Q Assess the effectiveness of Nathanael West's use of Surreal elements Essay

Q Assess the effectiveness of Nathanael West's use of Surreal elements in 'The Day of the Locust' - Essay Example When the war finally ended, it was called the Great War, because it was thought that no such war would ever be fought again. The next decades did nothing to break the pessimism that many felt about the world's future. The crash in the world financial markets that happened in 1929, the worldwide drought in 1930, conspired to create the Great Depression, a worldwide economic downturn that basically lasted until industry began gearing up for what would be called the Second World War. As a result, the 1930's was a decade of extreme pessimism, which was manifested in a number of ways. The arts produced "case studies, reportage, documentary photography, proletarian literature, and 'social problem' films" with the goal of "reconstruct[ing] the 'hidden' logic of an elusive social reality" (Veitch, xvii). This is the time period in which Nathanael West made his literary mark. Jonathan Veitch makes note of the problems that critics have had in assigning West a particular place within the writing of that time, and American literature as a whole. Different critics described him, variously, as a "poet of darkness," "an apocalyptic writer," "a universal satirist," "a homegrown surrealist," and a "writer of the left." (Veitch xi, xvi). Some of these descriptions have definite contradictions with one another, but they all reflect different elements of the author's persona, and his work. His "style was never constant. At times his pictorial technique closely resembled collage [but also] cartoon strips, movies, and several schools of painting, as well as such non-graphic visual arts as the tableau and the dance." (Schug). While many of West's novels and other writings defy classification, though, The Day of the Locust does not. The surreal elements of this novel place it squarely in the camp of modernist fiction. His technique and methods bear considerable similarity to those of his contemporaries. When one considers some of the commonalities of modernist fiction: violence, decadence, irony, the grotesque, dreams, realism, allusion, distortion, and experimentation (Schug), all of these apply to The Day of the Locust, and many of them are a result of the surrealist techniques that West applies to his novel. The particular target of West's writing in The Day of the Locust is the dilemma that the artist faced when taking on the growing culture industry of the 1930's. The Hollywood industry is both the object of critique in the novel, as well as the subject of the story itself. The book executes a dark criticism of the so-called "dream factory" that Hollywood was in those times (and still is seen to be today) (Blyn). Ironically, those many of the aesthetic techniques at work in the novel owe a debt to that same Hollywood industry that the book itself is attacking. Consider, for example, the riot scene where a star appears at the premiere of a film. Protagonist Tod Hackett is taken away by the police in a squad car: He was carried through the exit to the back street and lifted into a police car. The siren began to scream and at first he thought he was making the noise himself. He felt his lips with his hands. They were clamped tight. He knew then it was the siren. For some reason this made him laugh, and he began to imitate the siren as loud as he could. (185) Clearly, the siren operates as a

Internet Marketing strategy concepts and definitions

Internet Marketing strategy concepts and definitions This chapter aims to present a complete theoretical framework in order to justify an analysis of the previous findings. In the literature review, the evolvement of Internet marketing strategies will be evaluated. Previous research related to digital marketing strategy and the factors affecting customer satisfaction will be clarified. The review forms the principles on which the research is built, by identifying relevant theories and concepts that will be analysed using primary data. This chapter focuses on e-commerce, e-retailing, Internet marketing strategy and consumer behaviour. 2.2.1 Internet Marketing Since business to consumer (B2C) online marketing is becoming increasingly popular in recent years, the population of online consumers is turning more mainstream and diverse (Kotler, 2008). Internet marketing strategy provides consistent direction for an organisations e-marketing activities, defined by Kotler (2007, p493), is becoming one of the mostly rapid increasing technologies of direct marketing and widespread use of the Internet and has a variety of impacts on both buyers and marketers. Therefore, the term Internet marketing refers to an external perspective of how the Internet can be utilised in connection with traditional media to supply and deliver services to customers (Chaffey, 2009). Smith and Chaffey (2008) state that: E-marketing can identify, anticipate and satisfy customer needs efficiently Identifying needs from customer comments, enquiries, requests and complaints solicited via the web sites e-mail facility Anticipating the Internet provides an additional channel by which customers can access information and make purchases evaluating the demand is key to governing resource allocation to e-marketing. Satisfying achieving customer satisfaction through the digital channel, this relates to customer relationship management. Efficiently in an automated way, probably should mean efficiently, increasing lifetime value and maintain the vast armies of not-for-profit marketers. [Chaffey and Smith, 2008, page 18] The Internet brings convenience to consumers and has also permitted the creation of virtual retailers, which are characterised by having only an online presence, such as Amazon.com (Henderson and Er-Radi, 2000). Moreover, the key reason that drives business organisations to access online is to add value for customers by providing them with attractive and effective web sites. Kotler et al. (2008) consider that widespread use of the Internet and other technologies has given marketers a brand new way to create value for customers and build strong relationships with them. The web has basically changed customers concept of convenience, speed, price, product information and service. The authors also suggest that the success of click only companies, such as Amazon, eBay and others to re-examine how they served their markets (Kotler, et al. 2008, p839). The importance of an Internet marketing strategy was underlined by Chaffey et al. (2009), who said that a strong strategy is needed to provide consistent direction for an organisations e-marketing activities. Additionally, the Internet marketing strategy is a channel marketing strategy and determines the strategic significance of the Internet related to other communication channels which are used to communicate with customers at different customer touchpoints; for Internet marketing, many online organisations intended to use search engine optimization (SEO), pay-per-click (PPC) marketing, affiliates and e-mail marketing (Chaffey, et al. 2009, p201). Obviously, the marketing mix (Kotler, 2001) can be applied by marketers to notify their Internet marketing strategy; the extension of 4Ps 7Ps include: Product, Price, Place and Promotion, People, Process and Physical evidence (Booms and Bitner, 1981). The marketing mix is applied frequently to marketing strategy since it provides a simple strategic framework for changing different aspects of a companys products helping to influence the demand for product within the target markets. Especially for an organisation which is involved directly in transactional e-commerce, digital media have implications for the significance of different marketing mix for different markets (Chaffey et al, 2009). Additionally, Lauterborn (1990) suggested the 4Cs framework the 4Cs imply more emphasis on customer wants and concerns than do the Ps: Convenience for the customer; Customer value and benefits; Costs to the customer; and Communication. This customer-centric approach also applies well to online mark ets; it follows that the selection of marketing mix should be based on detailed knowledge of buyer behaviour gathered through market research (Chaffey et al, 2009, p 279). Dennis and Harris (2002) also indicate that one development has merit as being descriptive of the way marketers think about the customer. The 4Cs are as explained below: C1 Convenience for the customer Place (from the 4Ps), can be thought of as Convenience for the customer, recognising the customers choice to purchase in ways that feel convenient to them. C1 also includes key aspects of website design, such as navigation, layout and ease of purchase. C2 Customer value and benefits Product, can be thought of as Customer value and benefits. E-retailers now specify products to a much better extent than previously, evaluating relationships to the customer and appreciation of benefits that customers want. When customers are buying online, they are far less likely to ask for help than when they are in store. E-shoppers need to be especially careful about describing products explicitly in terms of customer value and benefits. C3 Cost to the customer Price is represented as Cost to the customer, the real cost that the customer will pay, including packaging and shipping fee. Consumers often have a perception that prices should be lower online than in-store. Retailers often offer further pricing options includes: discounts; add-ons and extra products and services; guarantees and warranties; refund policies; order cancellation terms (Chaffey et al, 2009) C4 Communication and customer relationships Communication is equivalent to Promotion. It is a two-way process also involving attitudes and feedback from customers to suppliers. Dennis and Harris (2002) state that retailers spend more on advertising than manufacturers do, and they are closer to customers and have more access to customer feedback. Successful e-retailers often use offline advertising and promotion such as magazines and posters, integrated with online marketing communications. Online methods include banner ads and pop-ups, paid-for listings in search engines and affiliate programmes. E-retailers find it difficult to gain and satisfy customers emotional needs and wants. To achieve this, e-retailers can create a web atmosphere using techniques, such as music, visual download and videos. Moreover, e-retailers can build a picture of products most likely to be bought by individual customers. For instance, Amazon (www.amazon.com) matches new books to existing customers who maybe interested in them, based on prior purcha ses and makes recommendations accordingly (Dennis et al, 2004 pp2-8). 2.3 E-commerce Reynolds (2000) demonstrates that the Internet is changing the way people conduct normal business, whether this is finding new ways of revenue, obtaining new customers, or managing a new business supply chain. E-commerce enables businesses to sell products and services to consumers worldwide. According to Warrington et al. (2000), the intricacies of electronic commerce via the Internet and the World Wide Web have offered marketers an abundance of opportunities and challenges. E-commerce is growing at a tremendous rate, using the Internet initially as a communication and promotional tool, and later to perform distribution channels, discovering an entirely new situation of consumer purchasing behaviour. De Kare-Silver (2000) suggests that interactive technologies are doing away with the need for people to visit shops. The number of UK regular home web users has risen to 16.5m, time spent by home web users is also growing up, because they search for and use websites more (Gibson, 2002). Oz (2002) consists that consumers prefer to shop and buy on the Internet for three major reasons: convenience, saving time and comparative shopping. Ginn (2010) also demonstrates that online sales are a huge and growing part of the UK retail sector, and currently account for a quarter of all new retail businesses; online sales are predicted to reach  £78 billion during 2010. Despite the increasing levels of Internet adoption and usage, Internet shopping in the UK represents less than 10% of all purchases and online shopping remains popular for certain products only (Soopramanien et al, 2007 cited in Office of National Statistics Omnibus survey, 2003). Moreover, Internet shopping is considered both safe and easy by many millions of consumers (Econsultancy, 2010). Therefore, selling products online offers huge potential opportunities for retailers; it also instantly enables businesses to reach customers who would not have visited their bricks and mortar store. An ecommerce of long-lasting relationships has become a significant factor for marketers due to the increasing awareness of the financial benefits in maintaining customers (Sahota, 2004). According to cited from Reicheld and Schefter.s research (2000), the unique economics of e-commerce make customer retention a necessity for the e-retailers survival in the digital world. Chaffey et al. (2009, p628) indicates that since 2001 many retailers have accepted the Internet as a durable trading environment and have set about working out how to shape their companies to cope with the demands of trading and interacting in a virtual environment. The author also suggests that companies are able to discover substantial competitive advantages and customer value. Dennis et al. (2004) point out that there are a number of advantages for e-retailers. Firstly, location is not important; according to Amazon, the e-retailers can sell equally well to anyone anywhere in the world. Secondly, size does not ma tter; small e-retailers can compete on equal terms with large ones. Thirdly, the socio-demographic profile of e-shoppers is attractive to many retailers. Finally, online selling saves on the salary costs of traditional sales people. Amazon.co.uks E-retail Mix Convenience According to Dennis et al. (2004, pp47-51), there are several factors which increase the level of customer convenience which can be a vital part in gaining and maintaining new customers. First and foremost, the amazon.co.uk search engine is fast and safe, as customers can quickly look up the desired products. Moreover, the site provides value-added services such as book reviews and ratings, and shows a comparison prices against its own price; thus, customers can see how much they are saving from Amazon. Besides, Amazon offers shopping technology which streamlines the customer buying process by maintaining personal information such as credit card number and shipping address, in order to save time and reduce problems. In some cases the website provides a guarantee that, if the transactions are unauthorised, it will reimburse the money to customers. The authors also state that the main aim of Amazon.co.uk is to maximise customer convenience; one way of doing this is to inform the customer of product availability. Furthermore, the website also displays other books in the same category when customers are searching for similar books. The facility allows customers to have better choice and can increase sales. Customers can view their personal account anytime, which involves information about their previous orders with shipping details. In addition, customers can use account information to make their estimation and recommendations about other books that customer will consider (Dennis et al, 2004, p47). Cost Brynjolfsson and Smith (2000) justifies that Jeff Bezos, believed that online customers considered selection and convenience are more crucial than price. It is apparent that customers want to get a great price with excellent customer service. Most of the books from amazon are available at a discounted price; consumers can easily see three prices: list price, our price and how much you save. Communication Jeff sets the aim of Amazon to be a customer-centric company, so that customers can opt in if they wish to receive more information. Amazon keeps watch on the customers ordering process through the database environment that suits all the details to the website. Therefore, it can follow the trail of the speed and customer performance of every step in a transaction, such as adding items in a shopping basket, completing an order and e-mail notification to the customer. In addition to that, Amazon usually recommends similar books relating to what other customers have bought. These traits lead customers make their choice quickly and they can they can read spotlight reviews by others. Every user can express their viewpoints about authors while publishers and authors can also contribute. Moreover, Amazon uses an integrated marketing communication strategy consists of advertising, public relations, promotions and online marketing. Online activity includes search engine marketing and front pa ges such Yahoo and MSN. The associate program uses other sites to promote Amazon by linking directly take users to Amazons site. Computing Amazon has developed a customised information system and dedicated ordering system, which is linked with suppliers to automatically order books. The companys software processes the orders through interfaces or electronic data interchange with suppliers and the supply chain is computerised. Therefore, the company builds up a strong relationship with customers and suppliers. According to a customer research survey carried out by amazon.co.uk, 70 per cent of sales are collected by repeat customer of whom 97 per cent are satisfied or very satisfied with the service. Its FAQs part is informative as it displays all the key issues encompassing ordering process, delivery charges and return policies. According to Saunders (2001, p76), customer value proposition is a vital feature defined by several factors, including cost, quality, speed of delivery, service during the interaction with the company, and innovation. Cost. Customers usually want to pay the least money for the same quality of products they get. Quality. Customers expect to pay to get the promised quality. Speed. Companies can provide quick delivery is practicing this value proposition. Service repair and replacement. Customers hope if they can call a company at anytime 24 hours a day to solve problems. Innovation. Customers focus on the fastest, the newest, and the most advanced technology in the computer field. Companies often introduce new features to attract and obtain customers. Additionally, Saunders(2001, pp103-106) also suggests that Amazon processes orders and ships books, CDs, videos and so on, however, customer satisfaction comes not only from timely and safety delivery of orders, but also from understanding customer expectations and meeting or exceeding their needs. Moreover, there are some elements may influence customer satisfaction: Leave visitors to the site with a positive impression. Stimulate potential buyers for visiting the store. Make a customers encounters with the company a delight. Personalise and customise service. Perform as promised. Exceed expectations. Communicate the importance of customer satisfaction. Do something better than anyone else does it. Market knowledge as well as product. Consequently, Dennis at el. (2004) summarises that Amazon has become one of the worlds largest booksellers. The company has achieved this position through specific customer centric factors by enhancing customer experience. Kargar (2004) supplements that Amazons marketing strategy was designed to strengthen and broaden the brand name, enhance customer visiting frequency to its web sites; build customer loyalty; encourage repeat purchases and develop increased products and services revenue opportunities. The company delivered several of media, business development activities and promotions to achieve these goals. Chaffey and Smith (2008) also demonstrate that collaborative filtering helps Amazon to identify and anticipate what customers might offer similar books those buyers who have similar interests. 2.2.5 Consumer behaviour Internet consumer behaviour Internet consumer research (Brown et al., 2001) indicates that convenience is the main reason why consumers use the Internet for the purpose of purchasing. E-shoppers tend to be concerned mainly with functional and utilitarian considerations (Dennis et al. 2009). The authors also demonstrate that functional considerations influence consumer attitudes towards an e-retailer, which in turn has an impact on consumers choice of e-retailer and then on actual e-retail activity, including shopping and continued loyalty behaviour. According to a survey by NPD online, 75 per cent of online shoppers said that good customer service would make consumers shop at the site again (Solomon et al. (2006) cited from Gilbert (1999), p316). Another recent study suggested by Wolfinbarger and Gilly (2003) four factors were predictive of customer judgments about quality and satisfaction, customer loyalty and attitudes towards a website: Fulfilment/reliability. (a)The accurate display and description of a product so that what customers receive is what they thought they ordered. (b) The delivery of the right product within the time frame promised. Website design. This includes all elements of the consumers experience at the website (except for customer service), covering navigation, information search, order processing, appropriate personalisation and product selection. Customer service. This needs to be responsive, helpful, willing service that responds to customer inquiries quickly. Security/privacy. This involves the security surrounding credit card payments and the privacy of shared information. Chaston (2001, p25) identifies a five-phase customer purchase process, as shown in Figure 2.1, these are recognition of need, search for information, evaluation of alternatives, the purchase decision and post-purchase evaluation. Need recognition Information search Information evaluation Post-purchase evaluation Purchase decision Fig 2.1 A five-phase customer purchase process Therefore, in presenting a process model, it is apparent that the e-commerce purchase model builder need to recognise that the market attention should be given to how the factors of involvement, the creation of clear difference between a companys product and competition and time pressure may influence customer behaviour (Chaston, 2001, p30). Furthermore, a customer who is becoming a loyal user must experience satisfaction during the post-purchase evaluation phase. Kristensen et al. (1999) draws upon the customer satisfaction model, the combined influence of these factors causes the customer to reach results about both perceived value for money and overall level of satisfaction. Dennis et al. (2009, pp. 1123-1130) demonstrate factors influencing internet consumer behaviour, the conceptual foundations are illustrated in Figure 2.3: Figure 2.3 The basic model The authors propose that: P1. E-consumer attitude towards an e-retailer will be positively influenced by customer perceptions of e-retailer image. P2. E-consumer intentions to purchase from an e-retailer will be influenced by positive attitudes towards the e-retailer. P3. Actual purchases from an e-retailer will be positively influenced by intentions to purchase from an e-retailer. P4. Intention to shop with a particular e-retailer will be positively influenced by past experience. P5. Actual purchases from an e-retailer will positively influence experience. P6. E-consumer trust in an e-retailer will positively influence intention to e-shop. P7. Past experience and cues that reassure the consumer will positively influence trust in an e-retailer. P8. E-consumer attitudes towards an e-retailer will be positively influenced by e-interactivity. From the viewpoint of marketing organisations, a marketing strategy is intended to enhance the probability or frequency of consumer behaviours. Understanding consumers is a critical issue in developing marketing strategies, not only for retailers to adapt to consumers, but also to change what consumers think and feel about a variety of market offerings (Peter et al, 1999). Laudon and Traver (2003) demonstrate that some demographic groups have much higher percentages of online usage than other groups. The demographic profile of the Internet and e-commerce has changed greatly since 1995. There are several factors that influence the consumer behaviour, including gender, age, ethnicity, community type, income level and education. Consumers usually choose to shop online because it can save time and offer a wider range of products, by not going to store; can shop when stores are closed; might find better prices. Transaction cost reduction happens to be the main motivator for selecting th e online channel. However, there are two major criticisms of B2C marketing (Peter and Olson, 2008, pp2-16): firstly, it reaches only a small number of populations; secondly, consumers shop on the website to collect information about products and services but do not purchase. Consequently, several aspects could influence online consumer behaviours, for instance: whether consumers who want products are also Internet users; the size of the targeted e-retail market for the product or service and its geographic segmentation; whether buying the product or service through the Internet provides benefits to potential consumers. Turban et al. (2002) illustrate that e-commerce can be referred to as a new distribution channel; as a result, the task of attracting customers to an online company, customer acquisition, can be difficult and expensive, because it is necessary to first convince unwilling customers to shop online at first. Companies must build brand loyalty with new and existing customers, many successful e-retailers are using innovative technology to provide extra value is aiming to attract and maintain customers (Solomon et al, 2006). One of the benefits of doing Internet business is that it enables companies better understand their customers demands and buying habits, which will allow them to improve and customise their future marketing achievements (Turban et al, 2001, p128). For instance, Amazon can e-mail customers with announcements of new books published in a customers area of interest. Brown et al. (2001) point out that the Internet has transformed the social and spatial aspects of shopping for many consumers, thus, the Internet plays the role of facilitating the information search for consumers. The product acquisition process is increased by enabling consumers to access a significant amount of detailed information with regard to attributed product, comparative price, availability, and overall value proposition. Additionally, Peter and Olson (2008) state that marketing to consumers via the Internet has various benefits for marketers and that online B2C marketing requires marketers to achieve customers dema nds, just as traditional marketing does. Besides, online marketing allows products and services to be offered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, therefore, offering products and services globally in an efficient and cost-efficient manner, more precisely, online marketing provides ways for developing one-to-one relationships with consumers and establishing consumer databases to be established for conducting online research. However, Solomon et al. (2006, p319) state that e-commerce has its limitations. First of all, security is one important aspect. Some consumers credit cards and other identity information has been stolen. Secondly, is related to the actual shopping experience. Perhaps consumers will be satisfactory to buy digital cameras or books online, however, buying apparel in which customers should touch and try it on is necessary may be less attractive. Even though most companies have very liberal return policies, consumers still dissatisfied with large delivery and return postal charges for items. Some pros and cons of e-commerce are summarised in Table 2.2. Table 2.2 Pros and cons of e-commerce Benefits of e-commerce Limitations of e-commerce For the consumer For the consumer Shop 24 hours a day Lack of security Less travelling Fraud Can receive relevant information in seconds Cant touch items from any location Exact colours may not reproduce More choice of products on computer monitors More products available to less-developed countries Expensive to order and then return Greater price information Potential breakdown of human Lower prices so that less affluent can purchase relationships Participate in virtual auctions Fast delivery Electronic Communities For the marketer The world is the marketplace Lack of security Decreases costs of doing business Must maintain site to reap benefits Very specialised businesses can be successful Fierce price competition Real time pricing Conflicts with conventional retailers Legal issues not resolved Source: Solomon et al. (2006) cited from Solomon, M. and Stuart, E. W. (2001) Welcome to Marketing.com: The Brave New World of E-commerce. Consumer decision making According to Solomon (2009), a consumer purchase is a response to a problem, there are several steps of consumer decision making (1) problem recognition, (2) information search, (3) evaluation of alternatives, and (4) product choice. Before purchasing a product, consumers have to consider a variety of problems. Moreover, a useful way to characterize the decision making process is to consider the abundant efforts that relates to the decision each time it must be made. Peter et al. (1999) emphasis that consumer decision making is based on the knowledge, meanings, and beliefs activated from memory and the attention and comprehension processes involved in exploring new information in the environment. Thus, consumers make purchasing decisions about which behaviours to perform to achieve their goals and to solve the problems. To develop effective marketing strategies, marketers should know the types of problem-solving processes their consumers usually make purchase decisions. Marketers target several consumer segments, with different decision-making processes, may develop multiple strategies to affect the different decision outcomes (Peter and Olson, 2008). Gefen and Struab (2004) identify the concept of perceived risk in an individual purchase behavior model, and concluded the shopping behaviour can be regarded as a form of information gaining behaviour. Therefore, consumer choice of type of shopping is mainly affected by three factors: merchandise features, shopping device attributes and consumer characteristics. The consumers decision to purchase or not to purchase the product or service is a significant factor for most marketers. It can express whether a marketing strategy has been wise, insightful, effective and efficient, or whether it was weakly planned (Schiffman et al, 2008). Thus, consumer behaviour is not only making a purchase decision or the action of purchasing, but also includes the full range of experiences associated with using or consuming products or services. Moreover, it also consists of the sense of pleasure or satisfaction delivered through possessing or collecting products (Schiffman et al, 2008, p98). Customer Satisfaction Hill and Alexander (2006) point out that in recent times, organizations have increasingly understand the importance of customer satisfaction. It is far less costly to maintain existing customers than to obtain new ones. Companies have invested enormously in improving performance in making a strong contribution to customer satisfaction, such as quality and customer service. Therefore, the authors supplement that the fundamental justification for measuring customer satisfaction is to provide the information which enables managers to make the right decisions to maximise customer satisfaction and improve customer retention. (Hill and Alexander, 2006, p9) Additionally, anyone involved in measuring customer satisfaction must have a specific understanding of the ways in which customers make and evaluate their purchase decisions. Lee et al. (2006) propose that a satisfied customer tends to return for future business and thereby contributes to the retention rate of the existing customers. Additionally, a satisfied customer is probably to offer positive word-of-mouth products or service about the purchasing experience. The World Wide Web spreads a virtual market place for customers to search for and purchase. Previous researches conducted that there were no remarkable difference between online and offline shopping environments which regard to customer satisfaction (Lee et al. cited in Smith and Rangaswamy (2003), pp.65). Besides, Szymanski and Hise (2000) investigate that the vital components of customer satisfaction framework are focused on the customer relationship management concept, including website convenience, provision of product i nformation, web page design, and security concerns. Amazon customer review With the Internets increasing popularity, online consumer reviews have turned into a vital resource for consumers substituting and complementing other forms of business-to-consumer and offline word-of-mouth communication about product quality (Zhu and Zhang, 2010). Therefore, online consumer reviews can enormously influence consumers purchasing decisions. In order to reduce the search costs for reviews, Amazon has recently modified the way to display star levels for each item. Although it previously showed only an average star rating, it shows how many people rated the item with each of the 1-5 stars, thus, readers can choose to read reviews for a given star level. An investigation by Chevalier and Mayzlin (2006), on average, reviews tend to be positive, they demonstrate that the addition of new, favourable reviews at one site results in a growth of the sales of a book at that site relative to the other site. Moreover, they also find an incremental negative review is more powerful in decreasing book sales than an incremental positive review is increasing sales (Chevalier and Mayzlin, 2006, pp.345-347). Consumers regularly read and respond to written reviews, not merely the average star ranking summary provided by the website. Moreover, the authors conclude that customer reviews tend to be positive at both sites and that

Role of Women in Arthur Millers Death of a Salesman Essays -- Death

Role of Women in Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman      Death of a Salesman is of course about a salesman, but it is also about the American dream of success. Somewhere in between the narrowest topic, the death of a salesman, and the largest topic, the examination of American values, is Miller's picture of the American family. This paper will chiefly study one member of the family, Willy's wife, Linda Loman, but before examining Miller's depiction of her, it will look at Miller's depiction of other women in the play in order to make clear Linda's distinctive traits. We will see that although her role in society is extremely limited, she is an admirable figure, fulfilling the roles of wife and mother with remarkable intelligence. Linda is the only woman who is on stage much of the time, but there are several other women in the play: "the Woman" (the unnamed woman in Willy's hotel room), Miss Forsythe and her friend Letta (the two women who join the brothers in the restaurant), Jenny (Charley's secretary), the various women that the brothers talk about, and the voices of Howard's daughter and wife. We also hear a little about Willy's mother. We will look first at the least important, but not utterly unimportant, of these, the voices of according t... ...n French. Deland, Florida: Everett/Edwards, 1969. 273-83. Koon, Helene Wickham, ed. Twentieth Century Interpretations of Death of a Salesman. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice, 1983. Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman. Literature. Ed. Sylvan Bates New York: Longman, 1997. 1163-1231. Parker, Brian. "Point of View in Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman." University of Toronto Quarterly 35 (1966): 144-47. Rpt. in Koon. 41-55 Stanton, Kay. "Women and the American Dream of Death of a Salesman." Feminist Readings of American Drama. Ed. Judith Schlueter. Rutherford, New Jersey: Fairleigh Dickinson UP, 1989. 67-102.

Educational Reform in the Philippines

The Giant planets Lesson 8. 8 Introduction: Gas giants fall into different categories. So-called â€Å"traditional† gas giants include Jupiter. Jupiter is such a classic example of a gas giant that gas giants are often referred to as Jovian planets despite the fact that some gas giants ,ice giants for instance are very different from Jupiter. Traditional gas giants have high levels of hydrogen and helium. Another category of gas giants is ice giants. Ice giants are also composed of small amounts of hydrogen and helium; however, they have high levels of what are called â€Å"ices. These ices include methane, water, and ammonia. I. Objectives: A. Identify the different kinds of giants planet B. Explain the structure of the giants planets II. Learning Content: There are four gas giants in our Solar System: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. As noted, Jupiter is a traditional gas giant. Saturn is also a traditional gas giant. However, Uranus and Neptune are ice giants. Their b lue color is due to the large amounts of methane in the planets. All of the gas giants in our Solar System have planetary ring system, and they are all much larger than the terrestrial planets in the Solar System. All of the gas giants in our Solar System also have many moons. Again, Jupiter holds the record with 63   moons discovered so far. Outer Planets For the outer planets, the division is more distinct, with the inner two gas giants, Jupiter and Saturn being quite different in many ways from the outer two gas giants, Uranus and Neptune. In terms of size, Saturn, with a diameter of 120,000km is not a world away from Jupiter, with a 142,000km diameter. However the other two planets, Uranus and Neptune have diameters of ‘only' 51,800km and 50,000km respectively – roughly the size of the core of Saturn or Jupiter. This large size difference is responsible for many other differences between the two groups, for instance Jupiter and Saturn both have sufficiently high internal pressures to ‘squeeze' large quantities of Hydrogen into a metallic state in their cores, whilst Uranus and Neptune can produce only a tiny fraction of this amount. As a consequence, their magnetic fields are much smaller than those of Saturn and Jupiter, whose magnetic fields are generated in large part thanks to electrical currents moving through this material. JUPITER| SATURN| URANUS| Diameter| 142,600 km| Average Distance from Sun| 778,412,010 km| Mass| 1. 90 x 1027 kg| Size compared to Earth| 11x| Gravity compared to Earth| 2. 34x| Surface Temperature| 165 K| Length of day| 9 hours 50 minutes| Length of year| 11. 84 years| Eccentricity of Orbit| 0. 048| Density| 1. 33 gm/cm3| Moons| 63| Atmosphere| Hydrogen – 90% Helium – 10% Traces of Methane & Ammonia| | Diameter| 120,200 km| Average Distance from Sun| 1,427 million km| Mass| 5. 68 x 1026 kg| Size Compared to Earth (Diameter)| 9x| Gravity compared to Earth| 0. 93x| Cloud-Top Temperature| -180 °C| Length of Day| 10 hours 14 mins| Length of Year| 29. 46 Earth years| Eccentricity of Orbit| 0. 056| Moons| 30+| Density| 0. 70gm/cm3| Atmosphere| Hydrogen – 94% Helium – 6% Traces of Methane, Ammonia & Water Vapour| | Diameter| 51,800 km| Average Distance from Sun| 2,871 million km 19. 2AU| Mass| 8. 68 x 1025 kg| Size compared to Earth (Diameter)| 4x| Gravity compared to Earth| 0. 79x| Surface temperature| -210 °C| Length of Day| 17 hours 14 mins(Retrograde)| Length of Year| 84. 01 Earth years| Eccentricity of Orbit| 0. 046| Moons| 21| Density| 1. 30gm/cm3| Atmosphere| Hydrogen – 85% Helium – 13% Methane – 2%| | Diameter| 49,528 km| Average Distance from Sun| 4,501 million km| Mass| 1. 02 x 1026kg| Size compared to Earth| 3. 8x| Gravity compared to Earth| 1. 2x| Cloud-Top Temperature| -220 °C| Length of Day| 16. 11 hours| Length of Year| 164. 8 Earth years| Eccentricity of Orbit| 0. 009| Moons| 8| Density| 1. 76 gm/cm3| Atmosphere| Hydrogen – 85% Helium – 13% Methane – 2%| Test yourself A. Write the word/s describe in each number. ______________1. Planets had 63 moons ______________2. It is a large planet in a solar system _____________ 3. Planets had eight moons ______________4. Roman God of Agriculture ______________5. A Dwarf among Giants planet B. Write true if the statement is correct and if it is false write the correct word above the underlined concept. _______________1. Jovian planet refers to the Roman god Jupiter _______________2. Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune are often called â€Å"Gas Giants _______________3. Giant planets had a coldness atmosphere _______________4. Uranus has an extreme tilt that causes its seasons to be severely marked. _______________5. Hot Jupiter also called roaster planets. Written report In Astronomy Submitted by: Marilyn G. Habla Rodel Hererra BEED CC3A

Arthur Miller’s Treatment of Women Essay

Throughout â€Å"Death of a Salesman†, Arthur Miller presents a very bleak view of women. From the male opinion, to their place in the play, women were subjugated. Some may think this was just a role set out by Arthur Miller for this play. I find this difficult to believe given the ubiquity, leaving me to think that Mr. Miller is an unrelenting misogynist. This is not only demonstrated by the superficial factors such as, dialogue, events, but also the subtle nuances. Factors like setting and relationships. Through this essay I will make clear Arthur Millers true opinion on women evident via events, characters, setting, relationships and dialogue; the much concealed misogyny of Arthur Miller, and Death of a Salesman. The most apparent demonstration of Arthur Millers misogyny was through the dialogue. One of numerous occasions the Loman men objectified women was while Happy and Biff are having a boorish conversation about a past girl they had both slept with, that was my first time I think. Boy, there was a pig! (Death of a Salesman, page 21) Pigs are known as foul and dirty ubiquitously throughout a variety of different cultures and religions. I vehemently cannot see a greater disrespect than associating this animal with a human being. I dont think there could be more a dehumanizing comment. Throughout the novel the Loman men, especially Happy referred to women as creatures. This once again, is utterly disrespectful; it classifies women as subhuman. A common misconception about poor-standing characters in novels is that they dont necessarily represent the authors beliefs. This is something that I couldnt agree with more, but in order for this to happen, you have to demonstrate an opposite; a moral high ground, which Arthur Miller doesnt do whatsoever. Not once does a character stand in opposition nor do they present an alternative to the Loman misogyny. Events throughout the novel stand in no conflict to the soon to be obvious thesis, that Mr. Miller is a misogynist. I think there is no better example of his misogynic behavior than that of the primary character; Willy cheating on his wife Linda with a more appealing woman. But why might Willy seek another woman when he had a loyal wife at home? The only apparent reason is because his respect for women seems to be absolutely foreign. Even when his son Biff catches his father in the act, there is no sorrow for Linda. The  only distress felt is Biff disappointment in his father for having no willpower. One might think that those tears were for Linda, but this is clearly not true. If Biff really cared so deeply for his mother he would have told her about what had happened, something he did not do. This wasnt the only event that demonstrates Millers women hating ways. Early on in the novel Willy states disappointment with Linda over something as simple as purchasing cheese. This clearl y exemplifies a belief that women are incapable of doing anything correctly. Arthur Miller, like everything women related, had a very sour view on relationships. For starters, Happy, Stanley and Biff viewed women as form of entertainment, a game for them to hunt. They saw no emotion, nothing human; all they saw was a trophy. I assume one might say that, that wasnt the role Linda played. Which is true, but I must ask in return, was she free from denigration? Linda was issued just as little respect, apparent or not. For example anytime the conversation involved Linda, she had little importance in it, or was purely ignored. The only time she could get a word in is when she was involved in a one on one conversation; otherwise she was virtually demoted to the status of a doormat. A key factor of Arthur Millers misogyny was established through the settling and the American culture. This play is thought to take place in a morally primitive state in history. This was a very hierarchical time, when blacks didnt have the vote and women were still viewed as less than human. To even expect Arthur Miller to jet set equality would be a ridiculous request. I dont think Arthur Miller was an above and beyond typical misogyny, more complied with the post great depression time. This doesnt make it right it just demonstrates a large precedent that Mr. Miller obviously followed. With this time came a belief to fulfill the American Dream. The three primary components on the American Dream were fame, wealth and women. This isnt to say that there isnt a more politically correct way to get women. At this time women were viewed and thought as something to be swept away. Even to this day there is a certain expectation of male dominances that men comply with and women expect. For e xample, the stigma of a girl asking out a boy on a date. If it wasnt for our past cultures standards Arthur Miller wouldnt  have complied with this misogyny, and nor would the rest of society. Throughout this essay I express a non-obvious thesis that Arthur Miller was a misogynist as demonstrated in his famous play, Death of a Salesman. This sentiment was expressed in virtually every facet of this play; from the palpable dialogue, to the subtle nuances of Willys misogynistic relationship with Linda. The stink of Mr. Millers misogyny is ever prevalent but why? As previously mentioned, I speculate the reason stems from cultures treatment of the women; but if one complies with culture isnt one justified or thought of as righteous? This is a catch twenty-two, righteousness is essentially made up of societal majority, something that Arthur Miller complied with. Unfortunately standards have changed and with that so did what was right. Mr. Miller is by means no demon, just another person demonized by an evolved society.

Arrhenius Equation Formula and Example

Arrhenius Equation Formula and Example In 1889, Svante Arrhenius formulated the Arrhenius equation, which relates reaction rate to temperature. A broad generalization of the Arrhenius equation is to say the reaction rate for many chemical reactions doubles for every increase in 10 degrees Celsius or Kelvin. While this rule of thumb isnt always accurate, keeping it in mind is a good way to check whether a calculation made using the Arrhenius equation is reasonable. Formula There are two common forms of the Arrhenius equation. Which one you use depends on whether you have an activation energy in terms of energy per mole (as in chemistry) or energy per molecule (more common in physics). The equations are essentially the same, but the units are different. The Arrhenius equation as its used in chemistry is often stated according to the formula: k Ae-Ea/(RT) k is the rate constantA is an exponential factor that is a constant for a given chemical reaction, relating the frequency of collisions of particlesEa is the activation energy of the reaction (usually given in Joules per mole or J/mol)R is the universal gas constantT is the absolute temperature (in Kelvins) In physics, the more common form of the equation is: k Ae-Ea/(KBT) k, A, and T are the same as beforeEa is the activation energy of the chemical reaction in JouleskB is the Boltzmann constant In both forms of the equation, the units of A are the same as those of the rate constant. The units vary according to the order of the reaction. In a first-order reaction, A has units of per second (s-1), so it may also be called the frequency factor. The constant k is the number of collisions between particles that produce a reaction per second, while A is the number of collisions per second (which may or may not result in a reaction) that are in the proper orientation for a reaction to occur. For most calculations, the temperature change is small enough that the activation energy is not dependent on temperature. In other words, its usually not necessary to know the activation energy to compare the effect of temperature on reaction rate. This makes the math much simpler. From examining the equation, it should be apparent the rate of a chemical reaction may be increased by either increasing the temperature of a reaction or by decreasing its activation energy. This is why catalysts speed up reactions! Example Find the rate coefficient at 273 K for the decomposition of nitrogen dioxide, which has the reaction: 2NO2(g) → 2NO(g) O2(g) You are given that the activation energy of the reaction is 111 kJ/mol, the rate coefficient is 1.0 x 10-10 s-1, and the value of R is 8.314 x 10-3 kJ mol-1K-1. In order to solve the problem, you need to assume A and Ea dont vary significantly with temperature. (A small deviation might be mentioned in an error analysis, if you are asked to identify sources of error.) With these assumptions, you can calculation the value of A at 300 K. Once you have A, you can plug it into the equation to solve for k at the temperature of 273 K. Start by setting up the initial calculation: k Ae-Ea/RT 1.0 x 10-10 s-1 Ae(-111 kJ/mol)/(8.314 x 10-3 kJ mol-1K-1)(300K) Use your scientific calculator to solve for A and then plug in the value for the new temperature. To check your work, notice the temperature decreased by nearly 20 degrees, so the reaction should only be about a fourth as fast (decreased by about half for every 10 degrees). Avoiding Mistakes in Calculations The most common errors made in performing calculations are using constant that have different units from each other and forgetting to convert Celsius (or Fahrenheit) temperature to Kelvin. Its also a good idea to keep the number of significant digits in mind when reporting answers. Arrhenius Plot Taking the natural logarithm of the Arrhenius equation and rearranging the terms yields an equation that has the same form as the equation of a straight line (y mxb): ln(k) -Ea/R (1/T) ln(A) In this case, the x of the line equation is the reciprocal of absolute temperature (1/T). So, when data is taken on the rate of a chemical reaction, a plot of ln(k) versus 1/T produces a straight line. The gradient or slope of the line and its intercept can be used to determine the exponential factor A and the activation energy Ea. This is a common experiment when studying chemical kinetics.

Workers Union essays

Workers Union essays 1. I do not believe that it is wrong for companies to replace striking workers. If it was against the law to replace those workers, different companies would have employees going on strike everyday. I understand that there are some circumstances where a company may not be paying their employees enough to get by, but there are employees out there that would go on strike just because they want, not need, but want more money. I believe that if the replacement workers are doing a better job than the former employees, and they are satisfied with the pay, then why not hire them permanently? 2. Of course, the first negative that comes to mind when you think of replacing strike workers is the fact that there are going to more people added to the unemployed list if you replace the strike workers. Some companies may lose profit from potential customers if the customers feel like the company does not care for their employees. And, like in Firestones case, if the new employees do not do as good of a job, the products being produced may be of lesser quality. 3. When a union goes on strike, the workers on strike lose their pay for whatever time period they are on strike. They also face the chance of losing their job permanently. The companies may have to eventually give in to the strike losing profit, and as I said in question 2, customers may see the company differently, and if they replace the workers permanently, the products may be of lesser quality. 4. Would I cross a picket line and fill the job of a striking worker? The first thing that comes to my mind is the strikes in baseball. Its just ridiculous. Baseball players get a minimum of $250,000 a year. Thats the minimum, and if you cant live on that, you are out of your mind. Most teams only have one or two guys on the roster that are getting paid that little. In this circumstance, yes I would cross a picket line in a heartbeat. I wouldnt ...

Definition of Suprasegmental With Examples

Definition of Suprasegmental With Examples In speech, suprasegmental refers to  a phonological property of more than one sound segment. Also called nonsegmental. As discussed in the examples and observations below, suprasegmental information applies to several different linguistic phenomena (such as pitch, duration, and loudness). Suprasegmentals are often regarded as  the musical aspects of speech. The  term suprasegmental  (referring to functions that are over vowels and consonants) was coined by American structuralists in the 1940s. Examples and Observations The effect of suprasegmentals is easy to illustrate. In talking to a cat, a dog or a baby, you may adopt a particular set of suprasegmentals. Often, when doing this, people adopt a different voice quality, with high pitch register, and protrude their lips and adopt a tongue posture where the tongue body is high and front in the mouth, making the speech sound softer.Suprasegmentals are important for marking all kinds of meanings, in particular speakers attitudes or stances to what they are saying (or the person they are saying it to), and in marking out how one utterance relates to another (e.g. a continuation or a disjunction). Both the forms and functions of suprasegmentals are less tangible than those of consonants and vowels, and they often do not form discrete categories. (Richard Ogden,  An Introduction to English Phonetics. Edinburgh University Press, 2009) Common Suprasegmental Features Vowels and consonants are considered as small segments of the speech, which together form a syllable and make the utterance. Specific features that are superimposed on the utterance of the speech are known as supra-segmental features. Common supra-segmental features are the stress, tone,  and duration in the syllable or word for a continuous speech sequence. Sometimes even harmony and nasalization are also included under this category. Supra-segmental or prosodic features are often used in the context of speech to make it more meaningful and effective. Without supra-segmental features superimposed on the segmental features, a continuous speech can also convey meaning but often loses the effectiveness of the message being conveyed. (Manisha Kulshreshtha at al., Speaker Profiling. Forensic Speaker Recognition: Law Enforcement and Counter-Terrorism, ed. by Amy Neustein and Hemant A. Patil. Springer, 2012) Varieties A very obvious suprasegmental is intonation since an intonation pattern by definition extends over a whole utterance or a sizable piece of an utterance...Less obvious is stress, but not only is stress a property of a whole syllable but the stress level of a syllable can only be determined by comparing it with neighboring syllables which have greater or lesser degrees of stress... The American structuralists also treated juncture phenomena as suprasegmental. Differences in juncture are the reason that night rate does not sound like nitrate, or why choose like white shoes, and why the consonants in the middle of pen-knife and lamp-post are the way they are. Since these items contain essentially the same sequences of segments, the junctural differences have to be described in terms of different juncture placement within sequences of segments. In most of these cases, the phonetic realization of the suprasegmental actually extends over more than one segment, but the key point is that, in all of them, the description of the suprasegmental must involve reference to more than one segment.   (R.L. Trask, Language and Linguistics: The Key  Concepts, 2nd ed., edited by Peter Stockwell. Routledge, 2007) Suprasegmental Information Suprasegmental information is signaled in speech with variations in duration, pitch, and amplitude (loudness). Information like this helps the hearer segment the signal into words, and can even affect lexical searches directly. In English, lexical stress serves to distinguish words from each other...for example, compare trusty and trustee. Not surprisingly, English speakers are attentive to stress patterns during lexical access... Suprasegmental information can be used to identify the location of word boundaries also. In languages like English or Dutch, monosyllabic words are durationally very different than polysyllabic words. For example, the [hà ¦m] in ham has longer duration than it does in hamster. An investigation by Salverda, Dahan, and McQueen (2003) demonstrates that this durational information is actively used by the hearer. (Eva M. Fernndez and Helen Smith Cairns, Fundamentals of Psycholinguistics. Wiley-Blackwell, 2011) Suprasegmental and Prosodic Although the terms suprasegmental and prosodic to a large extent coincide in their scope and reference, it is nevertheless sometimes useful, and desirable, to distinguish them. To begin with, a simple dichotomy segmental vs. suprasegmental does not do justice to the richness of phonological structure above the segment;...this structure is complex, involving a variety of different dimensions, and prosodic features cannot simply be seen as features which are superimposed on segments. More importantly, a distinction can be made between suprasegmental as a mode of description on the one hand and prosodic as a kind of feature on the other. In other words, we may use the term suprasegmental to refer to a particular formalization in which a phonological feature can be analyzed in this way, whether it is prosodic or not. The term prosodic, on the other hand, can be applied to certain features of utterances regardless of how they are formalized; prosodic features can, in principle, be analyzed segmentally as well as suprasegmentally. To give a more concrete example, in some theoretical frameworks features such as nasality or voice may be treated suprasegmentally, as having extended beyond the limits of a single segment. In the usage adopted here, however, such features are not prosodic, even though they may be amenable to suprasegmental analysis.   (Anthony Fox, Prosodic Features and  Prosodic Structure: The Phonology of Suprasegmentals. Oxford University Press, 2000)

Management Credibility and Honesty Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Management Credibility and Honesty - Essay Example A company which ignores management and credibility in its dealing with the working capital will in the long term be characterised by a negative return over the time and ultimately it will have damaged the trust of its shareholders due to its accounting manipulations.There will be a weakened balance sheet through excessive debt and poor working capital management.Based on the above problems this paper reviews through the example of the Enron Saga the importance of management credibility and honesty on working capital management for company and the effect of bad management credibility and honesty.The significance of management   and the link with working capitalCooke and Williams (1998) state that without planning it is difficult to envisage the successful conclusion of any project or the effective control of time, money or resources. Planning is essential throughout all stages of the process from inception through to design, tendering, construction and commissioning stages of a proj ect. The reasons for planning are summarised below.†¢Ã‚  To aid contract control†¢Ã‚  To establish realistic standards†¢Ã‚  To monitor performance in terms of output, time and moneyIt is an essential function of management to prepare forecasts in order to establish a plan for the future of the business. Without a plan against which to monitor performance, management has no control and no business can be run successfully without keeping close control over the day- to -day finances. Control is achieved by preparing budgets.... roblems this paper reviews through the example of the Enron Saga the importance of management credibility and honesty on working capital management for company and the effect of bad management credibility and honesty. The significance of management and the link with working capital Cooke and Williams (1998) state that without planning it is difficult to envisage the successful conclusion of any project or the effective control of time, money or resources. Planning is essential throughout all stages of the process from inception through to design, tendering, construction and commissioning stages of a project. The reasons for planning are summarised below. To aid contract control To establish realistic standards To monitor performance in terms of output, time and money To keep the plan under constant review and take action when necessary to correct the situation It is an essential function of management to prepare forecasts in order to establish a plan for the future of the business. Without a plan against which to monitor performance, management has no control and no business can be run successfully without keeping close control over the day- to -day finances. This involves providing the information necessary for keeping managers informed so that decisions can be made about how business should react to current circumstances.When managing a project, or number of projects, accurate scheduling is critical to success. Double- booked resources, inaccurate information, mishandling of materials, and more can cause significant delays in the project that result in massive profit loss. It is vital therefore that a form of cash flow monitoring is in place. Financial plans are called budgets, and the process of making, monitoring and adjusting them is called budgetary

Mosques in America Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

Mosques in America - Research Paper Example However with the emergence of Christianity and Islam, the technological development, particularly in the area of transportation and distribution of ideas, people started moving around the world more intensively, settling in other countries and bringing their religion with them. As a result, the societies which used to be homogeneous in terms of ethnicity and religion now included foreign elements. At the present moment this phenomenon can be easily observed world wide. It may be necessary to narrow the analysis down to a particular religion and country to perform a detailed examination of the issue. Thus, this paper will show mosques in the United States of America feature a considerable number of peculiarities which can be explained by the relationship between this country and the Arab world. To begin with, it may be particularly important to pay attention to those who visit mosques, namely the believers. According to a recent study, it is suggested that the number of Muslims in the United States may be underestimated. Indeed, it has been pointed out that only a million and a half people who live in America are to be seen as followers of Islam; however, it was found that Eid Prayer which is one of the major holidays in the Islamic world was attended by over two and a half million people in 2011 (Bagby, 2011, p. 4). It is quite obvious that this number may not be used as a rough estimation, but it surely casts a shadow on the previous estimates. There is no doubt that during census people might not have stated their religion or did not take part in it at all. However, one should put emphasis on the fact that the presence of Muslims in the United States is surely being underestimated. This holds important implications when it comes to the number of mosques as well as their value since there more there are Muslims, the more

Comparison of Two Organisation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Comparison of Two Organisation - Essay Example The best fit organisational structure depends on many factors such as organisational goals, industry structure, and number of employees, employee maturity, type of product and service, customer expectations, geographical scope and so on. However, in order to understand the organisational structures and designs of Biogenta plc and Outback Inc., two generic forms of organisational structures and designs would be sufficient. There are mechanistic and organic organisational structures. Biogenta represents the latter whereas Outback is just the right example of the former (Cameron and Quinn, 2011, pp. 52-53). Mechanistic organisations have a rigid and tightly controlled structure. Mechanistic structures are characterised with a high degree of specialisation, inflexible departmentalisation, and narrow span of control, a significantly high degree of formalisation, centralisation and strong and unchallengeable chain of command. Mechanistic organisations such as Outback Inc. tend to rely on p rudent rules and regulations to control the behaviour of all the members (Cameron and Quinn, 2011, pp. 52-53). As mentioned earlier that mechanistic structures are not â€Å"appalling† or â€Å"unfit† within themselves. In fact, organisations which are operating within stable, calculated and predictable environment should go for mechanistic organisational structures since it helps them to maximise their control. Many governmental organisations and large corporations, especially until a few decades back, show characteristics of mechanistic structures. When the political, social, legal, environmental, economic, cultural and technological forces along with the industry’s competitive... This essay stresses that Outback Inc should move towards a more organic organisational structure by decentralising, widening the span of control, cutting down the hierarchical levels, reducing the impact of departments, creating more and more cross functional and hierarchical teams and decreasing formalisation. †¢ Outback should also create mechanisms to gradually and steadily change its organisational culture from a power culture to a more democratic and constructive culture where employees feel more empowered to share their ideas and thoughts. Outback could learn from the experience and strategies of Biogenta in terms of creating cross departmental and cross hierarchical teams since the same would bring employees together and foster communication. All work and no play have been making the employees of Outback dull and lethargic. The company should create mechanisms to produce adventure for its employees as well as it does for its customers. This report makes a conclusion that Biogenta knows how to use the variables and dynamics of organisational behaviour in its own favour and maximise the productivity of the organisation. On the other hand, Outback has been very slow in responding to the signals and alarms and time has come that it should initiate some major changes. Following are a few recommendations in this regard. The paper provides some recommendations based on the analysis and discussion.

Assignmentweek5 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Assignmentweek5 - Assignment Example The employee training that is derived from the client’s needs is useful in addressing customers concerns. Being the boss, I believe that the buck stops with me. During the training, I will tell employees that the importance of feedback mechanism is to get an opportunity to learn from our challenges and weakness with the view of offering better services to the customers. It also informs us on how we can remain competitive and easily beat our competitors (Stacey, 1996). Focus groups involves gathering of between 6-8 persons from the target market guided with a moderator and have them share their ideas, feelings and attitudes about a subject. Some of the advantages includes; cost effective when gathering primary data, easily to build on others ideas and makes it easier in getting the idea of the target market. The disadvantage is that it can only gather opinions on ideas and concepts and not how people can best use the designs. They can be used when attempting to develop something new but not sure on how people might react and also when one has no or little knowledge about the target market. They could however go wrong when an idea of a vocal person overrides other participant’s ideas besides, it can go wrong when quantitative data is required (Stacey,

Research Report for the Business development in the engineering sector Paper

Report for the Business development in the engineering sector - Research Paper Example This calls for acute understanding of the customer expectations. Research shows that the mastery of technological and scientific disciplines is not enough to deal with the market dynamics of a technologically driven economy. There have been profound implications in the technologically driven global economy. Developing business in the sector requires engineers capable of working in different cultures and with knowledge on the dynamics of the global markets. The distinction between collaboration and competition in the sector continues to blur. Therefore, new perspectives must be developed to build competitiveness in the sector. This paper will be discussing the changing global knowledge which has driven economy and caused the engineering sector to shift from the conservative to business-sensitive approach in a quest meet the organizational objectives, business development needs and respond to the customer expectations High quality engineering services are being developed in countries w ith cheap labor (Rob, 2002). The aim is to lower the costs of labor. Developed countries like United States have been forced to look for cheaper labor to compete with China and India. Contemporary business development practices demands that interdisciplinary strategies be used to attract potential customers, develop quality products and other stakeholders (Annacchino, 2007). The modern engineering practice is bound to shift from the conservative approach of market ting and service delivery. Engineering sector is calling for innovative solution with involve cultural, social, ethical and environmental issues. Modern engineers rarely take the leadership positions in business issues (Haaf et al, 2002). The knowledge-intensive business society demands engineers with knowledge concerning marketplace and how to develop technical solutions are responsive to the needs of the society. The culture in developed countries, the free-market and demographic values offer a conducive environment for technological innovation. Business development in engineering sector shall involve empowering the engineers with sales and marketing skills (Annacchino, 2007). The brand dynamics must be understood in the sector (Rob, 2002). Technical engineers are product developers. They should be in a position to understand the market needs and competitiveness of services and products. Adding value in the engineering sector shall entail giving them the skills on developing competitive products, understanding market needs, responding the consumer expectation and means of sales (Haaf et al, 2002). This demands increased creativity, innovation and communication skills. The construction industry can develop competitive designs that address consumer concerns. This involves ensuring the stakeholders deliver quality in the construction process. There has been a long standing conflict between marketing and engineering (Haaf et al, 2002). The conflict is being addressed through integration, commercializin g of products and establishing successful development processes (Annacchino, 2007). This demands support from management to ensure products are developed in an integrated process. This marketing process takes into consideration the personality differences and capabilities of the manufacturing personnel. Knowledge management is the use of strategies to identify, distribute, and adopt experiences and insights beneficial to an engineering organization (Rob, 2002). An increasing

Brand Image Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Brand Image Development - Essay Example Competitor Selection Coca-cola Company has been a successful company over the years and is the leading group in the beverage industry. It is known for the production of brands which include coke, Fanta, coke classic and Diet coke. It is a company that ensures that the demands of all consumers are met by their production of a wide variety of drinks. The company is devoted to offering secure and high quality beverages (The coca-cola company, 2012). They have gained the trust from customers because they provide honest and correct data especially on the nutritional information. This explains why it has a high-quality over all over the world. The products offered are of different sizes so that the consumer can choose from a variety. It recognizes the fact that the world is dynamic, and changes every day, therefore, they develop their products accordingly. The competitors have a low representation as Coca-Cola has the biggest percent, 70% of consumers as compared to Pepsi’s 20% and Schweppes’s, 10%. Analysis of Price The prices are reasonable and are developed depending on the market. They also vary depending on the size of the bottle and seasons. (The coca-cola company, 2012) Some seasons such as summer have the prices of the products elevated. Research shows that 13% of consumers buy products in relation to price. Analysis of Distribution Distribution is offered to middle men and retailers, and this way, the products are sold extensively. This incentive is taken to reduce the costs associated with individual distribution. They have one main distribution point whereby the middle men obtain the products. Coca-cola products are well distributed with only 3% who do not have some of the products available. Analysis of Promotion The coca-cola company promotes their products by conducting sales events, and develops competitions with prizes to be won. Promotions are aimed to persuade the customer and make them purchase the goods. Advertising is also a form of promotion in which Coca-cola is known for their catchy advertisements. This is done through newspapers, television, posters and billboards. They also offer scholarships to students and also sponsor events such as games (The ‘coca-cola’ brand & sponsorship, 2000). Coca-cola has been successful because of their uniqueness around the world. It maintains to be the most trusted beverage brand and is the most preferred brand in relation to the research. This shows that they promote their products in the right manner. Part 2 Brand Background Founded in 1886, coca-cola has continued to develop extensively throughout the world. (The Coca-Cola Company, 2012). Coca-Cola has kept on implementing brand strategies that involve renewing policies and systems to keep up with the changing world. Coca-cola believes in responsible marketing of their products. This is explained by the fact that they target different customers including children. The company, therefore, has a policy that co vers responsible marketing all over the world. Coca-Cola mainly targets the young people, and that is why most of advertising on media is done by young people. Coca-Cola has been the leading brand because the company keeps on reinventing their products.  

Research Report for the Business development in the engineering sector Paper

Report for the Business development in the engineering sector - Research Paper Example This calls for acute understanding of the customer expectations. Research shows that the mastery of technological and scientific disciplines is not enough to deal with the market dynamics of a technologically driven economy. There have been profound implications in the technologically driven global economy. Developing business in the sector requires engineers capable of working in different cultures and with knowledge on the dynamics of the global markets. The distinction between collaboration and competition in the sector continues to blur. Therefore, new perspectives must be developed to build competitiveness in the sector. This paper will be discussing the changing global knowledge which has driven economy and caused the engineering sector to shift from the conservative to business-sensitive approach in a quest meet the organizational objectives, business development needs and respond to the customer expectations High quality engineering services are being developed in countries w ith cheap labor (Rob, 2002). The aim is to lower the costs of labor. Developed countries like United States have been forced to look for cheaper labor to compete with China and India. Contemporary business development practices demands that interdisciplinary strategies be used to attract potential customers, develop quality products and other stakeholders (Annacchino, 2007). The modern engineering practice is bound to shift from the conservative approach of market ting and service delivery. Engineering sector is calling for innovative solution with involve cultural, social, ethical and environmental issues. Modern engineers rarely take the leadership positions in business issues (Haaf et al, 2002). The knowledge-intensive business society demands engineers with knowledge concerning marketplace and how to develop technical solutions are responsive to the needs of the society. The culture in developed countries, the free-market and demographic values offer a conducive environment for technological innovation. Business development in engineering sector shall involve empowering the engineers with sales and marketing skills (Annacchino, 2007). The brand dynamics must be understood in the sector (Rob, 2002). Technical engineers are product developers. They should be in a position to understand the market needs and competitiveness of services and products. Adding value in the engineering sector shall entail giving them the skills on developing competitive products, understanding market needs, responding the consumer expectation and means of sales (Haaf et al, 2002). This demands increased creativity, innovation and communication skills. The construction industry can develop competitive designs that address consumer concerns. This involves ensuring the stakeholders deliver quality in the construction process. There has been a long standing conflict between marketing and engineering (Haaf et al, 2002). The conflict is being addressed through integration, commercializin g of products and establishing successful development processes (Annacchino, 2007). This demands support from management to ensure products are developed in an integrated process. This marketing process takes into consideration the personality differences and capabilities of the manufacturing personnel. Knowledge management is the use of strategies to identify, distribute, and adopt experiences and insights beneficial to an engineering organization (Rob, 2002). An increasing

Kant and Mill Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

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Impact of Tariffs on U.S Trade and Economy

Impact of Tariffs on U.S Trade and Economy Abstract This paper analyzes current trade tariffs in the United States and their impact on trade and the overall economy.   It notes that the United States has, over the past three decades, engaged in more open approach to trading with trading agreements like NAFTA.   Although such agreements have had negative effects in jobs losses in certain economic sectors, it has been beneficial in growing trade among the signatories of the agreement.   The paper also notes that the United States has some of the lowest tariffs overall with trade-weighted import tariff at 2% for industrial goods which constitutes 90% of all imports.   The consequences of the liberal trade approach have been the continued increase in American trade deficit that topped $811 billion in 2017.   In spite of the growing trade deficit, the United States has remained has the largest economy and has grown robustly over the decades with the exception of considerable slowdown after the financial crisis. There are ongoing concerns as noted in regard to the trade spat with China that could lead to the imposition of tariffs and counter-tariffs potentially leading to full-scale trade war which would negatively affect the economies of both nations. Existing uncertainty also impacts investment in sectors that are geared towards exports and could lead to lower than projected economic performance.  Ã‚   Impact of Import and Export Tariffs on U.S. Trade and Economy A trade tariff is one form of trade protectionism that is employed by nations creating a barrier to trade.   There are a range of reasons including encouraging local product that prompts governments to impose trade barriers including trade tariffs.   This paper evaluates existing trade tariffs in the United States (U.S.) and their impact on the country’s trade and economy.   It utilizes practical examples of the application of the concept of trade tariffs and economic impact. Current Trade Tariffs on U. S. Imports and Exports Trade barriers are imposed for several reasons. Some of the reasons are: protecting local jobs, protecting newer industries, encouraging local production, reducing reliance on foreign suppliers, reducing payment problems, and promoting exporting (Collinson, Narula, & Rugman, 2016).   There are a range of trade barriers including: price-based barriers, quotas, and tariffs. Each of these trade barriers is applied relative to efficacy in meeting intended consequences.   There are other measures such as: international pricing (cartels like OPEC), non-tariff barriers via rules and regulations, foreign investment controls, and exchange controls (Collinson, Narula, & Rugman, 2016, 2012).   A tariff is a tax on goods that are shipped internationally (Collinson, Narula, & Rugman, 2016, 2012, p.177). It is a commonly utilized trade barrier.   It serves the purpose of anti-dumping and protecting specific industries. Tariffs that can be imposed include: import tariff, export tariff (least used), transit tariff, specific tariff, ad valorem tariff, and compound (combines specific and ad valorem tariffs) tariffs (Collinson, Narula, & Rugman, 2016, 2012).   Ad valorem and specific tariffs are the most commonly used trade tariffs.   The intention is largely to regulate import volumes.   Trade flows are impacted by: inflation, national income, government policies, and exchange rates (Madura, 2011).   Ã‚  According to United States Trade Representative [USTR] (2018), approximately 96% of all imports are industrial goods which are non-agricultural.   The country has a trade-weighted import tariff of 2% on all industrial goods (USTR, 2018).   It mostly employs either specific or ad valorem tariffs; more than 50% of all industrial goods imports enter the country duty free (USTR, 2018).   The United States has largely maintained open markets to international trade. Ad valorem tariffs are based on the percentage of imported goods value with specific tax based on number of shipped items (Collinson, Narula, & Rugman, 2016, 2012).   Industrial goods imported into the United States include: machinery, chemicals, autos, clothing and textile, leather and footwear, and petroleum among others (USTR, 2018).   A significant proportion of the goods are imported due to trade agreements.   There are multiple bilateral and multilateral agreements. The country has multiple bilateral trade agreements with countries like Korea, Peru, and Singapore.   It has multilateral trade agreements including Central America/Dominican Republic FTA (CAFTA/DR) and NAFTA.   They are designed to expand opportunities for United States workers/businesses globally and reduce tariff and non-tariff barriers.   The country is able to impose limited specific tariffs with the advantage being greater access to export markets.    According to World Bank (2018), the value of United States exports was $1.45 trillion and total value of imports was $2.25 billion in 2016.   The country exported 4,563 products to 223 countries and imported 4,558 products from 220 countries (World Bank, 2018).   Consumer goods were the largest imports followed by capital goods, intermediate goods, and raw materials. The bulk of the country’s (96%) were industrial goods (USTR, 2018).   The country’s top five export markets are: Canada, Mexico, China, Japan, and United Kingdom (World Bank, 2018).   The top five import markets are: China, Mexico, Canada, Japan, and Germany (World Bank, 2018).   Canada and Mexico are members of NAFTA along with the United States.   The economic syndicate was established with the intention of reducing trade barriers between the three nations and is currently being reviewed by of the United States. NAFTA eliminated most non-tariff barriers and gradually reduced import and export tariffs between the three countries (Komar, Uniiat, & Lutsiv, 2016).   By 2008, all trade tariffs existing between the three NAFTA members were eliminated.   In addition, agricultural exports that attracted 12% customs rate became duty free (Komar, Uniiat, & Lutsiv, 2016).   It led to massive increase in trade between the nations and boosted inter-country relationships.   There is obligation on each member to maintain the principles of the agreement with few exceptions that would allow for imposition of tariffs (Komar, Uniiat, & Lutsiv, 2016).   Canada and Mexico have since become among the three largest trading partners for United States.   China is the largest trading partner of the United States (Romei, 2018).   The size of trade relates to the $506 billion in exports to the United States (Ip, 2018). The bulk of Chinese imports including: cellular/wireless phones, portable computing equipment, and communication products that are imported duty free.   The recent move to impose tariffs on Chinese imports does not affect the top five imports (Romei, 2018).   United States imposed varying tariffs on 1,333 goods from China with China retaliating by imposing 25% specific tariffs on 106 American-made products (Romei, 2018).   In 2017, the value of Chinese exports to United States totaled $506 billion or 4% of GDP while United States exported goods worth $130 billion to China representing 0.7% of GDP (Ip, 2018).   The American tariffs on the 1,333 imports goods was about 25% for total goods valued at $50 billion are pending trade negotiation (Davis, Zumbrun, & Wei, 2018).   They come on top of previous 25% tariffs on Chinese steel imports and 10% tariffs on aluminum (Davis, Zumbrun, & Wei, 2018). United States has signaled the intention to levy further tariffs.   The administration has threatened to impose an additional $60 billion worth of tariffs (Davis, 2018). In addition, it also intends to tighten restrictions on technology transfers and acquisitions (Davis, 2018).   These measures are geared towards reducing the $375 billion trade deficit by at least $100 billion (Davis, Zumbrun, & Wei, 2018).   The United States has preferential trade arrangements with the European Union with Germany and United Kingdom being its largest trading partners in the economic alliance.   However, the current American administration has also threatened to impose tariffs on a range of European imports (Bershidsky, 2018).   The goods that United States has threatened to impose a 25% import tariff on are: steel, cars, and aluminum (Bershidsky, 2018).   European Union threatening counter-tariffs with ad valorem tariffs at 25% on cosmetics, Harley Davidson motorcycles, bourbon, and jeans (Bershidsky, 2018).   The United States has refrained from imposing import tariffs until recently. The current moves have been politically motivated, presumably to address trade imbalance. It has an effective trade-weighted import tariff of 20% with 50% of imported goods entering the country duty free (USTR, 2018).   United States has leveraged on bilateral and multilateral trade agreements largely to enable its firms and people access more markets.   The recent administration has upended previous trade policies and in addition to imposing tariffs on selected products from China in particular, and is currently renegotiating NAFTA.   The progress of the renegotiation will be evident in the next few months and potential application of tariffs. Impact of the Trade Tariffs on U. S. Trade and Economy Free trade has led to significant trade deficits with most of the largest trading partners. The more noticeable trend is the widening deficit that the United States has experienced in trading with China.   Since 1998 with the exception of 2010, the trade deficit has continued to widen to reach $375 billion in 2017 (Davis, Zumbrun, & Wei, 2018).   The United States only have a trade surplus with Africa and South and Central America with low trading volumes between them (Romei, 2018).   According to Romei (2018), the United States had a trade deficit of $811 billion in 2017 and was up $59 billion year-on-year.   China accounted for $376 billion or 46.4% of the trade deficit (Romei, 2018).   Pierce & Schott (2016) noted that reducing of trade tariffs between United States and China after the latter’s ascension to WTO led to significant reduction in manufacturing employment.  Ã‚   The implication is that China has greater access to the American market. Industries exposed to changes following the elimination of tariffs shifted towards more Chinese imports with gradual shift towards less labor-intensive production (Pierce & Schott, 2016).   There was accelerated mechanization and automation of production.   A similar pattern was not experienced with policy stability with the European Union.   Thus, proliferation of free trade agreements has had varying effects on depending on particular trading relationships.   Cherkashin et al., (2015) noted that trade preferences including reduction of tariffs offered by one country had positive spillover effects to others in reference to trade between the United States and Bangladesh.   They noted that counterfactual agreements promoted exports of intermediate goods especially when applied at later stages of production.   In the case of trade with Bangladesh, there was the strengthening of production capabilities of the country.   China has had significant advantage in the size and cost of labor impacting manufacturing in the United States. Trade barriers like tariffs and quotas are additive and increase the median price by up to 14% according to Irarrazabal, Moxnes, & Opromolla (2015).   They noted that â€Å"an additive import tariffs reduces welfare and trade by more than an equal-yield multiplicative tariff† (Irarrazabal, Moxnes, & Opromolla, 2015).   Tariff changes impacts how industries operates. American firms took advantage of cheaper production costs in China to increase imports at lower costs.   In China, the reduction in import tariffs following its entry to the WTO changed the structure and organization of ordinary exports and processing trade (Brandt & Morrow, 2017).   It has been a contributing factor in the ballooning trade deficit between United States and China.   Cut in input tariffs increased Chinese content in exports (Brandt & Morrow, 2017).   There was the realization that the country could not only produce intermediate goods but finished goods as well. Some firms produce intermediate products in certain markets and then re-export them for finishing (Manova & Yu, 2016; Bai, Krishna, & Ma, 2017; Jà ¤kel & Smolka, 2017).   Increasing importance of factors of production influenced international trade.   Factor abundance from free trade policies and factor prices change via policies such as trade tariffs influence trade structure in different countries (Jà ¤kel & Smolka, 2017). Thus, the impact varies from country to country.   Economic policies have significant economic impact, such as fast growth of South Korea through reduction in trade tariffs and bilateral FTA with the United States (Connolly & Yi, 2015).   Trade policy uncertainty impacts investment even in low tariffs trade regimes (Handley, Kyle, & Limà £o, 2015).   Posturing among countries during negotiation creates such uncertainties. The current trade squabble between the United States and China is one such example. The posturing between United States and China as well as other trading partners threatens to reduce investment in the economy.   Ã‚  Handley, Kyle, & Limà £o (2015) noted that the level of export investment during periods of uncertainty was lower. Free trade agreements have had positive impact from an overall perspective in promoting trade (Cooper, 2014).   The influence of having bilateral and multilateral FTAs is that it creates certainty that promotes investment.   In the United States, there has been concern about the impact of FTAs on employment. According to CoÅŸar, Guner & Tybout (2016)   the trade-off in regard to open economies is higher national income and higher unemployment.   Higher unemployment is countered by labor market reforms reducing aggregate job turnover (Guner & Tybout, 2016).   Despite losing jobs in certain industries, the United States has gained in overall employment boost. In analyzing the Brazilian economy, Dix-Carneiro & Kovak (2017) noted that regions that had significant cuts in trade tariffs experienced declines in formal employment and lower earnings.   Liberalization is generally positive from a national perspective but adversely affects certain areas relying specific commodities.   It informs the need for countries to have the ability to impose specific tariffs.   The United States has applied such tariffs to protect the steel industry.   Therefore, there are counter-effects that are specific to different regions depending on the structure of trade relationship.   Trade liberalization has also been positive for enhancing corporate social responsibility (Flammer, 2014).    The United States having liberalized its economy with few import tariffs has experienced significant increase in trading deficits with major trading partners. Even with the ballooning trade deficit with China, it has greater leverage (Ip, 2018).   The driving factor with the increased trade deficit that United States has experienced with China is driven by American consumers.   However, the comparative size of the imports relative to each country’s GDP favors United States at 0.7% compared to China’s 4% (Ip, 2018).   In the event of imposition of widespread trade tariffs, China is likely to be impacted more.   The current situation creates uncertainty for both countries in the industries that have been targeted. There are worries notably in the automotive industry about NAFTA renegotiation and trade issues with China. The negative impact of trade tariffs is that they increase the cost of goods which directly impacts the consumers.   The level of trade imbalance that has been created by liberalization of trade has been significant in the context of the trade between United States and China.   The country has trade deficits with close trading partners in NAFTA due to factors of production.   It has created political concerns about trade fairness and potential negative economic impact.   Mexico is a cheaper production alternative to American automakers which has been the bone of contention in the renegotiation of NAFTA.   The current standoff between United States and China is likely to persist.   China has indicated that it will only make the tariffs effective in circumstances where the United States does the same (Romei, 2018).   Therefore, the measured approach to the trade now could simmer for some time prior to any settlement negotiations.   China is waiting for the signal from United States prior to actualizing the tariffs creating uncertainty.   There are existing discrepancies in the trade deficit with the European Union due to skewed bilateral agreements (Bershidsky, 2018).   The reality is that the trade deficit could slow down due to imposition of tariffs. There could beneficial negotiations that eliminate the tariffs.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Conclusion The United States has accumulated significant trade deficits with its largest trading partners.   The deficit has been increasing but has not negatively impacted economic growth.   The threat of trade tariffs could upend relationships, creating uncertainty and impacting global value chains.   In the end, the United States remains as the most important consumer markets.   The purposed tariffs by the U.S. and from the U.S will have a huge effect on the economy of the United States and China but also the rest of the globe. References Bai, X., Krishna, K., & Ma, H. (2017). How You Export Matters: Export Mode, Learning, and Productivity in China. Journal of International Economics, 104, pp. 122 – 137. Bershidsky, L. (2018). The Effects of Tariffs and Counter-Tariffs would be smaller than the Bilateral Discrepancies in EU – U.S. Trade Statistics. Retrieved 24 April 2018 from https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2018-03-06/trump-s-trade-war-ignores-basic-eu-us-trade-statistics Brandt, L., & Morrow, P. M. (2017). Tariffs and the Organization of Trade in China. Journal of International Economics, 104, pp. 85 – 103. Cherkashin, I., Demidova, S., Kee, H. L., & Krishna, K. (2015). Firm Heterogeneity and Costly Trade: A New Estimation Strategy and Policy Experiments. Journal of International Economics, 96 (1), pp. 18 – 36. Collinson, S., Narula, R., & Rugman, A. M. (2016). International Business (7th Ed.). Harlow, UK: Pearson Education Limited. Connolly, M., & Yi, K-M. (2015). How Much of South Koreas Growth Miracle Can Be Explained by Trade Policy? American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, 7 (4), pp. 188 – 221. Cooper, W. H. (2014). Free Trade Agreements: Impact on U.S. Trade and Implications for U.S. Trade Policy. Current Politics and Economics of the United States, 16 (3), pp. 425 – 445. CoÅŸar, A. K., Guner, N., & Tybout, J. (2016). Firm Dynamics, Job Turnover, and Wage Distributions in an Open Economy. American Economic Review, 106 (3), pp. 625 – 663. Davis, B., Zumbrun, J., & Wei, L. (2018). U.S. Announces Tariffs on $50 Billion of China Imports. Retrieved 24 April 2018 from https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-announces-tariffs-on-50-billion-of-china-imports-1522792030 Dix-Carneiro, R., & Kovak, B. K. (2017). Trade Liberalization and Regional Dynamics. American Economic Review, 107 (10), pp. 2908 – 2946. Flammer, C. (2014). Does Product Market Competition Foster Corporate Social Responsibility? Evidence from Trade Liberalization. Strategic Management Journal, 36 (10), pp. 1469 – 1485. Handley, K., & Limà £o, N. (2015). Trade and Investment under Policy Uncertainty: Theory and Firm Evidence. American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, 7 (4), pp. 189 – 222.   Ip, G. (2018). Leverage Will Determine if China or the U.S. Come Out on Top in Trade Conflict. Retrieved 24 April 2018 from https://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2018/04/05/leverage-will-determine-if-china-or-the-u-s-come-out-on-top-in-trade-conflict/ Irarrazabal, A., Moxnes, A., & Opromolla, L. D. (2015). The Tip of the Iceberg: A Quantitative Framework for Estimating Trade Costs. Review of Economics and Statistics, 97 (4), pp. 777 – 792. Jà ¤kel, I. C., & Smolka, M. (2017). Trade Policy Preferences and Factor Abundance. Journal of International Economics, 106, pp. 1 – 19. Komar, N., Uniiat, A., & Lutsiv, R. (2016). Efficiency of the North American Free Trade Zone. Journal of European Economy, 15 (3), pp. 280 – 292. Madura, J. (2018). International Financial Management (13th Ed.). Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning. Manova, K., & Yu, Z. (2016). How Firms Export: Processing vs. Ordinary Trade with Financial Frictions. Journal of International Economics, 100, pp. 120 – 137. Pierce, J. R., & Schott, P. K. (2016). The Surprisingly Swift Decline of US Manufacturing Employment. American Economic Review, 106 (7), pp. 1632 – 1662. Romei, V. (2018, April 5). US – China Trade Tariffs in Charts. Retrieved 23 April 2018 from https://www.ft.com/content/e2848308-3804-11e8-8eee-e06bde01c544 United States Trade Representative (2018). Industrial Goods. Retrieved 23 April 2018 from https://ustr.gov/issue-areas/industry-manufacturing/industrial-tariffs World Bank. (2018). United States Trade at a Glance: Most Recent Values. Retrieved 23 April 2018 from https://wits.worldbank.org/CountrySnapshot/en/USA/textview