Thursday, October 31, 2019
Case Analysis Report Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1
Analysis Report - Case Study Example With reference to the case, it is observed that GMCR has established a business venture with Starbucks for K-Cup portion package of their coffee for use in ââ¬ËKeurig Single cup brewing technologyââ¬â¢. The key players or officers as mentioned in the case study are Howards Schultz, the President, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Chairman of Starbucks Corporation, Jeff Hansberry, President of Starbucks Global Consumer Products Group, the then CEO and President of GMCR Lawrence J. Blanford and Nigel Travis, the CEO of Dunkin Brands and President of Dunkinââ¬â¢ Donuts among others (Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, 2009). The current CEO and President of GMCR is Brian Kelly. The companyââ¬â¢s total sales for the year 2012 were USD 3,859,198 and the total profit was USD 1,269,399 (Yahoo! Inc., 2013). One of the major events in the GMCRââ¬â¢s history was in the year 2006 when GMCR made acquisition of Keurig, a maker of single-cup brewing machines. Moreover, in the year 2010, the companyââ¬â¢s stock rose to an all time highest figure, placing it in the number one position in the Best Corporate Citizen criteria. In 2011, GMCRââ¬â¢s decision to enter into a venture with Starbucks was another important phase of the company (Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, 2009). ... It has a wider reach to the customers created through joint venture with the top most coffee houses in the coffee industry. It is the only manufacturer of single brewer machine (Wile, 2013). Weaknesses The main factor which may be weakness for the company is its financial performance is dependent primarily on the sales of K-Cups. Increased cost and decreased of raw materials may have keen impact on the future production of the company (Wile, 2013). Opportunities Owing to the reason that GMCR is the only manufacturer which provides single serve brewing machines and K-Cup, its brand name is getting promoted with joint ventures formed with well known companies such as Starbucks and Dunkinââ¬â¢ Donuts resulting in attraction of more companies to form a venture with them (Wile, 2013). Threats With the new trend of globalization, the world has become a much smaller place and GMCR is facing significant competition from companies manufacturing similar products (Wile, 2013). SWOT Matrix An alysis Via Porterââ¬â¢s Five Forces Model Porterââ¬â¢s five force model is a business strategy tool used to analyze the value of an industrial structure, capturing the vital rudiments of competition. Threat of new entrants GMCR is the only company which provides a wide selection of coffee products, the number of competitors competing for the same section of customers and resources is limited. Thus, threat of new entry can be deemed to be low as the company possesses exclusive offerings which can be quite hard for new competitors to imitate (Vitalsource.com, 2013). Bargaining power of buyers GMCR, being the only manufacturer of K-Cup, has a large number of buyers resulting in quite limited bargaining influence by the customers having a positive impact on the company (Vitalsource.com, 2013).
Tuesday, October 29, 2019
Critical and Post-Modern Organization Theory Essay
Critical and Post-Modern Organization Theory - Essay Example They state that Critical Theory strives hard to liberate and enslave human beings through transformation of various conditions and circumstances. This theory also aids in descriptive and normative base in social inquiry where it seeks to reduce command and power, and increase freedom in all respective manners. Critical theories have gone through different historical phases and have passed several generations (Fellunga, 2002). Critical theory has set its aims, methods, theories, and explanations in both natural and social sciences and thus this theory is extended to ethics, political philosophy, and philosophy of history. Furthermore, critical theorists argue that enterprises do not have a practical approach in instrumental sense, but rather they have a keen interest in the moral sense. They do not strive to achieve some independent goal but instead they seek human liberation in coercion, repression, and domination. While the formulation of materialism stated, that critical theory has all the rights to function within the boundaries of division of labor. But within this scenario, philosophy normative stance has the right to condemn the ethics, principles and embodiment of reason (Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy, 2005). On the other hand, post modern theory or post modernism has been derived after modernism but both these terms have a wide distinction among each other. Modernism is concerned with identity, unity, authority, and certainty while post modernism reflects difference, separation, textuality, and skepticism. Post modernism originated from architecture and covered two main theories; deconstruction and post structuralism. This theory is used not only in art-related fields but it also assists in marketing & business, law and culture fields. Basically post modernism are those group of critics who are inspired by the postmodern culture in which they live
Sunday, October 27, 2019
Legal System of Ireland
Legal System of Ireland According to Business Dictionary (2017), the legal system refers to a regime in the legal framework of a country. It consists of following five entities: An oral or/and written constitution. Primary legislation endorsed by lawmaking body which is established by the Constitution. Supplementary legislation prepared by organization or person who is authorized by primary legislation. Applications of customs by courts on the groundwork of traditional practices. Principles and application of Roman, common, civil or any other code of law. Dainow (1966) explains that every legal system, in its respective society, has the similar function, as any other legal system, of balancing and regulating its human movement and it is the same system which not only forms the cultural norms, civilization and history but also the life of people living in it. Nevertheless, there are many distinctions and similarities between different legal systems of territories and countries because of various events of various kinds in history (ibid). Generally, there are two main legal systems establishments in the world, which are basically often a central part of comparative law studies. These two systems are known as civil and common law legal systems. The practice of common law appeared and was acted upon from the middle era age and was subsequently spread and validated across British colonies all over the world (University of California n.d.). The civil law was developed in the main continent of Europe, during the same era of common law development as well, by European monarchs such as Spain and Portugal and was spread out to their colonies. Later on, during the 1800s and 1900s, countries with unique legal customs also embraced civil law as well in order to get economical and political power and be competitive to Western European nations and examples of such countries are Japan and Russia (ibid). This piece of writing will be discussing the legal system of Ireland and Spain. Furthermore, three aspects of law and their implication for international hospitality and tourism will be thoroughly explored and discussed. The Irish legal system belongs to, a family of legal systems, common law. Common law legal system gives significant importance to decisions made by courts on previous legal cases and decisions (Byrne McCutcheon 2001). This results in lawyers working in the jurisdiction of common law to have an extensive knowledge and work closely with case-law. Additionally, Irish courts are obliged to abide by the principal of stare-decisis, which means the previous court decisions (The bar of Ireland n.d.). As per (Nicell), there are four sources, in Ireland, which influence Irish Law: Constitution: The Constitution of Ireland was endorsed in the year 1937 which is actually an essential legal document, through a string of 50 articles, outlining how the country should be administered. In Ireland, the Constitution is titled as Bunreacht na hEireann (Citizen Information 2015). It is the Constitution, which sets out the branches of the government in Ireland and also narrates the basic rights of citizens of the country. Bunreacht na hEireann not only establishes the courts but also makes sure how these establishments should operate. An important article of Irish Constitution affirms that national parliament, Oireachtas, will not be able to endorse any law which is abhorrent to Constitution and that such law will be invalid. However, according to article 46, if the change or amendment in Constitution is necessary, the proposal for modification should be commenced by Irish National Assembly, Dà ¡il Ãâ°ireann (The All-Party Oireachtas Committee On The Constitution 2005). Then, if the bill is passed by the Oireachtas, Constitution bestows the general public a veto through a referendum to approve or disapprove by majority to change the Constitution. The Irish President, if approved by majority of people, then signs the bill and it becomes the part of Constitution (ibid). Legislation: As per Byrne McCutcheon (2009), the wellspring of law known as Legislation comprises of measures which are sanctioned by an authoritative organ in a way which is endorsed by a Constitutional equation To be asked to summarize or to be discussed with teacher References Byrne, R. McCutcheon, J.P., 2009. The Irish Legal System 5th ed., Dublin: Bloomsbury Professional (Ireland). Byrne, R. McCutcheon, J.P., 2001. The Irish legal system 4th ed., Dublin: Butterworths (Ireland). Citizen Information, 2015. Constitution. www.citizensinformation.ie. Available at: http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/government_in_ireland/irish_constitution_1/constitution_introduction.html [Accessed March 19, 2017]. Dainow, J., 1966. The Civil Law and Common Lawà ¢Ã¢â ¬Ã ¯: Some Points of Comparison. The American Journal of Comparative Law, 15(3), p.419. University of California, n.d. The Common Law and Civil Law Traditions. www.law.berkeley.edu. Available at: https://www.law.berkeley.edu/library/robbins/CommonLawCivilLawTraditions.html [Accessed March 16, 2017]. The All-Party Oireachtas Committee On The Constitution, 2005. Amending The Constitution. Available at: http://archive.constitution.ie/amending-the-constitution/default.asp?UserLang=EN [Accessed March 20, 2017]. The bar of Ireland, n.d. The Courts System. www.lawlibrary.ie. Available at: https://www.lawlibrary.ie/Legal-Services/The-Courts-System.aspx [Accessed March 16, 2017].
Friday, October 25, 2019
Kants Attack on the Amphiboly of the Concepts of Reflection :: Philosophy Philosophical Essays
Kant's Attack on the Amphiboly of the Concepts of Reflection ABSTRACT: In the neglected 'Amphiboly of the Concepts of Reflection,' Kant introduces a new transcendental activity, Transcendental Deliberation (Kemp Smith calls it 'Transcendental Reflection'). It aims to determine to which faculty a representation belongs and does so by examining the representation's relationships to other representations. This enterprise yields some powerful ideas. (1) Some of the relationships studied have great interest, numerical identity in particular. Indeed, seeing Kant discuss it here, one wonders why he did not include it in the Table of Categories. (2) Kant gives a solid argument for the necessity of a sensible element in representations, something not found elsewhere in the Transcendental Analytic. In the neglected Amphiboly of the Concepts of Reflection, Kant introduces a new transcendental activity, Transcendental Deliberation (Kemp Smith calls it Transcendental Reflection). It aims to determine to which faculty a representation belongs and does so by examining the representation's relationships to other representations. This enterprise yields some powerful ideas. (1) Some of the relationships studied have great interest, numerical identity in particular. Indeed, seeing Kant discuss it here, one wonders why he did not include it in the Table of Categories. (2) Kant gives a solid argument for the necessity of a sensible element in representations, something not found elsewhere in the Transcendental Analytic.The Transcendental Analytic of Kant's Critique of Pure Reason ends with a little appendix on what Kant calls the Amphiboly of the Concepts of Reflection. As an appendix, the passage is more than a little curious. The point that Kant eventually gets around to defending, that we are aware only of appearances, not things as they are in themselves, is familiar, but the argument that Kant now gives for it is entirely new and so interesting that one wonders why Kant relegated it to an appendix. Second, the passage introduces an important new concept, namely, numerical identity. For the first time in the Critique so far, Kant treats the notion separately and gives it important work to do. The Table of Categories does not so much as mention numerical identity, even though the concept would seem to be at least as good a candidate for categorial status as, say, modality. Third, the passage argues for the claim that knowledge requires sensible intuitions as well as concepts. Prior to the Amphiboly Kant has of course asserted this many times ââ¬â but try to find an argument! Here he offers one.
Thursday, October 24, 2019
Mayans, Incas, and Aztecs
The Three Great American Cultures Central and South America is said to have been first discovered in the late fifteenth century; however, to say that the land before this time was unknown to all of humanity would be a fallacy and a great insult to the three great ancient cultures that ruled before their European conquest. The Aztecs, Incas, and Mayans were three distinct groups of people that thrived in the Americas prior to their ââ¬Å"discoveryâ⬠and all have a diversely rich background full of people, tradition, and culture. Recorded Aztecan history begins at the start of the twelfth century when the Aztec people first moved out in search of a new homeland. In 1325 they founded their new home with the creation of Tenochtitlan, a large city which is now the location of common-day Mexico City. The life of the Aztec people was multifaceted ââ¬â filled with school systems, laws, clothing fashions, and traditional food. They had different scholastic buildings in place for children depending on their economic and noble rank among the people. Noble children would attend a school called a calmecac that would teach them history, religion, and the ways to govern. Meanwhile, the common children could go to a telpochacalli where they would learn aspects of war and trade work, but if a child showed enough promise and intelligence he or she could be sent up to one of the calmecacs to prepare for a higher future career. Crime and punishment was a severe topic for Aztecs; the breaking of many of their laws resulted immediately in death, some of which included: adultery, treason, theft, drunkenness, and even cutting down a living tree. Interestingly as well, if a commoner were to wear cotton clothing (something reserved only for nobility) they too would be put to death. Nobles dressed most lavishly among their people, opting for the brightest colors, and often used bird feathers to make headdresses that indicate their high status. The staple food for the Aztecs was corn. They also ate tomatoes, avocadoes, and tamales. Aztecs ruled for hundreds of years up until their peak in 1502 under their ruler Moctezuma II. The Spanish first arrived in 1519 with the conquistador Hernando Cortez, and by 1522 all the Aztecs once celebrated in Tenochtitlan was destroyed. Toward the south during the same time as the Aztecan people, the Incas were also in their peak from 1200 until 1535. They lived in what is now Peru and Chile, and before their fall had massed the largest Native American society. Part of the reasoning behind why the Incas became such a large tribe comes from their dominance in battle and their desire to conquer the neighboring tribes. During their peak, the Incan army had over forty thousand troops, patrolling in their lands. Living in the Andes mountain range also made for some interesting architecture. The Incas made large fortresses on the sides of steep mountains in order to protect their people and also see enemies if they were attacking from afar. Arranged as they were on the sides of mountains, Incan cities lead themselves to be hierarchically and religiously symbolic. The tallest point of their cities were reserved for religious practices, often in adoration for their sun god Along with their buildings, the Incas had advanced drainage systems used for irrigation to grow many of the crops the Aztecs did such as tomatoes, corn, cocoa, and cotton. Sadly the Incans shared more with the Aztecs than just their mutual crops; in 1535 they too were conquered by Spanish forces. While the Aztecs and Incas had much in common, perhaps the most different of the three great American societies were the Mayans found in the southern tip of common day Mexico and Guatemala. Unlike their neighbors to the north and south, the Mayans did not govern its people under a single ruler. Instead, the Mayans were comprised of smaller local city-states that ruled independently of one another. Each had its own ruler that was believed to be a descendant of the gods. But while they were independently ruled, the city-states all shared a common written language, religious beliefs, and a calendar system. The Mayans are the only known Native American culture that developed a written language, of which there are four existing books along with countless murals and wall writings. Much like the Aztecs and Incas, the Mayans practiced human sacrifices. Because they believed that their nobility were decedents of the gods, it was customary for a city-stateââ¬â¢s ruler to partake in ritual bloodletting along with sacrificing rival neighboring nobles. They also followed their ritual calendar that was comprised of a thirteen month and twenty day cycle. It marked the passing of planets, stars, and allowed the people to know when the proper time was to plant and harvest. Perhaps these calendars helped them predict other things as well because unlike the Aztecs and Incas, the Mayans were never conquered by Spain because of their mysterious disappearance around the sixteenth century. Works Cited The Ancient Aztecs. Think Quest. 1999. Web. 1 February 2010. Criscenzo, Jeeni. The Maya. Jaguar Sun. 2000. Web. 1 February 2010. Inca. Minnesota State University. Web. 1 February 2010.
Wednesday, October 23, 2019
Bloodsucking Fiends: A Love Story Chapter 1
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Acknowledgements The author gratefully acknowledges those people who helped in the research and writing of Bloodsucking Fiends: Mark Joseph and Mark Anderson for help with research in the Bay Area. Rachelle Stambal, Jean Brody, Liz Ziemska, and Dee Dee Leichtfuss for their careful reads and thoughtful suggestions. My editors, Michael Korda and Chuck Adams, for their clean hands and composure. And my agent, Nick Ellison, for his patience, guidance, friendship, and hard work. In memory of my father: Jack Davis Moore Part I Fledgling Chapter 1 Death Sundown painted purple across the great Pyramid while the Emperor enjoyed a steaming whiz against a dumpster in the alley below. A low fog worked its way up from the bay, snaked around columns and over concrete lions to wash against the towers where the West's money was moved. The financial district: an hour ago it ran with rivers of men in gray wool and women in heels; now the streets, built on sunken ships and gold-rush garbage, were deserted ââ¬â quiet except for a foghorn that lowed across the bay like a lonesome cow. The Emperor shook his scepter to clear the last few drops, shivered, then zipped up and turned to the royal hounds who waited at his heels. ââ¬Å"The foghorn sounds especially sad this evening, don't you think?â⬠The smaller of the dogs, a Boston terrier, dipped his head and licked his chops. ââ¬Å"Bummer, you are so simple. My city is decaying before your eyes. The air is thick with poison, the children are shooting each other in the street, and now this plague, this horrible plague is killing my people by the thousands, and all you think about is food.â⬠The Emperor nodded to the larger dog, a golden retriever. ââ¬Å"Lazarus knows the weight of our responsibility. Does one have to die to find dignity? I wonder.â⬠Lazarus lowered his ears and growled. ââ¬Å"Have I offended you, my friend?â⬠Bummer began growling and backing away from the dumpster. The Emperor turned to see the lid of the dumpster being slowly lifted by a pale hand. Bummer barked a warning. A figure stood up in the dumpster, his hair dark and wild and speckled with trash, skin white as bone. He vaulted out of the dumpster and hissed at the little dog, showing long white fangs. Bummer yelped and cowered behind the Emperor's leg. ââ¬Å"That will be quite enough of that,â⬠the Emperor commanded, puffing himself up and tucking his thumbs under the lapels of his worn overcoat. The vampire brushed a bit of rotted lettuce from his black shirt and grinned. ââ¬Å"I'll let you live,â⬠he said, his voice like a file on ancient rusted metal. ââ¬Å"That's your punishment.â⬠The Emperor's eyes went wide with terror, but he held his ground. The vampire laughed, then turned and walked away. The Emperor felt a chill run up his neck as the vampire disappeared into the fog. He hung his head and thought, Not this. My city is dying of poison and plague and now this ââ¬â this creature ââ¬â stalks the streets. The responsibility is suffocating. Emperor or not, I am only a man. I am weak as water: an entire empire to save and right now I would sell my soul for a bucket of the Colonel's crispy-fried chicken. Ah, but I must be strong for the troops. It could be worse, I suppose. I could be the Emperor of Oakland. ââ¬Å"Chins up, boys,â⬠the Emperor said to his hounds. ââ¬Å"If we are to battle this monster, we will need our strength. There is a bakery in North Beach that will presently be dumping the day-old. Let's be off.â⬠He shuffled away thinking, Nero fiddled while his empire went to ashes; I shall eat leathery pastries. As the Emperor trudged up California Street, trying to balance the impotence of power with the promise of a powdered-sugar doughnut, Jody was leaving the Pyramid. She was twenty-six and pretty in a way that made men want to tuck her into flannel sheets and kiss her on the forehead before leaving the room; cute but not beautiful. As she passed under the Pyramid's massive concrete buttresses she caught herself limping from a panty-hose injury. It didn't hurt, exactly, the run that striped the back of her leg from heel to knee, the result of a surly metal file drawer (Claims, X-Y-Z) that had leaped out and snagged her ankle; but she was limping nonetheless, from the psychological damage. She thought, My closet is starting to look like an ostrich hatchery. I've either got to start throwing out L'eggs eggs or get a tan on my legs and quit wearing nylons. She'd never had a tan, couldn't get one, really. She was a milk-white, green-eyed redhead who burned and freckled with sun. When she was half a block from her bus stop, the wind-driven fog won and Jody experienced total hair-spray failure. Neat waist-length waves frizzed to a wild red cape of curl and tangle. Great, she thought, once again I'll get home looking like Death eating a cracker. Kurt will be so pleased. She pulled her jacket closer around her shoulders against the chill, tucked her briefcase under her breasts like a schoolgirl carrying books, and limped on. Ahead of her on the sidewalk she saw someone standing by the glass door of a brokerage office. Green light from the CRTs inside silhouetted him in the fog. She thought about crossing the street to avoid him, but she'd have to cross back again in a few feet to catch her bus. She thought, I'm done working late. It's not worth it. No eye contact, that's the plan. As she passed the man, she looked down at her running shoes (her heels were in her briefcase). That's it. Just a couple more stepsâ⬠¦ A hand caught in her hair and jerked her off her feet, her briefcase went skittering across the sidewalk and she started to scream. Another hand clamped over her mouth and she was dragged off the street into an alley. She kicked and flailed, but he was too strong, immovable. The smell of rotten meat filled her nostrils and she gagged even while trying to scream. Her attacker spun her around and yanked on her hair, pulling her head back until she thought her neck would snap. Then she felt a sharp pain on the side of her throat and the strength to fight seemed to evaporate. Across the alley she could see a soda can and an old Wall Street Journal, a wad of bubble gum stuck to the bricks, a ââ¬Å"No Parkingâ⬠sign: details, strangely slowed down and significant. Her vision began to tunnel dark, like an iris closing, and she thought, These will be the last things I see. The voice in her head was calm, resolved. As everything went dark, her attacker slapped her across the face and she opened her eyes and saw the thin white face before her. He was speaking to her. ââ¬Å"Drink,â⬠he said. Something warm and wet was shoved into her mouth. She tasted warm iron and salt and gagged again. It's his arm. He's shoved his arm in my mouth and my teeth have broken. I'm tasting blood. ââ¬Å"Drink!â⬠A hand clamped over her nose. She struggled, tried to breathe, tried to pull his arm out of her mouth to get air, sucked for air and nearly choked on blood. Suddenly she found herself sucking, drinking hungrily. When he tried to pull his arm away she clutched at it. He tore it from her mouth, twisted her around and bit her throat again. After a moment, she felt herself fall. The attacker was tearing at her clothes, but she had nothing left to fight with. She felt a roughness against the skin of her breasts and belly, then he was off her. ââ¬Å"You'll need that,â⬠he said, and his voice echoed in her head as if he had shouted down a canyon. ââ¬Å"Now you can die.â⬠Jody felt a remote sense of gratitude. With his permission, she gave up. Her heart slowed, lugged, and stopped.
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