John’s Case

Contextual investigation John Stokes May 27, 2012 A diagram of John’s case John Stokes is a chief of the Tri-Mart Corporation. He as of late got an unseemly email from a worker that exhibited bare men in a schedule. He additionally saw that the email was sent to 50 others in the association. Key Issues or Problems He as of late got an improper email from a representative that exhibited naked men in a schedule. He likewise saw that the email was sent to 50 others in the association. Alterative that John can considerThere are numerous organizations that are at present advertising email observing administrations. John needs these administrations run from a full email observing application to a program that lone records the time at which representatives get their email. The full email application program will record the entirety of the accompanying data. The email beneficiary ?The email sender ?The quantity of words in the email The time the worker spent perusing email ?The time t he representative spent creating email ?The quantity of connections ?The kind of email †business-related or non-business related.A possible answer for John’s situation Full E-mail checking application to a program that solitary records the time at which workers get their email. The full email application program will record the entirety of the accompanying data. The email beneficiary ?The email sender ?The quantity of words in the email The time the representative spent perusing email ?The time the worker spent making email ?The quantity of connections ?The sort of email business-related or non-business related My decision looking into it studyEmployee’s security rights in the working environment rely upon whether they work in the open part or private division. Since established rights work principally to shield residents from the government1 state activity is required before a resident can summon a sacred right. Accordingly, since most Americans work in the priva te division, the United States Constitution and its relating Fourth Amendment security ensure gives little direction in private part email checking circumstances.

Air Raid Over Harlem essays

Air Raid Over Harlem expositions Fights of 1935: An Analysis of Air Raid Over Harlem At the point when the Italian powers attacked the country of Ethiopia in 1935 it upset numerous African Americans all through the United States. This episode made numerous blacks fight in the avenues of Harlem, New York. In Langston Hughes sonnet, Air Raid over Harlem (1935), he utilizes the artistic gadgets of conversational language, capitalization, and rhyme to show the sentiments, musings, and activities of numerous Americans during the hour of these defiant demonstrations. Hughes utilizes a lot of everyday language all through the sonnet to show how Americans felt during this timeframe. The storyteller, a dark man, shares a large number of his emotions with the peruser during the sonnet. He has numerous discussions with a white man about the various parts of the fights and of the various things that occur. For instance, the storyteller tells the white man of how his kin have been calm and tranquil excessively long and on the off chance that they need to utilize physical power to express what is on their mind, at that point they will. The white man answers, Youre simply making up/A phony clever picture aint you? Not genuine, not genuine? (58-60). The white man thinks he jokes around and makes up some mysterious fantasy that doesnt bode well. The white keeps an eye on answer shows the normal perspective white individuals felt during the beginning periods of the dissenting. His selection of words and the manner in which he utilizes them shows that instruc tion levels for white Americans werent that high during this timespan. Hughes utilizes a genuine case of casual language when the storyteller informs the white man regarding the loathsome things that happen to his kin during the dissent. He makes reference to police hitting individuals with billy-clubs and parting their heads open creation them drain. He likewise discusses how the police send shots all through the avenues of Harlem and leave the injured and dead laying weakly. In an irate voice th... <!

Dont Make These Mistakes in Your College Essay

Dont Make These Mistakes in Your College Essay Dont Make These Mistakes in Your College Essay Dont Make These Mistakes in Your College Essay The admissions essay is a crucial part of your college application because it is the only chance you have to communicate with admissions officers in your own voice. You need to take advantage of every word at your disposal and send the message that you’re the kind of student that colleges should want on their campuses. We have been reading admissions essays for over thirteen years now, and we have identified the three most common mistakes students make while writing their college essays. So dont: Repeat the prompt in your essay You only have so many words, sometimes as many as 1,000 in the case of Villanova, and sometimes as few as 150 in the case of Harvard. Don’t waste words regurgitating the same prompt admissions officers have already read a thousand times. They know the prompts by heart, trust us. Also, it’s plain boring! Start your essay off with something that hooks the reader, not puts them to sleep.   Try to sound like an academic You’re a teenager with a soon-to-be High School diploma, admissions officers aren’t expecting you to sound like the most well-read PhD student on the planet! Word choice is important to convey meaning and capture the moment, but there’s no need for you to be using words you wouldn’t use in everyday life. It will come off as phony and manufactured. Use cliches We know you know cliches are on the outs, but it bears repeating, don’t use cliches! Your grandma might think you’re the diamond in the rough, one in a million, and a needle in a haystack (and you may very well be!), but find another way to describe yourself that doesn’t include phrases old ladies use over bridge. There are other ways to emphasize your uniqueness.   Do you prefer getting your information in video format? Check out our video on this topic below! The admissions essay is a crucial part of your college application because it is the only chance you have to communicate with admissions officers in your own voice. You need to take advantage of every word at your disposal and send the message that you’re the kind of student that colleges should wan About Kat StubingView all posts by Kat Stubing » Want an expert to take a look at your essay? We're here to help. GET IN TOUCH »

Civil Rights For Mexicans - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 2 Words: 465 Downloads: 8 Date added: 2019/03/22 Category History Essay Level High school Topics: Civil Rights Movement Essay Did you like this example? It is impossible to discuss the history of the battle for civil rights for Hispanics without including Black Americans. Minorites of all backgrounds had to band together in order to fight back against the white mans system of oppression. The battle for civil rights in the south, particularly in the state of Texas, is often associated with Texass two largest ethnic minorities: African Americans and Hispanic people, particularly Mexican Americans. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Civil Rights For Mexicans" essay for you Create order Mexican Americans have made efforts to bring about better social and political circumstances since Anglo-Americans began to dominate Texas as early as 1836. Black Texans have equally fought for civil rights since the abolishment of the institute of slavery in 1865. After the Texas Revolution, racism against Mexican Texans started to grow past the already large prevalence of hatred. They were seen by whites as outsiders in the newly established republic. Anglo Texans won and formed what they saw as their own country that had no place for Mexicans. In the 1850s, Mexican Texans or Tejanos where forced from their homes in central and northern Texas on the accusation that they conspired with another minority, slaves escape to Mexico. Tejanos faced more attacks from white Texans in Goliad and surrounding towns during the Cart War and in Southern region of Texas after the Mexican Juan N. Cortinas attack and control of Brownsville. Post-Civil War, both the black freedmen and Tejanos faced further atrocities. In East Texas, white Anglo Texans used violence as a method of political control, where scare tactics and even public hanging or lynching became the common practice of legal punishment for alleged crimes by minorities that required very little proof other than support by the white populous often in the form of mobs. Mexican Americans throughout Texas very often experienced similar forms of racist hate crimes and blatant brutality. The KKK (Ku Klux Klan) and the Texas Rangers, all being agents enforcing white authority, regularly terrorized both black and Hispanic Texans. De facto segregation was a tool implemented after emancipation to continue keeping minorities from having any sort of true equality. Hispanic and Black Americans found themselves banned from white only businesses and public areas only to be allowed in minority only spaces that were intentionally more neglected and inferior. By the beginning of the 20th century, this was common practice and became sanctioned by law. These laws were primarily focused on blacks but were extended to Latinos to keep white Americans on top of the social, political and economic food chain. African and Mexican Americans were often subject to terror tactics, given literacy exams, and often faced accusations of incompetence when any minority was able to win office. Political bosses would intentionally manipulate the poor into voting against minorities, making it even more difficult for Hispanic and black Americans to gain political power.

Piracy- A Major Concern - 1083 Words

Privacy is one of the major concerns in today’s world. People want to keep their identity secret for different reasons. It varies according to audience. For eg. Corporate world would like to remain anonymous for business interests. The efficiency of internet motivates the companies to use internet over intranet. But along with that the question of anonymity also arise. After in dept analysis of â€Å"Proxies for anonymous routing† and â€Å"A protocol for anonymous communication over the Internet† papers,different solutions that address the issue of anonymity are discussed in the report. After going through brief introduction, solutions are compared in terms of different parameters. Single Server Proxy: The simple basic solution to achieve anonymity is by using single server as intermediate node. There is only one intermediate node. So first Intiator I connect to the intermediate node and then this node is responsible to deliver the message to the receiver R. So here receiver only learns about the intermediate node. The intermediate node is known as Proxy. In result the identity of initiator is protected. Anonymizer tool is working on this method. The main problem with this method is that anonymity is depended only on single server. So if that is compromised then the identity of initiator is also revealed. Onion Routing: The other solution is Onion routing which serves the purpose of anonymous connections. These connections are resistant to eavesdropping and traffic analysis. It isShow MoreRelatedTaking a Look at Maritime Security1349 Words   |  5 PagesMaritime security is an extremely broad area of concern. It covers everything terrorism, the physical security of ports and ships right through to the security of energy resources into the future. Introduction: The Indian Ocean Region (IOR) is a significant and strategic locality within the 21st century. It is important to a number of countries, including many key players of the region. The large waters of the IOR make it a strategic thoroughfare for international sea lanes as part of global maritimeRead MoreThe Arguments For And Against Software Piracy And Downloading Copyrighted Material1445 Words   |  6 PagesThe Arguments For and Against Software Piracy and Downloading Copyrighted Material. Reshma Chitroda S13172711 Tutor: Dr. Cain Evans â€Æ' Table of Contents Glossary 3 Abstract 4 Key Words 4 Software Piracy, Technology, Ethical Issues, Economic Factors 4 1.0. Introduction 5 1.1. The effects of piracy 6 1.2. Ethical Issues 6 1.3. Economic Factors 7 2.0. Legal Disputes 8 Conclusion 9 References 10 â€Æ' Glossary Abstract This report studies the impact piracy has on society and how it is developingRead MoreEssay about The Impact of Music Piracy1144 Words   |  5 PagesThe Impact of Music Piracy According to the Recording Industry of America (RIAA) the record industry loses $4.3 billion dollars, worldwide, due to music piracy (RIAA, 2003). 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Although a relatively new problem to the business world, casesRead MoreCopyright Of Copyright And Copyright1437 Words   |  6 PagesCopyright policy violations have been a major talking point in the media in recent years. Copyright concerns largely grew in the early 2000’s due to a popular music sharing program called LimeWire. LimeWire allowed people to illegally download, or pirate, the music they were interesting in listening to for free. Limewire launched in 2000 and was shut down in 2010 due to a â€Å"permanent injunction issued by a New York-based federal court† (Gearlog, 2010). This injuction brought copyright infringementRead MoreThe Decolonization Process After The Second World War1695 Words   |  7 PagesIn the 21st century the Indian Ocean security has evolved to be multifaceted and dynamic. The emerging th reats and challenges which are typically common to the entire region, range across a wide spectrum with transnational maritime crimes such as piracy, illegal immigration, human trafficking, smuggling and illegal unregulated and unreported (IUU) ï ¬ shing activities at one end to the more serious challenges of natural disasters, climate change and even interstate maritime disputes erupting into fullyRead MoreWhat Are Piracy And Intellectual Property?1012 Words   |  5 Pagesand societal systems in the world are strongly influenced by the western civilization values. Laws for copyright, piracy, intellectual property somehow find the origins in the socio-economical system of our world. In the following essay, we will try to explore the different characteristics of the worlds which may engender the need for copyright. We will next explain what are piracy and intellectual property vis-à  -vis the notion of copyright. Several characteristics of today’s world and its business

Speaking And Pronunciation Syllabus Education Essay Free Essays

Syllabus design is an built-in portion of English linguistic communication instruction and as instructors seek develop linguistic communication proficiency in 2nd linguistic communication scholars they are expected to make constructions of larning which will enable the accomplishment of this enterprise. As such, this essay provides a justification for a course of study designed to be used in learning speech production and pronunciation to Libyan secondary pupils with Arabic as their first linguistic communication. Ideally, the syllabus marks to decide speech production and pronunciation jobs experienced by English linguistic communication scholars of Arabic descent. We will write a custom essay sample on Speaking And Pronunciation Syllabus Education Essay or any similar topic only for you Order Now More frequently than non, Libyan and Arabic speech production pupils are merely exposed to larning English through formal instructions as explained by Rabab’ah ( 2003:181 ) . Following this, they are unable to to the full foster their speech production and pronunciation accomplishments which are best acquired through synergistic and communicative acquisition. As a consequence of the differences which are present between English and Arabic pronunciation, most of these scholars experiences jobs related to emphasis and modulation. However, the greatest hard present amongst Arabic scholars of English is their incapacity to pass on fluently and proficiently in English. It therefore becomes rather important to turn to these jobs by explicating an effectual course of study. The speech production and pronunciation course of study is hence aimed at developing English linguistic communication proficiency and particularly with focal point at developing expert eloquence which as asserted by Chambers ( 1997:536 ) , is the chief index of communicative proficiency. This purpose will at the terminal facilitate communicative and matter-of-fact competences which will let scholars to use the English linguistic communication suitably in their twenty-four hours to twenty-four hours interactions. The scholars targeted by this course of study have shown great enthusiasm for the acquisition of English speech production and pronunciation. Their motive is fuelled by the demand to interact and pass on with English talking tourers who usually frequent Libya. The scholars who are aged between 16 to 17 old ages possess limited capacities in speech production and pronunciation accomplishments as indicated by a nosologies trials carried out prior to the designing of the course of study. At the pre-intermediate degree, this course of study is ideal for them. Organization and Description of the Syllabus The course of study which focuses on developing speech production and pronunciation accomplishments is comprised of a sum of 12 Sessionss with each session amounting to one hr. As such, scholars will hold a sum of 12 hours of contact. There will be 16 Libyan scholars go toing the Sessionss at a linguistic communication centre located in Tripoli. The course of study is organized in such a manner as to reflect the subject, speech production and pronunciation focal point and the speech production activities for every session. In the first unit of the course of study the chief focal point is on talking where scholars will larn how to do questions and besides give information. In making so, they will besides integrate this in larning the pronunciation of long vowel sounds. The 2nd unit follows the same guidelines but the speech production focal point is directed towards speaking about others in a conversation while at the same clip familiarising oneself with the pronunciation of the shwa sound. While the speech production focal point for most Sessionss revolves around doing questions, giving information, doing remarks and explicating descriptions, pronunciation ‘s focal point is at groking the usage of vowels and consonants. Unit 6 utilizes descriptive undertakings in larning the usage of consonants /s/z/iz. Other elements of pronunciation are besides addressed with Unit 3 learning scholars how to associate words and sounds in sentences. Unit 4 marks to learn contracted address signifiers. Other phonological constituents such as modulation, falling and raising modulation are tackled in Unit 7. Word emphasis which is an of import facet of pronunciation is taught in Unit 8. Unit of measurements 11 and 12 accommodate assimilation and the pronunciation of the [ -ed ] signifier severally. The course of study ideally reflects its aims by supplying speech production activities for each session which are meant to supply scholars with an synergistic environment for tackling th eir speech production accomplishments. Evident in the course of study is the usage of synergistic activities throughout all Sessionss. These activities include pair work, function drama, treatments, group work, questionnaires and games. These activities fit the purpose of the course of study as they will give scholars ample pattern on their English communicating, speech production and pronunciation accomplishments. The sample lesson program for Unit 4 clearly indicates learning processs for this scholar centered course of study. Since the chief focal point is to transfuse talking accomplishments to scholars, the instructor is expected to use instruction methodological analysiss which mostly focus on the scholar ‘s acquisition demands. Indeed, functional purpose of the lesson is to enable scholars to seek and give information utilizing telephone devices while the phonological aims include larning how to use contracted address suitably. As indicated by Nunan ( 1998:26 ) , such a scholar centered course of studies can be implemented efficaciously by integrating ample communicative and synergistic undertakings. This is observed in the lesson program as scholars are invariably asked inquiries by the instructor ; they are besides involved in synergistic group work where they pattern colloquial accomplishments. The lesson program is besides realistic and made more effectual by the instructor â⠂¬Ëœs usage function drama undertakings and the usage of familiar content such as the engagement of hotels frequently done by tourers with whom these scholars would desire to interact with. In general, scholars will hold acquired equal speech production accomplishments which they can use in their day-to-day interactions with other English talkers. Talking besides accommodates the formation of relationships with others and the Libyan scholars will make so during their extremely synergistic speech production and pronunciation lesson. Follow up is an of import facet of instruction and acquisition. From the lesson programs guided by the course of study, scholars ‘ apprehension of the content is evaluated by the instructor during the assorted lessons. For case in Unit 4, scholars are expected to transport out group function drama undertakings as they examine their capacity to inquire and give information. The instructor ‘s function in this activity as in all other lesson activities is to interact with the scholars and point out countries which need rectifying. Oral accomplishments are likely to attest with the usage of such synergistic and prosecuting follow up activities as indicated in the course of study. Theoretical Justification of the Syllabus It is quite cardinal in the designing of such a course of study to organize a theoretical footing for its content. This factor provides intent for the course of study and besides provides a nexus between its design and pattern. This course of study chiefly targets the Libyan pupils ‘ capablenesss to pass on efficaciously with other English speech production persons. As such, the course of study must concentrate on bettering eloquence, rightness and intelligibility in their usage of the linguistic communication. Contrary to old aims of larning speech production and pronunciation which was to derive native like speech pattern, current purposes of larning pronunciation focal points on deriving intelligibility as observed by Tarone ( 2005 ) . It is therefore critical to see the rules of the communicative attack of linguistic communication larning utilised as a footing for the course of study. In this attack, the focal point is chiefly on communicating and the content being taught d epends on the scholar ‘s demands. Since the Arabic speech production Libyan learners seek to go better communicators, the course of study has accommodated legion speech production and synergistic undertakings and chances. Libyan scholars are observed to hold troubles in articulating [ -ed ] signifiers and besides the plural signifiers /s/z/iz. Following this analysis, it is important for the course of study to integrate communicative chances for them to pattern the pronunciation of these sounds. Indeed as Brinton, Goodwin and Celce-Murcia ( 1996:8 ) assert that such methodological analysiss like listening and copying and phonic preparation are rather effectual in learning pronunciation. These techniques are reflected in the course of study as scholars are encouraged to accommodate the instructor ‘s competent pronunciation by copying and so practising pronunciations during the lesson activities. In add-on, Libyan scholars will profit amply from the interactive linguistic communication they will larn whose accent as described by Richards ( 1990 ) is to let the creative activity of positive interactions between persons and this is reflected in the course of study as it focus on subjects aimed at le ting scholars to do little talk, questions, give regards and do new brushs. The above communicative attack which has been used in the course of study incorporates undertakings which will enable scholars to incorporate both eloquence and truth in their speech production. Indeed as postulated by Ellis ( 2003 ) , the usage of such undertakings like descriptions and narrations which are dominant in the course of study non merely allows scholars to pattern linguistic communication usage but besides sums to complex and accurate usage of the linguistic communication. Talking truth is besides said to emerge from the usage of unwritten communicating undertakings as described by Lynch ( 2007:317 ) who argues that when scholars cooperate in placing their speech production mistakes and rectifying them they are able to derive assurance in the mark linguistic communication and even strive to talk the linguistic communication suitably. This factor implies that as Libyan scholars who experience troubles in utilizing contracted address will happen it helpful to engaged in un dertakings which encourage both the scholars and the instructor to rectify their mistakes and besides steer them towards avoiding the unneeded usage of long words and sentences. The Syllabus and Pragmatic Competence The mark of the course of study is non merely to develop communicative competency in scholars but besides matter-of-fact competency. Matter-of-fact competency trades chiefly on the utterance degree of linguistic communication and with factors which allow native talkers to use the mark linguistic communication in societal interactions uninhibited. Harmonizing to Rueda ( 2006: 170 ) there are many facets of matter-of-fact competency which can be facilitated during schoolroom direction which means that the course of study needs to actively integrate such sole instructions. For scholars to derive this signifier of competency, they must possess the ability use the mark linguistic communication for different intents. Besides, scholars must get the ability to grok a talker ‘s purposes and have a bid of the linguistic communication regulations utilized in making signifiers of discourse. Explicit direction in the instruction of English to the Arabic speech production pupils is rather ne cessary. Such direction is expected to expose scholars to the accurate English linguistic communication input as observed in the course of study where scholars are provided with relevant speech production and pronunciation contents. Besides as seen in the course of study, it is important to make chances for the pattern of the matter-of-fact cognition that scholars have acquired during the learning procedure. Arabic talking scholars frequently experience jobs in understanding intended significances in discourse chiefly because they are unable to hold on the usage and significances of modulation and word emphasis. Harmonizing to Smith and Swan ( 2001:198 ) the unpredictable nature of English word emphasis eludes most Arabic talkers and instructors need to fit them with accomplishments for observing alterations in significances brought approximately by English word emphasis. As this is important to deriving matter-of-fact competency, the course of study has incorporated these facets as scholars engage in larning undertakings which enable them to separate between falling and raising modulation and the several implied significances. Chapman ( 2007:10 ) points out that the instruction of modulation in an synergistic environment will let scholars to understand how native talkers of English construe them. While trying to learn the Libyan pupils English and promote matter-of-fact competency, it is of import to see the function of top- down and bottom-up abilities. In order to accomplish the acquisition of these accomplishments, learning schemes need to see the differences which exist between linguistic communications and guarantee that scholars utilize these differences in larning the mark linguistic communication and that their native linguistic communication competency does non impede their mark linguistic communication acquisition. For case as illustrated by Chang, El-Ashry, Leclere and Palmer ( 2007:8 ) negative transportations can happen in the acquisition of English vowels by Arabic talkers due to the bing difference in the writing system of both linguistic communications. While vowels are found in the English alphabet and each of them stand foring multiple phonemes, Arabic talkers express their long vowels utilizing letters which represent individual phonemes. This contrast need s to be clearly addressed in the instruction of English long vowels to Arabic scholars. McCarthy and O’Keeffe ( 2004:26 ) ascertain that the usage of spoken principal has become rather of import in the instruction of speech production. Corpus in the instruction of Arabic talkers provides a native illustration of the usage of the mark linguistic communication and efficaciously assists scholars in look intoing their competency. The usage of written texts and recordings in the mark linguistic communication is demonstrated in the course of study and lesson program and promises to heighten eloquence and pronunciation. In learning matter-of-fact competency in Arabic scholars of English, there are assorted underlying premises which include the fact that the act of speech production is tantamount to executing speech Acts of the Apostless, that there are peculiar address Acts of the Apostless used by all linguistic communications and that there are differences in how talkers of different linguistic communications do things and in when they do them. The elaborate course of study has accommodated a huge scope of address Acts of the Apostless as scholars are taught how to transport out assorted colloquial undertakings. Besides, the usage of communicative activities like group work and function drama provides an effectual manner of leaving matter-of-fact competency. Decision From the above treatment, it is apparent that syllabus design is a complex and affecting undertaking. The analyzed course of study will efficaciously transform the speech production and pronunciation capablenesss of the targeted Libyan pupils. Greatly motivated to derive communicative competency in English, the scholars will profit from a communicative instruction attack which is besides learner centered. In add-on, this attack makes it easy to get matter-of-fact competency every bit good. The course of study has incorporated assorted countries in speech production and pronunciation which are considered to be debatable amongst Arabic talking 2nd linguistic communication scholars. As such, the surveies of contracted address, modulation, word emphasis, [ -ed ] signifier application, long vowels and plural signifiers of /s/z/iz/ have been incorporated. Other facets of significance which have been addressed include the usage of spoken principal and the top-down, bottom-up abilities in sc holars. In kernel, this course of study has the capacity to act upon the accomplishment of the larning aims desired by the Libyan pupils. How to cite Speaking And Pronunciation Syllabus Education Essay, Essay examples

Methanol A Future Fuel Essays - Industrial Gases, Fuel Gas

Methanol A Future Fuel Methanol for Our Future This section is about methanol fuel cells for our future. Since I have done this research I have never realized how important future fuels are. Methanol is a liquid fuel made form natural gas or renewable biomass resources. Methanol is the leading candidate to provide the hydrogen necessary to power fuel cell vehicles. The commercialization of methanol-powered fuel cells will offer practical, affordable, long-range electric vehicles with zero or near zero emissions while retaining the convenience of a liquid fuel. By 2004 they say or even sooner, fuel cells operating on methanol will power a variety of cars and buses in the U.S and worldwide.( www.mehanol.org) Methanol is predoninantly produced by steam reforming of natural gas to dcreate a sythesis gas, which is then dfed into a reactor vessel in the presence of a catalyst to produce methanol and water vapor. Although a variety of feedstock's other than natural gas can and have been used, today's economics favor natural gas. Synthesis gas refers to combination of carbon monoxide and hydrogen while a large amount of synthesis gas us used to make methanol, most synthesis gas is used to make ammonia. As a result, most methanol plants are adjacent o or are part of ammonia plants. The gas fed into another reactor vessel under high temperatures and pressures, where monoxide and hydrogen are came in the presence of a catalyst to produce methanol. Finally, the reactor product is distilled to purify and separate the methanol from the reactor effluent. (wwwadfc.nrel.gov.) ?(Washington, D.C., January 28) A study by the environmental engineering firm Malcolm Pirnie, Inc. finds far fewer environmental threats from using methanol in fuel cell vehicles, compared to gasoline's use for internal combustion engines. In addition, a video presentation on methanol and the environment produced by the Public Interest Video Network will be premiered at The Road to Fuel Cell Vehicles: A National Forum being held on February 4th and 5th at the Hotel Washington in Washington, D.C? (www.methanol.org) Methanol will probably be transferred from import terminals or production facilities by barge, rail, or truck to eventually reach retail outlets. While the alcohol fuel is a liquid at ambient temperatures and atmospheric pressures, the cannot be moved easily through the existing petroleum product market network. ?The world's major automakers have all announced plans for the market introduction of fuel cell vehicles by 2003/2004. These fuel cell vehicles will require a source of hydrogen fuel. As a liquid fuel rich in hydrogen, methanol is the leading candidate to power tomorrow's fuel cell cars and buses. A comprehensive needs assessment should be performed to determine how best to provide methanol fuel to an emerging market for fuel cell vehicles.? (www. The American Methanol Foundation? From the information gathered it seems that methanol is the number one candidate for future fuels for leading car manufactures. It is also nice to know that the government has plans to figure In addition, this assessment will attempt to forecast methanol fuel direction and tools for consumer education efforts regarding the use of methanol in fuel cell vehicles. Bibliography www.ADFC Science

The Best Way to Study SAT Vocab Words

The Best Way to Study SAT Vocab Words SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Studying SAT vocab is a confusing topic for most students. It's unclear how many words you should memorize, which words to learn, and how to actually memorize these words without wasting time. If you think you need to memorize a list of 2,000 SAT vocab words you found on the internet, stop right there. We're about to save you a lot of time while delivering the same results. In this guide, we'll discuss which words you should memorize and go over a reliable way to commit these words to memory. First, it's important to understand what impact SAT vocab can have on your score.Test takers who ignore this tend to shoot way off course, wasting more time and lowering their scores. Although vocabulary is much less important for doing well on the SAT now, this guide is still useful for you to learn how to study vocab effectively- for history class, for foreign languages, and for any time you'll need to use flashcards. How Important Are SAT Vocab Words? Vocabulary is a confusing subject on the SAT. On the old, pre-2016 format of the SAT, vocab was heavily tested on the Reading section, primarily throughSentence Completion questions. On the even older version of the SAT, analogies were the bane of high school SAT life. When I took the SAT back in 2004, more than half your Reading section score depended on vocab. Memorizing SAT vocabulary was absolutely necessary to do well on the exam. But with thecurrent form of the SAT,there's far less emphasis on testing vocabulary.Sentence Completion questions have been totally removed, and all vocab is now about medium difficulty, so you won't be seeing any super obscure words anymore. There are two types of SAT questions that deal with vocabulary and definitions of words: Precision and Words in Context. SAT Vocabulary Question Type 1: Writing - Precision This type of question appears on the SAT Writing section, and we call it Precision. Precision refers to the exact word used for the right connotation. Here's an example of such a question taken from an official SAT practice test: This approach increases sales, but it also stands in austere contrast to a time when goods were produced to be durable. A) NO CHANGEB) egregiousC) unmitigatedD) stark This is pretty tough- austere is not an easy word, but egregious and unmitigated might be even less familiar. When you get this type of question, you must know the definition of the words.This is because there aren't any other clues that allow you to figure out what the word means. Here's are examples of other difficult words from official SAT practice tests: complacent confided dispatch eminent emphatic imparted paramount promulgated satiated unveiled There are two to three of these questions on every SAT. So while not a huge deal, they're still important if you're trying to get an800 on Evidence-Based Reading and Writing. SAT Vocabulary Question Type 2: Reading- Words in Context The other type of question ison the SAT Reading section and is called Interpreting Words and Phrases in Context.This asks you for the definition of a word as used in a reading passage. Here's an example of an official SAT question: As used in line 50, â€Å"bearing† most nearly means A) carrying. B) affecting. C) yielding. D) enduring. Note that in these SAT questions, the words used are often pretty common and have multiple definitions.While knowing the definition beforehand can help, it's more important to choose the definition that best fits the definition used in the context of the passage. Here are all the words of this question type in the SAT practice tests released by the College Board: ambivalent bearing best capture challenged charge clashes common conducted convey credit demands devise directly document embraced expert favor flat form hold low plastic postulate reason rule sixpence state turn verifiable Again, notice that the words are fairly common- you've likely heard of most of these before. Many of them have multiple meanings, though, so it's vital to be able to distinguish the word's meaning as used in the passage from the typical meaning you already know. There are about seven to eight of these questions on every SAT Reading section.This is more common than the Precision question type above, but you'll also usually need less vocab knowledge to answer these. So ... How Important Is Vocab for Your SAT Score? At the end of the day, there are only about two to four questions that feature really difficult vocabulary.This means that, at most, vocab questionscan have a 20-30 point impact on your Evidence-Based Reading and Writing (EBRW) score (out of 800). This really isn't that big. If you're scoring in the 400-600 range (which means you're missing 1/3-2/3 of all EBRW questions), vocabulary is definitely not the best way to improve your score. Instead, it's much better to spend your time learning passage-reading strategies and key SAT grammar rules. Only when you're breaking 600 on EBRWand really trying to get that perfect Reading/Writing scoredoes studying vocabulary start to become a worthwhile endeavor. Overall, you should be smart about analyzing your SAT practice tests and seeing if you're missing easy questions that test vocabulary, or whether you're only missing hard ones because you don't know the vocab. Want to learn more about the SAT but tired of reading blog articles? Then you'll love our free, SAT prep livestreams. Designed and led by PrepScholar SAT experts, these live video events are a great resource for students and parents looking to learn more about the SAT and SAT prep. Click on the button below to register for one of our livestreams today! Why Do So Many People Obsess Over SAT Vocabulary? It's true that many students think vocab is a great way to spend their SAT study time, which might make you think it's a good idea, too. But if what I just told you is true, why do so many test takers waste time studying vocab? Here are a couple of major reasons: #1: Test-Prep Companies Push Vocab to Appear Smarter Vocab studying is a great way for SAT companies to seemas if they're teaching you something. For example, a test-prep company might claim to have an exclusive set of words, or it might boast a comprehensive 2,000 word collection, which is "definitelybetter than a 500-word collection!" This is more marketing speak than it is something actually useful for improving your SAT score. In addition, some test-prep companies still haven't fully adjusted to the 2016 SAT change. As an example, some of the SAT prep books that are supposed to target the "new SAT" still use old SAT questions and material! #2: Studying Vocab Often Feels Productive Studying vocab can make you feel as though you're making a lot of progress in your prep. After all, you're learning a lot of words you never knew before! Just like collecting stamps, it feels great to have a complete set of words committed to memory. Unfortunately, this might not lead to an increase in your score. Imagine you memorized 1,000 French words; this wouldn't actually increase your SAT score, right? Well, studying most SAT vocab lists is the same- most words on these will have a very low chance of appearing on the SAT. How to Study SAT Vocab the Right Way: The Waterfall Method As I mentioned above, if you are scoring above 600 on EBRW and are also aiming for a near-perfect score, it's appropriate for you to study vocabulary.In this section, we're going to cover the most effective method for memorizing SAT vocab. This is the same technique I myself used to memorize enough vocab to score a perfect 2400 on the old SAT (and a perfect 1600 on the very old SAT). First, you're going to need a set of SAT words. Luckily, we've prepared alist of 262 SAT vocab words most likely to appear on the SAT. All of these words come from official SAT practice tests and other high-quality SAT vocab lists, so memorizing these is an excellent place to start! Exclusive Free Bonus: Download a free guide containing 200 SAT vocabulary flashcards and instructions on how to print them. Use them with the strategy coming next to memorize them in the best way. I call the way I study SAT vocab the Waterfall Method.This method essentially forces you to focus on words you don't know while preventing you from wasting time on words you already know. It's based on a proven memorization technique called Spaced Repetition. Start with a stack of 30-50 vocab words: Review each card. If you know the definition right away, put it in a Know It pile. If you struggled to remember the definition, put it in a Struggled pile. You'll end up with two stacks of word cards: Pick up the Struggled pile and repeat the process. The Struggled pile will have fewer words than your Starting Stack does. Put the words you know this time around into a second Know It pile and the words you're still struggling with in a new Struggled pile. You should now have three separate stacks of cards: Keep repeating this process until you have just one to five words left in your last Struggled pile: I call this method the Waterfall Method because we essentially have a cascading waterfall, in which words that are really hard for you keep tumbling into farther and farther piles. Theoretically, at this point you should know nearly all the words in the entire set. Now, we're going to go back up the waterfall. Combine your last Struggled pile with your last Know It pile. This will become your Working Pile: Now, review all the words in this pile. If you forget any words, go through all of them again. Yep- this is harsh, but it's the only way you're going to memorize all the words. You'll need to be strict about making sure you learn each and every word. Once you've remembered all the words, combine this pile with the next highest pile: At the very end, you should end up back with a Starting Stack. And you'll know every single word! Why Does the Waterfall Method Work So Well? The reason that this method is so effective is that you'll review the hardest words for you more than 10 times more often than easy words. Most students just go through vocab lists from front to back. They might already know half the list, but they spend equal time on words they know and words they don't know (but really,really need to learn). Now that you've learned how to use the Waterfall Method, you'll be a smarter SAT studier and can concentrate far more on getting down the hardest vocabulary words for you. Where Can I Find More SAT Vocabulary Words? Looking for more SAT words or other vocab lists to study with? You've come to the right place. At PrepScholar, we've created tons of relevant guides for you. Here are some of our best resources for SAT vocabulary practice: ACT Vocabulary . The Best ACT Vocabulary Lists on the Web:Once again, since the SAT is so similar to the ACT, it's a good idea to also look for (quality) ACT vocab lists. This guide goes over the very best online ACT/SAT vocab lists. The 200 SAT Words You Need to Know:Although this list actually targets the old version of the SAT (back when vocab words on the SAT were a lot harder and more obscure), it's a good resource to use if you've already exhausted the materials above and are aiming for a perfect SAT Reading/Writing score. As a bonus, you also get free printable flashcards. The Vocabulary You Need for SAT Reading Passages: It's important to make sure you know the meanings of common reading-related words such as "allusion" and "simile." This way, you won't get stuck on a question that asks you to identify the "tone" of a passage! These are our best, most comprehensive articles on SAT vocab. But what about other resources? Below are our picks for the topadditional resources you can use for SAT vocab prep: Official SAT practice tests and sample questions:Perhaps the best resources (aside from our own!) for SAT vocab practice are those made by the College Board itself. Look for words in official practice tests and questions, and make flashcards for the ones you don't know. Khan Academy:This free online SAT prep website offers tons of College Board-approved SAT Reading and Writing questions, which you can use to pinpoint new vocab words. You should also check out our guide onhow to effectively use Khan Academy in your SAT prep. Your Dictionary- 100 Most Common SAT Words:Although this vocab list was written for the old version of the SAT, most of the words on it are still super relevant to the current SAT. Finally, if you're interested in usingpre-made vocab flashcards,I recommend browsing the SAT-labeled decks on Cram andQuizlet. In general, stick with decks that were made in 2016 or later; this lets you ensure that the words in them are relevant to the current SAT. (Note that it's OK to use older decks, just as long as you're aware that they're going to have much harder words than you probably need to know.) For more tips, read our in-depth guide on how to find quality SAT vocab resources and use them effectively in your prep. What's Next? Vocab doesn't play a big part on the SAT, but it's still important to know if you're aiming for a high score. Learn how important vocab is on the SAT, and get info onhow many vocab questions there are on the SAT and how to prepare for them. Want more help studying SAT vocab?Check out our guide to learn the best resources you can use for quality SAT vocab practice. If you liked this method of studying vocab and want to make your SAT prep more effective, check out our industry-leadingSAT prep program. Unlike other online programs, we believe that your program shouldcater to your strengths and weaknesses. We use advanced education techniques to customize your SAT prep so that you're always learning the most effective skills to increase your score. We have a 160+ point money back guarantee: if you finish our course and don't improve by 160 points, you get all your money back, no questions asked. Try our program with a 5-day free trial today:

The Invention of Paper Money

The Invention of Paper Money Paper money is an invention of the Song Dynasty in China in the 11th century CE, nearly 20 centuries after the earliest known use of metal coins. While paper money was certainly easier to carry in large amounts, using paper money had its risks: counterfeiting and inflation. Earliest Money The earliest known form of money is also from China, a cast copper coin from the 11th century BCE, which was found in a Shang Dynasty tomb in China.  Metal coins, whether made from copper, silver, gold or other metals, have been used across the globe as units of trade and value.  They have advantages- they are durable, difficult to counterfeit, and they hold intrinsic value.  The big disadvantage?  If you have very many of them, they get heavy. For a couple thousand years after the coins were buried in that Shang tomb, however, merchants, traders, and customers in China had to put up with carrying coins, or with bartering goods for other goods directly.  Copper coins were designed with square holes in the middle so that they could be carried on a string.  For large transactions, traders calculated the price as the number of coin strings.  It was workable, but an unwieldy system at best. Paper Money Takes the Load Off During the Tang Dynasty (618–907 CE), however, merchants began to leave those heavy strings of coins with a trustworthy agent, who would record how much money the merchant had on deposit on a piece of paper.  The paper, a sort of promissory note, could then be traded for goods, and the seller could go to the agent and redeem the note for the strings of coins.  With trade renewed along the Silk Road, this simplified cartage considerably.  These privately-produced promissory notes were still not true paper currency, however. At the beginning of the Song Dynasty (960–1279 CE), the government licensed specific deposit shops where people could leave their coins and receive notes.  In the 1100s, Song authorities decided to take direct control of this system, issuing the worlds first proper, government-produced paper money.  This money was called jiaozi.   Jiaozi to Chao to Djaou The Song established factories to print paper money with woodblocks, using six colors of ink.  The factories were located in Chengdu, Hangzhou, Huizhou, and Anqi, and each used different fiber mixes in their paper to discourage counterfeiting.  Early notes expired after three years, and could only be used in particular regions of the Song Empire. In 1265, the Song government introduced a truly national currency, printed to a single standard, usable across the empire, and backed by silver or gold.  It was available in denominations between one and one hundred strings of coins.  This currency lasted only nine years, however, as of the Song Dynasty tottered, falling to the Mongols in 1279. Mongol Influence The Mongol Yuan Dynasty, founded by Kublai Khan, issued its own form of paper currency called chao; the Mongols brought it to Persia where it was called djaou  or djaw.  The Mongols also showed it to Marco Polo during his stay in Kublai Khans court, where he was amazed by the idea of government-backed currency.  However, the paper money was not backed by gold or silver.  The short-lived Yuan Dynasty printed increasing amounts of the currency, leading to runaway inflation.  This problem was unresolved when the dynasty collapsed in 1368. Although the succeeding Ming Dynasty (1368–1644) also began by printing unbacked paper money, it suspended the program in 1450.  For much of the Ming era, silver was the currency of choice, including tons of Mexican and Peruvian ingots brought to China by Spanish traders.  Only in the last two, desperate years of Ming rule did the government print paper money, as it attempted to fend off the rebel Li Zicheng and his army.  China did not print paper money again until the 1890s when the Qing Dynasty began producing yuan. Sources Lande, Lawrence, and T. I. M. Congdon. John Law and the Invention of Paper Money. RSA Journal 139.5414 (1991): 916–28. Print.Lui, Francis T. Cagans Hypothesis and the First Nationwide Inflation of Paper Money in World History. Journal of Political Economy 91.6 (1983): 1067–74. Print.Pickering, John. The History of Paper Money in China. Journal of the American Oriental Society 1.2 (1844): 136–42. Print.

Robinhood Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Robinhood - Essay Example 2. Weaknesses: One of the notable weaknesses of this case is the type of associates Robin Hood has allowed into his organization. While he began allowing only men with a strong sense of justice and legitimate grievance with the sheriff into the organization, he veered from this policy. Believing that there was strength in numbers, he has allowed any individual to join; in these regards, it’s highly likely that a number of individuals in his organization are of questionable moral character and are more detrimental to the organization than beneficial. 3. Opportunities: There are a number of opportunities that Robin Hood and his organization have. The first of which is the control they have over the forest and its use as a route of transport. This has given Robin Hood and his men the ability to reap considerable property from theft and could potentially be utilized as a means of collecting consistent taxes from travelers. Another opportunity is the motivated nature of Robin Hood’s followers; many having legitimate grievances against the sheriff they will be more dedicated and willing to go to extremes to see that they succeed and the sheriff fails. Finally, the barons’ growing resentment with Prince John and their attempt to conspire with Robin Hood is a solid opportunity. 4. Threats: The threats include the growing size of Robin Hood’s organization and the increasing difficulty in supplying the large number of these individuals with supplies. Another threat includes that of the potential of alienating the farmers that travel through the forest by charging them a tax. Finally, the last threat includes that of the potential that in conspiring against Prince John could result in failure and then cause greater amounts of retribution to be levied against Robin Hood and his band of men. There are a number of major issues that Robin must address. The first issue concerns whether

Computer Forensics Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Computer Forensics - Research Paper Example Now this is the point where a forensic toxicologist comes onto the scene. â€Å"According to the American Board of Forensic Toxicology (ABFT), Forensic toxicology is interdisciplinary field of study dealing with the effects and reactions of various toxicants and chemicals on the human body† (Bell, 2008). As the name suggests, a forensic scientist works very closely with legal experts and at most of the occasions the forensic scientist himself in a situation where his opinions form the basis of legal process. More than 21 million compounds fit the definition of intoxicant and have the capability to cause damage to the human body (Wecht & Rago, 2006). The history of this field goes back to the earliest times when human formed societies and learned about the use of various chemicals. It was in the 19th century when scientists and chemical experts gained insights about the use of chemicals and in the next century, the world witnessed cases concerned with deaths caused by intoxication more than in the previous recorded history. â€Å"Mary Ann cotton, Belle Sorrenson, Gunness Nannie Doss, Doctor Thomas Neill Cream, John Otto Hoch, Graham Frederick Young and Donald Harvey† (Hayes, 2001) are most of the most famous criminals who took unjust advantage of their knowledge of toxicants by killing people (Bell, 2008). Before the legal experts could catch their crime, they had killed many of their targets. This asked the investigators to understand the dynamics of toxicology and apply it to th e field of forensics. The applications of this field are in three major sub fields that are â€Å"postmortem forensic toxicology, human performance toxicology, and forensic drug testing† (Casarett & Doull, 1975). There are various sources for forensic testing of toxicants in human body. Testing with blood, citreous humor, urine, bile, liver, hair sample, saliva, and others are the most commonly used sources (Hayes,

Issues with Strategic Marketing Management

Issues with Strategic Marketing Management Introduction This course is designed to help you understand and learn advanced principles of marketing and is aimed at marketing managers, or professionals who are working in business or commerce. Who have perhaps a qualification in marketing and several years experience of working in a marketing role, or managers who would like to increase their marketing knowledge. Part of the courses assessment of learning will involve you in undertaking an assignment based on a marketing strategy plan carried out in your own company/organisation. You will be given detailed guidance and advice about this element of assessment later in this workbook. Aims of the unit The aim of the unit is to identify and discuss key issues associated with marketing principles. The course is focused on strategic principles of marketing, which form an essential underpinning to an understanding of strategic marketing in action. The theoretical underpinning will be complemented by a series of short work-based activities. Objectives of the unit To equip you with the knowledge and skills to understand and interpret strategic marketing principles To provide you with practical experience of applying strategic marketing principles and preparing a strategic marketing plan within your own company/organisation. Learning outcomes On successful completion of this Unit you should be able to: Understand the strategic marketing process Recognise the importance of creating strategic advantage Produce a strategic marketing plan in your own company/organisation Understand the importance of developing a specific competitive position Strategic Marketing Management What does this workbook contain? This workbook contains a number of information and learning resources: Background and contextual information about strategic marketing management Key ideas, theories, concepts, structures, processes in relation to strategic marketing ‘Recall and review and ‘Activity points designed to engage you in reflection and action-focused thinking Case examples of strategic marketing in action Assessment You are required to write a 2,500-word assignment as follows: Prepare a strategic marketing plan for your own company/organisation, paying particular attention to creating and sustaining a competitive advantage over rival firms. Strategic Marketing Management How should this workbook be used? This workbook will direct your study throughout the learning experience. There are  six sections, designed to be studied sequentially. However, a good learning technique is to refresh your learning by re-reading, so you are recommend to read back and forth between sections whenever you feel the need. Each section deals with a different topic and, together with any associated activities, practical work or further reading, is designed to require approximately 20 hours of study. The workbook uses an interactive learning approach. This is achieved through the use of self-assessment questions and activities throughout the text. These will enable you to apply the concepts presented in the workbook and explore issues that extend your knowledge and skills. Preparing to use the workbook If you are new to the study of marketing and/or this study method, then we suggest it is worth you spending some time becoming familiar with its contents and approach to learning and development. This will enhance your own understanding of key ideas in strategic marketing management, and your ability to lead and facilitate the learning of others. Strategic Marketing Management Table of contents Title Page Unit 1 The strategic marketing process Objectives 5 Drivers of change 5 Corporate strategy/ Marketing interface 7 Strategic marketing plans 8 Summary 9 Unit 2 Marketing Information Systems Objectives 10 MIS and the use of strategic intelligence 10 Summary 14 Unit 3 Strategic intent Objectives 15 Strategic intent/vision and mission 15 Goals and objectives 17 Stakeholders 18 Summary 19 Unit 4 Creating strategic advantage Objectives 20 Approaches to developing strategic advantage 20 Alliances and networks 22 Declining and hostile markets 24 Strategic wear-out 25 Summary 26 Unit 5 Developing a specific competitive position Objectives 27 Strategic alignment process 27 Innovation and new product development 28 Strategic evaluation 31 Summary 32 Unit 6 Implementation and control Objectives 33 Implementation 33 Control 35 Summary 37 Strategic Marketing Management Unit 1 The core theme of this unit is the importance of market-led strategic change to ensure organisational success. Objectives By the end of this unit you will: Be able to discuss, and give examples of drivers of change Understand the relationship between corporate and marketing strategy Know the process and structure of marketing planning and be able to discuss the differences between strategic and tactical planning Drivers of change Change is inevitable and companies that wish to maintain a market-led approach must take into consideration both cyclical and evolutionary change when developing their marketing strategies. The rate at which the external environment changes varies according to the nature of the business but increasingly all organisations are facing escalating levels of change. Change is inevitable. To survive companies need to adapt and to convert the threats caused by the changing environment into opportunities in order to avoid strategic drift. Marks and Spencer is a prime example of a company that has not adapted to the changing customer demands and as a result has lost many of its loyal customer base. Case history Drivers of change Greenhalgh (2001) identifies the following drivers of change that have created challenges for companies over the last few years: Domestic businesses of any significance have become rare. They are now global, drawing on supply chains that transcend national boundaries and serving customers worldwide Customer expectations of quality have increased and are now applied to all goods and services, rather than just luxury goods Concern for the environment has become a major item on companies agenda. They now have to consider their environmental responsibility as well as their profits. Large institutional investors are exerting their influence on how organisations are managed Start-up companies play an important role in introducing innovative products and new ideas to the marketplace. Young, technologically-competent workers are drawn to these vibrant workplaces, making it harder for other companies to recruit and retain them Strategic Marketing Management Activity 1.1 Consider thedrivers of change outlined above. Identify the impact of these factors on your own company/organisation. What is strategy? The term strategy is probably one of the most used and often misunderstood terms in business. There is no universal definition of strategy and yet it is used extensively. Strategy has the same meaning whether we are discussing corporate, marketing, promotional or even advertising strategy: it is concerned with how we might achieve our objectives. The difference between each type of strategy relates to the level at which the strategy is being developed. Corporate strategy according to Johnson and Scholes (1999), is: â€Å"concerned with what types of business the company as a whole should be in and is therefore concerned with decisions of scope† whereas marketing strategy aims to transform corporate objectives into a competitive market position. The main role of marketing strategy is to differentiate products/services from those of competitors by meeting the needs of customers more effectively. Therefore, according to Drummond and Ensor (2001) marketing strategy can be characterised by: Analysing the business environment and defining customer needs Matching activities to customer needs Implementing programmes to achieve a competitive position relative to competitors Strategic management consists of three elements: Strategic analysis concerned with answering the question where are we now? This involves analysing the external environment, internal resources and capabilities and stakeholder expectations Strategic choice what are the options available and which is the most attractive? Strategic implementation often the most overlooked of strategy. It is concerned with allocating resources and turning the plans into action. This process can be as equally well applied to marketing strategy. Strategic Marketing Management The corporate strategy/marketing interface It is impossible to discuss marketing strategy without first putting it into the context of corporate planning. The relationship between corporate planning and marketing planning can best be explained by figure 1.1 below. It is helpful to think of these decisions sitting in a hierarchy with corporate planning at the top and marketing planning below it. The diagram also illustrates that, alongside marketing planning, plans should be developed for other functional areas of the business such as human resources management (HRM), logistics, and operations. The vision and mission will drive the overall direction of the company and the functional areas of business will all work towards achieving the corporate objectives. The vision and mission will be discussed in Unit 3 Strategic intent. Strategic Marketing Management Marketing strategy is concerned with three elements customers, competitors and internal  corporate issues as illustrated in Figure 1.2. Strategic marketing management has three major  phases: firstly, strategic analysis in order to answer the question where are we now? This will include external analysis of customers, competitors and the macro environment and internal analysis of corporate capabilities; secondly formulation of strategy in terms of creating and evaluating options and thirdly implementation where the strategies are translated into action. The three stages are not mutually exclusive and are not necessarily linear. In fact it is expected that there will be some feedback and amendments as the process progresses. Strategic marketing plans A strategic marketing plan is the means by which the strategy is communicated within the organisation. The structure and content of a strategic marketing plan will vary considerable between organisations. However, normally the following components are included: Current situation external and internal analysis Objective setting Strategy formulation Marketing programmes Implementation issues Control measures Strategic Marketing Management There is no one best format for a strategic marketing plan and organisations will develop their own frameworks that match the needs of their companies. Strategic marketing plans need to generate action and not just be filed away. They should also be sufficiently flexible to take into account the changing environment. Activity 1.2 Read a copy of your own organisations strategic marketing plan. Give your opinion on whether the strategies outlined in it have been actioned. Has the plan shown sufficient flexibility to take into account the changing environment. If the answer to 3. is no, how could the plan have been improved? Summary In this unit we have seen that: Organisations operate in a dynamic environment and therefore they have to take into consideration those external influences that will impact on their business. These influences are often referred to as drivers of change. In market-oriented organisations it is likely that marketing will be the largest contributor to corporate strategy. Corporate strategy is concerned with what types of business the company as a whole should be in, i.e. the scope of the business. Marketing strategy is concerned with transforming corporate objectives into a competitive market position. A strategic marketing plan is the vehicle by which the marketing strategy is communicated within the organisation. The structure and format of a strategic marketing plan will vary considerably between organisations. There is no one best structure. Strategic Marketing Management Unit 2 Marketing Information System (MIS) Introduction The focus of this unit is to understand how the use of marketing intelligence and key marketing information can assist marketing managers to produce an effective marketing information system which will assist marketing decision makers to return higher profits. Objectives Upon successful completion of this unit you will: Understand the strategic use of information Understand how a MIS can assist marketing managers to make key decisions Marketing information is a key requirement for any strategic marketing plan and therefore the development of effective management and marketing information systems is an important task for marketers. Senior marketing managers should not become too heavily involved in the details of the MIS and marketing research but should be concentrating on how to utilize the information in helping to understand the market and develop successful marketing programmes. Definition A Management Information System consists of people, equipment and procedures to gather, sort, analyze, evaluate and distribute timely and accurate information to marketing decision makers. The MIS begins and ends with marketing managers. First, it interacts with them to assess their information needs. Next, it develops the needed information from internal company records, marketing intelligence activities and the marketing research process. Information analysis processes the information to make it more useful. Finally, the MIS distributes information to managers in the right form at the right time to help them in marketing planning, implementation and control. Developing information The information needed by marketing managers comes from internal company records, marketing intelligence and marketing research. The information analysis system then processes this information to make it more useful for managers. Strategic Marketing Management Internal records Most marketing managers use internal records and reports regularly, especially for making day to day planning, implementation and control decisions. Internal records information consists of information gathered from sources within the company to evaluate marketing performance and to detect marketing problems and opportunities. The companys accounting department prepares financial statements and keeps detailed records of sales, orders, costs, and cash flows. The customer service department provides information on customer satisfaction or service problems. Research studies done for one department may provide useful information for several others. Managers can use information gathered from these and other sources within the company to evaluate performance and to detect problems and opportunities. Information from internal records is usually quicker and cheaper to get than information from other sources, but it also presents some problems. Because internal information was collected for other purposes, it may be incomplete or in the wrong form for making marketing decisions. For example, accounting department sales and cost data used for preparing financial statements need adapting for use in evaluating product, sales force, or channel performance. In addition, the many different areas of a large company produce great amounts of information, and keeping track of it all is difficult. The marketing information system must gather, organize, process and index this mass of information so that managers can find it easily and obtain it quickly. Marketing intelligence Marketing intelligenceis everyday information about developments in the marketing environment that helps managers prepare and adjust marketing plans. The marketing intelligence system determines the intelligence needed, collects it by searching the environment and delivers it to marketing managers who need it. Marketing intelligence comes from many sources. Much intelligence is derived from the companys personnel executives, engineers and scientists, purchasing agents and the sales force. However, company people are often busy and fail to pass on key information. It is important to realise that staff are intelligence gatherers, and they need to be trained to spot new developments and urged to report intelligence back to the company. The company must also persuade suppliers, resellers and customers to pass along important intelligence. Some information on competitors comes from what they say about themselves in annual reports, speeches, press releases and advertisements. The company can also learn about competitors from what others say about them in business publications and at trade shows. Or the company can watch what competitors do buying and analyzing competitors products, monitoring their sales and checking for new patents. Strategic Marketing Management Companies also buy intelligence information from outside suppliers. Dun and Bradstreet  is the worlds largest research company with branches in forty countries and a turnover of $1.26bn. Its largest subsidiary is Nielsen who sell details on brand shares, retail prices and percentages of stores stocking different brands. Marketing intelligence can work not only for, but also against a company. Kellogg used to allow the public to tour its plants but recently closed its newly upgraded plant to outsiders to prevent competitors from getting intelligence on its high tech equipment. Some companies set up an office to collect and circulate marketing intelligence. The staff scans relevant publications, summarizes important news and sends news bulletins to marketing managers. It develops a file of intelligence information and helps managers to evaluate new information. These services greatly improve the quality of information available to marketing managers. To summarise it is clear that a MIS has four main components: Internal records there is a wealth of information available within the organisation and it is essential that it is organised in such a way as to facilitate its usage. This may include sales data, customer orders, prices, stock levels, customer complaints, etc. Marketing research this is concerned with the systematic collection of information that is specific to a particular problem. For example, a piece of marketing research may be commissioned to investigate attitudes to a new advertising campaign. Marketing intelligence this may include any information that is collected on an ad hoc basis, such as competitor intelligence gleaned from the press, customer trends, registered patents etc. Marketing decision support systems the processes that convert the data into usable information. For example, statistical tools or modeling techniques. Activity 2.1 Write a short summary detailing how a MIS is used to support management decision making in your own company/organisation. Strategic Marketing Management Intelligence gathering: checking out competitors Competitive intelligence gathering has grown dramatically as more and more companies need to know what their competitors are doing. It is essential that managers are not myopic and spend time amassing information about their major competitors. Techniques that companies use to collect their own marketing intelligence fall into four major groups. Getting information from recruits and competitors employees Companies can obtain intelligence through job interviews or from conversations with competitors employees. According to Fortune magazine: ‘Companies send engineers to conferences and trade shows to question competitors technical people. Often conversations start innocently but engineers and scientists often brag about surmounting technical challenges, in the process divulging sensitive information. Getting information from people who do business with competitors Key customers can keep the company informed about competitors and their products. This information can be vital and can prevent a company from being left behind on product launches or price discounting strategies dreamed up by competing companies. Intelligence can also be gathered by infiltrating customers business operations. Companies can provide their engineers free of charge to customers. The close collaboration the engineers on loan enjoy with the customers design staff often enable them to learn what new products competitors are developing. Getting information from published materials and public documents Keeping track of seemingly meaningless published information can provide competitor intelligence. For example, the types of people sought in job adverts can indicate something about a competitors new strategies and products. Getting information by observing competitors or analyzing physical evidence Competitors can get to know competitors better by buying their products or examining other physical evidence. An increasingly important form of competitive intelligence is benchmarking, taking apart competitors products and imitating or improving on their best features. Companies should take advantage of publicly available information but they should avoid practices that might be considered illegal or unethical. Strategic Marketing Management With all the legitimate intelligence sources now available, a company does not have to break the law or accepted codes of ethics to get good intelligence. Activity 2.2 Write a short synopsis of how your own company/ organisation gathers intelligence on its competitors. Summary This unit has demonstrated that: Marketing intelligence is an essential component of an effective MIS Internal records are a vital source of information for marketing managers Senior marketing managers should be concerned with how to use the information generated from the MIS rather than with the details of the system Intelligence gathering can be carried out in various ways but it is important not to break the law or accepted codes of ethics Strategic Marketing Management Unit 3 Strategic intent Introduction The focus of this unit is to consider the aspirations and future plans of an organisation, and the components of a suitable mission statement and development of appropriate objectives. Objectives Upon successful completion of this unit you will: Be able to define the terms strategic intent / vision and mission statement Know the components of good mission statements Be able to discuss the development of appropriate objectives Strategic intent/vision and mission Strategic intent refers to the aspirations of an organisation rather than just its current activity. According to Aaker, strategic intent provides: â€Å"A long-term drive for advantage that can be essential to success. It provides a model that helps break the mould, moving a firm away from simply doing the same things a bit better and working a bit harder than the year before. It has the capability to elevate and extend an organisation, helping it reach levels it would not otherwise attain.† It is apparent that many organisations that have an appropriate and well-constructed vision are focused on the future and ways of continually attaining sustainable competitive advantage. A vision can help guide strategy, identify and maintain core competencies and provide inspiration and motivation to its managers and its employees by providing them with a sense of purpose. Hamel and Pralahad (1989) suggested that strategic intent combines: A dream that energizes the company (i.e. acts as a motivator) Implied stretch, (looks for new opportunities rather than relying on existing businesses) A sense of direction A sense of discovery Coherence to plans Definition Strategic intent/vision: The desired future state or aspiration of the organization. (Johnson and Scholes, 1999, p.243) Strategic Marketing Management Mission statements A mission statement is concerned with providing daily guidance rather than a vision of the future. According to Piercy (2000), in order for mission statements to contribute anything they must: Reflect an organisations core competencies and how it intends to apply and sustain them Be closely tied to the critical success factors in the marketplace Tell employees, managers, suppliers and partners what contribution is required from them to deliver the promise of value to the customer Definition Mission statement: A generalised statement of the overriding purpose of the organisation. (Johnson and Scholes, 1999,p241) Mission statements are influenced by a number of factors, such as the resource availability, the external environment, the core competencies of the organisation and the current preferences of its current chief executive and senior management. The extent to which the mission statement serves its purpose is influenced not only by the quality and relevance of the mission but also by how it is communicated to staff and other stakeholders. A successful mission statement is one that is wholly embraced and believed by staff. Just having a mission statement is insufficient, the staff must also buy into the idea. Drummond and Ensor (2001) suggest that successful mission statements should demonstrate the following characteristics: Credibility it must be realistic and believable Uniqueness not bland and generic Specific capabilities embrace core capabilities Aspirational needs to motivate individuals Activity 3.1 Write a brief critique of your own companys mission statement in the light of the above characteristics Strategic Marketing Management Goals and objectives The vision and mission provide guidance on the overall direction of an organisation. Objectives, whether corporate or marketing, are the expected outcomes of the strategy. Goals are often regarded as less specific than objectives and more difficult to measure. However, it is normally accepted that objectives should be SMART: Specific Measurable- expressed in quantifiable terms Acceptable to stakeholders Realistic- attainable Time bound- achievable within a certain time frame Definition Goals and objectives Goal general statement of aim or purpose Objective Quantification (if possible) or more precise statement of the goal (Johnson and Scholes, 1999,p14)) Activity 3.2 Critically review your companys key objectives using the SMART method There are many different types of objectives with which an organisation should be concerned. Drucker (1954) identified the following: Market standing e.g. market share objectives Innovation e.g. number of new products launched Productivity e.g. inputs compared with outputs such as increased sales whilst maintaining the same number of sales staff Physical and financial resources relating to the use of resources Profitability e.g. return on investment Manager performance and development performance criteria Employee performance and attitude loyalty Public responsibility e.g. reduce dependency on fossil fuels It is likely that many organisations will place greater weighting on some areas than others. For example, the Co-operative bank places great emphasis on their responsibility to the public in the form of their ethical banking policy. There may be a danger that some companies are preoccupied with productivity objectives and trying to improve the efficiency of existing activities without actually questioning whether they are doing the right things. Stakeholders A key consideration when developing strategic direction relates to an organisations various stakeholder groups. Stakeholders refer to all the different groups of individuals that are influenced and/or have influence on the activities of an organisation. Stakeholders have different expectations and can exert varying levels of influence over the organisation. It is important that organisations have a good understanding of the varying needs of their various stakeholder groups. There are three main groups of stakeholders: Internal stakeholders (employees, management) Connected stakeholders (suppliers, distributors, shareholders, customers) External stakeholders (community, government, pressure groups) Definition Stakeholders: Those individuals or groups who depend on the organisation to fulfil their own goals and on whom, in turn the organisation depends. (Johnson and Scholes, 1999, p213). The following figure illustrates an outline stakeholder map. Customers Banks/sources of finance Suppliers The local community Distributors Society at large Managers Employees Activity 3.3 Stakeholder map Draw a stakeholder map for your own organisation and consider the varying needs of each group and the implications on the organisations strategic direction. How does your organisation manage the differing expectations of each group? Strategic Marketing Management Summary This unit has shown that: Strategic intent relates to the aspirations of an organisation and is sometimes referred to as the organisations vision. An appropriate and well constructed vision can help guide strategy, identify and maintain core competencies and can act as a motivator for staff by providing them with a sense of purpose. Mission statements are more concerned with providing daily guidance rather than a vision of the future. They should reflect an organisations core competencies, relate to the critical success factors in the market and also inform employees and other stakeholders what contribution is required from them to deliver value to the customer. Issues with Strategic Marketing Management Issues with Strategic Marketing Management Introduction This course is designed to help you understand and learn advanced principles of marketing and is aimed at marketing managers, or professionals who are working in business or commerce. Who have perhaps a qualification in marketing and several years experience of working in a marketing role, or managers who would like to increase their marketing knowledge. Part of the courses assessment of learning will involve you in undertaking an assignment based on a marketing strategy plan carried out in your own company/organisation. You will be given detailed guidance and advice about this element of assessment later in this workbook. Aims of the unit The aim of the unit is to identify and discuss key issues associated with marketing principles. The course is focused on strategic principles of marketing, which form an essential underpinning to an understanding of strategic marketing in action. The theoretical underpinning will be complemented by a series of short work-based activities. Objectives of the unit To equip you with the knowledge and skills to understand and interpret strategic marketing principles To provide you with practical experience of applying strategic marketing principles and preparing a strategic marketing plan within your own company/organisation. Learning outcomes On successful completion of this Unit you should be able to: Understand the strategic marketing process Recognise the importance of creating strategic advantage Produce a strategic marketing plan in your own company/organisation Understand the importance of developing a specific competitive position Strategic Marketing Management What does this workbook contain? This workbook contains a number of information and learning resources: Background and contextual information about strategic marketing management Key ideas, theories, concepts, structures, processes in relation to strategic marketing ‘Recall and review and ‘Activity points designed to engage you in reflection and action-focused thinking Case examples of strategic marketing in action Assessment You are required to write a 2,500-word assignment as follows: Prepare a strategic marketing plan for your own company/organisation, paying particular attention to creating and sustaining a competitive advantage over rival firms. Strategic Marketing Management How should this workbook be used? This workbook will direct your study throughout the learning experience. There are  six sections, designed to be studied sequentially. However, a good learning technique is to refresh your learning by re-reading, so you are recommend to read back and forth between sections whenever you feel the need. Each section deals with a different topic and, together with any associated activities, practical work or further reading, is designed to require approximately 20 hours of study. The workbook uses an interactive learning approach. This is achieved through the use of self-assessment questions and activities throughout the text. These will enable you to apply the concepts presented in the workbook and explore issues that extend your knowledge and skills. Preparing to use the workbook If you are new to the study of marketing and/or this study method, then we suggest it is worth you spending some time becoming familiar with its contents and approach to learning and development. This will enhance your own understanding of key ideas in strategic marketing management, and your ability to lead and facilitate the learning of others. Strategic Marketing Management Table of contents Title Page Unit 1 The strategic marketing process Objectives 5 Drivers of change 5 Corporate strategy/ Marketing interface 7 Strategic marketing plans 8 Summary 9 Unit 2 Marketing Information Systems Objectives 10 MIS and the use of strategic intelligence 10 Summary 14 Unit 3 Strategic intent Objectives 15 Strategic intent/vision and mission 15 Goals and objectives 17 Stakeholders 18 Summary 19 Unit 4 Creating strategic advantage Objectives 20 Approaches to developing strategic advantage 20 Alliances and networks 22 Declining and hostile markets 24 Strategic wear-out 25 Summary 26 Unit 5 Developing a specific competitive position Objectives 27 Strategic alignment process 27 Innovation and new product development 28 Strategic evaluation 31 Summary 32 Unit 6 Implementation and control Objectives 33 Implementation 33 Control 35 Summary 37 Strategic Marketing Management Unit 1 The core theme of this unit is the importance of market-led strategic change to ensure organisational success. Objectives By the end of this unit you will: Be able to discuss, and give examples of drivers of change Understand the relationship between corporate and marketing strategy Know the process and structure of marketing planning and be able to discuss the differences between strategic and tactical planning Drivers of change Change is inevitable and companies that wish to maintain a market-led approach must take into consideration both cyclical and evolutionary change when developing their marketing strategies. The rate at which the external environment changes varies according to the nature of the business but increasingly all organisations are facing escalating levels of change. Change is inevitable. To survive companies need to adapt and to convert the threats caused by the changing environment into opportunities in order to avoid strategic drift. Marks and Spencer is a prime example of a company that has not adapted to the changing customer demands and as a result has lost many of its loyal customer base. Case history Drivers of change Greenhalgh (2001) identifies the following drivers of change that have created challenges for companies over the last few years: Domestic businesses of any significance have become rare. They are now global, drawing on supply chains that transcend national boundaries and serving customers worldwide Customer expectations of quality have increased and are now applied to all goods and services, rather than just luxury goods Concern for the environment has become a major item on companies agenda. They now have to consider their environmental responsibility as well as their profits. Large institutional investors are exerting their influence on how organisations are managed Start-up companies play an important role in introducing innovative products and new ideas to the marketplace. Young, technologically-competent workers are drawn to these vibrant workplaces, making it harder for other companies to recruit and retain them Strategic Marketing Management Activity 1.1 Consider thedrivers of change outlined above. Identify the impact of these factors on your own company/organisation. What is strategy? The term strategy is probably one of the most used and often misunderstood terms in business. There is no universal definition of strategy and yet it is used extensively. Strategy has the same meaning whether we are discussing corporate, marketing, promotional or even advertising strategy: it is concerned with how we might achieve our objectives. The difference between each type of strategy relates to the level at which the strategy is being developed. Corporate strategy according to Johnson and Scholes (1999), is: â€Å"concerned with what types of business the company as a whole should be in and is therefore concerned with decisions of scope† whereas marketing strategy aims to transform corporate objectives into a competitive market position. The main role of marketing strategy is to differentiate products/services from those of competitors by meeting the needs of customers more effectively. Therefore, according to Drummond and Ensor (2001) marketing strategy can be characterised by: Analysing the business environment and defining customer needs Matching activities to customer needs Implementing programmes to achieve a competitive position relative to competitors Strategic management consists of three elements: Strategic analysis concerned with answering the question where are we now? This involves analysing the external environment, internal resources and capabilities and stakeholder expectations Strategic choice what are the options available and which is the most attractive? Strategic implementation often the most overlooked of strategy. It is concerned with allocating resources and turning the plans into action. This process can be as equally well applied to marketing strategy. Strategic Marketing Management The corporate strategy/marketing interface It is impossible to discuss marketing strategy without first putting it into the context of corporate planning. The relationship between corporate planning and marketing planning can best be explained by figure 1.1 below. It is helpful to think of these decisions sitting in a hierarchy with corporate planning at the top and marketing planning below it. The diagram also illustrates that, alongside marketing planning, plans should be developed for other functional areas of the business such as human resources management (HRM), logistics, and operations. The vision and mission will drive the overall direction of the company and the functional areas of business will all work towards achieving the corporate objectives. The vision and mission will be discussed in Unit 3 Strategic intent. Strategic Marketing Management Marketing strategy is concerned with three elements customers, competitors and internal  corporate issues as illustrated in Figure 1.2. Strategic marketing management has three major  phases: firstly, strategic analysis in order to answer the question where are we now? This will include external analysis of customers, competitors and the macro environment and internal analysis of corporate capabilities; secondly formulation of strategy in terms of creating and evaluating options and thirdly implementation where the strategies are translated into action. The three stages are not mutually exclusive and are not necessarily linear. In fact it is expected that there will be some feedback and amendments as the process progresses. Strategic marketing plans A strategic marketing plan is the means by which the strategy is communicated within the organisation. The structure and content of a strategic marketing plan will vary considerable between organisations. However, normally the following components are included: Current situation external and internal analysis Objective setting Strategy formulation Marketing programmes Implementation issues Control measures Strategic Marketing Management There is no one best format for a strategic marketing plan and organisations will develop their own frameworks that match the needs of their companies. Strategic marketing plans need to generate action and not just be filed away. They should also be sufficiently flexible to take into account the changing environment. Activity 1.2 Read a copy of your own organisations strategic marketing plan. Give your opinion on whether the strategies outlined in it have been actioned. Has the plan shown sufficient flexibility to take into account the changing environment. If the answer to 3. is no, how could the plan have been improved? Summary In this unit we have seen that: Organisations operate in a dynamic environment and therefore they have to take into consideration those external influences that will impact on their business. These influences are often referred to as drivers of change. In market-oriented organisations it is likely that marketing will be the largest contributor to corporate strategy. Corporate strategy is concerned with what types of business the company as a whole should be in, i.e. the scope of the business. Marketing strategy is concerned with transforming corporate objectives into a competitive market position. A strategic marketing plan is the vehicle by which the marketing strategy is communicated within the organisation. The structure and format of a strategic marketing plan will vary considerably between organisations. There is no one best structure. Strategic Marketing Management Unit 2 Marketing Information System (MIS) Introduction The focus of this unit is to understand how the use of marketing intelligence and key marketing information can assist marketing managers to produce an effective marketing information system which will assist marketing decision makers to return higher profits. Objectives Upon successful completion of this unit you will: Understand the strategic use of information Understand how a MIS can assist marketing managers to make key decisions Marketing information is a key requirement for any strategic marketing plan and therefore the development of effective management and marketing information systems is an important task for marketers. Senior marketing managers should not become too heavily involved in the details of the MIS and marketing research but should be concentrating on how to utilize the information in helping to understand the market and develop successful marketing programmes. Definition A Management Information System consists of people, equipment and procedures to gather, sort, analyze, evaluate and distribute timely and accurate information to marketing decision makers. The MIS begins and ends with marketing managers. First, it interacts with them to assess their information needs. Next, it develops the needed information from internal company records, marketing intelligence activities and the marketing research process. Information analysis processes the information to make it more useful. Finally, the MIS distributes information to managers in the right form at the right time to help them in marketing planning, implementation and control. Developing information The information needed by marketing managers comes from internal company records, marketing intelligence and marketing research. The information analysis system then processes this information to make it more useful for managers. Strategic Marketing Management Internal records Most marketing managers use internal records and reports regularly, especially for making day to day planning, implementation and control decisions. Internal records information consists of information gathered from sources within the company to evaluate marketing performance and to detect marketing problems and opportunities. The companys accounting department prepares financial statements and keeps detailed records of sales, orders, costs, and cash flows. The customer service department provides information on customer satisfaction or service problems. Research studies done for one department may provide useful information for several others. Managers can use information gathered from these and other sources within the company to evaluate performance and to detect problems and opportunities. Information from internal records is usually quicker and cheaper to get than information from other sources, but it also presents some problems. Because internal information was collected for other purposes, it may be incomplete or in the wrong form for making marketing decisions. For example, accounting department sales and cost data used for preparing financial statements need adapting for use in evaluating product, sales force, or channel performance. In addition, the many different areas of a large company produce great amounts of information, and keeping track of it all is difficult. The marketing information system must gather, organize, process and index this mass of information so that managers can find it easily and obtain it quickly. Marketing intelligence Marketing intelligenceis everyday information about developments in the marketing environment that helps managers prepare and adjust marketing plans. The marketing intelligence system determines the intelligence needed, collects it by searching the environment and delivers it to marketing managers who need it. Marketing intelligence comes from many sources. Much intelligence is derived from the companys personnel executives, engineers and scientists, purchasing agents and the sales force. However, company people are often busy and fail to pass on key information. It is important to realise that staff are intelligence gatherers, and they need to be trained to spot new developments and urged to report intelligence back to the company. The company must also persuade suppliers, resellers and customers to pass along important intelligence. Some information on competitors comes from what they say about themselves in annual reports, speeches, press releases and advertisements. The company can also learn about competitors from what others say about them in business publications and at trade shows. Or the company can watch what competitors do buying and analyzing competitors products, monitoring their sales and checking for new patents. Strategic Marketing Management Companies also buy intelligence information from outside suppliers. Dun and Bradstreet  is the worlds largest research company with branches in forty countries and a turnover of $1.26bn. Its largest subsidiary is Nielsen who sell details on brand shares, retail prices and percentages of stores stocking different brands. Marketing intelligence can work not only for, but also against a company. Kellogg used to allow the public to tour its plants but recently closed its newly upgraded plant to outsiders to prevent competitors from getting intelligence on its high tech equipment. Some companies set up an office to collect and circulate marketing intelligence. The staff scans relevant publications, summarizes important news and sends news bulletins to marketing managers. It develops a file of intelligence information and helps managers to evaluate new information. These services greatly improve the quality of information available to marketing managers. To summarise it is clear that a MIS has four main components: Internal records there is a wealth of information available within the organisation and it is essential that it is organised in such a way as to facilitate its usage. This may include sales data, customer orders, prices, stock levels, customer complaints, etc. Marketing research this is concerned with the systematic collection of information that is specific to a particular problem. For example, a piece of marketing research may be commissioned to investigate attitudes to a new advertising campaign. Marketing intelligence this may include any information that is collected on an ad hoc basis, such as competitor intelligence gleaned from the press, customer trends, registered patents etc. Marketing decision support systems the processes that convert the data into usable information. For example, statistical tools or modeling techniques. Activity 2.1 Write a short summary detailing how a MIS is used to support management decision making in your own company/organisation. Strategic Marketing Management Intelligence gathering: checking out competitors Competitive intelligence gathering has grown dramatically as more and more companies need to know what their competitors are doing. It is essential that managers are not myopic and spend time amassing information about their major competitors. Techniques that companies use to collect their own marketing intelligence fall into four major groups. Getting information from recruits and competitors employees Companies can obtain intelligence through job interviews or from conversations with competitors employees. According to Fortune magazine: ‘Companies send engineers to conferences and trade shows to question competitors technical people. Often conversations start innocently but engineers and scientists often brag about surmounting technical challenges, in the process divulging sensitive information. Getting information from people who do business with competitors Key customers can keep the company informed about competitors and their products. This information can be vital and can prevent a company from being left behind on product launches or price discounting strategies dreamed up by competing companies. Intelligence can also be gathered by infiltrating customers business operations. Companies can provide their engineers free of charge to customers. The close collaboration the engineers on loan enjoy with the customers design staff often enable them to learn what new products competitors are developing. Getting information from published materials and public documents Keeping track of seemingly meaningless published information can provide competitor intelligence. For example, the types of people sought in job adverts can indicate something about a competitors new strategies and products. Getting information by observing competitors or analyzing physical evidence Competitors can get to know competitors better by buying their products or examining other physical evidence. An increasingly important form of competitive intelligence is benchmarking, taking apart competitors products and imitating or improving on their best features. Companies should take advantage of publicly available information but they should avoid practices that might be considered illegal or unethical. Strategic Marketing Management With all the legitimate intelligence sources now available, a company does not have to break the law or accepted codes of ethics to get good intelligence. Activity 2.2 Write a short synopsis of how your own company/ organisation gathers intelligence on its competitors. Summary This unit has demonstrated that: Marketing intelligence is an essential component of an effective MIS Internal records are a vital source of information for marketing managers Senior marketing managers should be concerned with how to use the information generated from the MIS rather than with the details of the system Intelligence gathering can be carried out in various ways but it is important not to break the law or accepted codes of ethics Strategic Marketing Management Unit 3 Strategic intent Introduction The focus of this unit is to consider the aspirations and future plans of an organisation, and the components of a suitable mission statement and development of appropriate objectives. Objectives Upon successful completion of this unit you will: Be able to define the terms strategic intent / vision and mission statement Know the components of good mission statements Be able to discuss the development of appropriate objectives Strategic intent/vision and mission Strategic intent refers to the aspirations of an organisation rather than just its current activity. According to Aaker, strategic intent provides: â€Å"A long-term drive for advantage that can be essential to success. It provides a model that helps break the mould, moving a firm away from simply doing the same things a bit better and working a bit harder than the year before. It has the capability to elevate and extend an organisation, helping it reach levels it would not otherwise attain.† It is apparent that many organisations that have an appropriate and well-constructed vision are focused on the future and ways of continually attaining sustainable competitive advantage. A vision can help guide strategy, identify and maintain core competencies and provide inspiration and motivation to its managers and its employees by providing them with a sense of purpose. Hamel and Pralahad (1989) suggested that strategic intent combines: A dream that energizes the company (i.e. acts as a motivator) Implied stretch, (looks for new opportunities rather than relying on existing businesses) A sense of direction A sense of discovery Coherence to plans Definition Strategic intent/vision: The desired future state or aspiration of the organization. (Johnson and Scholes, 1999, p.243) Strategic Marketing Management Mission statements A mission statement is concerned with providing daily guidance rather than a vision of the future. According to Piercy (2000), in order for mission statements to contribute anything they must: Reflect an organisations core competencies and how it intends to apply and sustain them Be closely tied to the critical success factors in the marketplace Tell employees, managers, suppliers and partners what contribution is required from them to deliver the promise of value to the customer Definition Mission statement: A generalised statement of the overriding purpose of the organisation. (Johnson and Scholes, 1999,p241) Mission statements are influenced by a number of factors, such as the resource availability, the external environment, the core competencies of the organisation and the current preferences of its current chief executive and senior management. The extent to which the mission statement serves its purpose is influenced not only by the quality and relevance of the mission but also by how it is communicated to staff and other stakeholders. A successful mission statement is one that is wholly embraced and believed by staff. Just having a mission statement is insufficient, the staff must also buy into the idea. Drummond and Ensor (2001) suggest that successful mission statements should demonstrate the following characteristics: Credibility it must be realistic and believable Uniqueness not bland and generic Specific capabilities embrace core capabilities Aspirational needs to motivate individuals Activity 3.1 Write a brief critique of your own companys mission statement in the light of the above characteristics Strategic Marketing Management Goals and objectives The vision and mission provide guidance on the overall direction of an organisation. Objectives, whether corporate or marketing, are the expected outcomes of the strategy. Goals are often regarded as less specific than objectives and more difficult to measure. However, it is normally accepted that objectives should be SMART: Specific Measurable- expressed in quantifiable terms Acceptable to stakeholders Realistic- attainable Time bound- achievable within a certain time frame Definition Goals and objectives Goal general statement of aim or purpose Objective Quantification (if possible) or more precise statement of the goal (Johnson and Scholes, 1999,p14)) Activity 3.2 Critically review your companys key objectives using the SMART method There are many different types of objectives with which an organisation should be concerned. Drucker (1954) identified the following: Market standing e.g. market share objectives Innovation e.g. number of new products launched Productivity e.g. inputs compared with outputs such as increased sales whilst maintaining the same number of sales staff Physical and financial resources relating to the use of resources Profitability e.g. return on investment Manager performance and development performance criteria Employee performance and attitude loyalty Public responsibility e.g. reduce dependency on fossil fuels It is likely that many organisations will place greater weighting on some areas than others. For example, the Co-operative bank places great emphasis on their responsibility to the public in the form of their ethical banking policy. There may be a danger that some companies are preoccupied with productivity objectives and trying to improve the efficiency of existing activities without actually questioning whether they are doing the right things. Stakeholders A key consideration when developing strategic direction relates to an organisations various stakeholder groups. Stakeholders refer to all the different groups of individuals that are influenced and/or have influence on the activities of an organisation. Stakeholders have different expectations and can exert varying levels of influence over the organisation. It is important that organisations have a good understanding of the varying needs of their various stakeholder groups. There are three main groups of stakeholders: Internal stakeholders (employees, management) Connected stakeholders (suppliers, distributors, shareholders, customers) External stakeholders (community, government, pressure groups) Definition Stakeholders: Those individuals or groups who depend on the organisation to fulfil their own goals and on whom, in turn the organisation depends. (Johnson and Scholes, 1999, p213). The following figure illustrates an outline stakeholder map. Customers Banks/sources of finance Suppliers The local community Distributors Society at large Managers Employees Activity 3.3 Stakeholder map Draw a stakeholder map for your own organisation and consider the varying needs of each group and the implications on the organisations strategic direction. How does your organisation manage the differing expectations of each group? Strategic Marketing Management Summary This unit has shown that: Strategic intent relates to the aspirations of an organisation and is sometimes referred to as the organisations vision. An appropriate and well constructed vision can help guide strategy, identify and maintain core competencies and can act as a motivator for staff by providing them with a sense of purpose. Mission statements are more concerned with providing daily guidance rather than a vision of the future. They should reflect an organisations core competencies, relate to the critical success factors in the market and also inform employees and other stakeholders what contribution is required from them to deliver value to the customer.