Financial management Essay

Q1. What are the goals of financial management? Ans. Financial management means maximization of economic welfare of its shareholders. Maximization of economic welfare means maximization of wealth of its shareholders. Shareholder’s wealth maximization is reflected in the market value of the firm’s shares. Experts believe that, the goal of financial management is attained when it maximizes the market value of shares. There are two versions of the goals of financial management of the firm- Profit Maximization and Wealth Maximization. Profit maximization Profit maximization is based on the cardinal rule of efficiency. Its goal is to maximize the returns with the best output and price levels. A firm’s performance is evaluated in terms of profitability. Profit maximization is the traditional and narrow approach, which aims at maximizing the profit of the concern. Allocation of resources and investor’s perception of the company’s performance can be traced to the goal of profit maximization. Wealth maximization The term wealth means shareholder’s wealth or the wealth of the persons those who are involved in the business concern. Wealth maximization is those who are involved in the business concern. Wealth maximization is also known as value maximization or net present worth maximization. This objective is an universally accepted concept in the field of business. Wealth maximization is possible only when the company pursues policies that would increase the market value of shares of the company. It has been accepted by the finance managers as it overcomes the limitations of profit maximization. The following arguments are in support of the superiority of wealth maximization over profit maximization: * Wealth maximization is based on the concept of cash flows. Cash flows are a reality and not based on any subjective interpretation. On the other hand, profit maximization is based on any subjective interpretation. On the other hand, profit maximization is based on accounting profit and it also contains many subjective elements. * Wealth maximization considers time value of money. Time value of money translates cash flow occurring at different periods into a comparable value at zero period. In this process, the quality of cash flow is considered critical in all decisions as it incorporates the risk associated with the cash flow stream. It finally crystallizes into the rate of return that will motivate investors to part with their hard earned savings. Maximizing the wealth of the shareholders means net present value of the decisions implemented. Q2. Explain the factors affecting Financial Plan. Ans. To help your organization succeed, you should develop a plan that needs to be followed. This applies to starting the company, developing new product, creating a new department or any undertaking that affects the company’s future. There are several factors that affect planning in an organization. To create an efficient plan, you need to understand the factors involved in the planning process. Organizational planning is affected by many factors: Priorities – In most companies, the priority is generating revenue, and this priority can sometimes interfere with the planning process of any project. When you start the planning process for any project, you need to assign each of the issues facing the company a priority rating. That priority rating will determine what issues will sidetrack you from the planning of your project, and which issues can wait until the process is complete. Company Resources – Having an idea and developing a plan for your company can help your company to grow and succeed, but if the company does not have the resources to make the plan come together, it can stall progress. One of the first steps to any planning process should be an evaluation of the resources necessary to complete the project, compared to the resources the company has available. Some of the resources to consider are finances, personnel, space requirements, access to materials and vendor relationships. Forecasting – A company constantly should be forecasting to help prepare for changes in the marketplace. Forecasting sales revenues, materials costs, personnel costs and overhead costs can help a company plan for upcoming projects. Without accurate forecasting, it can be difficult to tell if the plan has any chance of success, if the company has the capabilities to pull off the plan and if the plan will help to strengthen the company’s standing within the industry. For example, if your forecasting for the cost of goods has changed due to a sudden increase in material costs, then that can affect elements of your product roll-out plan, including projected profit and the long-term commitment you might need to make to a supplier to try to get the lowest price possible. Contingency Planning – To successfully plan, an organization needs to have a contingency plan in place. If the company has decided to pursue a new product line, there needs to be a part of the plan that addresses the possibility that the product line will fail. Q3. Explain the time value of money. Ans. Money has time value. A rupee today is more valuable than a year hence. It is on this concept â€Å"the time value of money† is based. The recognition of the time value of money and risk is extremely vital in financial decision making. Most financial decisions such as the purchase of assets or procurement of funds, affect the firm’s cash flows in different time periods. For example, if a fixed asset is purchased, it will require an immediate cash outlay and will generate cash flows during many future periods. Similarly if the firm borrows funds from a bank or from any other source, it receives cash and commits an obligation to pay interest and repay principal in future periods. The firm may also raise funds by issuing equity shares. The firm’s cash balance will increase at the time shares are issued, but as the firm pays dividends in future, the outflow of cash will occur. Sound decision-making requires that the cash flows which a firm is expected to give up over period should be logically comparable. In fact, the absolute cash flows which differ in timing and risk are not directly comparable. Cash flows become logically comparable when they are appropriately adjusted for their differences in timing and risk. The recognition of the time value of money and risk is extremely vital in financial decision-making. If the timing and risk of cash flows is not considered, the firm may make decisions which may allow it to miss its objective of maximizing the owner’s welfare. The welfare of owners would be maximized when Net Present Value is created from making a financial decision. It is thus, time value concept which is important for financial decisions. Thus, we conclude that time value of money is central to the concept of finance. It recognizes that the value of money is different at different points a of time. Since money can be put to productive use, its value is different depending upon when it is received or paid. In simpler terms, the value of a certain amount of money today is more valuable than its value tomorrow. It is not because of the uncertainty involved with time but purely on account of timing. The difference in the value of money today and tomorrow is referred as time value of money. Q6. What are the assumptions of MM approach? Ans. Modigliani Millar approach, popularly known as the MM approach is similar to the Net operating income approach. The MM approach favors the Net operating income approach and agrees with the fact that the cost of capital is independent of the degree of leverage and at any mix of debt-equity proportions. The significance of this MM approach is that it provides operational or behavioral justification for constant cost of capital at any degree of leverage. Whereas, the net operating income approach does not provide operational justification for independence of the company’s cost of capital. Basic Propositions of MM approach: 1. At any degree of leverage, the company’s overall cost of capital (ko) and the Value of the firm (V) remains constant. This means that it is independent of the capital structure. The total value can be obtained by capitalizing the operating earnings stream that is expected in future, discounted at an appropriate discount rate suitable for the risk undertaken. 2. The cost of capital (ke) equals the capitalization rate of a pure equity stream and a premium for financial risk. This is equal to the difference between the pure equity capitalization rate and ki times the debt-equity ratio. 3. The minimum cut-off rate for the purpose of capital investments is fully independent of the way in which a project is financed. Assumptions of MM approach: 1. Capital markets are perfect. 2. All investors have the same expectation of the company’s net operating income for the purpose of evaluating the value of the firm. 3. Within similar operating environments, the business risk is equal among all firms. 4. 100% dividend payout ratio. 5. An assumption of â€Å"no taxes† was there earlier, which has been removed. Limitations of MM hypothesis: 1. Investors would find the personal leverage inconvenient. 2. The risk perception of corporate and personal leverage may be different. 3. Arbitrage process cannot be smooth due the institutional restrictions. 4. Arbitrage process would also be affected by the transaction costs. 5. The corporate leverage and personal leverage are not perfect substitutes. 6. Corporate taxes do exist. However, the assumption of â€Å"no taxes† has been removed later.

Christmas Holiday Essay

This holiday it was wonderful for me because it was more fun than anothers holidays for now. I got a good time and especially it was great because i spent with my familly, i am lucky for that because i have a big familly. Usually the Christams holiday is important for me, than childrens go to carols for Christmas at houses of peoples for announcement the birth of Jesus Christ. I like to go for sining and this year i was togeter with my brother and a good friend, i maked much money and i divided in three. On Christmas Eve i decoraded tree and for both my grandparents and the parents. I spended my Christmas in Harman and for New Year i come at my grandparents with my paretns and i spended with they and with uncle, aunt and my cousins. All it was great but with one exception i dont liked because not was snow, i like when is much snow that make the to have spirit this holiday,that is so special and so beautiful,is great when see snow flakes. For night the New Year i got many fireworks and petards, i like this part,this custom and i think that liked at all peoples with exception of my grandmother,her dont like the this because is afraid of that but i think that is for their noise deafening,if it dont was that noise with sure her would like. I think the Christmas and New Year is important and special for everybody,in every year we spend this wonderful moment with all familly and we enjoy with great love.

Budgeting For a Family Vacation to Disney World

Disney World is a magical and interesting place for the family of four people. A passionate voice infiltrated the air, the children flew and waited for Disney to start the day. But as we know, going to Disney is not that simple. You need to travel to Disneyland on a budget. Savings and planning is your top priority. How do you get there, when you go to Florida, where do you go. Most importantly, it is good for children, Disneyland and anyone. Over the years, when we went to Disney World, our family learned and we stayed at Disney World. Disney World Hotel has more than 25 unique resorts, each with a vacation destination from place of budget to facility. The question remains Why is our family not staying outside the hotel, but staying at the Disney World Resort? When you go to Disney, you want to be a Disney ... forever and ever! This means staying at the Disney World Resort. Just because you left the park at the end of the day does not mean that the magic ended when you stayed in a r esort owned by Disney. I do not know you, but I never went to Disney as I thought, so I wanted 24/7 Disney when I was there. From unique theme to hidden Mickey, Disney Resort does its best to keep the magic of traveling. As of last week, my husband and son have never been to Disneyland. On the other hand, I repeat - a combination of family vacation and school trip. Whenever I asked my husband to plan a trip to Disney, his answer ranged from Meh to No, thanks, Absolutely No. But, if you've ever been to Disneyland before, you will know that it is worth it (and I really dislike excitement). According to the story of animation, it is not attractive for my husband to roam around the imitative country and sit on a musical or intensive version of the movie. Perhaps one day ... when we have children, he always told me before his son was born. As you can see, Disney World Resort Villas can save your family's Disney World holidays. You will never feel connected to the 'hotel container'. In ad dition to this container, please imagine. And at Disney World, please reserve a cheap villa to save time and money. When you go to Disney F1, they are a wonderful way to save lots of money.

Dealing with Economic Externalities in the Real Estate Industry Essay

Dealing with Economic Externalities in the Real Estate Industry. Letter addressed to a mayor - Essay Example One of the most important externality can be found in the mortgage subsector. In the housing industry, an externality called a positional externality has led to products being very expensive. Positional externalities happen when the individual using the product or the service intend to one-up each other. This is something that has been witnessed in the real estate industry for a long time. As Grant (37) says, externalities affect all categories of land use and this is something that must be considered in a more modern and serious manner. While this kind of an economic externality has affected the industry in a long time, the effects have been felt the most in recent time. In fact, economic externalities in the mortgage subsector were highly associated with the recent economic recession in the United States. Increased availability of mortgage service has led to most people affording to buy their own homes through mortgage financing. While increased home ownership is important and nece ssary for the growth of the economy, it can lead to dire repercussions when done in the wrong way. As the availability of mortgage financing increased and more people were now looking for homes to buy, the costs of homes increased in a very fast rate that exceeded the market growth and inflations rates. This sudden hiking of the cost of owning a home happened so fast that at some time, the market started imploding. At this point, many individuals could who had taken loan could no longer to be able to remit their mortgage repayments and this unfortunately led to foreclosure of their homes. They could also not be able to sell off the homes at a cost high enough to cover the original costs of the homes. In this way, mortgage financing can be seen as having a great external cost to most individuals who would otherwise be able to buy their own homes without having to depend on mortgage financiers. A closer analysis reveals that increasingly availability of rarely controlled mortgages hav e two types of external costs to the economy. First, it makes homes unfairly expensive for would-be home owners. Secondly, it leads to the crunching of the real estate market making it impossible for individual who had bought their homes at exceedingly high costs to be able to recover their costs by selling their homes. Need for control The mortgage subsector has been left uncontrolled and unregulated for a very long time. This has led to the participators in the industry to operate in a way that is less professional and also in a way that has led to many individuals having to lose a lot of money through a mortgage industry that is operated in a racket manner of operation. Most mortgage regulation laws are archaic and are not able to meet the needs of the modern mortgage market. Regulating the industry will be important for protecting the many people who will definitely otherwise be affected by the poorly managed mortgage industry. Regulation in the industry should be geared towards ensuring that mortgage providers are careful and professional in the way they offer this product. Of essence will be to ensure that the mortgage providers do not operate in a way that will negatively affect their customers. The government should come up with a framework to guarantee that the mortgage providers are careful in the way they provide the product in terms of ensuring that they serve customers who are ready and capable to repay the mortgage. This will reduce or eliminate the number of home

The Project Risk Profile Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

The Project Risk Profile - Essay Example This essay stresses that the protocol produces meaningful project profiles using a consistent approach and fully quantifying concepts which might be considered non-quantifiable. Importantly, this protocol allows for the assessment of risks and strategic factors which are important for good decision-making. The PRP and SI are somewhat subjective calculations, and the FAP protocol forces management and appraisal teams to consider reasonable values for important, subjective judgments. This paper makes a conclusion that management will reject projects outright if the risks are too great or if the projects do not fit with the company’s overall strategic vision, but using the FAP protocol allows for a full understanding of financial and strategic potentials. Aspects of projects such as deferment, growth or abandonment are important considerations, and the FAP protocol structure allows evaluation teams to include those aspects in the evaluations. Since several sub-models play into the overall structure of the FAP model, evaluators are afforded flexibility. No project is rejected based on a single aspect of consideration, nor are projects accepted which may produce undesirable results because strategy and risk were not accounted for during assessment. The FAP model produces a dynamic and pragmatic approach to capital project evaluations and allows the management and appraisal teams to introduce their judgments into the model in a straightforward and structured w ay.

Huge selling concentration Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Huge selling concentration - Essay Example Consequently it gives competitive advantage to the exporter while entering into a new geographical market and that advantage further consolidates while there are alliances with local distributors and sellers. The local alliances will help in understanding and acquiring skills that are necessary for existence in new geographical market. After alliances the strategy plays key role in making the foray into new geographical market a success. Next aspect that needs discussion in this paper is the production unit that needs to be set up in the new geographical area and selling it. The difference between the former context and the later is that the manufacturer should have much closer relations with the distributors and can have price advantage while marketing as the product is manufactured locally. However, the considerations may alter when the manufacturing a product in a geographical area is a costly process than the making of it in the origin of the company. 1 In the present era, the distribution plan is a time taking plan that involves different delivery systems and multiple logistical channel options. Online inventory tracking is one of the logistical channels and automated fulfillment adds to it. ... Online inventory tracking is one of the logistical channels and automated fulfillment adds to it. The faster transportation despite the online inventory process and automated fulfillment changes the face of distribution and provides an advantage over the competitors. The online inventory helps the marketing manager to furnish the required goods to the marketing channels as well as providing information for the production department so that they can plan production according to marketing needs. However, the distribution options differ with consumer package products, business to business/industrial manufacturing or service industries. When the distribution option varies, marketing manager should observe the change in role of distribution. Hence, the distribution options change from product to product. In case of consumer package product, the distribution role is complex as it depends on retailer. Normally, in the era of competition, manufacturers are planning the marketing strategy, so that they can give the product at the customer's doorstep. This involves three types of distribution options. The first and conventional one is producer-wholesaler-retailer-customer. The second one is producer-retailer-customer. The third and the latest option is producer to consumer. In the first context, the transportation and logistical problems are minimized for the producer but the results depend on the efficiency of the wholesalers and retailers between producer and customer. In the second one, as the wholesaler has been removed from the network, the retailer acts as both wholesaler and retailer due to presence of retail chains over a large geographical area. In

An Interview with George Washington Research Paper

An Interview with George Washington - Research Paper Example Instead, I celebrate the time that they had in this world and the difference they made in the lives of those they touched. I was also blessed to have family and friends to get me through those hard times. My brother Lawrence became like a parent to me after the demise of our father and his father-in-law William Fairfax also played a large role in molding me into the man you see standing before you. As you can see, the almighty may have taken my father to be with him but he provided me with two capable replacements in return and thus I was never lacking. Washington: (Laughing) Ah yes, not many predicted this path for me when I was young lad. My father, God rest his soul, was a slave owner and a farmer of tobacco. I can say he had enterprising spirit within him and he liked to try new things for he later also tried his luck in the iron mining business. Washington: Well after my father’s demise, I unfortunately could not follow in the steps of my older brothers and cross the seas for an education from Appleby School in England. Thus alternative choices had to be sought elsewhere nearer home. Funnily enough, I was to join the Royal Navy on my 15th birthday but our poor mother could not bear to see her son taken through such rigorous experiences! Little did she know that my path would still cross with the military’s later on. Washington: Alas no, my dear brother Lawrence assisted me in getting a job as an official surveyor for Culpeper County and my involvement with the military only occurred after he had breathed his last on this earth. (Pauses) Lawrence was a good man. He held a position in the militia as Adjutant General and his true value was revealed when they divvied this position into four parts after his death. Few people can say that they did the work of four men but my brother is one of them. I was appointed to occupy one of these four positions and thus my stint in the military began as a district adjutant

Contrastive AnalysisPaper Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Contrastive AnalysisPaper - Research Paper Example English as a language has developed over the years to become a language that is not only used predominantly between non-native speakers and native speakers but also amongst the non-native speakers. It has thus become critical for any individual wishing to have worldwide communication, to be fluent and use the language appropriately so as to be understood by others and also master how people from diverse cultural backgrounds use the language. (Wahba, E. 1998) Intelligible pronunciation has proved to be a crucial objective in any pronunciation training course. It’s therefore important to outline objectives that are realistic, relevant and sustainable for the communication needs of the learner. Pronunciation poses a great obstacle in communication thus it should be dealt with cautiously as wrong pronunciation of an item gives a completely different meaning, for instance when one pronounces â€Å"angry† for â€Å"hungry†, â€Å"bin† for â€Å"bean†( Hut haily, K. 2003). Contrastive Analysis and possible problems Several Arabic speakers carry out a variety of abnormal tentative tasks which involve discrimination of words. This entails putting aside words with similar consonantal patterns but with variance in their vowel structure (Huthaily, K. 2003). ... s are less important both in writing and in word building, and the sound identification structure relies on the tri-consonantal roots which are the basis of nearly all Arabic words. Word families in Arabic are completed up of sets of words that share a familiar set of three consonants, but differ in the manner in which the vowels are positioned in the consonantal structure. (White, L. 1989).This kind of word structure applies with much ease among the Semitic languages, but often creates difficulties for learners who want to learn a second language with different structural rules. This is because consonantal structure does not let adequate discrimination of words when its transferred to the lexical structure of English, where consonants are not the only important signals for a reader, but rather emphasizes on the importance of focus on the consonantal structure(Cook, V. J.1992). It’s because of this that you find that most Arabic learners will use a system of this sort in the e arly stages of learning English, though majority catch up with the correct handling of English words. Despite this, a few learners carry on this problem and will make small errors like â€Å"dismal point† for "decimal point" while others may never have this confusion. In a bid to juice out difficulties that face Arabic learners in learning English, scholars have indentified four elements that cause this. .Some learners are confused by sounds such as; /v/ and /f/ as in ‘fist’ and ‘vest’; /p/ and /b/ as in ‘pan’ and ‘ban’; /s/ and /_/ as in ‘san’ and ‘than’. Others put in a short vowel to shatter down the long consonant structures, so as to pronounce them as in /s_pr__/ for ‘spring’; /w___d/ for ‘wished’; /_:sk_d/ for ‘asked’ On the other hand, certain diphthongs

Case Study Analysis (REPORT) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Case Study Analysis (REPORT) - Essay Example It would also examine the role of marketing communications towards generating competitive advantage for business organizations and development of trust and confidence among the customers so as to generate long term profitability and sustainability in the business market. Table of Contents Case Study Analysis (REPORT) 1 Executive Summary 2 Introduction 4 Part 1 4 New Product Development Process 4 Idea Generation 5 Idea Screening 5 Concept Development and Testing 5 Analysis of Business 6 Development of Product 6 Market Testing 6 Product Commercialisation 7 Product Life Cycle 7 BCG Matrix 8 Part 2 9 Marketing Communications Mix- Comparative Analysis 9 References 13 Introduction Business organizations are essentially operating in a turbulent business environment. The aspect of globalisation has increased the average number of players in the market which has intensified the competition among the business organizations. This has intensified the need for ensuring business excellence that le ads to creation of competitive advantage. ... using a different strategy which includes improvements in the product or service mix as well as use of a marketing communications strategy that helps firms to communicate and reach out to their target audience. The heightened levels of competition in the markets has also enhanced the importance of brand image that is largely important as it is widely being used by consumers to differentiate between the products and service offered by the different players in the market. The present study would analyse the aspect of new product development by including a comparative analysis of different brands. Part 1 New Product Development Process New product development is a comprehensive process that encompasses the aspects of idea generation, idea screening, concept development and testing, analysis of business, development of product, testing the market and finally product commercialisation (Havaldar, 2010, p.188). Idea Generation Idea generation involves conceptualisation of new ideas for a pr oduct or service. The success of this stage largely involves garnering large number of executable ideas which can be either obtained from employees or from any other source. The idea must be such that it is largely unique in nature and has the ability to make a mark for itself in the market. In case of Denkit the teachers had two business ideas which were largely unique and innovative in nature as no such product was available in the market. In case of Hovis the company developed an idea that served to augment the present product offering of the organization by introducing new ideas for product development. Kit Kat’s new product development ideas mainly include the aspect of modifications in packaging and design. Idea Screening The next stage in the new product development includes idea

Philippines and International Trade Essay Example for Free

Philippines and International Trade Essay What is International trade? International trade is defined as trade between two or more partners from different countries in the exchange of goods and services. In order to understand International trade, we need to first know and understand what trade is, which is the buying and selling of products between different countries. International Trade simply globalization the world and enable countries to obtain products and services from other countries effortlessly and expediently. International trade has been in existence throughout history and has an economic impact on the articipating countries. Trade in most countries has a share of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and helps to boost the countrys overall economy on a yearly basis. International Trade for the Philippines is available only to chosen business and companies and is declining, because we import more goods than we export, which affects our countrys economy. Economic development in Philippine economy has been because of high government spending. A hard working service sector and large allowance from millions of Filipinos working abroad played an important role in Philippine economic development. Since the former president Macapagal-Arroyo came into power in 2001 there has been an economic growth of 5%. Still, the Philippines need a further increase in growth rate in order to sustain economic growth. More economic development is required to lessen poverty in the country and address imbalances in distribution of income. It also stresses on high population growth. This paper discusses the uncertain economic status of the Philippines, in terms of its stand in the world market, and its relationship with other countries. The need for new investors and lessen unemployment will be the point of discussion.

Supermarket Information Systems

Supermarket Information Systems INTRODUCTION Following the development of technology, Supermarket information systems have been improved from time to time. From the beginning of buying product from supermarket, to internet shopping system, up to now, Supermarket information system, customers behaviour have changes a lot. However, as retail system need high business analysis procedures, the ePos system and decision support system and Customer Loyalty System has been overlooked. This project aims to improve these Supermarket information systems in human factors perspective. History China Resources Vanguard Shop (CRV) is one of the largest supermarket chains in Hong Kong. It is a member of China Resources Enterprise, a wholly owned subsidiary of State-owned enterprise. China Resources Vanguard Shop, or CR Vanguard, is a flagship operating supermarket chains of China Resources. It is the third largest supermarket chain in Hong Kong. It operates approximately 450 stores in Hong Kong, Guangdong, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Shanghai, Tianjin and Beijing. PROBLEM DEFINITION DSS: For the decision support system, Traditional Invoicing system based on single database system, usually including management Information systems and decision support systems, business processing subsystem and decision support systems with a database. Composed of a single database-centric database systems often can not satisfy the diversification of modern supermarket data processing requirements. Specifically manifested in the following areas: Cannot integrate internal and external aspects of data. Cannot meet transaction processing and analysis and processing needs. Difficult to adapt to various types of users of different levels of data integration requirements. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY SWOT [B2] A tool that identifies the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of an organization. SWOT analysis determines what may assist the firm in accomplishing its objectives, and what obstacles must be overcome or minimized to achieve desired results. Strengths Part of the China Resources Enterprise 2926 stores in Hong Kong and China. Provide wide range of products No. of Staff 14500 in China ; 1000 in Hong Kong Weaknesses Founded in 1984 Branch store less than PARKnSHOP Wellcome in HK. Manpower: -Only 1000 in Hong Kong Product or service: Undifferentiated in relation to supermarket. Location. Opportunities Developing market: China Merger: Alliance with Manka (Supermarket) Theaters Price war. Negative impression a new competitor in your own home market Substitute: Competitor also has a new, innovative substitute product. Porters 5 Forces [B3] A tools is a simple but powerful tool for understanding where power lies in a business situation. This is useful, because it helps you understand both the strength of your current competitive position, and the strength of a position youre considering moving into. Threat of New Entrants (Low Pressure) High capital and investment requirement High likelihood of retaliation from existing industry players Threat of Substitutes (Low Pressure) Not easy to have substitution Modern family and office lady dislikes the traditional market Online supermarket / phone order is not popular No delivery delay Power of Supplier (Low Pressure) Many supplier sources Many kind of goods Supermarket has much bargaining power for price negotiation Power of Buyers (Medium Pressure) Not easy to order the goods from supplier directly Various customer group Easy to switch to other competitors Competitive Rivalry (High Pressure) Many equally sized competitors Parkn, Wellcome, DCH, Jusco and etc Price Wars DATA GATHERING juki CRC Business Manager, Roland said: We spent a few days, and open business meeting, the Preparatory trend analysis of customer loyalty to a few months, so we prefer to focus on the rush for our products than our competition Opponents and the development of our business. Questions Asked The questions that were asked from the Manager of Business ¼Ã…’Mr. Rolando, are: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ How many sales staff do you have? à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ How many customers do they cover daily? à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ What is the process of registering a new customer in your organization and how do the sales people introduce the company products? à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ The way of keeping the customer history? The questions that were asked from the Head of IT are: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Describe the current environment in the supermarket industry? à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢Current IT capability and infrastructure of the company? RECORD REVIEWING AND ONSITE OBSERVATION xxxxxxxx.xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxx.xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxx.xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxx.xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxx.xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx PROPOSED SYSTEM In the chart, we will be able to see the whole flow of the supermarket system situation, first by the RFID received the data by the customer and sales and supplies and the production warehouse, and then save into the traditional Database, the data have been re-organization store into the Data warehouse, used to support decision analysis (OLAY), at the end, Customer Loyalty system can collect the right information use for the promotion. RFID, OLAY and Customer Loyalty are the object of our study. We recommend the following three ways: DSS Data warehouse [B2] and Technology in the application of DSS on decision support systems has become a new trend. OLAP [B1]decision-making method according to demand in the process of multi-dimensional view [Figure1]of various types of information to the data stored in the warehouse, to provide decision makers with a wide range of business analysis. Data Warehouse environment supermarket Invoicing System Architecture Traditional Invoicing system has been built with a single database-centric data organization model, decision analysis has been unable to meet the system requirements on the database, but the emergence of data warehouse technology and Development of the above-mentioned problems provides a powerful tool and Means . Data warehousing is a kind of multiple distributed, heterogeneous databases to provide a unified query technology. Data warehouse management system of enterprises from outside the original data and collate the data together into a data warehouse, on this basis, through smooth, rational, comprehensive information management, so that end users can extract data directly from the data warehouse, associated data analysis. Data warehouse is not a substitute for traditional databases [Figure 4], but on the basis of a traditional database, the data re-organization, used to support decision analysis. Data warehouse and traditional database systems assume different tasks, play a different role. That is based on the traditional database, business processing system to complete the daily business of data entry and processing, the data processed are sent to data warehouse; based on data warehouse decision support system implementation analysis and processing, in order to provide decision makers with complete, timely and accurate decision-making information. In this way, transaction processing environment and analytical processing environment to achieve the separation, the relative independence, constitute new system environments, while the data warehouse is a system of core-based environment . Data warehouse environment at a supermarket invoicing system Structure shown in [Figure 1]. System is composed of business processing subsystem, support decision-making subsystem, and data management subsystem consists of three parts. Business processing subsystem in which the background for the traditional database (can be multiple distributed, heterogeneous database), foreground is a business application systems, the completion of all Invoicing business day processing, the entire Invoicing system data entry, and to support decision-making subsystem provides the raw data; support decision-making subsystem, the background for the data warehouse, front from the on-line analytical tools, data mining tools, etc., and the completion of statistical analysis and forecasting capabilities to achieve decision-making support; data management subsystem is responsible for the entire system of data management, in particular data from various data sources (traditional database) to the transfer of data warehouse and data warehouse data structures and business rules management. GOLBAL SUCCESS STORIES PROPOSED SOLUTION ADVANTAGES DSS Carry out market analysis Trend analysis Subgroups of commodities, layout, purchase of the analysis, recommendation and merchandise The analysis of the effectiveness of promotional activities carried out Customer loyalty analysis PROPOSED SOLUTION DISADVANTAGES DSS Higher initial capital investment Staff should need a special training. Difficult to integrate with other management information system. OVERALL BENEFITS OF THE SOLUTION DSS Data warehouse and multi-dimensional analysis with comprehensive data on capacity and can be fast and accurate analysis of the data to help managers make better business decisions, you can bring a competitive advantage for enterprises. The current data warehouse and data mining technology in domestic applications is not very extensive, but because of commercial enterprises have complex business structures, there are a large number of Invoicing business data, there is a specific need for decision analysis, the data warehouse technology in the business enterprise applications has broad prospects. GAINING A COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGRE DSS. Carry out market analysis Trend analysis Subgroups of commodities, layout, purchase of the analysis, recommendation and merchandise The analysis of the effectiveness of promotional activities carried out Customer loyalty analysis RESOURCES AND CAPABILITIES xxxxxxxx.xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxx.xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxx.xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxx.xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxx.xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx MAIN RESEARCH OUTCOMES Given below are the main research outcomes that we came across. The figures however are derived from observing past data of the organisation. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ This project can be deployed with an initial cost of around US$.1 million à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ ROI Expectation time within 18-30 months à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Expected sales growth up to the maximum of 25%-35% à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Clear competitive advantage with the new system BIBLIOGAPHY Book references: [B1]Jun Chen, Sheng Yi-chi, CHEN Mian-yun. OLAP-based data warehouse DSS application in the study of .2003 (1) :30-31 [B2] WHInmon. Data warehouse. Mechanical Industry Press, 2000,5 [B2] SWOT Analysis I: Looking Outside for Threats and Opportunities [B3] Australias Construction Industry Porters Five Forces Strategy Analysis by Aruvians Rsearch Web references: [E1]

The V-Chip Controversy :: essays research papers

Young children watch 8,000 murders and 100,000 acts of violence before leaving elementary school. The V-Chip Controversy Thousands were infuriated†¦ lawyers and the TV Networks called it unlawful as it violates the First Amendment, parents were happy to have the help, and kids were angry because they could no longer see some of their favorite shows. The fight of the century had begun between the television industry and the government over the issue of television violence. In 1991 when Tim Collings first thought of the idea for an optional device that blocked violent television programs, he never could have imagined the controversy that would erupt. Democratic Congressman Ed Markey from Massachusetts came up with the idea that the V-Chip should become a required feature of the television. The Telecommunications Act of 1996 was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Clinton. The law required that all televisions by the year 2000 would be required to include the V-Chip. The networks were told that they must voluntarily come up with a rating system for all television programs by 1997 or the government would establish one for them. The television industry claims that the chip will violate their First Amendment right and cause them to lose valuable commercial dollars. The First Amendment gives everyone the right to freedom of speech. Broadcasters believe some shows will be forced off the air because they are seem too violent. The networks do not think that anyone should tell them what is too violent. Networks feel that people do not have to watch shows they feel are too violent. By forcing the networks to create a rating system for TV programs with violent content or objectionable material, the networks will no longer have the right to freedom of speech. The networks are also afraid that they will lose millions of dollars because the people that make the commercials will be afraid to buy commercial space on the television for programs that are considered to be "objectionable". Some lawyers, like those from the American Civil Liberties Union, are opposed to the V-Chip law. In short, the ACLU claims that: The chip violates the First Amendment and is a form of censorship. The V-Chip takes away from the real causes of crime and violence today; poverty, poor education, not enough jobs, and abuse. Many parents are happy to have the V-Chip because it will help them to have control over what their children are watching when they are not able to be at home.

Mark Twains Pessimistic Views Exposed in The Adventures of Huckleberry

Mark Twain's Pessimistic Views Exposed in Mark Twain's Pessimistic Views Exposed in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, through examples of hypocrisy, racism, and greed, shows Twain's pessimistic view of society and corruption of the human race as a whole. This novel documents the travels of a young boy by the name of Huckleberry Finn, and a runaway slave named Jim as they attempt to explore and escape their homes because of their own respective reasons. The plot of this novel is very simplistic, however the view of Mark Twain's pessimism regarding society as a whole is revealed through various characters and situations. The idea of hypocrisy by society is Mark Twain's first instance of pessimism. The general view of each of the townspeople is that they live in a civilized society. The continual use of the word civilized causes a sense of arrogance or cockiness as to the fact that society thinks that it is so supreme over other life. Mark Twain does not believe that being civilized makes one a better person and that it is the inner soul that creates a good person. For example, the townspeople believe they are superior, but beneath the surface, they are all selfish, arrogant, hateful people. Any of the people in town can be an example of this as they believe that they are better than any of the slaves that they own. Jim, on the other hand, is Twain's portrayal of a kind and gentle hearted soul and this shows his pessimism towards the hypocrisy of society in the fact that it again illustrates the wrong belief that civilization makes you superior. Jim is a better human being than the majority of the people that are living in the town. Racism is another ideal that Mark Tw... ... continually. Right then we can see the effects of his greed. In the aftermath though, Twain decides to show the severity of an outcome of greed by causing the death of Pap. Death is always caused by greed, whether it is death of the physical body or moralistic part of the personality. Mark Twain's pessimisms of society are portrayed through his beliefs on hypocrisy, racism, and greed. After more in depth characterization of Twain's beliefs on society, it is safe to assume that he believes not in outward appearances or social standing, but that the true person is inside the body, the soul makes up whether we are of high class or low class. Twain was a man beyond his time in the fact that he realized the true meaning of life and that one should not judge a book by its cover. To truly understand a person, one must look to the abstract ideas of their life.

Postmodernist vs. Modernist vs. Personal position on Faith :: essays research papers

Topic 1: Postmodernist vs. Modernist vs. Personal position on Faith Topic 2: What did you learn in this class? Written By: Angela Gonzalez Topic 1: Postmodernist vs. Modernist Position on Science and Religion We have all at one time or another asked ourselves the question â€Å"Should I believe this?† Doubt is simply another part of the human experience. When we doubt our faith, however, it can be more crucial than many other doubts we have, because of the believed consequences that come along with it. Where there is doubt people begin to look for ways to rationalize whether what they believe is more right than what someone else believes. Science and religion, two means in which knowledge is obtained from the world, are used by post modernist and modernist to justify faith or lack there of. In this paper I will discuss the contradicting views postmodernist and modernist have on the separation and overlap of scientific knowledge and religious knowledge. Whether you believe one view over the other boils down to personal choice and acceptance of the idea based on ones experiences, therefore I will also discuss my opinion on the connectivity among faith, rationality, objective truth an d ways of gaining and testing the truth of knowledge for both science and religion. Let’s begin by discussing the Enlightenment thought of modernist’s that only that which can be scientifically measured and quantified and reasoned through logically is true knowledge. We can have true knowledge about time in space, fitness, age or the power of your punch, but what, about things that can not be scientifically measured such as beauty, morals, and other matters of the spirit. It does not seem right to say that we can not obtain true knowledge of such things so we have inherited the modernist belief that such things are matters of opinion. In other words, they are subjective matters having only to do with the individual’s experiences and preferences. This modernist scientific mindset is devastating for religious beliefs. Though some religious beliefs can be empirically tested there are others, such as the nature of God and justification by faith which cannot be weighed or measured. These central elements of religious knowledge can therefore be said to be matters of personal opinion, or worse figments of imagination. This contradicting relationship between the scientific and religious approach of knowledge can have a tragic effect on a believer of faith because it is very easy for the individual to get caught up in providing for themselves the kind of impossible logical certainty for their beliefs a nonbeliever might demand.

Chinese Fireworks Essay

The Chinese fireworks industry thrived the late 1970s, and grew to make up 90 % of the world’s fireworks export sales. However, starting from the mid-1990s, safety concerns led governments both in China and abroad to set up stricter regulations. At the same time, there was rapid growth in the number of small family-run fireworks workshops, whose relentless price-cutting drove down profit margins. . Jerry Yu is an American-born Chinese in New York who has been invited to invest fireworks factory in Liuyang, Hunan. The industry analysis, estimating the industry  attractiveness, and proposing possible ways to improve the industry attractiveness from an individual investor’s point of view, has been presented in this report. Other investment options are introduced for the investor in this report. Introduction Situated in the Hunan province of China, Liuyang has a greater concentration of fireworks manufacturers than anywhere else in the world. Liuyang currently produces about 65% of the world`s fireworks. In fact it has over 1,000 factories in Liuyang each specializing in a specific product, thus there are factories making only sparklers, only firecrackers, etc. To support these factories, Liuyang also has related manufacturing such as chemical processing, paper mills, fuse factories, printing factories. It also has a highly skilled fireworks workforce. These factors make Liuyang the most economical place to manufacture fireworks. Furthermore, the support of the local government makes Liuyang a fireworks friendly environment. Liuyang has been producing fireworks for more than 1300 years. The earliest fireworks were produced in the Tang Dynasty (618-907), and Chinese fireworks manufacturing began to flourish during the Song Dynasty. During the Yongzheng reign of the Qing Dynasty (1644 -1911), Liuyang was honored to be the official supplier of fireworks to the royal families. After 1949 government- run factories replaced the family- owned workshops. Since 1979 legal restrictions, local protectionism, aggressive price competition, hard to penetrate distribution channels have limited the domestic sales of Liuyang fireworks. The Chinese fireworks industry thrived after China adopted the open door policy in the late 1970s, and grew to make up 90% of the world`s fireworks export sales. Chinese companies began to export fireworks to more than 20 countries and regions. Today, Chinese fireworks are amongst the best in the world and the quality and variety of the pyrotechnics. But on the other hand, the Chinese fireworks industry also has weaknesses. Indeed, the fireworks industry in general is unstable. In terms of quality, packaging and timing devices. There are problems with distribution channels in which it is hard for companies to penetrate established chain of delivery. The most common form of factory in Chinese fireworks industry is the family-run workshop which is poorly funded and lacks R&D capital, and managerial input. The competition is intensified bythe emergence of a huge amount of small companies. The abundance of small, flexible, competitive shops has created a climate of intense commercial rivalry. It is common that certain companies copy any popular product design and sell it for much less prices than government-owned or some collectively-owned factories, which results in price drop, and this fact has become a serious problem for the whole industry. Furthermore, foreign competitors also threaten the Chinese fireworks industry. Therefore, whether to invest in this industry is still a challenge to most investors. The objective of this report is to advise the investor on his decision to invest to a Liuyang fireworks industry or consider other alternatives. Proposals on how to improve the attractiveness and the competitiveness of Chinese fireworks industry at a long-run level are presented. To achieve this objective, an industry analysis is carried out, using Evironmental analysis and Porter`s Five-Force model analysis, and a gross conclusions are drawn based on the analyses and suggestions. The Environmental analysis describes a framework of macro-environmental factors. The model’s factors vary in importance to a given company based on its industry. Porter’s five forces model aims to examine the competitive status of an industry. According to this model, the nature of the competition that determines industry structure is personified in the following five forces: bargaining power of suppliers, bargaining power of buyers, threat of new entrants, threat of substitute products or services, and rivalry among common competitors. These five forces are very significant for strategy formulation of a company can succeed. Industry Analysis Each industry is different, and to be able to provide the necessary information for the investor the analysis of the industry environment and Five- Forces analysis on the state of the market of Chinese fireworks will be completed. Environmental Analysis Before creating business plans or making decisions, it is important to ‘scan’ the external environment. This can be achieved through an Environmental analysis, which is an investigation of the demographic, political, economic, social and technological influences on an industry. It  is a tool to identify changes in a business environment that can create great opportunities for the fireworks industry – and cause significant threats. Demographic factors China’s population growth rate is only 0.47% and the population of Liuyang is estimated of 1,278,928 by 2010. The Chinese domestic market is expanding and has potential to grow. Despite the fact that the market is faced with a number of the legal restrictions, a very intense price competition, local protectionism and difficulties to penetrate distribution channels there are still a number of opportunities to succeed in the fireworks industry. The foreign direct investment has opened up in China lately. Considering a global population growth rate of around 1.14% per year and a number of baby booms worldwide, an international market has a big potential to expand. Economic factors Heavy competition in the market is faced with reduced prices and profit margins affecting the whole industry. There has been an increase in level of income, better and increased job opportunities to the workforce in emerging markets. This is good for the industry with increased demand, but it is a disadvantage when skilled workers are lost to a different industry. The industry will be faced with constant increasing cost of labor and raw materials. Technological There is not much technological innovation in Fireworks production process or new kinds of innovations in the industry. The raw materials basically remained the same. Although machines could now complete some manual processes, the process technology also basically remained the same. The R&D investments have been low when compared to variation in manufacturing, mixing and process improvements. This led to some concerns over quality issues. Initially there was not much R&D, so in response the government began initiatives aimed at upgrading the traditional fireworks industry. There were new technological competitors that were being developed. On the positive side, the internet has become a large means of procuring fireworks for foreign customers. Socio Cultural factors The green-house gases emitted globally are on the rise affecting our environment every day. Lately, there is greater concern and consciousness towards the environment. The industry will have to deal with this due to environmental impacts. Due to advanced technology and other improvements, there are many other alternative options. Lately there are many other outdoor activities such as laser shows with music and water fountains with music. However, the demand and usage of fireworks along with these is still dominant. All over the world, there is a safety concern for either display or consumption of fireworks. Political / Legal factors There are both advantageous and disadvantageous aspects. One disadvantage is the safety issues associated with fireworks that resulted in them being heavily regulated in most countries. This industry is still highly regulated in most countries due to the nature of this product. Regulation exists at all stages right from manufacturing, distribution and consumption phase. Maximum impact to safety is during production process and quality of raw materials used. Industry faced with ever increasing environmental impact and concerns globally. Another disadvantage is that there is no pricing regulation. The legal system is not strong enough in China to enforce protection of intellectual property rights, copying of brand, identity and duplicates. One advantage, however, is the offensive strategy applied in 1997, which resulted in many legal restrictions being lifted. One in particular that was eased was foreign direct investment. Global factors Fireworks are manufactured not only in China, but in many other south East Asian countries. Globally emerging markets and developed markets are the primary importers of fireworks and the demand has been steadily increasing. Increased use of fireworks across nations traditionally has been during their major holidays such as Chinese New Year, July 4th in US, etc. There is also evidence of additional consumption in developed and emerging markets. Demographic Trends China’s population growth rate is 0.47% World`s population growth rate is 1.14% Socio-cultural Influences Environmentally conscious society Fireworks are a huge tradition in China Macroeconomic Impacts Due to heavy competition, the market is faced with reduced prices Industry with increased demand Workers are lost to a different industry The industry faces with constant increase in cost of labor and raw materials. Demand of domestic market is declining Export sales are rising Political-legal Pressure Highly regulated industry: -manufacturing -distribution -consumption No protection for: -intellectual property rights -copying of brand -identity -duplicates Technological Developments Low R&D investment New kinds of innovations in industry Quality issues Global Trade Issues Globally emerging markets Steadily increasing demand -New Year celebration -major celebrations as Olympics etc. Fireworks is manufactured in many other south East Asian countries and Europe Five-Force Model Bargaining Power of Suppliers The bargaining power of suppliers is low because of the large number of suppliers of raw materials available, a limited product differentiation among fireworks products and just variation in the quality. Bargaining Power of Buyers The bargaining power of buyers is high due to a steadily increasing demand for fireworks both domestically and internationally and very low switching costs. The customers in fireworks and firecrackers market can be divided into individuals and business units such as government institutions, private associations or general companies. Every country has different regulations about manufacturing, selling and using fireworks and firecrackers. Because more and more countries prohibit the public launching fireworks and firecrackers, the individuals market declined dramatically. In the contrast, the business units market went up because in the display fireworks market, the buyers were often central and local governments who purchase product for public shows on national holidays or special celebrations. The foreign buyers have a high power due to the high demand in international market. Besides, foreign buyers are very well-informed and dealing usually directly with the factories, which results in high power as well. Threat of New Entrants The threat for new entrants is high. The opportunity for potential entrants is high due to the fact that the capital requirement for establishing a fireworks factory is very low. The economy of scale is high and the brand identification within this industry is relatively low. Furthermore, there is easy access to a labor force, materials and suppliers plus easy licensing  process. All these facts provide very good opportunities for the new companies to enter this industry. Threat of Substitute Products or Services In terms of the threat of substitute products or services, several modern technologies already are applied in some performances, firecrackers still cannot be replaced because firecrackers present certain meanings and culture. Furthermore, fireworks can create several kinds of patterns in the air such as peony, ground bloom flower, etc. No real substitutes can replace fireworks. There are substitutes such as make-believe firecrackers and laser beams that have potential to replace the firecrackers in the future. Rivalry Rivalry of the fireworks industry is high due to the fact that it is easy to enter the industry and the exit barrier is low. There is also a little differentiation among products which makes competition even fiercer. According to exhibit one in the case, firecrackers and fireworks total revenue in China increased 36 % from 2007 to 2009. The revenue went up 68 % from 750.000.000 USD to 1.262.500.000 USD. Most factories are dominated by small family-owned –and –operated workshops and most of the employees in the factories are regular farmers who had learned how to make fireworks just by watching and following their elders. As a result, those factories only manufactured fireworks instead of designing fireworks. In terms of international rivalry, a number of different brands has become well known around the world, Chinese fireworks have lower reputation in quality control and packing comparing to the products made in Japan or Korea. In addition, some fireworks merchants will buy the products from China and repackage them, then resell them for much higher price. Domestic competition and foreign competition is very high. Assessment of the industry attractiveness Every industry has life cycle includes introduction phase including early phase and innovation phase, growth phase, maturity phase and decline phase. The Chinese fireworks industry is no longer in a period of growth and has begun to plateau. As a result, it is it`s maturity phase now. However, if the investor can input different strategy into this sunset industry,  fireworks industry will probably start another life cycle. The investor can focus on high-end market and provide unique products and service in order to gain high profits. A good business model can make a company to succeed but it may take time and investment capital in order to prepare the company to start another life cycle. Fireworks industry is still a global opportunity because every country still has fireworks shows every year and the scare seems to become larger and larger. The revenue in both domestic the international market still also grows up. Implementation considerations This analysis indicates that rivalry of fireworks industry is extremely high and hence, if the company was to survive in competition, it should make great effort to differentiate their strategies to achieve sustainable competitive advantages. There are opportunities in this sunset industry if the company can build a totally new infrastructure. In terms of infrastructure and product development the investor should focus on the product diverseness and SOP (Standard Operating Procedures) management to have more competitiveness to their rivals. First of all the investor should concentrate on R&D to produce the fireworks that can shoot long distance and safely. R&D department also has to develop more environment-friendly fireworks by changing materials. Every New Year, most of the big cities in the world will schedule the large-scale fireworks displays. Those displays all are high altitude fireworks. However, more and more cities regulate the consumption and launch of the fireworks and firecrackers because of increased concerns about environmental pollution and safety. Launching fireworks becomes a business program to attract domestic and international tourists. Investor should recruit more young employees with art and design background to make fireworks to a brilliant shows. Furthermore, investor should enforce training programs such as enhancing working safety classes and machining. Experienced employees also need to learn new skills and learn how to work more efficiently. Labor costs in China are relatively low compared with that in Japan and Korea. As a result, fireworks made from China always have price superiority to provide lower price. Since Liuyang is investor’s hometown, he can also understand the working culture in China and can more easily to manage the local employees.  Doing business with the Chinese government is not easy because interpersonal relationship is a very important element. Bureaucracy is also a problem. In contrast, the export market is not easy, either. Unfortunately, many products made in China have a doubtful reputation. Investor has to reverse the company imagine. Creating a brand identity costs long period of time and money. However, once the brand becomes famous and international one, customers will trust the quality of the produces from the company and the value of company will also increase because of brand value. The company can attend more international exhibition to get popularity and also focus on quality control and time control. Investor should reorganized the company structure and improve the equipment in my company to pass international identification and put more budgets in marketing to enlarge the popularity of the company. The company can sponsor different international events such as Olympic, etc. In terms of technological development fireworks and firecrackers displays can still combine with laser beam, computerized firing and music accompaniment to strengthen the visual, audio and emotional effects. Moreover, the investor should focus on the fireworks display design. What the company sells is not only the fireworks themselves but also the ideas of how to present more colorful modeling during the displays. The company should put more creativity into the display to make impossible turn to possible and impress all audiences. Most fireworks displays are launched at night. However, some events take place during a daytime, which can also be an opportunity for the company to distinguish itself from its rivals. Establishing relationships with universities worldwide and develop prototypes for new fireworks can help a brand building and for the company. Another strategy is to establish strategic alliances with other companies like suppliers, government agencies, distributors, etc. Such relationships can develop synergy that thrives in the industry and help to gain access to better quality raw materials at cheapest price and absorb foreign direct investments to improve equipment, capital and the above R&D facility. Jerry Yu should be prepared that all those changes, both internal and external, will take time to implement and require capital investment. Probably in terms of long-term investment the fireworks industry will sooner or later shift towards more environmentally friendly industry and use substitutes more and more. Recommendations Considering China’s one-child policy has led to one of the world’s largest elderly populations. Roughly 10 percent of the population is expected to be over 65 by 2015 and, by 2050, the average age in China is forecast to be nearly 45 – one of the oldest in the world. Additionally, some 20 percent of the population is already suffering from liver disease, cancer, diabetes and similar inflictions, and this number is likely to grow alongside its aging population. Private healthcare expenditures are expected to grow another 36 percent by 2015 to over US$200 billion. The entire medical services market is expected to reach US$500 billion by 2015. So if Jerry Yu may consider other investment opportunities I would advise him to invest in China’s medical industry and health care industry. In terms of more sustainable investments for a longer period of time the health care industry is more attractive both domestically and internationally. References Beamish, Paul W. Chinese Fireworks Industry – Revised. Richard Ivey School of Business. 2011 Porter E. Michael. The five competitive forces that shape strategy. Harvard Business Review. 2008 T. Hesketh and W. X. Zhu. The healthcare market. BMJ. 2007 May 21 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-10/24/content_6201487.htm http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMC_09.htm#sthash.gasxWHcJ.dpuf http://businesscasestudies.co.uk/business-theory/external-environment/pest-analysis.html#ixzz2fnrTq

Do Women Lust

Do Women Lust? I think that all women lust because every female has a hormone that comes out when they see a hot guy. They begin to start thinking about the guy and what he looks like with his clothes off. Some women even go as far as telling their friend that’s around them what they would do to the dude. Most people don’t really realize or notice when a lady lust after something. Most females don’t show there expressions on their face but on the inside her mind is running wild about the person whether it’s a male or another female.Most women won’t typically show that their lusting like men try to do. Sometimes the ladies eyes can tell you if they might be lusting or see a man that has caught their eye and they will probably watch them until they leave their sight. Women thoughts are just like men because they have their thoughts and ideas of how they can please the guy. Women know exactly how to turn on a man. They know how to turn them on by manip ulating this hardwired â€Å"quirk† that absolves them of the need to actually know anything about a woman.This means that the women start acting sexy but acting distant at the same time. They do things that they know will make the man want to see what they really can do once they are able to take the woman’s clothes. The women know what they be doing when the start teasing the guy by slowly taking off her clothes and a sexy dance with it. The women know most of the times that they don’t really want to have sex with the man so she will play with his emotions until she gets tired of doing that or until she take it too far and wants to have sex for real with him.

Second Foundation 12. Lord

Of all the worlds of the Galaxy, Kalgan undoubtedly had the most unique history. That of the planet Terminus, for instance, was that of an almost uninterrupted rise. That of Trantor, once capital of the Galaxy, was that of an almost uninterrupted fall. But Kalgan- Kalgan first gained fame as the pleasure world of the Galaxy two centuries before the birth of Hari Seldon. It was a pleasure world in the sense that it made an industry – and an immensely profitable one, at that – out of amusement. And it was a stable industry. It was the most stable industry in the Galaxy. When all the Galaxy perished as a civilization, little by little, scarcely a feather's weight of catastrophe fell upon Kalgan. No matter how the economy and sociology of the neighboring sectors of the Galaxy changed, there was always an elite; and it is always the characteristic of an elite that it possesses leisure as the great reward of its elite-hood. Kalgan was at the service, therefore, successively – and successfully – of the effete and perfumed dandies of the Imperial Court with their sparkling and libidinous ladies; of the rough and raucous warlords who ruled in iron the worlds they had gained in blood, with their unbridled and lascivious wenches; of the plump and luxurious businessmen of the Foundation, with their lush and flagitious mistresses. It was quite undiscriminating, since they all had money. And since Kalgan serviced all and barred none; since its commodity was in unfailing demand; since it had the wisdom to interfere in no world's politics, to stand on no one's legitimacy, it prospered when nothing else did, and remained fat when all grew thin. That is, until the Mule. Then, somehow, it fell, too, before a conqueror who was impervious to amusement, or to anything but conquest. To him all planets were alike, even Kalgan. So for a decade, Kalgan found itself in the strange role of Galactic metropolis; mistress of the greatest Empire since the end of the Galactic Empire itself. And then, with the death of the Mule, as sudden as the zoom, came the drop. The Foundation broke away. With it and after it, much of the rest of the Mule's dominions. Fifty years later there was left only the bewildering memory of that short space of power, like an opium dream. Kalgan never quite recovered. It could never return to the unconcerned pleasure world it had been, for the spell of power never quite releases its bold. It lived instead under a succession of men whom the Foundation called the Lords of Kalgan, but who styled themselves First Citizen of the Galaxy, in imitation of the Mule's only title, and who maintained the fiction that they were conquerors too. The current Lord of Kalgan had held that position for five months. He had gained it originally by virtue of his position at the head of the Kalganian navy, and through a lamentable lack of caution on the part of the previous lord. Yet no one on Kalgan was quite stupid enough to go into the question of legitimacy too long or too closely. These things happened, and are best accepted. Yet that sort of survival of the fittest in addition to putting a premium on bloodiness and evil, occasionally allowed capability to come to the fore as well. Lord Stettin was competent enough and not easy to manage. Not easy for his eminence, the First Minister, who, with fine impartiality, had served the last lord as well as the present; and who would, if he lived long enough, serve the next as honestly. Nor easy for the Lady Callia, who was Stettin's more than friend, yet less than wife. In Lord Stettin's private apartments the three were alone that evening. The First Citizen, bulky and glistening in the admiral's uniform that he affected, scowled from out the unupholstered chair in which he sat as stiffly as the plastic of which it was composed. His First Minister Lev Meirus, faced him with a far-off unconcern, his long, nervous fingers stroking absently and rhythmically the deep line that curved from hooked nose along gaunt and sunken cheek to the point, nearly, of the gray-bearded chin. The Lady Callia disposed of herself gracefully on the deeply furred covering of a foamite couch, her full lips trembling a bit in an unheeded pout. â€Å"Sir,† said Meirus – it was the only title adhering to a lord who was styled only First Citizen, â€Å"you lack a certain view of the continuity of history. Your own life, with its tremendous revolutions, leads you to think of the course of civilization as something equally amenable to sudden change. But it is not.† â€Å"The Mule showed otherwise.† â€Å"But who can follow in his footsteps. He was more than man, remember. And be, too, was not entirely successful.† â€Å"Poochie,† whimpered the Lady Callia, suddenly, and then shrank into herself at the furious gesture from the First Citizen. Lord Stettin said, harshly, â€Å"Do not interrupt, Callia. Meirus, I am tired of inaction. My predecessor spent his life polishing the navy into a finely-turned instrument that has not its equal in the Galaxy. And he died with the magnificent machine lying idle. Am I to continue that? I, an Admiral of the Navy? â€Å"How long before the machine rusts? At present, it is a drain on the Treasury and returns nothing. Its officers long for dominion, its men for loot. All Kalgan desires the return of Empire and glory. Are you capable of understanding that?† â€Å"These are but words that you use, but I grasp your meaning. Dominion, loot, glory – pleasant when they are obtained, but the process of obtaining them is often risky and always unpleasant. The first fine flush may not last. And in all history, it has never been wise to attack the Foundation. Even the Mule would have been wiser to refrain-â€Å" There were tears in the Lady Callia's blue, empty eyes. Of late, Poochie scarcely saw her, and now, when he had promised the evening to her, this horrible, thin, gray man, who always looked through her rather than at her, had forced his way in. And Poochie let him. She dared not say anything; was frightened even of the sob that forced its way out. But Stettin was speaking now in the voice she hated, hard and Impatient. He was saying: â€Å"You're a slave to the far past. The Foundation is greater in volume and population, but they are loosely knit and will fall apart at a blow. What holds them together these days is merely inertia; an inertia I am strong enough to smash. You are hypnotized by the old days when only the Foundation had atomic power. They were able to dodge the last hammer blows of the dying Empire and then faced only the unbrained anarchy of the warlords who would counter the Foundation's atomic vessels only with hulks and relics. â€Å"But the Mule, my dear Meirus, has changed that. He spread the knowledge, that the Foundation had hoarded to itself, through half the Galaxy and the monopoly in science is gone forever. We can match them.† â€Å"And the Second Foundation?† questioned Meirus, coolly. â€Å"And the Second Foundation?† repeated Stettin as coolly. â€Å"Do you know its intentions? It took ten years to stop the Mule, if, indeed, it was the factor, which some doubt. Are you unaware that a good many of the Foundation's psychologists and sociologists are of the opinion that the Seldon Plan has been completely disrupted since the days of the Mule? If the Plan has gone, then a vacuum exists which I may fill as well as the next man.† â€Å"Our knowledge of these matters is not great enough to warrant the gamble.† â€Å"Our knowledge, perhaps, but we have a Foundation visitor on the planet. Did you know that? A Homir Munn – who, I understand, has written articles on the Mule, and has expressed exactly that opinion, that the Seldon Plan no longer exists.† The First Minister nodded, â€Å"I have heard of him, or at least of his writings. What does he desire?† â€Å"He asks permission to enter the Mule's palace.† â€Å"Indeed? It would be wise to refuse. It is never advisable to disturb the superstitions with which a planet is held.† â€Å"I will consider that – and we will speak again.† Meirus bowed himself out. Lady Callia said tearfully, â€Å"Are you angry with me, Poochie?†*** Stettin turned on her savagely. â€Å"Have I not told you before never to call me by that ridiculous name in the presence of others?† â€Å"You used to like it.† â€Å"Well, I don't any more, and it is not to happen again.† He stared at her darkly. It was a mystery to him that he tolerated her these days. She was a soft, empty-headed thing, comfortable to the touch, with a pliable affection that was a convenient facet to a hard life. Yet, even that affection was becoming wearisome. She dreamed of marriage, of being First Lady. Ridiculous! She was all very well when he had been an admiral only – but now as First Citizen and future conqueror, he needed more. He needed heirs who could unite his future dominions, something the Mule had never had, which was why his Empire did not survive his strange nonhuman life. He, Stettin, needed someone of the great historic families of the Foundation with whom he could fuse dynasties. He wondered testily why he did not rid himself of Callia now. It would be no trouble. She would whine a bit- He dismissed the thought. She had her points, occasionally. Callia was cheering up now. The influence of Graybeard was gone and her Poochie's granite face was softening now. She lifted herself in a single, fluid motion and melted toward him. â€Å"You're not going to scold me, are you?† â€Å"No.† He patted her absently. â€Å"Now just sit quietly for a while, will you? I want to think.† â€Å"About the man from the Foundation?† â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"Poochie?† This was a pause. â€Å"What?† â€Å"Poochie, the man has a little girl with him, you said. Remember? Could I see her when she comes? I never-â€Å" â€Å"Now what do you think I want him to bring his brat with him for? Is my audience room to be a grammar school? Enough of your nonsense, Callia.† â€Å"But I'll take care of her, Poochie. You won't even have to bother with her. It's just that I hardly ever see children, and you know how I love them.† He looked at her sardonically. She never tired of this approach. She loved children; i.e. his children; i.e. his legitimate children; i.e. marriage. He laughed. â€Å"This particular little piece,† he said, â€Å"is a great girl of fourteen or fifteen. She's probably as tall as you are.† Callia looked crushed. â€Å"Well, could I, anyway? She could tell me about the Foundation? I've always wanted to go there, you know. My grandfather was a Foundation man. Won't you take me there, sometime, Poochie?† Stettin smiled at the thought. Perhaps he would, as conqueror. The good nature that the thought supplied him with made itself felt in his words, â€Å"I will, I will. And you can see the girl and talk Foundation to her all you want. But not near me, understand.† â€Å"I won't bother you, honestly. I'll have her in my own rooms.† She was happy again. It was not very often these days that she was allowed to have her way. She put her arms about his neck and after the slightest hesitation, she felt its tendons relax and the large head come softly down upon her shoulder.

Mental and Behavioral Health Services Essay

While the future of Mental and Behavioral Health Services continue to strive through many striving goals to develop continuous practices, treatments, evaluations, policies, and research, advancements are taking place to better the future of this program and its outreach to the people. Mental disorders are common in the United States and internationally. An estimated 26.2 percent of Americans ages 18 and older — about one in four adults — suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder in a given year.1 When applied to the 2004 U.S. Census residential population estimate for ages 18 and older, this figure translated to 57.7 million people.2 Even though mental disorders are common in the population, the main load of illness is concentrated in a much smaller proportion — about 6 percent, or 1 in 17 — who are suffering from a serious mental illness.1 In addition, mental disorders are the leading cause of disability in the U.S. and Canada.3 Many people suffer from mo re than one mental disorder at a given time. Roughly, 45 percent of those with any mental disorder meet the criteria for being strongly related to having 2 or more disorders.1 Awareness of having a disorder is very uncommon in the U.S. DEFINED & FUTURE PROBLEMS Behavioral health is a state of mental/emotional being and/or choices and actions that affect wellness. Substance abuse and misuse are one set of behavioral health problems. Others include, but are not limited to, serious psychological distress, suicide, and mental illness (4. SAMHSA, 2011). Many of these problems are far-reaching and take a toll on individuals, their families and communities, and the broader society. Research allows us to get a better picture of what the future looks like and what people need to be continuing to do and improve on. By looking over research, statistics predict that by 2020, mental and substance use disorders will exceed all physical diseases as a major cause of disability worldwide. The annual total estimated societal cost of substance abuse in the United States is $510.8 billion, with an estimated 23.5 million Americans aged 12 and older needing treatment for substance use. Along with that, every year almost 5,000 people under the age of 21 die as a result of underage drinking and more than 34,000 Americans die every year as a result of suicide, almost one every 15 minutes. Also, Half of all lifetime cases of mental and substance use disorders begin by age 14 and three-fourths by age 24—in 2008, an estimated 9.8 million adults in the U.S. had a serious mental illness. The health and wellness of individuals in America are jeopardized and the unnecessary costs to society flow across America’s communities, schools, businesses, prisons & jails, and healthcare delivery systems. Many programs and services are working together to minimize the impact of substance abuse and mental illnesses on America’s communities. Many practitioners have a very deep understanding approach to behavioral health and perceive prevention as part of an overall continuum of care. The Behavioral Health Continuum of Care Model helps us recognize that there are multiple opportunities for addressing behavioral health problems and disorders based on the Mental Health Intervention Spectrum, first introduced in a 1994 Institute of Medicine report, the model includes these components: ( It is important to keep in mind that interventions do not always fit neatly into one category or another) * Promotion: These strategies are designed to create environments and conditions that support behavioral health and the ability of individuals to withstand challenges. Promotion strategies also reinforce the entire continuum of behavioral health services. * Prevention: Delivered prior to the onset of a disorder, these interventions are intended to prevent or reduce the risk of developing a behavioral health problem, such as underage alcohol use, prescription drug misuse and abuse, and illicit drug use. * Treatment: These services are for people diagnosed with a substance use or other behavioral health disorder. * Maintenance: These services support individuals’ compliance with long-term treatment and aftercare. Two strategies for promoting the more important and most effective openings in having access to mental and behavioral health services include providing education to reach the public, and the prevention and early intervention matters intertwining with the Continuum model components of treatment and maintenance. 7 The New Freedom Commission Report and Surgeon General’s Report both emphasized the importance of changing public attitudes to eliminate the stigma associated with mental illness. Advocates for the mentally ill identify stigma and discrimination as major impediments to treatment. Stigma prevents individuals from acknowledging these conditions and erodes public confidence that mental disorders are treatable. A plurality of Americans believe that mental illnesses are just like any other illness; however, 25 percent of survey respondents would not welcome into their neighborhoods facilities that treat or house people with mental illnesses, suggesting that some level of lingering stigma persists.8 Sixty-one percent of Americans think that people with schizophrenia are likely to be dangerous to others9 despite research suggesting that these individuals are rarely violent.10 With that being said, the media plays a large role in shaping how the youth think and behave from many of the messages kids receive from television, music, magazines, billboards, and the Internet use. However, the media can be used to encourage positive behaviors as well. Four evidence based communication and education prevention approaches are through public education, social marketing, media advocacy, and media literacy that can be used to â€Å"influence community norms, increase public awareness, and attract community support for a variety of prevention issues† (SAMHSA). Public education is usually the most common strategy and is an effective way to show support to the development and success of programs and increase awareness about new or existing laws, publicizing a community based program, and reinforce instruction taught in schools or community based organizations. Through social marketing, practitioners use advertising philosophies to change social norms and promote healthy behaviors. Social marketing campaigns do more than just provide information and tries to convince people to adopt a new behavior by showing them a benefit they will receive in return.11 Social marketing campaigns are being used in a variety of social services and public health settings. Media advocacy involves shaping the way social issues are discussed in the media to build support for changes in public policy. By working directly with local newspapers, television, and radio to change both the amount of coverage the media provide and the content of that coverage, media advocates hope to influence the way people talk and think about a social or public policy12. Media literacy is a newer communications strategy aimed at teaching young people critical-viewing skills. Media literacy programs teach kids how to analyze and understand the media messages they encounter so they can better understand what they’re really being asked to do and think. Inferences about a program effectiveness relies on three things: (1) measures of key constructs, such as risk and protective factors or processes, symptoms, disorders, or other outcomes, and program implementation, fidelity, or participation; (2) a study design that determines which participants are being examined, how and when they will be assessed, and what interventions they will receive; and (3) statistical analyses that model how those given an intervention differ on outcomes compared with those in a comparison condition 19 In the past, practitioners and researchers saw substance abuse prevention different from the prevention of other behavioral health problems. But evidence indicates that the populations are significantly affected by these overlapping problems as well as factors that contribute to these problems. Therefore, improvements in one area usually have direct impacts on the other. According to the Substance Abuse and National Health Services Administration, not all people or populations are at the same risk of developing behavioral health problems. Many young people have more than one behavioral disorder. These disorders can interact and contribute to the presence of other disorders. Besides extensive research documenting strong relations between multiple problems, it’s not always clear what leads to what. Mental and physical health is also connected. Good mental health often contributes to good physical health. In the same way, the presence of mental health disorders, including substance abuse and dependence, is often associated with physical health disorders as well (O’Connell, 2009). One major advancement that has been recently made is from The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, adding a new search feature to its National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices (NREPP) Web site. The feature allows users to identify NREPP interventions that have been evaluated in comparative effectiveness research studies. Both the Obama Administration and the U.S. Congress have championed additional investments in comparative effectiveness research to enhance public understanding about which healthcare interventions are most effective in different circumstances and with different patients. The new NREPP feature can provide added information for States and communities seeking to determine which mental health and substance abuse prevention and treatment interventions may best address their needs. The Surgeon General’s notes that â€Å"effective interventions help people to understand that mental disorders are not character flaws but are legitimate illnesses that respond to specific treatments, just as other health conditions respond to medical interventions.† (7) The two major influences that are targeted upon are risk and protective factors. According to SAMHSAs levels of risk and interventions, some risk factors are causal; others act as â€Å"proxies†, or markers of an underlying problem. Some risk and protective factors, such as gender and ethnicity, are fixed, meaning they don’t change over time. Other risk and protective factors are considered variable: these can change over time. Variable risk factors include income level, peer group, and employment status. Many factors influence a person’s likeliness to develop a substance abuse or related behavioral health problem. Effective prevention focuses on reducing those risk factors, and str engthening those protective factors, that are most closely related to the problem being addressed. Taken into consideration that preventive interventions are most effective when they are appropriately matched to their target population’s level of risk, The Institute of Medicine defines three broad types of prevention interventions, universal, selective, and indicated. Universal preventive interventions take the broadest approach, targeting â€Å"the general public or a whole population that has not been identified on the basis of individual risk† (O’Connell, 2009). Universal prevention interventions might target schools, whole communities, or workplaces. Selective preventive interventions target â€Å"individuals or a population sub-group whose risk of developing mental disorders [or substance abuse disorders] is significantly higher than average†, prior to the diagnosis of a disorder (5. O’Connell, 2009). Selective interventions target biological, psychological, or social risk factors that are more prominent among high-risk groups than among the wider population. Indicated preventive interventions target â€Å"high-risk individuals who are identified as having minimal but detectable signs or symptoms foreshadowing mental, emotional, or behavioral disorder† prior to the diagnosis of a disorder (6. IOM, 2009). Interventions focus on the immediate risk and protective factors present in the environments surrounding individuals. A more harsher or serious way of approaching prevention is through policy adoption and enforcement. Policy can be broadly defined as â€Å"standards for behavior that are formalized to some degree (that is, written) and embodied in rules, regulations, and procedures.†13 In order to work, these standards must reflect the accepted norms and intentions of a particular community. There are six major types of policy SAMHSA uses to prevent alcohol and other drug use through economic policies, restrictions on access and availability, restrictions on location and density, deterrence, restricting use, and limiting the marketing of alcohol products. Policy can be an effective prevention strategy—as long as the laws and regulations you put in place are consistent with community norms and beliefs about the â€Å"rightness† or â€Å"wrongness† of the behavior you want to legislate14. â€Å"The key to effective enforcement is visibility: People need to see that substance use prevention is a community priority and that violations of related laws and regulations will not be tolerated.† 6 Strategies that we use today for Enforcement are through surveillance, community policing, having incentives, and penalties, fines, and detentions. There have been many areas of progress in preventive intervention research since the 1994 Institute of Medicine (IOM) report Reducing Risks for Mental Disorders: Frontiers for Preventive Intervention Research. Experimental research has greatly improved mainly due to the advances in the methodological approaches applied to intervention research. For a range of outcomes, while the different types of intervention research has increased, so has the number of studies providing economic analyses in the costs and benefits of these interventions. As the 2001 U.S. Surgeon General’s report on children’s mental health indicated, there is a current need for improved and expanded mental health services for children and adolescents (15). There is a greater need for greater access to a variety of mental health services for children including both medication for emotional or behavioral difficulties and treatments other than medication. Recent research studies have documented the increased use of psychotropic medications (16). Less is known, though, about the use of nonmedication treatments for the emotional and behavioral difficulties of U.S. children. These treatments may include community-based services such as behavioral and family therapy provided by mental health professionals in clinic and office settings and school-based services such as assessments of mental health problems, individual counseling, and crisis intervention services for students (17,18). With the information collected by the mental health service questions in the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), it will be possible to monitor future trends in the use of both medication and other treatments for the emotional and behavioral difficulties of children. Recommended changes by the Surgeon General include: †¢ improve geographic access; †¢ integrate mental health and primary care; †¢ ensure language access; †¢ coordinate and integrate mental health services for high-need populations. (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2001) 1. Kessler RC, Chiu WT, Demler O, Walters EE. Prevalence, severity, and comorbidity of twelve-month DSM-IV disorders in the National Comorbidity Survey Replication (NCS-R). Archives of General Psychiatry, 2005 Jun;62(6):617-27. 2. U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates by Demographic Characteristics. Table 2: Annual Estimates of the Population by Selected Age Groups and Sex for the United States: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2004 (NC-EST2004-02) Source: Population Division, U.S. Census Bureau Release Date: June 9, 2005. http://www.census.gov/popest/national/asrh/ 3. The World Health Organization. The global burden of disease: 2004 update, Table A2: Burden of disease in DALYs by cause, sex and income group in WHO regions, estimates for 2004. Geneva, Switzerland: WHO, 2008. http://www.who.int/healthinfo/global_burden_disease/GBD_report_2004update_AnnexA.pdf. 4. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2011). Leading change: A plan for SAMHSA’s roles and actions 2011-2014. Rockville, MD: SAMHSA. 5. O’Connell, M. E., Boat, T., & Warner, K. E. (Eds.). (2009). Preventing mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders among young people: Progress and possibilities. National Research Council and Institute of Medicine of the National Academies. Washington, D.C.: The National Academies Press. 6. Compton, M. T. (2009). Clinical Manual of Prevention in Mental Health (1st ed.). American Psychiatric Publishing, Inc. 7.. U.S. DHHS. 1999. Mental Health: A Report of the Surgeon General. 8. Pescosolido, B. et al. 2000.Americans’ Views of Mental Health and Illness at the Century’s End: Continuity and Change. Public Report on the MacArthur Mental Health Module, 1996 General Social Survey. Bloomington, Indiana. 9. Steadman, H.J. et al. 1998.Violence by People Discharged from Acute Psychiatric Inpatient Facilities and by Others in the Same Neighborhoods. Archives of General Psychiatry 55 (5): 393–401. 10. Borinstein,A.B. 1992. Public Attitudes Toward Persons with Mental Illness. Health Affairs 11 (3): 186–96. 11. Kotler, P. and Roberto, E. (1989). Social marketing: Strategies for changing pubic behavior. New York: Free Press. 12. Wallack, L., Dorfman, L., Jernigan, D., and Themba, M. (1993). Media advocacy and public health: Power for prevention. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications. 13. Bruner, C. and Chavez, M. (1996). Getting to the grassroots: Neighborhood organizing and mobilization. Des Moines, IA: NCSI Clearinghouse. CSAP Community Partnerships (unpublished document). 14. Bruner, C. (1991). Thinking collaboratively: Ten questions and answers to help policy makers improve children’s services. Washington, DC: Education and Human Services Consortium 15. U.S. Public Health Service. Report of the Surgeon General’s Conference on Children’s Mental Health: A National Action Agenda. Washington, DC: Department of Health and Human Services. 2000. 16. Martin A, Leslie D. Trends in psychotropic medication costs for children and adolescents, 1997–2000. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 157:997–1004. 2003. 17. Steele RG, Roberts MC (Eds.). Handbook of mental health services for children, adolescents, and families. New York: Springer, 2005. 18. Foster S, Rollefson M, Doksum T, Noonan D, Robinson G, Teich J. School Mental Health Services in the United States, 2002–2003. DHHS Pub. No. (SMA) 05–4068. Rockville, MD: Center for Mental Health Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. 2005 19. Committee on the Prevention of Mental Disorders and Substance Abuse Among Children, Youth and Young Adults: Research Advances and Promising Interventions, Institute of Medicine, National Research Council. â€Å"10 Advances in Prevention Methodology.† Preventing Mental, Emotional, and Behavioral Disorders Among Young People: Progress and Possibilities. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 2009.