But if you said Hertz or Avis, you’re about to be surprised. By any measure—most locations, revenues, profits, or number of cars—the number-one North American rental-car company is Enterprise Rent-A-Car. What’s more, this is no recent development. Enterprise left number-two Hertz in its rear-view mirror in the late 1990s and has never looked back. What may have fooled you is that for a long time, Hertz was number one in airport car rentals. However, with estimated revenues of US$9. billion and growing, Enterprise now has 30 percent more overall car ren tal sales than Hertz. What’s more, analysts estimate that the privately owned Enterprise is twice as profitable as Hertz. How did Enterprise become such a dominating industry leader? The company might argue that it was through better prices or better marketing. But what contributed most to Enterprise taking the lead was an industry-changing, customer-driven distribution strategy. While competitors such as Hertz and Avis focused on serving travellers at airports, Enterprise developed a new distribution doorway to a large and untapped segment.It opened off-airport, neighbourhood locations that provided short-term carreplacement rentals for people whose cars were wrecked, stolen, or being serviced, or for people who simply wanted a different car for a short trip or special occasion. It all started more than half a century ago when Enterprise founder Jack Taylor discovered an unmet customer need. He was working at a St. Louis auto dealership, and customers often asked him where t hey could get a replacement The tagline â€Å"Pick Enterprise. We’ll Pick You car when theirs was in the shop for repairs or body work.To meet this need, Up† remains the company’s main value Taylor opened a car-leasing business. But rather than competing head-on with proposition. the likes of Hertz and Avis serving travellers at airports, Taylor located his rental offices in centre-city and neighbourhood areas, closer to his replacement-car target customers. These locations also gave Taylor a cost advantage—property rents were lower and he didn’t have to pay airport taxes and fees. Taylor’s groundbreaking distribution strategy worked and the business grew quickly. As he opened multiple locations in St.Louis and other cities, he renamed his business Enterprise Rent-A-Car after the U. S. Navy aircraft carrier on which he had served as a naval aviator. Enterprise continued to focus steadfastly on what it called the â€Å"home-city† marke t, primarily serving customers who’d been in wrecks or whose cars were being serviced. Enterprise branch managers developed strong relationships with local auto insurance adjusters, dealership sales and service personnel, and body shops and service garages, making Enterprise their preferred neighbourhood rental-car provider.Customers in the home-city market had special needs. Often, they were at the scene of a wreck or at a repair shop and had no way to get to an Enterprise office to pick up a rental car. So the company came up with another gamechanging idea—picking customers up wherever they happen to be and bringing them back to the rental office. Hence the tagline: â€Å"Pick Enterprise. We’ll Pick You Up,† which remains the company’s main value proposition to this day. By the late 1980s, Enterprise had a large nationwide network of company-owned off-airport locations and a virtual lock on the home-city market.From this strong base, in the mid-1 990s Enterprise began expanding its distribution system by directly challenging Hertz and Avis in the onairport market. A decade later, it had operations in 230 airports in North America and Europe. Enterprise opened its first Canadian branch in 1993 in Windsor, Ontario, and since then has experienced double-digit growth in Canada. It now employs 2800 Canadians, and has over 35 000 vehicles and 400 locations, including 23 offices serving Canadian airports. In late 2007, Enterprise purchased the Vanguard Car Rental Group, which owned the National and Alamo brands.National focused on the corporate negotiated rental market while Alamo served primarily the leisure traveller airport market. With the Vanguard acquisition, Enterprise now captures a 27. 4 percent share of the airport market, putting it While competitors Hertz and Avis focused on serving travellers at airports, Enterprise opened off-airport, neighbourhood locations that provided short-term car-replacement rentals for people whose cars were wrecked, stolen, or being serviced. neck-and-neck with Hertz at 28. 5 percent and jointly owned Avis/Budget at 30. percent. That, combined with its more than 55 percent share of the off-airport market, makes Enterprise the runaway leader in overall car rental sales. Enterprise owns a stunning one-half of all North American rental cars and is the world’s largest automobile buyer. Last year, it purchased 800 000 cars to support its 7900 locations in the United States and four other countries. However, rather than resting on its laurels, Enterprise continues to seek better ways to get its cars where customers want them.The enterprising company is now motoring into yet another innovative distribution venue—â€Å"car sharing† and hourly rentals. Car sharing was pioneered in the late 1990s by Zipcar, which operates on parking-starved university campuses and in congested urban areas, where it rents cars on an hourly or daily basis to people who want to run errands or make short trips. Zipcar does not currently serve the Canadian university market but does have branches serving the general public in Vancouver and Toronto. Enterprise has now revved up its own car-sharing program, WeCar.This new operation will park automobiles at convenient locations in densely populated urban areas, where residents often don’t own cars and where business OBJECTIVES 1 2 3 4 5 Explain why companies use marketing channels and discuss the functions these channels perform. Discuss how channel members interact and how they organize to perform the work of the channel. Identify the major channel alternatives open to a company. Explain how companies select, motivate, and evaluate channel members. Discuss the nature and importance of marketing logistics and integrated supply chain management. 90 Part 3 Designing a Customer-Driven Strategy and Mix commuters would like to have occasional car access. Enterprise will also target businesses that want to hav e WeCar vehicles available in their parking lots for commuting employees to use. WeCar members pay a US$35 annual membership fee. They can then rent conveniently located, fuel-efficient cars (mostly Toyota Prius hybrids) for US$10 per hour or US$30 overnight—the rate includes gas and a 200-mile allotment. Renting a WeCar vehicle is a simple get-in-and-go operation.Just pass your member key fob over a sensor to unlock the car, then open the glove box and enter a PIN to release the car key. Although the carsharing market now belongs to tiny Zipcar, a US$100 million company that has cars on more than 70 university campuses in several large metropolitan areas, look for giant Enterprise to perfect and expand the new distribution concept. Thus, Enterprise continues to move ahead aggressively with its winning distribution strategy. Says Andy Taylor, founder Jack’s son and now longtime Enterprise CEO, â€Å"We own the high ground in this business and we aren’t going to give it up.As the dynamics of our industry continue to evolve, it’s clear to us that the future belongs to the service providers who offer the broadest array of services for anyone who needs or wants to rent a car. † The company intends to make cars available wherever, whenever, and however customers want them. 1 As the Enterprise story shows, good distribution strategies can contribute strongly to customer value and create competitive advantage for both a firm and its channel partners. It demonstrates that firms cannot bring value to customers by themselves.Instead, they must work closely with other firms in a larger value delivery network. 1 Value delivery network The network made up of the company, suppliers, distributors, and ultimately customers who â€Å"partner† with each other to improve the performance of the entire system in delivering customer value. Supply Chains and the Value Delivery Network Producing a product or service and making it available to buyers requires building relationships not just with customers, but also with key suppliers and resellers in the company’s supply chain. This supply chain consists of â€Å"upstream† and â€Å"downstream† partners.Upstream from the company is the set of firms that supply the raw materials, components, parts, information, finances, and expertise needed to create a product or service. Marketers, however, have traditionally focused on the â€Å"downstream† side of the supply chain—on the marketing channels (or distribution channels) that look toward the customer. Downstream marketing channel partners, such as wholesalers and retailers, form a vital connection between the firm and its customers. The term supply chain may be too limited—it takes a make-and-sell view of the business.It suggests that raw materials, productive inputs, and factory capacity should serve as the starting point for market planning. A better term would be demand chain be cause it suggests a sense-and-respond view of the market. Under this view, planning starts with the needs of target customers, to which the company responds by organizing a chain of resources and activities with the goal of creating customer value. Even a demand chain view of a business may be too limited, because it takes a step-by-step, linear view of purchase–production–consumption activities.With the advent of the Internet and other technologies, however, companies are forming more numerous and complex relationships with other firms. For example, Ford manages numerous supply chains. It also sponsors or transacts on many B2B websites and online purchasing exchanges as needs arise. Like Ford, most large companies today are engaged in building and managing a continuously evolving value delivery network. As defined in Chapter 2, a value delivery network is made up of the company, suppliers, distributors, and ultimately customers who â€Å"partner† with each othe r to improve the performance of the entire system.For example, in making and marketing its iPod touch products, Apple manages an entire network of peoValue delivery network: In making and market- ple within Apple plus suppliers and resellers outside the company who work ing iPod touch products, Apple manages an together effectively to give final customers â€Å"so much to touch. † This chapter focuses on marketing channels—on the downstream side of the entire network of people within Apple plus suppliers and resellers outside the company who value delivery network.We examine four major questions concerning marketing work effectively together to give final cus- channels: What is the nature of marketing channels and why are they important? tomers â€Å"so much to touch. † How do channel firms interact and organize to do the work of the channel? What Chapter 12 Marketing Channels Delivering Customer Value 391 problems do companies face in designing and managing the ir channels? What role do physical distribution and supply chain management play in attracting and satisfying customers? In Chapter 13, we will look at marketing channel issues from the viewpoint of retailers and wholesalers.The Nature and Importance of Marketing Channels Marketing channel (distribution channel) A set of interdependent organizations that help make a product or service available for use or consumption by the consumer or business user. Few producers sell their goods directly to the final users. Instead, most use intermediaries to bring their products to market. They try to forge a marketing channel (or distribution channel)—a set of interdependent organizations that help make a product or service available for use or consumption by the consumer or business user.A company’s channel decisions directly affect every other marketing decision. Pricing depends on whether the company works with national discount chains, uses high-quality specialty stores, or sel ls directly to consumers via the Web. The firm’s sales force and communications decisions depend on how much persuasion, training, motivation, and support its channel partners need. Whether a company develops or acquires certain new products may depend on how well those products fit the capabilities of its channel members.For example, Kodak initially sold its EasyShare printers only in Best Buy stores to take advantage of the retailer’s on-the-floor sales staff and their ability to educate buyers on the economics of paying higher initial prices but lower long-term ink costs. Companies often pay too little attention to their distribution channels, sometimes with damaging results. In contrast, many companies have used imaginative distribution systems to gain a competitive advantage. FedEx’s creative and imposing distribution system made it a leader in express delivery. Enterprise revolutionized the car-rental business by setting up off-airport rental offices.And A mazon. com pioneered the sales of books and a wide range of other goods via the Internet. Distribution channel decisions often involve long-term commitments to other firms. For example, companies such as Ford, HP, or McDonald’s can easily change their advertising, pricing, or promotion programs. They can scrap old products and introduce new ones as market tastes demand. But when they set up distribution channels through contracts with franchisees, independent dealers, or large retailers, they cannot readily replace these channels with company-owned stores or websites if conditions change.Therefore, management must design its channels carefully, with an eye on tomorrow’s likely selling environment as well as today’s. How Channel Members Add Value Why do producers give some of the selling job to channel partners? After all, doing so means giving up some control over how and to whom they sell their products. Producers use intermediaries because they create greater efficiency in making goods available to target markets. Through their contacts, experience, specialization, and scale of operation, intermediaries usually offer the firm more than it can achieve on its own. Figure 12. shows how using intermediaries can provide economies. Figure 12. 1A shows three manufacturers, each using direct marketing to reach three customers. This system requires nine different contacts. Figure 12. 1B shows the three manufacturers working through one distributor, which contacts the three customers. This system requires only six contacts. In this way, intermediaries reduce the amount of work that must be done by both producers and consumers. From the economic system’s point of view, the role of marketing intermediaries is to transform the assortment of products made by producers into the assortment wanted by consumers.Producers make narrow assortments of products in large quantities, but consumers want broad assortments of products in small quantities. Ma rketing channel members buy large quantities from many producers and break them down into the smaller quantities and broader assortments wanted by consumers. 392 Part 3 Designing a Customer-Driven Strategy and Mix 1 Manufacturer 3 4 Manufacturer 6 7 Manufacturer 8 9 Customer Manufacturer 6 3 Customer 5 2 Customer Manufacturer Distributor 5 Customer 2 Customer Manufacturer 1 4 Customer A. Number of contacts without a distributor M? C=3? 3=9 B.Number of contacts with a distributor M+C=3+3=6 Figure 12. 1 How adding a distributor reduces the number of channel transactions For example, Unilever makes millions of bars of Lever 2000 hand soap each day, but you want to buy only a few bars at a time. So big food, drug, and discount retailers, such as Superstore, Shoppers Drug Mart, and Walmart, buy Lever 2000 by the truckload and stock it on their store shelves. In turn, you can buy a single bar of Lever 2000, along with a shopping cart full of small quantities of toothpaste, shampoo, and ot her related products as you need them.Thus, intermediaries play an important role in matching supply and demand. In making products and services available to consumers, channel members add value by bridging the major time, place, and possession gaps that separate goods and services from those who would use them. Members of the marketing channel perform many key functions. Some help to complete transactions: †¢ Information: Gathering and distributing marketing research and intelligence information about actors and forces in the marketing environment needed for planning and aiding exchange. Promotion: Developing and spreading persuasive communications about an offer. †¢ Contact: Finding and communicating with prospective buyers. †¢ Matching: Shaping and fitting the offer to the buyer’s needs, including activities such as manufacturing, grading, assembling, and packaging. †¢ Negotiation: Reaching an agreement on price and other terms of the offer so that owne rship or possession can be transferred. Others help to fulfill the completed transactions: †¢ Physical distribution: Transporting and storing goods. †¢ Financing: Acquiring and using funds to cover the costs of the channel work. Risk taking: Assuming the risks of carrying out the channel work. And a new item that has been added to the list of functions to be performed within the supply chain is environmental sustainability. Take the case of Toronto-based Grand & Toy: In 2007, Grand & Toy, Canada’s leading provider of business solutions, announced a new corporate strategy aimed at becoming a leader in environmental sustainability. Among its initiatives was a plan to significantly reduce its environmental footprint in supply chain carbon intensity, packaging, recycling of waste, and distribution centre management.In just a few short years, Grand & Toy has established itself as a leader in sustainable procurement practices, In 2009, for example, the company sponsored t wo free sustainable procurement showcases to help supply chain management professionals understand how sustainability is becoming a key driver for innovative procurement solutions, and how to adopt sustainable supply chain practices when working with suppliers and partners that maximize both profitability and corporate social responsibility. 2 Chapter 12 Marketing Channels Delivering Customer Value 393 FPOThe question is not whether these functions need to be performed—they must be—but rather who will perform them. To the extent that the manufacturer performs these functions, its costs go up and its prices must be higher. When some of these functions are shifted to intermediaries, the producer’s costs and prices may be lower, but the intermediaries must charge more to cover the costs of their work. In dividing the work of the channel, the various functions should be assigned to the channel members who can add the most value for the cost. Number of Channel Levels Companies can design their distribution channels to make products and services available to customers in different ways. Each layer of marketing intermediaries that perform some work in bringing the product and its ownership closer to the final buyer is a channel level. Because the producer and the final consumer both perform some work, they are part of every channel. The number of intermediary levels indicates the length of a channel. Figure 12. 2A shows several consumer distribution chanGrand & Toy’s sustainability vision involves â€Å"powering the potential of Canadian businesses to lead the journey towards sustainability. nels of different lengths. Channel 1, called a direct marketing channel, has no intermediary levels; the company sells directly to consumers. For example, Mary Kay and Amway sell their products door-to-door, Channel level through home and office sales parties, and on the Web; Veseys, located in York, Prince EdA layer of intermediaries that ward Island, sells its plants and bulbs to gardeners across the country through mail cataperform some work in bringing the logues, by telephone, and online. The remaining channels in Figure 12. 2A re indirect product and its ownership closer marketing channels, containing one or more intermediaries. to the final buyer. Figure 12. 2B shows some common business distribution channels. The business marDirect marketing channel keter can use its own sales force to sell directly to business customers. Or it can sell to various A marketing channel that has no types of intermediaries, who in turn sell to these customers. Consumer and business marketintermediary levels. ing channels with even more levels can sometimes be found, but less often.From the proIndirect marketing channel ducer’s point of view, a greater number of levels means less control and greater channel A marketing channel containing complexity. Moreover, all of the institutions in the channel are connected by several types of one o r more intermediary levels. flows. These include the physical flow of products, the flow of ownership, the payment flow, the information flow, and the promotion flow. These flows can make even channels with only one or a few levels very complex. Producer Producer Producer Producer Producer Producer Wholesaler Manufacturer? s representatives or sales branch RetailerRetailer Business distributor Business distributor Consumer Channel 1 Consumer Channel 2 Consumer Channel 3 Business customer Channel 1 Business customer Channel 2 Business customer Channel 3 A. Consumer marketing channels B. Business marketing channels Figure 12. 2 Consumer and business marketing channels 394 Part 3 Designing a Customer-Driven Strategy and Mix 2 Channel Behaviour and Organization Distribution channels are more than simple collections of firms tied together by various flows. They are complex behavioural systems in which people and companies interact to accomplish individual, company, and channel goals.Some channel systems consist only of informal interactions among loosely organized firms. Others consist of formal interactions guided by strong organizational structures. Moreover, channel systems do not stand still— new types of intermediaries emerge and whole new channel systems evolve. Here we look at channel behaviour and at how members organize to do the work of the channel. Channel Behaviour A marketing channel consists of firms that have partnered for their common good. Each channel member depends on the others. For example, a Ford dealer depends on Ford to design cars that meet consumer needs.In turn, Ford depends on the dealer to attract consumers, persuade them to buy Ford cars, and service cars after the sale. Each Ford dealer also depends on other dealers to provide good sales and service that will uphold the brand’s reputation. In fact, the success of individual Ford dealers depends on how well the entire Ford marketing channel competes with the channels of o ther auto manufacturers. Each channel member plays a specialized role in the channel. For example, consumer electronics maker Samsung’s role is to produce electronics products that consumers will like and to create demand through national advertising.Future Shop’s role is to display these Samsung products in convenient locations, to answer buyers’ questions, and to complete sales. The channel will be most effective when each member assumes the tasks it can do best. Ideally, because the success of individual channel members depends on overall channel success, all channel firms should work together smoothly. They should understand and accept their roles, coordinate their activities, and cooperate to attain overall channel goals. However, individual channel members rarely take such a broad view.Cooperating to achieve overall channel goals sometimes means giving up individual company goals. Although channel members depend on one another, they often act alone in thei r own short-run best interests. They often disagree about who should do what and for what rewards. Such disagreements over goals, roles, and rewards generate channel conflict. Horizontal conflict occurs among firms at the same level of the channel. For instance, some Ford dealers in Vancouver might complain that the other dealers in the city steal sales from them by pricing too low or by advertising outside their assigned territories.Or Holiday Inn franchisees might complain about other Holiday Inn operators overcharging guests or giving poor service, hurting the overall Holiday Inn image. Vertical conflict, conflicts between different levels of the same channel, is even more common. For example, Goodyear created hard feelings and conflict with its premier independent-dealer channel when it began selling through mass-merchant retailers: For more than 60 years Goodyear sold replacement tires exclusively through its premier network of independent Goodyear dealers.Then, in the 1990s, G oodyear shattered tradition and jolted its dealers by agreeing to sell its tires through mass merchants such as Sears and Walmart, placing dealers in direct competition with the nation’s Channel conflict Disagreements among marketing channel members on goals and roles—who should do what and for what rewards. Channel conflict: Goodyear created conflict with its premier independent-dealer channel when it began selling through mass-merchant retailers. Fractured dealer relations weakened the Goodyear name and dropped the company into a more than decade-long profit funk.Chapter 12 Marketing Channels Delivering Customer Value 395 most potent retailers. Goodyear claimed that value-minded tire buyers were increasingly buying from cheaper, multibrand discount outlets and department stores, and that it simply had to put its tires where many consumers were going to buy them. Not surprisingly, Goodyear’s aggressive moves into new channels set off a surge of channel conflict , and dealer relations deteriorated rapidly. Some of Goodyear’s best dealers defected to competitors. Other angry dealers struck back by taking on competing brands of cheaper private-label tires.Such dealer actions weakened the Goodyear name, and the company’s replacement tire sales—which make up 71 percent of its revenues—went flat, dropping the company into a more than decade-long profit funk. Although Goodyear has since actively set about repairing fractured dealer relations, it still has not fully recovered. â€Å"We lost sight of the fact that it’s in our interest that our dealers succeed,† admits a Goodyear executive. 3 Some conflict in the channel takes the form of healthy competition. Such competition can be good for the channel—without it, the channel could become passive and noninnovative.But severe or prolonged conflict, as in the case of Goodyear, can disrupt channel effectiveness and cause lasting harm to channel relation ships. Companies should manage channel conflict to keep it from getting out of hand. Vertical Marketing Systems Conventional distribution channel A channel consisting of one or more independent producers, wholesalers, and retailers, each a separate business seeking to maximize its own profits, even at the expense of profits for the system as a whole. Vertical marketing system (VMS) A distribution channel structure in which producers, wholesalers, and retailers act as a unified system.One channel member owns the others, has contracts with them, or has so much power that they must all cooperate. For the channel as a whole to perform well, each channel member’s role must be specified and channel conflict must be managed. The channel will perform better if it includes a firm, agency, or mechanism that provides leadership and has the power to assign roles and manage conflict. Historically, conventional distribution channels have lacked such leadership and power, often resulting in damaging conflict and poor performance.One of the biggest channel developments over the years has been the emergence of vertical marketing systems that provide channel leadership. Figure 12. 3 contrasts the two types of channel arrangements. A conventional distribution channel consists of one or more independent producers, wholesalers, and retailers. Each is a separate business seeking to maximize its own profits, perhaps even at the expense of the system as a whole. No channel member has much control over the other members, and no formal means exists for assigning roles and resolving channel conflict.In contrast, a vertical marketing system (VMS) consists of producers, wholesalers, and retailers acting as a unified system. One channel member owns the others, has contracts with them, or wields so much power that they must all cooperate. The VMS can be dominated by the producer, wholesaler, or retailer. The Forzani Group, headquartered in Calgary, is an example of a retail-dominated VMS. It owns and operates a range of sporting Consumer Figure 12. 3 Comparison of a conventional distribution channel with vertical marketing system Conventional marketing channelVertical marketing channel 396 Part 3 Designing a Customer-Driven Strategy and Mix goods stores including Sport Chek, Coast Mountain Sports, Sport Mart, Athletes World, Hockey Experts, and National Sports. We look now at three major types of VMSs: corporate, contractual, and administered. Each uses a different means for setting up leadership and power in the channel. Corporate VMS Corporate VMS A vertical marketing system that combines successive stages of production and distribution under single ownership—channel leadership is established through common ownership.A corporate VMS integrates successive stages of production and distribution under single ownership. Coordination and conflict management are attained through regular organizational channels. For example, U. S. grocery giant Kroger owns and operates 42 factories that crank out more than 8000 private-label items found on its store shelves. Similarly, to help supply products for its 1760 grocery stores, Safeway owns and operates nine milk plants, eight bakery plants, four ice cream plants, four soft drink bottling plants, and four fruit and vegetable processing plants.And little-known Italian eyewear maker Luxottica produces many famous eyewear brands—including its own Ray-Ban brand and licensed brands such as Polo Ralph Lauren, Dolce & Gabbana, Prada, Versace, and Bvlgari. It then sells these brands through two of the world’s largest optical chains, LensCrafters and Sunglass Hut, which it also owns. 4 Controlling the entire distribution chain has turned Spanish clothing chain Zara into the world’s fastest-growing fashion retailer: The secret to Zara’s success is its control over almost every aspect of the supply chain, from design and production to its own worldwide distribution network.Zara makes 40 percent of its own fabrics and produces more than half of its own clothes, rather than relying on a hodgepodge of slow-moving suppliers. New designs feed into Zara manufacturing centres, which ship finished products directly to 1161 Zara stores in 68 countries, saving time, eliminating the need for warehouses, and keeping inventories low. Effective vertical integration makes Zara faster, more flexible, and more efficient than international competitors such as the Gap, Benetton, and H&M. And Zara’s low costs let it offer midmarket chic at downmarket prices.A couple of summers ago, Zara managed to latch onto one of the season’s hottest trends in just four weeks (versus an industry average of nine months). The process started when trendspotters spread the word back to headquarters: White eyelet—cotton with tiny holes in it—was set to become white-hot. A quick telephone survey of Zara store managers confirmed that the fabric could be a winner, so in -house designers got down to work. They zapped patterns electronically to Zara’s factory across the street, and the fabric was cut.Local subcontractors stitched white-eyelet V-neck belted dresses—think Jackie Kennedy, circa 1960—and finished them in less than a week. The US$129 dresses were inspected, tagged, and transported through a tunnel under the street to a distribution centre. From there, they were quickly dispatched to Zara stores from New York to Tokyo—where they were flying off the racks just two days later. In all, the company’s stylish but affordable offerings have attracted a cult following. Zara store sales grew almost 40 percent last year to nearly US$9. 8 billion. 5 Contractual VMSA contractual VMS consists of independent firms at different levels of production and distribution who join together through contracts to obtain more economies or sales impact than each could achieve alone. Channel members coordinate their activities and m anage conflict through contractual agreements. Corporate VMS: Effective vertical integration makes Zara more flexible and more efficient—a virtual blur compared with competitors. It can take a new line from design to production to worldwide distribution in its own stores in less than a month (versus an industry average of nine months).Chapter 12 Marketing Channels Delivering Customer Value 397 Contractual VMS A vertical marketing system in which independent firms at different levels of production and distribution join together through contracts to obtain more economies or sales impact than they could achieve alone. Franchise organization A contractual vertical marketing system in which a channel member, called a franchisor, links several stages in the production–distribution process. The franchise organization is the most common type of contractual relationship—a channel member called a franchisor links several stages in the production–distribution proces s.Franchising has been the fastest-growing retailing form in Canada, growing more than 20 percent since 1993. It is estimated that Canada has four times more franchises per capita than the United States, with over 78 000 franchises across the country. Canadian franchising employs over 1 million people and represents over $100 billion in annual sales. 6 Almost every kind of business has been franchised—from motels and fast-food restaurants to dental centres and dating services, from wedding consultants and maid services to fitness centres and funeral homes. There are three types of franchises.The first type is the manufacturer-sponsored retailer franchise system—for example, Ford and its network of independent franchised dealers. The second type is the manufacturer-sponsored wholesaler franchise system—Coca-Cola licenses bottlers (wholesalers) in various markets who buy Coca-Cola syrup concentrate and then bottle and sell the finished product to retailers in loca l markets. The third type is the service-firmsponsored retailer franchise system—examples are found in the auto-rental business (Hertz, Avis), the fast-food service business (McDonald’s, Burger King), the motel usiness (Holiday Inn, Ramada), and more recently in health care (Vancouver-based Nurse Next Door). Let’s face it: Canadians are getting older. And with the aging population comes a greater need for quality senior home health care. Enter Ken Sim and John DeHart, founders of Nurse Next Door Home Healthcare Services, who sought to â€Å"provide high quality services that could help improve the lives of those struggling with sick or aging family members. † Established in 2001, the company began franchising in 2007.By 2009, Nurse Next Door had 30 franchises across Canada and continues to expand at a rate of two franchises per month across North America—a staggering 3400 percent growth rate since 2001! The company’s success has largely been attributed to the way it supports its franchise operators. For example, client calls are handled through a centralized call centre in Vancouver, freeing franchisees from the time-consuming task of fielding urgent calls around the clock. Nurse Next Door is highly selective about which franchisee applicants it takes on, and those that are successful receive the highest level of support and training possible.The company has earned a number of awards, including being named the sixth best midsize franchise system in North America by Franchise Business Review in 2009. As it looks toward the future, Nurse Next Door’s goal is to generate $1 billion in sales and have 500 franchisees worldwide by 2021. Given its explosive growth and the aging world population, this goal seems very achievable. 7 Nurse Next Door’s strategy of â€Å"treating franchisees like customers it aims to retain for decades† has led to rapid growth for this Canadian company. 398Part 3 Designing a Cus tomer-Driven Strategy and Mix The fact that most consumers cannot tell the difference between contractual and corporate VMSs shows how successfully the contractual organizations compete with corporate chains. Chapter 13 presents a fuller discussion of the various contractual VMSs. Administered VMS Administered VMS A vertical marketing system that coordinates successive stages of production and distribution, not through common ownership or contractual ties, but through the size and power of one of the parties.In an administered VMS, leadership is assumed not through common ownership or contractual ties but through the size and power of one or a few dominant channel members. Manufacturers of a top brand can obtain strong trade cooperation and support from resellers. For example, General Electric, Procter & Gamble, and Kraft can command unusual cooperation from resellers regarding displays, shelf space, promotions, and price policies. Large retailers such as Walmart, Home Depot, and Ch apters Indigo can exert strong influence on the manufacturers that supply the products they sell.Horizontal Marketing Systems Horizontal marketing system A channel arrangement in which two or more companies at one level join together to follow a new marketing opportunity. Another channel development is the horizontal marketing system, in which two or more companies at one level join together to follow a new marketing opportunity. By working together, companies can combine their financial, production, or marketing resources to accomplish more than any one company could alone. Companies might join forces with competitors or noncompetitors.They might work with each other on a temporary or permanent basis, or they may create a separate company. For example, McDonald’s now places â€Å"express† versions of its restaurants in Walmart stores. McDonald’s benefits from Walmart’s heavy store traffic, and Walmart keeps hungry shoppers from needing to go elsewhere to eat. In another example, once major competitors, Canada’s two largest wineries, T. G. Bright & Co. and Cartier Inniskillin Vintners Inc. , formed an alliance so that they could increase their economies of scale and resources. This was necessary because they wanted to export to the U.S. market, which is dominated by huge American vintners, such as E. &J. Gallo. Such channel arrangements also work well globally. For example, McDonald’s recently joined forces with Sinopec, China’s largest gasoline retailer, to place drive-through restaurants at Sinopec’s more than 31 000 gas stations. The move greatly speeds McDonald’s expansion into China while at the same time pulling hungry motorists into Sinopec gas stations. 8 Multichannel distribution system A distribution system in which a single firm sets up two or more marketing channels to reach one or more customer segments.Multichannel Distribution Systems In the past, many companies used a single channel to sell to a single market or market segment. Today, with the proliferation of customer segments and channel possibilities, more and more companies have adopted multichannel distribution systems— often called hybrid marketing channels. Such multichannel marketing occurs when a single firm sets up two or more marketing channels to reach one or more customer segments. The use of multichannel systems has increased greatly in recent years. Figure 12. 4 shows a multichannel marketing system.In the figure, the producer sells directly to consumer segment 1 using direct-mail catalogues, telemarketing, and the Internet and reaches consumer segment 2 through retailers. It sells indirectly to business Horizontal marketing systems: McDonald’s recently joined forces with Sinopec, China’s largest gasoline retailer, to place restaurants at its more than 31 000 gas stations. Here, the presidents of the two companies shake hands while announcing the partnership. Chapter 12 Mark eting Channels Delivering Customer Value 399 Figure 12. 4 Multichannel distribution system ProducerDistributors Catalogues, telephone, Internet Retailers Dealers Sales force Consumer segment 1 Consumer segment 2 Business segment 1 Business segment 2 segment 1 through distributors and dealers and to business segment 2 through its own sales force. These days, almost every large company and many small ones distribute through multiple channels. For example, John Deere sells its familiar green and yellow lawn and garden tractors, mowers, and outdoor power products to consumers and commercial users through several channels, including John Deere retailers, Home Depot stores, and online.It sells and services its tractors, combines, planters, and other agricultural equipment through its premium John Deere dealer network. And it sells large construction and forestry equipment through selected large, full-service dealers and their sales forces. Multichannel distribution systems offer many adva ntages to companies facing large and complex markets. With each new channel, the company expands its sales and market coverage and gains opportunities to tailor its products and services to the specific needs of diverse customer segments.But such multichannel systems are harder to control, and they generate conflict as more channels compete for customers and sales. For example, when John Deere began selling selected consumer products through Home Depot, many of its dealers complained loudly. To avoid such conflicts in its Internet marketing channels, the company routes all of its website sales to John Deere dealers. Changing Channel Organization Disintermediation The cutting out of marketing channel intermediaries by product or service producers, or the displacement of traditional resellers by radical new types of intermediaries.Changes in technology and the explosive growth of direct and online marketing are having a profound impact on the nature and design of marketing channels. O ne major trend is toward disintermediation—a big term with a clear message and important consequences. Disintermediation occurs when product or service producers cut out intermediaries and go directly to final buyers, or when radically new types of channel intermediaries displace traditional ones. Thus, in many industries traditional intermediaries are dropping by the wayside.For example, Air Canada is selling directly to final buyers, cutting travel agents from its marketing channels altogether. In other cases, new forms of resellers are displacing traditional intermediaries. For example, online marketing is growing rapidly, taking business from traditional brick-and-mortar retailers to the Internet. Consumers can buy airline tickets and hotel rooms from Expedia. ca and Travelzoo. com; electronics from SonyStyle. com; clothes and accessories from Bluefly. com; and books, videos, toys, jewellery, sports, consumer electronics, home and garden items, and almost anything else fr om Amazon. a—all without ever stepping into a traditional retail store. Online music download services such as iTunes and Yahoo! Music are threatening the very existence of traditional music-store retailers. 400 Part 3 Designing a Customer-Driven Strategy and Mix Avoiding disintermediation problems: Black & Decker’s website provides detailed information, but you can’t buy any of the company’s products there. Instead, Black & Decker refers you to resellers’ websites and stores. In fact, once-dominant music retailer Tower Records declared bankruptcy and closed its doors for good.Disintermediation presents both opportunities and problems for producers and resellers. Channel innovators who find new ways to add value in the channel can sweep aside traditional resellers and reap the rewards. In turn, traditional intermediaries must continue to innovate to avoid being swept aside. For example, when Netflix pioneered online video rentals, it sent tradition al brick-and-mortar video-rental stores such as Blockbuster reeling. To meet the threat, Blockbuster developed its own online DVD-rental service.Now, both Netflix and Blockbuster face disintermediation threats from an even hotter channel—digital video distribution (see Real Marketing 12. 1). Similarly, to remain competitive, product and service producers must develop new channel opportunities such as the Internet and other direct channels. However, developing these new channels often brings them into direct competition with their established channels, resulting in conflict. To ease this problem, companies often look for ways to make going direct a plus for the entire channel.For example, Black & Decker knows that many customers would prefer to buy its power tools and outdoor power equipment online. But selling directly through its website would create conflicts with important and powerful retail partners such as Home Depot, Lowe’s, Walmart, and Amazon. ca. So, although Black & Decker’s website provides detailed information about the company’s products, you can’t buy a new Black & Decker cordless drill, laser level, or leaf blower there. Instead, the Black & Decker website refers you to resellers’ websites and stores.Thus, Black & Decker’s direct marketing helps both the company and its channel partners. 3 Channel Design Decisions We now look at several channel decisions manufacturers face. In designing marketing channels, manufacturers struggle between what is ideal and what is practical. A new firm with limited capital usually starts by selling in a limited market area. Deciding on the best channels might not be a problem: The problem might simply be how to convince one or a few good intermediaries to handle the line. If successful, the new firm can branch out to new markets through the existing intermediaries.In smaller markets, the firm might sell directly to retailers; in larger markets, it might sell throug h distributors. In one part of the country, it might grant exclusive franchises; in another, it might sell through all available outlets. Then, it might add a web store that sells directly to hard-to-reach customers. In this way, channel systems often evolve to meet market opportunities and conditions. Real Marketing Netflix: Disintermediator or Disintermediated? 12. 1 Baseball great Yogi Berra, known more for his mangled phrasing than for his baseball prowess, once said, â€Å"The future ain’t what it used to be. For Netflix, the world’s largest online movie-rental service, no matter how you say it, figuring out the future is challenging and a bit scary. Netflix faces dramatic changes in how movies and other entertainment content will be distributed. The question is, will Netflix be among the disintermediators or among the disintermediated? Less than a decade ago, if you wanted to watch a movie in the comfort of your own home, your only choice was to roust yourself o ut of that easy chair and trot down to the local Blockbuster or another neighbourhood movie-rental store.In fact, that’s how most people still Netflix faces dramatic changes in how movies and other entertainment content will be distributed. Instead of simply do it. Blockbuster has grown to become watching the developments, Netflix intends to lead them. the world’s largest store-rental chain, Since first opening its virtual doors, Netflix has continwith more than 7800 outlets worldwide ued to add innovative features. Its â€Å"dynamic queue† lets and more than US$5. 5 billion in annual sales. customers select as many movie titles as they wish and rank But now, thanks to Netflix, that distribution model is them by preference.Netflix has also developed an online changing quickly. In the late 1990s, Netflix pioneered a new recommendation system, called Cinematch, to help customers way to rent movies—via the Web and direct mail. With Netflix, find movies theyà ¢â‚¬â„¢ll love based on their own past ratings, you pay a monthly subscription fee and create a movie wish member and critic reviews, and top-rented lists. list online. Netflix mails you a set number of DVDs from your As a result, more and more customers are signing up list at a given time, which you can keep for as long as you like. ith Netflix. Membership has grown to more than 7. 5 million As you return the DVDs in prepaid return envelopes, Netflix subscribers, and in just the past two years, sales and profits automatically sends you new ones from your list. While Netflix have surged 77 percent and 60 percent, respectively. Meanis not available in Canada, Zip. ca offers a very similar service, while, Netflix’s success has sent Blockbuster and other videooffering Canadians over 72 000 titles to choose from. rental stores reeling.As Netflix sales and profits have soared, Netflix offers lots of advantages over the traditional Blockbuster’s sales have lagged and losses have mounted. Blockbuster brick-and-mortar system. With store video The video rental giant has lost money in 10 of the last rentals, you have to make a special trip whenever you want a 11 years. Although the traditional brick-and-mortar videomovie, and if you don’t plan ahead, you’ll probably find the rental market is still alive and kicking, it’s stagnating as the latest hot releases out of stock.As for finding copies of oldies red-hot online channel gains momentum. but goodies, or an old documentary or independent film, To meet the disintermediation threat, Blockbuster introforget it—stores can hold only a limited selection of DVDs. duced its own online video-rental service. In fact, Blockbuster Finally, many consumers are frustrated by short due dates Total Access takes the new distribution model one step furand those dreaded late return fees. In contrast, Netflix isn’t ther. Total Access customers can order videos online and bound by store-spac e limitations.It offers a huge selection of then return or exchange them either through the mail or at more than 90 000 titles and 40 million DVDs. The Netflix systheir local Blockbuster store. Blockbuster’s online business tem eliminates store trips—you always have a stack of DVDs quickly grew to over 2 million subscribers before levelling off. on hand. And there are no per-movie charges, no due dates, and no late fees. 402 Part 3 Designing a Customer-Driven Strategy and Mix However, for the most part, Blockbuster is still struggling to find the right formula.And so the video-rental channels battle continues. Blockbuster claims the advantages of a click-and-mortar model that offers both online and store services. In contrast, Netflix sees physical stores as an unnecessary and costly limitation. Says Netflix founder and CEO Reed Hastings, â€Å"For people who’d love never to go into a Blockbuster store ever again, we offer better selection, better tools for cho osing movies, and more consistent overnight delivery. † Either way, there’s no going back to the past—the two competitors are rapidly disintermediating store-only video-rental outfits.But just as the present isn’t what it used to be, neither is the future. At the same time that Netflix is displacing traditional store channels, it faces its own disintermediation threat from a potentially even hotter channel—digital video distribution in the form of digital downloads and video on demand (VOD). Digital distribution is a fact of life in the music industry, where music download services are quickly making traditional CD retailers obsolete. Most experts agree that it’s only a matter of time before digital video distribution displaces DVD video sales and rentals.In fact, it’s already begun. These days, you can download all kinds of video entertainment—from movies and TV shows to ads and amateur videos—to your computer, iPod, or even your cellphone. Satellite and cable TV companies are promising VOD services that will let you view movies and other video entertainment on television whenever and wherever you wish. And video-rental download services such as CinemaNow are already offering a growing list of downloadable titles via the Web.Digital video downloads and video on demand create obvious cost, distribution, and customer convenience advantages over physically producing and distributing DVDs. For sure, the digital video distribution industry still faces problems. Downloading videos can take a lot of time and yields less-than-DVD quality. Perhaps the biggest barrier so far— Hollywood has been cautious about granting video distribution rights, severely limiting the number of available titles. In time, however, all these limitations will likely dissipate. When that happens, it could be lights out for the DVD sales and rental industry.Netflix CEO Hastings understands the future challenges. â€Å"Weâ⠂¬â„¢re sure that we’re going to be buying cars in 25 years, whereas renting DVDs through the mail in 25 years—for sure that’s not going to exist,† he says. The solution? Keep innovating. Instead of simply watching digital video distribution developments, Netflix intends to lead them. Netflix has already added a â€Å"watch instantly† feature to its website that allows subscribers to instantly stream near-DVD-quality video for a limited but growing list of movie titles and TV programs. Our intention,† says Hastings, â€Å"is to get [our watch instantly] service to every Internet-connected screen, from cellphones to laptops to WiFi-enabled plasma screens. † In this way, Netflix plans to disintermediate its own distribution model before others can do it. Compared to the United States, the online DVD market in Canada is still in its infancy. Thus, it is anticipated that Canadian firms like Zip. ca will experience more modest growth, primar ily because of the lack of content rights in this country as compared to those in the Unites States. To Hastings, the key to the future is all in how Netflix defines itself. If [you] think of Netflix as a DVD rental business, [you’re] right to be scared,† he says. But â€Å"if [you] think of Netflix as an online movie service with multiple different delivery models, then [you’re] a lot less scared. We’re only now starting to deliver [on] that second vision. † When asked what Netflix will be like in five years, Hasting responds, â€Å"We hope to be much larger, have more subscribers, and be successfully expanding into online video. † Sources: Quotes and other information from Matthew Boyle, â€Å"Reed Hastings,† Fortune, May 28, 2007, p. 30; Nick Wingfield, â€Å"Netflix vs.Naysayers,† Wall Street Journal, March 27, 2007, p. B1; Yuval Rosenberg, â€Å"What’s Next for Netflix? † Fortune, November 29, 2006, p. 172; Pa ul R. La Monica, â€Å"DVD or Download? † CNNMoney. com, June 26, 2006; Nancy Macdonald, â€Å"Blockbuster Proves It’s Not Dead Yet,† Maclean’s, March 17, 2008, p. 36; Michael V. Copeland, â€Å"Netflix Lives! † Fortune, April 28, 2008, p. 40; â€Å"Netflix, Inc. ,† Hoover’s Company Records, April 15, 2008, p. 100752; â€Å"Online DVD Rental Firms Find Big Profits in Tough Times,† CBC News, January 27, 2009; and information from www. netflix. com and www. blockbuster. om, accessed November 2008. Marketing channel design Designing effective marketing channels by analyzing consumer needs, setting channel objectives, identifying major channel alternatives, and evaluating them. For maximum effectiveness, however, channel analysis and decision making should be more purposeful. Marketing channel design calls for analyzing consumer needs, setting channel objectives, identifying major channel alternatives, and evaluating them. Analyzin g Consumer Needs As noted previously, marketing channels are part of the overall customer-value delivery network.Each channel member and level adds value for the customer. Thus, designing the marketing channel starts with finding out what target consumers want from the channel. Do consumers want to buy from nearby locations or are they willing to travel to more distant centralized locations? Would they rather buy in person, by phone, or online? Do they value breadth of assortment or do they prefer specialization? Do consumers want many add-on services (delivery, repairs, installation), or will they obtain these elsewhere? The Chapter 12 Marketing Channels Delivering Customer Value 403 aster the delivery, the greater the assortment provided, and the more add-on services supplied, the greater the channel’s service level. Providing the fastest delivery, greatest assortment, and most services may not be possible or practical. The company and its channel members may not have the r esources or skills needed to provide all the desired services. Also, providing higher levels of service results in higher costs for the channel and higher prices for consumers. The company must balance consumer needs not only against the feasibility and costs of meeting these needs but also against customer price preferences.The success of discount retailing shows that consumers will often accept lower service levels in exchange for lower prices. Setting Channel Objectives Companies should state their marketing channel objectives in terms of targeted levels of customer service. Usually, a company can identify several segments wanting different levels of service. The company should decide which segments to serve and the best channels to use in each case. In each segment, the company wants to minimize the total channel cost of meeting customer service requirements.The company’s channel objectives are also influenced by the nature of the company, its products, its marketing inte rmediaries, its competitors, and the environment. For example, the company’s size and financial situation determine which marketing functions it can handle itself and which it must give to intermediaries. Companies selling perishable products may require more direct marketing to avoid delays and too much handling. In some cases, a company may want to compete in or near the same outlets that carry competitors’ products.In other cases, companies may avoid the channels used by competitors. Mary Kay, for example, sells direct to consumers through its network of more than 1 million independent beauty consultants in 34 markets worldwide rather than going headto-head with other cosmetics makers for scarce positions in retail stores. And GEICO primarily markets automobile and homeowner’s insurance directly to consumers via the telephone and Internet rather than through agents. Finally, environmental factors such as economic conditions and legal constraints may affect ch annel objectives and design.For example, in a depressed economy producers want to distribute their goods in the most economical way, using shorter channels and dropping unneeded services that add to the final price of the goods. Identifying Major Alternatives When the company has defined its channel objectives, it should next identify its major channel alternatives in terms of types of intermediaries, the number of intermediaries, and the responsibilities of each channel member. Types of Intermediaries A firm should identify the types of channel members available to carry out its channel work. Most companies face many channel member choices.For example, until recently, Dell sold directly to final consumers and business buyers only through its sophisticated phone and Internet marketing channel. It also sold directly to large corporate, institutional, and government buyers using its direct sales force. However, to reach more consumers and to match competitors such as HP, Dell now sell s indirectly through retailers such as Best Buy and Walmart. It also sells indirectly through â€Å"value-added resellers,† independent distributors and dealers who develop computer systems and applications tailored to the special needs of small and medium-sized business customers.Using many types of resellers i