Thursday, December 26, 2019

Nursing Process And Critical Thinking - 917 Words

1. This week my goal for clinical is to work more on connecting with my patient on a personal level; I want them to know that they are more than just their illness to me and that I am there to help them and make sure everything that is done is in their best interest. 2. I would like to work on getting the answers for my subjective data form through a casual conversation with the patient rather than just asking them straight out. I feel I may receive more useful and detailed answers if I make the patient feel comfortable and less like they are being drilled for information. Reflect on your clinical week giving specific examples of the following: Use of nursing process/ critical thinking and problem solving to guide care This week my patient suffered from a traumatic brain injury and had major cognitive deficits that required me to use critical thinking and the nursing process for his care. When performing the patients’ neurological checks, it was imperative that I not only note a change in mental status or pupil reactivity or decreased sensation but also that I understand the implications of this change and what it means for the patient. Even the most seemingly insignificant change can indicate a big problem; therefore, comparing the patients’ recent status with the current assessment information is important for finding these changes, no matter how small they may be. I had to use critical thinking while talking with my patient and trying to reorient him to realityShow MoreRelatedA Nursing Process Approach to Malignant Melanoma1155 Words   |  5 PagesNursing Process Approach to Malignant Melanoma To fully comprehend the concept of the nursing process, one must first understanding what nursing is and the history of nursing. 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The purpose of this paper is to define critical thinking and clinical reasoning, discuss each concepts similarities and differences, as well as share this author’s perspective on how critical thinking and clinical reasoning have developed and evolved throughoutRead MoreCritical Thinking And Learning Are Interrelated Lifelong Processes1631 Words   |  7 Pagesâ€Å"Thinking and learning are interrelated lifelong processes† (Institute, 2013). The knowledge and every day experiences gained in the nursing profession, help nurses’ to make thoughtful and appropriate decisions. Nurses are constantly involved in making decisions within their practice. These decisions are constantly affected by situations where there is no single or absolutely correct response, theref or critical thinking, reflective practice and analysing in health are three of the key componentsRead MoreCritical Thinking1125 Words   |  5 PagesCritical Thinking Article Review Over the last thirty years, the health care system has incurred dramatic changes, resulting in new advances in technology and medical theories. Greater demand for quality care by consumers, more knowledgeable patients, remarkable disease processes, shorter hospitalizations, and the continuing pressure to lower health care costs are all contributing factors in the necessary changes to the nursing practice. In order for nurses to deliver optimum care, they must developRead MoreEssay Critical Thinking: Beneficial in Nursing Education519 Words   |  3 PagesThe American Nurses Association (ANA) recognizes that critical thinking (CT) is an integral part of each step in the nursing process (ANA, 2010). Educating nurses in critical thinking begins during nursing school. National League for Nursing‘s (NLN) expectations for nursing students is that they are capable of incorporating CT into their practice (Roberts Petersen, 2013). Nursing students who successfully learn to criticall y think are better prepared to function in a dynamic patient care settingRead MoreIdentify the stages of the Nursing Process and the skills essential to the Nursing Process1672 Words   |  7 PagesThe nursing process is a five stage systematic framework, and based on the problem solving approach; it forms the foundation for nursing practice to facilitate focussed, individualised care planning for patients (Yildirim and Ozkahraman 2011). This assignment will serve to identify the five stages of the nursing process: Assessment, Nursing Diagnosis, Planning, Implementation and Evaluation. The skills: Communication, Observation, Critical Thinking and Reflection involved within the nursing processRead MoreBecoming a Nurse or Midwife Essay1050 Words   |  5 Pagespatience and dedication. Being autonomous in nursing is very important while making decisions and practice and which can be obtained by continual education. According to Potter and Perry (eds 2009), Accountability refers to responsibility of the nurse professionally and legally for the provided care. Trusted professional relationship is strongly built by effective communication. Communication with patient, family and multidisciplinary is essential for quality nursing care to the client. Collaboration withRead MoreCritical Thinking And Decision Making1198 Words   |  5 PagesCritical thinking is the process of actively conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and evaluating information gathered from the observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication. Critical thinking is a guide to belief and action (Scriven Paul 1987). In its exemplary form, it is based on universal intellectual values that transcend subject matter divisions: clarity, accuracy, precision, consistency, relevance, sound evidence, good reasons, depth, breadth, and fairnessRead MoreHow Is Critical Thinking Used Today?1069 Words   |  5 PagesHow is critical thinking used today? This is a typical question that a student in a non-nursing major may ask, but here at the Christ College, we would be happy to answer that for you. As a student nurse, I use and witness critical thinking and clinical reasoning in the clinical field every day. To better understand this topic, I found two articles to read and review. The first article I found is based on education and the second shows the view of a well-practiced nurse. The first article I choseRead MoreHow Was My Ideas And Understanding About Critical Thinking Changed?870 Words   |  4 PagesHow was your ideas and understanding about critical thinking changed? There has been a lot of talk about critical thinking during my four years of nursing school, with an array of different meaning and explanation; some was even unfathomable and baffling. Not so long ago, during my early years as a novice nurse, I didn’t pay much attention to the word, critical thinking. From where I used to work, decision making skills of nurses do not have a strong foundation. Every time there was a problem regarding

Wednesday, December 18, 2019

The War Of The American Civil War - 1890 Words

In the year 1864 the American Civil War was drawing to an end. The Confederate States of America was slowly running out of able bodied men and supplies to supply the army needed to ward off the Union’s invasion of the South. At this point in time the leader of the Union Army was Ulysses S. Grant. He devised a plan to escalate the process in which the Confederate Army was running out of supplies. Grant’s plan was to send Union troops to the West of the main conflict for them to loop around and cut off railroad lines, and burn farm lands. The greatest of these was the Army that burned thousands of acres in Georgia, yet another army led by General David Hunter might have been more decisive if it had not been stopped at the Battle of Lynchburg. General David Hunter was ordered by General Grant to make his way down the Shenandoah Valley and destroy as much farm land as possible along the way. On top of this General Hunter terrorized towns by pillaging stores and homes. The S outherners knew that a similar fate would become Lynchburg if they did not do anything to prevent Hunter’s advance. The people of Lynchburg worked hard at building up defenses protecting Lynchburg. They had to resort to using mostly young boys and elderly men since most able bodies men had already died in the War or were still fighting under General E. Lee. The boys and elderly men that maned the defenses did not have a good chance of warding of the large army led by General David Hunter; as a result, GeneralShow MoreRelatedAmerican War And The American Civil War1551 Words   |  7 Pageswhich then caused the Southern states of America to decide to leave the American Union and create their own Southern Confederacy. This tore our nation apart. The American Civil War had begun and the very people that were once neighbors had each other’s blood on their hands. Many American lives had been lost. The American lives lost in the Civil War even exceeded the number of American lives lost during World War I and World War II. We were divided. The North wanted to reunite with the southern statesRead MoreThe War Of The American Civil War1376 Words   |  6 PagesThe American Civil War was arguably the most important war in the history of the country. The War of Independence may have allowed American to become its’ own country, but the Civil War resulted in something even more important than that, the end of slavery in the southern states. All of the issues that caused the Civil war were based around slavery, such as states’ rights that involved how slavery would be handled in each state, and trying to preserve the Union since the south seceded from the northRead MoreThe War Of The American Civil War856 Words   |  4 PagesSlavery may have been established as the catalyst of the American Civil War, but the beginning of the dispute began in the time of the Revolution with a weak decentralized government under the Articles of Confederation. Lat er gained momentum as territorial expansion set Americans against each other on debating whether the new states should be slave states or free states, it questioned the power of the Federal government regarding state rights, and brought about instability in the unity of the UnitedRead MoreThe War Of The American Civil War1618 Words   |  7 Pages A Civil War is a battle between the same citizens in a country. The American Civil War was fought from 1861 to 1865 to determine the independence for the Confederacy or the survival of the Union. By the time Abraham Lincoln was elected president in 1861, in the mist of 34 states, the constant disagreement caused seven Southern slave states to their independence from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America. The Confederacy, generally known as the South, grew to include elevenRead MoreThe War Of The American Civil War991 Words   |  4 PagesThe American Civil War is known to most as the bloodiest war anyone has eve r witnessed. It claimed the life of thousands of Americans and animosity that was built up over several years prior to it can be to blame. Most people think that slavery was the cause of this battle, and although slavery did play a part, it was not the main cause. The biggest roles played in the American Civil War were states’ rights, unfair bills, feelings of inferiority and threats to economy. The tension started duringRead MoreThe War Of The American Civil War1324 Words   |  6 PagesThere were many events that led to the cause of one of America’s most devastating war, the American Civil War. The American Civil War was an unfortunate war that cost more than the lives of six hundred thousand people. Events such as the Missouri Compromise, Kansas Nebraska Act, Dred Scott Decision, and the Election of Abraham Lincoln resulted in the four yearlong battles between the Northern and Southern states due to social and economic differences on the idea of slavery. In the 19th century,Read MoreThe War Of The American Civil War Essay1472 Words   |  6 PagesThe American Civil War lasted from April 12, 1861 to May 9, 1865. It was the bloodiest war in American history, killing approximately 620,000 soldiers in total. The War was fought and won by the North, ensuring that all the United States would stay united and slavery would be illegal in The United States. However, history is one of the most complicated things in the world. It’s also one of the most important things in the world because history is what made the present possible. Historians have debatedRead MoreThe War Of The American Civil War960 Words   |  4 Pagesslavery even if it meant war caused peace in this nation. Slavery was the vital cause of the American Civil War. The north and the south both had their differences on how to run the country. People in the North believed in unity and that slavery should not exist because â€Å"all men are created equally.† On the o ther hand, the South believed in continuing slavery. People tried to talk it out and come to a middle ground after both sides compromising, however that didn’t work and caused war. Ideological differencesRead MoreThe Civil War And The American War1318 Words   |  6 PagesThe question of what caused the Civil War is debatable because there are several events that may have influenced the war such as the Western Expansion, Manifest Destiny and the Mexican-American War. The war also stems from slavery, the North and South basically fought over whether or not slavery should be permitted. Another point that may have influenced the Civil War is the economic and social structure of the country, which also falls under slavery because the South main source of income was slaveryRead MoreThe War Of The American Civil War1439 Words   |  6 PagesWhen the American Civil War began in the spring of 1861, those flocking to enlistment stations in states both north and south chiefly defined their cause as one of preservation. From Maine to Minnesota, young men joined up to preserve the Union. From Virginia to Texas, their future foes on the battlefield enlisted to preserve a social order, a social order at its core built on the institution of slavery and racial superiority . Secession had not been framed by prominent Southerners like Robert Toombs

Tuesday, December 10, 2019

The Wine Market in Romania free essay sample

Romania is an important wine producing European country, which has a long history with many cultural traditions – many of which are related to wine. Wine is considered to be the divine drink, in Romania. The beginning of viticulture in Romania dates back at least 400 years ago. The legend has it that Dionysos, the god of wine, was born in Thracia, in the region of modern day Romania. Dacia had a wide knowledge of wine. The abundance of grapes and the renowned wine produced by the Daci people was so well known and tempting that the King of Dacia, Burebista, ordered the vineyards to be destroyed as to end the repeated invasions of the migrating populations. 1. Market area Wine is an alcoholic drink which is consumed on the whole Romanian territory. A specific area or geographical territory cannot be marked out as am region where there are absolutely no consumers or relatively no consumers. Wine is commercialized on the whole territory of Romania, since before the year 2005. However the commercialization of wine takes place in the most populated areas, in both the rural and urban regions. The rural region in Romania represents about 40% of the total population and is specialized in natural economy, where the producers are also the consumers. Here wine is produced in household conditions, barrel wine or table wine, which in terms of quality, taste and fragrance is not far behind from the one know as â€Å"quality wine†. In the urban regions, wine is sold in glass bottles or other forms of packaging. The total sales of wine in the Romanian counties, in the year 2005, litres of wine: |Alba |10. 161. 200 | |Arad |12. 528. 600 | |Arges |17. 875. 200 | |Bacau |18. 806. 200 | |Bihor |15. 960. 000 | |Bistrita- Nasaud |8. 299. 200 | |Botosani |12. 023. 00 | |Brasov |15. 696. 660 | |Braila |9. 948. 400 | |Buzau |13. 220. 200 | |Caras Severin |8. 857. 800 | |Calarasi |8. 645. 000 | |Cluj |18. 699. 800 | |Constanta |19. 045. 600 | |Covasna |5. 931. 00 | |Dambovita |14. 417. 200 | |Dolj |19. 551. 000 | |Galati |16. 494. 660 | |Giurigu |7. 982. 660 | |Gorj |10. 374. 000 | |Hargita |8. 671. 600 | |Hunedoara |12. 901. 000 | |Iasi |21. 05. 600 | |Ilfov |7. 982. 660 | |Maramures |13. 568. 660 | |Mehedinti |8. 139. 600 | |Mures |15. 430. 660 | |Neamt |14. 632. 660 | |Olt |12. 770. 660 | |Prahova |22. 051. 400 | |Satu Mare |9. 62. 200 | |Salaj |6. 596. 800 | |Sibiu |11. 198. 600 | |Suceava |18. 300. 800 | |Teleorman |11. 597. 600 | |Timis |18. 008. 200 | |Tulcea |6. 836. 200 | |Vaslui |12. 103. 00 0 | |Valcea |10. 985. 00 | |Vrancea |10. 294. 200 | |Municipiul Bucuresti |53. 226. 600 | 2) Market Structure An empirical analysis will reveal that the highest sales of wine are in the historical-geographical areas of wine production, close to the wine-growing districts, where grapes, the raw material for wine production, is most easily obtained. The wine-growing districts map: The historic-geographical regions are: Moldova, Muntenia and Oltenia, the West region, Transilvania, Dobrogea Culture vine can be performed in Romania, almost in every corner of the country, starting from the Danube in the South, through the counties Botosani and Maramures in the North. Only a few counties located in areas of higher altitude (Brasov, Covasna, Harghita) and one county in the extreme North of the country (Suceava) does not provide conditions favourable for viticulture. According to a recent study of the zone of wine production in Romania there are 37 vineyards, of which 123 are part of the viticulture centers, to which 40 independent wine-growing centres are added, placed outside the vineyards. The number of wine areas is very high; the word areas meaning a somewhat restricted region located on the same form of relief, on which quality and homogeneous wine is produced. Moldova wines. Vineyards, in Moldova, stretch more than 90,000 hectares, which is the third part of the vineyard area of the country. The wine plantations extend on the entire length of the province, starting from Botosani in the North, to the Vrancea, in the South and the entire width, from the hill area of Eastern Subcarpathian to the river Prut. Following the map of Moldova viticulture and down on it from North to South, there are several famous vineyards. In the county Iasi first there is the vineyard Cotnari. Second, here there is also the Iasilor vineyard, with its wine-growing centers Copou, Bucium, Uricani and Comama and independent wine centres Plugari and Probota. Starting in the South and crossing the county to Vaslui, throughout its entire length, there is a large vineyard, Husilor, with the viticulture centers: Bohotin, Averesti, Husi, Vutcani and Murgeni. In Vaslui we find the vineyard Colinele Tutova, composed of centers Lana, and Tutova Balabanesti (the latter located in Galati). In county Bacau there is the Zeletin vineyard, with the Zeletin centers, Dealul Morii Paricea, Tanasoaica and Gohor. Galati County, in south-eastern Moldova, has become a major wine-growing area in which there are four vineyards: Dealul Bujorului (vine centers Bujoru, Smulti, Oancea and Beresti); Nicoresti (Nicoresti centers and Buciumeni); Ivesti (vine centers Ivesti, Tecuci and Corod) and Covurlui (vine centers Baleni, Scanteiesti, Pechea and Smardan). In the south-west of Moldova, in Cotul Carpathians, we meet with great vineyards of Vrancea, respectively Odobesti, Panciu and Cotesti which include a series of wine centers of great reputation. Oltenia and Muntenia Wines. The two southern provinces of the Meridional Carpathians, Oltenia and Muntenia, together own a vineyard area of nearly 104,000 hectares. Vineyards are located here especially in the hill area, the last mountain ratifications, towards the plains, where there large and important vineyards were planted, but they also meet in the sands of southern Oltenia, and in some areas near Danube. Going through Muntenia from East to West, first there is the Buzau HIlls vineyard, with its wine-growing centers in Ramnicu-Sarat, and Zarnesti Cenatesti, and then with the large vineyard in Big Hill, with its famous vinyard centers located in Zoresti, Merest, Pietroasa, Breaza-Buzau, Cricov, Tohani, Ceptura, Urlati,Valea Calugareasca and Boldesti. Further, is the Stefanesti Arges vinyard, planted from the viticulture centers: Stefanesti, Topoloveni and Valea Mare – Dambovita, and then in the Samburesti. Passing the Olt River, in Oltenia, there is the old Dragasani vineyard, with its vineyards centres Dragasani, Gusoeni, Cerna and Iancu-Jianu. In the South, in the county Dolj and Mehedinti, we find the Dealurile Craiova, Severinului and Plaiurile Drancei vineyards, as well as the independent Segarcea wine centre. The vineyards situated on the sands near the Danube, on the southern part of Oltenia, cannot be skipped, namely the vineyards Sadova-Corabia, Calafat and from vineyard Dacians, the county Gorj (wine centers Targu-Jiu and Poiana Crusetu) as well as those few areas producing good quality wines ,occupying restricted areas, in Braila county (Ciresu, Jirlau, Ramnicelu), Calarasi (Ulmu), Giurgiu (Greek), Dambovita (Bucsani,Valea Voievozilor), Arges (Costesti) , Teleorman (Furculesti and Mavrodin) Olt(Draganesti). The area is advantaged by its climate conditions, namely the excess of light and heat, higher compared to those in Northern Moldova and Transylvania. Due to the climate, the best red wine Romanian is produced here, coloured and stout, but also superior white wine, many with designation of origin, full of attraction. Transylvanian wine. The importance of the wine-growing region of Transylvania does not stand in the vineyard stretching, which does not exceed 14,000 hectares, but in the quality wines produced here, and the many possibilities offered by this region for the expansion of viticulture. Viticulture has an advantage in these places for a relief that seems is especially designed, consisting of endless hills planted with too little help and just waiting to be covered with vineyards. The current viticulture map of Transylvania, five vineyards are most important. In the forefront is the Tarnavelor vineyard, with its wine-growing centres in Blaj, Jidvei, Medias, Tarnaveni, Zafar andValea Nirjanului. Very near this settlement and fame is Alba vineyard, which divides the vineyards and wine-growing centres between Alba Iulia and Ighiu, a little to the South there is the Sebes-Apolda vineyard, and in the North is Aiud. Finally, situated in the North part, there is the Lechinta old vineyard, with its renowned wine-growing centre of Lechinta, Teaca,Bistrita and Batos. No Transylvania vineyards are wide, but the wine acquired here, is well known and appreciated, and has become high demand products for exporting and for the internal market. Of great importance are the wines from Blaj and Jidvei with sparkling wines of Alba Iulia and Apolda. The wines of the area west. On the Western side of the country there are two wine-growing regions: Banat, in the Southern half and the Crisana and Maramursului, in the North. Between them there are the Arad vineyards. The viticulture of this area lies on a length of 325 km, which puts it under the influence of various conditions of climate and soil, which cause a pronounced diversification of the sorts of varieties and quality of wine. Areas in the South region of Banat vineyard, benefit from the influence of a favourable climate with light Mediterranean influences, while in Crisana and Maramures the vineyards are influenced by the climate of Central Europe. There are vineyards throughout the entire area from Danube, in the South, to Halmeu, near the Northen border of the country. They spread over 17,000 hectares. Banat vineyards are concentrated in five viticulture centres that climb up North: Moldova Noua, Tirol, Silagiu, Recas and Teremia. Arad County has one of the most famous vineyards of the country, Minis-Maderat, situated between the rivers Mures and Crisul Alb. Crisana and Maramures meet Diosig vineyard, and then Valley of Mihai towards the North, in the East there is Silvana, as well as several other viticulture centres: Biharia and Tileagd, in the South, and Halmeu Seine, in the North. Dobrogea Wine. In Dobrogea, the vines can be grown anywhere. At each step, there are good places for the vineyards. The relief of the region is composed of a succession of hills and flat lands, large wave, that do not raise any problems for viticulture; light and heat are everywhere in abundance, the soil has a very good structure and fertility and contains all the chemical elements that the vines need. Water from rainfall is not in the least in surplus, which constitutes an important must for obtaining high quality wine. It is not surprising that, having such conditions, the Dobrogea viticulture has developed so rapidly, reaching presently to occupying a place of first importance. Dobrogea’s vineyards occupy a area little over than 25,000 hectares. The region is cut from across, a little below its half, is the famous vineyard of Murfatlar, lying on the route to Carasu Valley formed by three viticulture centres: Murfatlar, Medgidia and Cernavoda. Climbing up onto the North side of Eastern territory, there is the Istria –Babadag vineyard. In the North, on the banks of the Danube, there is the old Sarica-Niculitel vineyard, which gathers its vineyards in three viticulture centers: Tulcea, Niculitel and Macin. In the West side of the region, close to the Danube, are the vineyards from Ostrov, Oltina and Aliman. From this list, the vineyards from Daieni and Harsova, from Adamclisi and Baneasa and those of Mangalia and Chirnogeni cannot be omitted. In Dobrogea, wine is produced with distinct characteristics of quality. The Murfatlar vineyard is included, along with Cotnari and Pietroasa, in the Romanian group of areas from which can be obtained natural sweet wines from grapes picked when the grains are dry. Everywhere in this region there can be produced red wines of great brand, rich and intensely coloured, as well as dry white wine or semisweet, which can be distinguished through their personality. Generally, wine addresses the following categories of customers: natural persons, over the age of 18 and the horeca market ‘players’ which serve the final consumer. As a result of the development of the horeca segment, the consumption of wine has increased significantly in this sector. From the standpoint of a producer or a distributor, the Romanian horeca market still has many shortcomings: the lack of specialized personnel to ensure optimum storage of the wine, the lack of a professional serving method and a correct recommendation, as well as a defective management of the merchandise on stock. All of these imperfections have repercussion on the quality of the wine and also on the credibility of the producer. Distrust between consumers and producers, is still a barrier to any. Although the horeca market is far from perfect, the knowledge of wine, the producers and the distributors of this beverage have come to the conclusion that they can no longer be important players on the wine market unless they play an important role on the horeca market as well. Consequently, the total sales in this sector have increased, especially the super premium wine, and there still is an important growth potential. The owners and managers show interest in wine, especially for its quality, mindful that satisfying the final customer contributes substantially to profits. Another specificity of consumption of wine is that when people go out, they usually consume something different than they would at home. On the horeca market, customers want what they cannot purchase from stores or supermarkets. In the case of newly entered wines on the market, Romanian consumers are more reticent, a barrier which is avoided through direct communication, allowing the consumers to get informed about the product. Another method is the â€Å"wine in a glass† strategy. Consumer perception depends greatly in the brand’s ability to offer what is expected. Another feature represents the brands of wine. More and more limited editions appear, each bottle being given a number and bearing the signature of its producer. For example, La Putere contains two assortments of white wine baroque: Chardonnay and Feteasca, these also being a limited edition (12,000 bottles each, the series mentioned on the label). The Romanian consumer no longer drinks only sweet wine, with a high content of sugar and mixed with cola, or white wine mixed with water the so-called spirit. A slight change in consumer habits is noted in the case of wine, i. e, the crossing from sweet wines to semidry or even dry wines, as well as the crossing from white to red wine. In Romania, according to the law in force The law of the vineyard and of wine, nr. 67/1997 and HG nr. 314/1999 give the following categories of wine products: Sticto-sensu wines (wine itself) A) Wine for day to day consumption: Table wine, with alcoholic strength between 8. 5% vol. and 9. 5% vol. Superior table wine with alcoholic strength above 9. 5% B) Quality wine: Superior quality wines – which have an alcoholic strength gained by at least 10% vol. Wines with origin names, which have an alcoholic strength gained by at least 10. 5% vol. Superior quality wines –can be exported under the generic name of Landwei , Vin de Pays , Coun try Wine or other similar names, with the geographical indication recognized. For such wines, the minimum amount of alcoholic strength must be 10% vol. while the alcoholic strength gained must be at least 9% vol. Wines with origin names may be: 1) Wines with names of origin controlled – they must come from grapes that contain a sugar level of at least 180 g/l; 2) Wines with names of origin controlled and with level quality picked at full maturity: wine resulting from grapes that contain a sugar level of at least 196 g/l; picked late: wine resulting from grapes that contain a sugar level of at least 220 g/l; (For producing dry red wines in this category, the gathering of grapes can be done with a content of at least 204 g/l of sugar. picked when they become noble: wine resulting from grapes that contain a sugar level of at least 240 g/l with an attack of â€Å"noble must† or gathered when the grapes start to dry. According to the residual content, wines can be: dry, semidry, semisweet and sweet. C) Special wines: Sparkling wines Perl wines Flavoured wines Liqueur wines The volume of sales of wine in the period between August 2005 – July 2006: 3) Market capacity The wine market registered a total turnover of 350 million euro in 2005, and the consumption represented 26. litres per capita, being expected to grow in 2006 to 30 litres per capita. The potential consumers of this market represent persons with the age of 18 and older. In Romania there are approximately 14 million such persons. The actual consumers on the wine market represent the entire population with Romanian nationality, that have reached the age of 18, as well as other nationalities, whose religion and tradition do not forbid alcohol consumption. According to the census done in 2002, the largest part of the population, about 18 million persons, is of a religion that does not prohibit the consumption of alcoholic beverages. The horeca market played a specific role in the formation of the actual wine market in Romania. 4) Market dynamics: â€Å"The Romanian people have caught the taste of good wine. In 2003, sales of wines of origin have increased against the backdrop of the population’s increasing purchasing power. In the years 1997-1998, consumption dropped to 19 liters per capita and last year, we each drank about 27 liters of wine. Besides, the wine market in Romania is estimated at some 220 million euros in 2003. In Romania, before the Revolution, a glass of wine didn’t lack of any table. In 1989, consumption per capita reached 28 liters of wine. The suppression of IASs privatization, more or less successful, questionable quality of products and competition with beer producers threw wine in a cone shadow. After the collapse in 1997, due to strong investments both in equipment and quality brought, the wine back into the top preferences of Romanians. In 2000, consumption per capita increased from 23. 2 liters to 25. 5 liters in 2001,and in 2002 and 2003 stabilized at 27 liters per capita. Furthermore in 2003, there was an increased demand for bottled wine. If in the past, most were consuming cheap wine, packaged in pet sites or wine purchased from villagers, while in 2003 sales of such products fell considerably. Last year was registered a growth of sales of wine quality and a decrease of the table wine, said Basil Zarnoveanu, president of the Association of Exporters and Producers in Romania (PROVINUM). Moreover, 80. 9% of consumers preferred to drink bottled wine, choosing the quality as an important characteristic. Men are the biggest wine drinkers. On the opposite side are the retired persons who are not mad about packaged wine. Men prefer semi-dry wine, while women would rather drink a sweet one. 61% of Romanians love to drink white wine, while the consumption of red grape juice reached 30. 1%. In fact, it seems that red wine is a taste of city youth (18-24 years). â€Å"(Source: www. jurnalulnational. ro ) Wine market recorded a total turnover of 350 million euros in 2005 and is expected to grow in 2006, according to the representatives of wine producers in Romania. Last year total turnover of the sector was around 350 million euros, from our data, and recorded a growth of sales and market share for the big players, said the general director of the National Patronalului of Vine and Wine (PNVV), Ovidiu Gheorghe. Tacking into account some preliminary data, the first four players, Murfatlar, Cotnari, Jidvei and Vincon had to increase sales and , in this way, the market share too even though th e weather had decreased the production with a half in 2005. Murfatlar has a market share of about 29-30 percent, Cotnari 18. percent, Jidvei more than 17 percent and Vincon about 10 percent. However, manufacturers were able to cover demand through imports of wine in bulk and existing stocks. For 2006, manufacturers estimate a growth market more moderate compared to this year, but emphasized by the emergence of new producers outside. In 2004, the market has been coded to 300 million euros, production reached 7. 1 million hectoliters from 3. 5 million hectoliters in 2005. In order to analyze better the dynamics of wine market , we may take into consideration the average variation rhythm of the total sales of wine during the period 2002-2005. YEAR |Average variation rhythm | |2002-2003 |7,407047 | |2003-2004 |8,866210 | |2004-2005 |9,0355436 | During the period 2002-2004 a strong growth is recorded , while between 2004-2005 , despite the fact that the production decreased due to bad weather conditions , a small growth is encounted too. Computing the average variation rhythm of sales for wine market between the years 2003-2005 , we have n=3, Y3=total sales in 2005 = 350 mil euro , Y1=total sales in 2003=220 mil euro and R= [sqrt(350/220)-1]*100 = (sqrt(1,59)-1)*100= (1,2613-1)*100= 0,2613*100=26,13 which represents a strong growth across years. 5) Market evolution: Wine market has developed quite high. Due to the integration of Romania into the European Union, the biggest players in this market developed their production capacities, new research institutes and other developments in the wine sector. Still more often held presentations, wine fairs, where the main producers on this market presented their production capacity, the last of their final products, and offered for tasting their best wines possessing. During the period of 2002-2004 , the wine market developed intensively. It is well known the fact that during one year, you cannot open the production capacity of wine because of the vines plantations that need years to grow and develop their fruits. (butasii de vita de vie). An important factor in the development of wine market in the last years is the Romanian horeca market, one of the sectors with the fastest growth. There are many links between the wine market and horeca sectors due to the large amount of wine consumption at this level on the market. According to specialists this field leaves much to be desired for today as for the last years. The production capacity of wine has not increased because of the number of plantings alive, but because of the increased quality management and marketing of the wine sector. However, intensive development did not occur between the years 2004 and 2005, in a big part due to the decrease in production. Production of wine in Romania has recorded a significant rebound, but manufacturers rely on increases in profits of 15 up to 100% Thus, we may say that 2005 was one of the hardest years for wine industry. Hail in the spring, floods in the summer has generated significant reduction of production, which led the producers to question their market. The statistics speak for themselves. In 2005 were about 50% less wine grapes from the previous year, registered the only 442. 7 thousand tons, compared to 963. 2 thousand tones a year ago. Also, according to estimates, the quantity of wine produced was reduced to half from 2004, when it produced 6. 1 million hectoliters. 2005- The year of orientation toward consumers On account of the fact that this year producers have sold stocks in 2004, signaled recession of 2005 were hardly felt strongly in 2006, when they had to face some additional costs. 2005 was a particularly difficult year, which questioned the technological and marketing environment for producing companies, admitted Petre Mocanu, the executive director of the inter-national wine organizations (ONIV). According to it, in 2005, companies have focused primarily on consumers, trying to a ttract them and also those who normally are drinking alcohol or beer. Not in the last row, Mocanu claims that the wines were very diversified and could see an increase in the interest of producers to improve technology through significant investment. Higher profits Whatever the situation was in wine production, manufacturers rely on profits and higher turnovers than in the previous year. Murfatlar, one of the biggest exporters of wine in Romania, estimates for this year (2005) a turnover of 30 million, compared to 25 million dollars as recorded a year ago. From the data company, the largest increases have recorded premium ranges, such as Section of Murfatlar and Heaven of Murfatlar and the super premium such as Three Hectares or Ovidiu`s tear. Taking into account the consumer habits of the Romanians, 70% of sales were white wines. I think the correct opinion regarding the year of 2005 we may have just at its end. This because the last four months of the year represent more than half of annual sales of wine. In any case, up to this point Murfatlar sales are 25% more than last ear , says Daniel Negrescu, brand manager Murfatlar. Prahova companys recorded increases too. Growth was 15% compared to last year, for both sales and profit,† said Simona Mardle, export sales manager in the Halewood Romania. Approximately 75% of production from Prahova companies goes to export; importing countries are mainly in England, Estonia, Latvia and America. Last but not least, sales of Carl Reh Winery have doubled. It is a natural tendency for the place that we have right now on the market, said Rodica CAPATINA, director in the company. 85% of the wine produced by Carl Reh is exported to markets in the Scandinavian States or Germany. Changes on the market On account of the 2005`s very low production, representatives of ONIV are expected to placement changes on the market profile for the next year. Existing stocks until now have allowed the big companies to maintain market position. Next year, however, will alter the course of market share. But I have to take into account the strategy that firms will lead in each market in order to exercise pressure on a certain segment that it leads, explains Mocanu. At that time, the first player on the market was Murfatlar, which owned, according to a retail-audir what is done periodically on the wine market, 30% of the market. Followed by Jidvei, approximately 18% and 16% Cotnari. 6) Market conjuncture: Gross Domestic Product for 2005 was 287. 2 billion USD, the prices of 2005. 005/2004 GDP growth was 4. 1%. In wine, are used mainly grapes, which are obtained from agriculture. Agriculture share in GDP 2004/2005 was negative. However, the wine market is in the threshold of accession, so for the gros s domestic product we can assign a favorable grade. Wine consumption per capita in 2005 was 26. 6 liters. The average annual increase of production for 2004-2005 was 2. 4%. Production was on the rise, catalizate efforts happened and a future growth of both consumption and the rate of average annual production occured. Thus, regarding the evolution of wine production, we can apply a very favorable grade. Inflation rate for 2005 was 8. %. There was noticed a growing wine market prices caused by inflation. Prices rose after price increase excise duties, but also as a cause of floods. Thus, the inflation rate had an unfavorable effect on the wine market. The unemployment rate for 2005 was 7. 2%. It is difficult to establish some connection between unemployment and market wine. Moreover, investigations are needed. Thus, unemployment can assign a grade: favorable or unfavorable. The exchange rate euro / leu as an average level of 2005, there were no major variations. So it did not influen ce the production of wine, and we can’t assign neither a favorable nor an unfavorable grade. Dynamics /Indicators |-2 |-1 |0 |+1 |+2 | |GDP | | | |0 | | |Industrial production | | | | |0 | |Inflation rate | |0 | | | | |Unemployment rate | | | 0 | | | |Exchange rate | | | 0 | | | 7) Demand and offer The wine market deserves a special atention, mainly because it is not regulated through governmental policies, based on instruments and ways of intervention that are specific to the other markets, but also because it has benefitted from several general measures of agricultural policy, such as the financial and credit policies, tariffs and intervention regarding the wine stocks and distilation. The companies that operate on the wine market and the wine offer The competence and the exploitation of the wine products on the market are affected by the weathering of the vineyards, dependence upon the weather conditions, poor efficiency related to foreign producers, high costs for the maintainance and the exploitation of the vineyards, lack of a specific supervision. Another important factor is represented by lack of a comercial representation network on the interested market An importanta part in the wine offer is played by the wine distribution. The distribution makes the link between the producer and the consumer and it influences through the satisfying of the needs of consumption . The distribution secures the movement of the human and material resources and it yields a high percentage in the final price of the product. The distribution systems are of the following types: 1 The great grape and wine producers -gt; Consumers  ; 2. The great grape and wine producers -gt; Export; A feature of the great producers is that they detain a distribution network within the producing company and hereafter two destinations occur: Internal and External. 3. The great grape and wine producers -gt; EN-Gross possessors; The great grape and wine producers -gt; Export Used by the farmers that produce the wine and afterwards distribute it through en gross networks – are of two types: Internal and External Market. 4. Small grape producers -gt; Grape collecting centers   gt;Great wine producers -gt; EN Gross networks-gt; Consumers. This method is used when the small grape producers do not transform the grapes into wine, but deliver them to a collecting centre that is endowed with specific distribution logistics, playing multiple parts, such as the collecting, transport and lodging. The collecting centres further their grape production to wining units, where the production takes place and, afterwards the delivery of the wine to the consumers takes place with the help of en gross or en detail networks. The 5. The small grape producers -gt; wining units -gt; En gross networks (wine) -gt; Consumers. This type of distribution is rarely encountered in the economic practice. This method ought to be reconsidered, as small producers have poor economic possibilities. 6. Small grape producers   gt; Wining units- gt; Consumers While similar to 5, the difference is that the wine is being sold in en detail units (stores). 7. Small grae producers -gt; Home processing -gt; Consumers 8. Small grae producers -gt; Home processing -gt; Self consumption In this case, the wine producers detain both the producing, storaging, transmitting and selling functions of the grapes and, subsequently of the wine. The manual processing takes place in the household, having two special destinations: local market and self consumption. The producer-consumer circuit is specific to every food intermediation way in Romania. In this case, the packing (the main distribution functions: packing, storing, transport, sales) is made under unproper conditions on the market, forbidden in the European Union and shall soon be abolished in Romania as well. The main specific types of grape and wine producers are: 1. Distribution circuits that are specific to the great wineing companies, that integrate all or many of the accessory types of company; 2. Collecting, processing and distributing circuits, that are yet to be fully completed in Romania, where the wine production is integrated on the same level with several home producing units; 3. Other distribution combinations, based on the grapes production in households, that sell only a fraction of their wine production, the rest being destined to self consumption. They can, however develop their business and sell their output to the great producers. From the Marketing policy point of view, it is very difficult to speculate and develop one of the two most favoured tendencies shown on the market for either the red or the white wine. The reason is that changes or switches in the wine production structure need long time lags, so that occasional evolutions cannot be exploited through an increased offer of a certain type of wine. The greatest wine producers in Romania  : Dobrogea: Murfatlar Romania ,Karom Drinks, Vinvico Constanta, Fruvimed, Viticola Sarica Niculitel,Ovidius Mercado  ; Moldavia  : Bucium Iasi ,Cotnari,Vinia,SCDVV Iasi,Vincon Vrancea,Veritas Panciu,Vinuri Nicoresti,Prowine International,SCDVV Odobesti,Ramex,Bachus  ; Banat  : Cramele Recas ,SCDVV Minis  ; Transylvania  : Jidvei ,Casa Vinului Mures,Prescon Mures  ; Oltenia  : Carl Reh Winery ,Vie Vin Vanju Mare ,Vinarte,SD Banu Maracine  ; Muntenia  : Provinum S. E. R. V. E. ,Vinterra International,Cramele Halewood,Carpathian Winery,Videlmar,DVFR,ICDVV Valea Calugareasca,SCDVV Stefanesti – Arges,Tohani, Rovit Top producers in 2005 and their market share : |Company`s name |Market share (%) |Turnover (mil. uro) | |Murfaltar |30 |105 | |Cotnari |18,7 |65,45 | |Jidvei |17 |59,5 | |Vincon |10 |35 | Wine Demand 2005 The Romanian wine doesn’t reach export, mainly because it is nor promoted properly, but also because most of it doesn’t posses the needed quality, in order to enter a highly competitive market. Even more, almost 50% of our national wine is made out of hybrids. Besides these, romanian wines have other disadvantages, such as: the main sorts that we have aren’t that demanded at the export and over 50% of our high quality wine is being produced by the small producers that cannot reach an organized market to sell their products, as the ONNV president shows. One third of the Romanians drink bad wine Our national producers still count on the Romanian consumers who prefer their wines, as they are cheaper than the foreign ones. ‘People value firstly the price and not the quality. This is the reason why the most sold wines remain the ones obtained by the small producers in their household’, as Mr. Namolosanu goes. According to a study conducted by ONVV, 32% of the Romanians prefer the bad quality wine, 27% are heading towards the superior one and 29% choose any quality wine, while 12% can’t tell the difference between these wines. ‘In fact, it is possible that those who do not know this normal way of classification be much many, but some of them might have supposed that the answer’s order in the questionnaire was a scale and might have connected this with the price of the wine and not its quality de facto’, as the chief officer continues. Wine sales have dropped in Romania, both in quantity and in value, due to the decreased purchasing power of the consumers, high taxes and diminished grape production. Other factors, such as the mass offensive of beer and other alcoholic drinks producers determined as well this drop in wine production. In 2005, wine consumption in Romania reached 4. 7 million hl, in comparison with 7. 3 million hl, in 1997. The annual individual consumption has fallen from 32. 4 liters in 1997 to 20. 5 liters in 2000, 26. 6 liters in 2005, thus being under the EU average (37 liters). Romania ranks 10th worldwide in wine consumption, with 2. 1%, well below other countries such as France (15. 4%), Italy (13. 9%), U. S. A. (9. 7%), Germany (9. 0%), Spain (6. 4%), Argentina (5. 5%), Great Britain (4. 6%). However, the importance of wine production for self purposes has grown in the past years, due to the fragmentation of private property, fall of incomes and the slow rhythm of the economic and agricultural reforms. Daily wines for general consumption detain a dominant position within the internal demand. The white wines are the most demanded (68. 6% out of the total consumption in 2005). They are followed by the red wines (about 31. 4%), as the rose wines don’t really matter up to know. Wine Offer The wine production, that covers the internal need entirely, rose up to 5. 1 million hl in 2001, and 6. 1 million hl in 2005. Superior wines, with protected geographic area had, in the same year 18. 8% of the production, the rest of it being made up by the daily wines, 71. 6%. Under the colour aspect, the white wines still account for the majority part of the production, with 80% of it, followed by the red wines with nearly 20%. Despite the variated landscape and climate that Romania has to offer, people don’t really take advantage of it and this way a possible more profitable industry is blown away. The specialists are of the opinion that Romania has the ability to produce up to 402 different sorts of wines, out of which 11 for daily consumption, 42 superior sorts, and 349 sorts with controlled origin and quality. The consumption per capita in 2005 was 26. 6 liters, while the annual average increase rate of consumption 2. 4%. The average price of a daily consumption wine, in 2005 was of 2. 5 Lei and of a quality wine, 7. 0 Lei. ) Prices and tariffs The way distribution companies act, regarding their pricing is yet to be regulated, according to the exigencies required on a competitive market. Certain brands use pricing that’s above the market equilibrium, as they are intended to the upper income layer of the society that has higher expectations when consuming wine. The difference in price among wines on the market is very similar to that between the grape production units. Generally speaking, these differences in pricing are important in all aspects: In the production regions  ; Between the white and the red wines  ; Between those wines that are regarded as of high quality  ; As a conclusion, it’s quite difficult to make a general assessment of the price differences in this sector, especially if we talk about ‘quality wines’, where the price level can reach spectacular figures, while the daily wines can find it difficult sometimes to find an open market, despite their low price. The quality represents a basic criterion in the Marketing policy of wine. The separation between the daily and the quality wines picture a different behavior of the consumers, showing often divergent tendencies in the consumption evolution. Another important aspect, specific to the Marketing of wine is the high fiscal level that intervenes when selling or buying this product: VAT, taxes, tariffs, and licenses. Relatively to other products, the VAT level is lower, as it is not an inelastic product. The wine consumption price index and its evolution: Years |1999 |2000 |2001 |2002 |2003 |2004 | |PCI ( % ) |180,3 |134,2 |120,5 |120,5 |124,2 |111,8 | For 2005 PCI = 109,6 % . The medium selling price and its dynamics between 2003-2005  : | R 2003-2004 |12 | | R 2004-2005 |20 | 9) Imports and Exports Romanian wine export is almost inexistent, with less than 5% of the total production, in comparison with 27% the amount of wine exported by other European countries. ‘In order to succeed on foreign markets, especially on the European one, the Romanian wine needs, above all, to be promoted. It is important too that not always the exported wine has a great quality, but several other aspects, such as traditions or packing are far behind other countries’, as Mr. John Namolosanu states, chair of the National Office for Wine and Vineyards. Were it for all these aspects to be improved, the Romanian wine might be successful, now that the European market demands diversified products. In the past 15 years, the trend hase been to consume wines produced in the ‘New World’, in places such as Australia, South Africa or Chiles. These wines have penetrated the Occidental markets, succeeding even in outranking wines produced in countries with tradition in this field’ , as Mr. Namolosanu goes on. The wine annual total exports have risen from 17. 7 million $ in 2000 to a peak of 26. 2 million $ in 2004. In 2005, however, there was a decline that led to only 22. 3 million $. In quantity, 2000 was the year when 253. 000 hl were exported, 504. 000 hl in 2002 and 269. 000 hl in 2005. The most important export destination was Germany (150. 000 hl in 2000, 173. 000 hl in 2001, 152. 00 hl in 2002, 154. 000 hl in 2003, 134. 000 hl in 2004, and 111. 000 hl in 2005). The second export market for Romanian wines is The Republic of Moldavia (Moldavia), with a spectacular increase in the first years of the above mentioned interval – from almost 3. 000 hl in 2000, 50. 000 in 2001 to a maximum of 218. 000 in 2002, but here also has been a decreasing tendency lately, down to 83. 000 in 2005. An interesting feature here would be the comparative evolution of wine imports from Moldavia to Romania, after the Russian Federation established the embargo for Moldav ia and Georgia. If during the first 5 months of the year 2005, Romania imported 2. ,000 hl of Moldavian wines, in the same period of 2006, this figure surged to 101,000 hl (From 218,000 Euros to over 4 million Euros). Concerning the medium price at which Romania had exported wine in the past two years, it has risen from 0. 5 Euros in the first 5 months of 2005 to 0. 8 Euros in the same period of 2008. On the other hand, Romania began importing more of the cheap wine (the average importing price was of 2. 2 Euros/liter in the first months of 2005 and fell to 0. 32 Euros in the same period, in 2006). Wine exports-main destination in 2005  : |Country |hl |‘000 US $ |$/Litre | |Germany |152. 60 |7. 476 |0. 49 | |Moldavia |218. 110 |6. 540 |0. 30 | |Great Britain |11. 230 |1. 523 |1. 36 | |U. S. A. |5. 850 |1. 021 |1. 75 | |Czech Republic |35. 180 |895 |0. 25 | |Israel |8. 20 |791 |0. 90 | |Denmark |7. 000 |735 |1. 05 | |Italy |23. 270 |401 |0. 17 | |Russian Federation |6. 740 |2 94 |0. 44 | |Other |35. 970 |3. 368 |0. 94 | |Total |504. 30 |23. 045 |0. 46 | Wine imports have risen in 2005 up to 14,738 hl, more than double in 2004, in the same period, while exports have diminished with 21%, to 209. 399 hl. Wine imports have risen in the period between January-September 2005, with over 122% (in quantity), most of the wine coming from Moldavia, France, Italy and Hungary. Import value in 2005 was of 3. 5 million Euros Wine import in 2002: |Country |hl | |France |1. 510 | |Italy |2. 00 | |Germany |690 | |Austria |170 | |Spain |150 | |Portugal |80 | |Other |2. 970 | |Total |7. 770 | Wines In Romania I) Jidvei Traminer Tramier can be a sweet or a dry wine. It has a yellowish colour that can go to green or even light red, after many years. Its specific flavour is almost as that of roses. The taste has a bit of hotness in it, leaving a fair impression of spices. This wine is perfect for the days of elderness, a strengthner that improves and increases life expectancy. Dry Muscat Muscat Otonnel is the wine that found its second country within the vineyard, with a yellow colour that fades, from dry to sweet in taste. Its perfume and flavor remind of that of the grapes, with an attractive taste and the smell of lime flowers. The Royal Feteasca The Royal Feteasca is a national sort of wine, a leading type among the white dry wines, for its freshness, more intense perfume and its special flavor.

Monday, December 2, 2019

Print Media an Early History free essay sample

In 1791, after the American revolution, free press was born. Allowing people to write what they think without risking jail, this saw the first African-American and Cherokee papers. As technology advanced, more and more papers could be produced at a time, with steam power, 4000 copies could be printed an hour, this was called mass newspapers. The Literacy rate was low in 1830, so the role of newspapers changed, it was now to support literacy and public education. Public Schools now taught people to read and understand the issues of politics, so they could make an informed vote, seeing as now everyone could vote, not just the rich. Thus began the Penny Press era, this involved, mass printing, which meant mass distribution. You could buy 100 papers for 67 cents, sell them for 1 cent a piece and turn a profit. With newspapers now everywhere, this meant mass education therefore mass literacy, and mass vote. Newspaper industries began to compete for profits, and advertising was a result of that, more ads meant more money for the newspaper companies. We will write a custom essay sample on Print Media: an Early History or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Advertisements were around for five major reasons; To sell products / services, to educate people about products, to reach a mass audience, for economic / business reasons, and to perform a social function. Advertisements were also very common in magazines. The idea for magazines came from Benjamin Franklin and his brother. Magazines are different from newspapers because they specialize in certain areas, where as newspapers report on everything. A magazines focus was on a niche market. The number of magazines rose exponentially from 260 to 1800 between the years 1860 and 1900. There was better printing technology, lower prices and special mail rates. After the war there was a larger selection of topics, from golf to porn. People had much more leisure time. Print media has advanced and developed for hundreds of years, but it often keeps the same format, just look at news websites today.

Wednesday, November 27, 2019

The Triple Threat of Sures

The Triple Threat of Sures The Triple Threat of Sures The Triple Threat of Sures By Maeve Maddox Brad Stolzer wonders about ensure and insure: Am I the only one who struggles with these? Not at all. And while we’re at ensure/insure, let’s throw in assure. All three words are close in origin and meaning. Both assure and ensure came into English in the late 1300s, assure from Old French asseurer, â€Å"to reassure, calm, protect, to render sure, and ensure from Anglo-French enseurer, â€Å"to make sure.† The word insure appeared about 1440 as a variant of ensure. It took on the sense of â€Å"to make safe against loss by payment of premiums† in 1635. Before that, assure had that meaning. In modern usage, insure has won out as the word that has to do with compensation for financial loss. The violinist insured his hands with Lloyd’s. This use of insure applies on both sides of the Atlantic. The confusion that arises with insure vs ensure stems mainly from another definition: â€Å"to make certain that (something) will occur.† For example: We wish to ensure the safety of our passengers. Some speakers of American English would use the spelling â€Å"insure† in this context, but others might, like speakers of British English, write â€Å"ensure.† The AP Stylebook offers these guidelines: Use ensure to mean guarantee: Steps were taken to ensure accuracy. Use insure for references to insurance: The policy insures his life. According to the Chicago Manual of Style, â€Å"we ensure events and insure things. But we assure people that their concerns are being addressed.† Sources: The Associated Press Stylebook The Chicago Manual of Style The Online Etymology Dictionary The Oxford English Dictionary The Penguin Writer’s Manual Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Apply to, Apply for, and Apply with16 Misquoted QuotationsHow to Address Your Elders, Your Doctor, Young Children... and Your CEO

Saturday, November 23, 2019

Audrey essays

Audrey essays Title:''Life Is One Big Long Catwalk''. Madame Toastmaster , Madame Topicsmaster and fellow students. ''Life Is One Big Long Catwalk''. As endorsed by the Clarks' Footwear advertisements , this line has become synonymous with modern society , in a world ruled predominantly by image. In my speech to - day I would like to discuss the ambivalent nature of image and beauty in society , as well as providing an insight into a great idol of mine who possessed this ambivalence throughout her life and career - Audrey Hepburn. I don't think that anybody could doubt it , you or I , beauty is a virtue. It always has been , as far back as the time of Venus , the Roman Goddess of love and beauty. But it seems like to - day only physical beauty is taken into account. This type of beauty is a matter of chance. In fact it is amatter of fate whether you turn out to be physically beautiful or not. This type of beauty is impure , doesn't come from the heart. And who are we to try and describe what exactly physical beauty is? Everybody has different facial features , different shapes and sizes and diferent statures. It is all a matter of preference and taste. There is excrutiating pressure being applied on both sexes nowadays to look good and to conform to the media's idea of beauty. Every week of the year we see emaciated models walk the catwalk , wasted away by their starvation and malnourishment , yet snapped up by the paparazzi and considered ''beautiful''. The role of image , branding and beauty is obviously a huge talking point in modern society , as my sister managed to do a 20 page thesis on this Topic for her degree in Graphic Design. And besides , most of us do feel beaut...

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Alexander Gorsky Russian Choreographer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Alexander Gorsky Russian Choreographer - Essay Example The end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century were characterized by a recovery period of the arts in Moscow, only ballet didn't experience any advances. The Moscow Ballet suffered the longest decline in its history. The theatre didn't have a position of choreographer, even in the staff list; the popularity of the theater was so low that hall was seldom filled to a one-third, and the company of the theatre included only 70 dancers. The only functioning department of the Moscow Ballet was the ballet school, for the most part, due to the talents and enthusiasm of V. Tikhomirov and I. Nikitin. Nevertheless, the Moscow Ballet required strong manager-director to change the situation with attendance and the theater repertory.Alexander Gorsky started on the position of the Moscow Ballet' choreographer with famous ballet Don Quixote". Actually, it wasn't a new development but a revision of Petipa's version. Alexander Gorsky spent 18 months to prepare the ballet for staging. He invited the famous painters Korovin and Golovin to develop the design and produce scene settings and dressing for dancers. Gorsky managed to revive the atmosphere of Spain in the ballet. Although I must admit that Gorsky staging of Don Quixote" was quite different to Petipa's one, he left some sections without a change. Gorsky interpreted ballet as an instrument in understanding a unity of art and performance."Don Quixote" was staged in 1900 and it became the herald of the Moscow Ballet recovery.... Alexander Gorsky as a director. The end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century were characterized by a recovery period of the arts in Moscow, only ballet didn't experience any advances. The Moscow Ballet suffered the longest decline in its history. The theatre didn't have position of choreographer, even in the staff list; popularity of the theater was so low that hall was seldom filled to a one-third; and the company of the theatre included only 70 dancers. The only functioning department of the Moscow Ballet was the ballet school, for the most part due to the talents and enthusiasm of V. Tikhomirov and I. Nikitin. Nevertheless the Moscow Ballet required strong manager-director to change the situation with attendance and the theater repertory. Alexander Gorsky started on the position of the Moscow Ballet' choreographer with famous ballet Don Quixote". Actually it wasn't a new development but a revision of Petipa's version. Alexander Gorsky spent 18 months to prepare the ballet for staging. He invited the famous painters Korovin and Golovin to develop design and produce scene settings and dressing for dancers. Gorsky managed to revive atmosphere of Spain in the ballet. Although I must admit that Gorsky staging of Don Quixote" was quite different to Petipa's one, he left some sections without a change. Gorsky interpreted ballet as an instrument in understanding a unity of artistism and performance. Don Quixote" was staged in 1900 and it became the herald of the Moscow Ballet recovery. In spite of the mixed comments of ballets critics, the theatre attendance began to increase. The next great

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Flexibility in Education in order to cut cost in college. E.g allowing Essay

Flexibility in Education in order to cut cost in college. E.g allowing students not to take classes not related to there major and still graduate - Essay Example Community colleges also have a reduced cost of tuition, as they charge a fraction of what regular colleges charge thus the debt incurred by students is low. Another way of reducing the cost of college education is allowing for dual enrollment programs where students do not have to go through all their classes in college. It also reduces the workload on the students by removing unnecessary requirements that only bloat their duties as students. This can be done by colleges cooperating with high schools in order to accumulate credits and higher placement in college. With this option, students will not have to go through the burden of classes as some of the courses will have been covered in high school. Joining college with early credits, cuts costs by an enormous margin and the advanced placement cuts the number of classes that one has to attend (Vedder et al. 8). Furthermore, colleges can offer reduced time to students to complete their degree programs. This is by offering 3-year programs instead of four by streamlining the curriculum significantly (Vedder et al. 26). Reduced amount of time in completing a program can be done by offering online courses, summer sessions and taking increases credit hours per semester. As a result, students will end up saving their finances and time for other productive purposes. This is unlike having a 4-year program in which students pay dearly for each semester, and the cost at the end of the 4 years is enormous. In addition, eradicating unnecessary programs also cuts the cost of college education by removing courses that bloat the curriculum.

Sunday, November 17, 2019

The Reading Process Essay Example for Free

The Reading Process Essay When a child is speaking many words and using them as an integral part of his personality, he is ready to read them. In teaching reading to young children, word selection is often the first place where we go wrong. We pull words from thin air and try to put them into the child. Often we make matters worse by putting these strange words into printed context outside the realm of the childs experience and expecting him to readand he cannot. Children can learn to read any word they speak. One of the greatest hoaxes in all of educational pedagogy is that which says that reading vocabulary must be developed in a predeter ¬mined logical sequence. This simply is not the case. Linguists tell us that when a child comes to school he has all the language gear he needs in order to learn reading and all the other skills of lan ¬guage. The trouble is that we do not use his gear. We manufacture artificial systems of language development and methods of teaching reading, and we impose them on children. It is almost as though the child has to learn two languages in order to be able to read-one for communication and one to get through his reading books. More study has been done in the area of reading than in any other area of the elementary school curriculum. This is justifiable because reading is an important skill needed for learning. But it is not the most important method of communication. It is important only to the degree that it communicates. Much confusion exists about this research. It is the sec ¬ond place where we go wrong. We have built up a vast store ¬house of knowledge about reading, but all the needed knowledge is not yet known. And, because there are great gaps in that knowledge, we have turned to the next best source-the opinion of the experts in the reading field. Many experts have advocated their systems of teaching reading, basing them on known truths but filling in the gaps with their own ideas. When gaps in knowledge are filled in with opinions, we often confuse the two. As a result, schools have often adopted a reading system so wholeheartedly that teachers are not permitted to skip one page of a basal reading book or omit one single exercise in the reading manual that accompanies the text. Many teachers have simply become intermediaries, transmitting the ideas of the authors of a basal series to the children and not daring to use their own ideas to teach reading as a communication skill. This course of action takes all the sense out of language skill development and reduces the role of the teacher to that of a pawn. Undoubtedly, no imagination can break through such rigid orthodoxy. Teachers are teaching experts. Their training has made them this. Reading experts can help with a multitude of ideas, but they cannot possibly know the problems of any one teacher with any one group of children. Basal readers and teachers manuals work only if they are tailored to the group of children using them; they can be invaluable when used this way but are almost useless when they are not. Teachers should endeavor to do activities, which relate to the experiential background of the children they are teaching. In fact, doing activities that are foreign to the child’s background is like teaching another language in order to get them to read. Every reading programme needs to take first into account the particular group of children and each child within that group. If this is not the case then the approach is pseudoscientific. Only a teacher can know and understand the needs of the children he or she teaches. If any significant progress is to be made in any reading programme, then the teacher indeed must know his or her children. Reading is most effectively taught when the teacher becomes the source of the plan of the teaching and when he or she is able to make use of the experts books, resources, learning aids, procedures, and ideas to help her devise her own plan for her own particular group of children. Since teaching is a creative role, the teaching of reading must be a creative process. Linguistic research over the past forty years has given us greater insights as to how reading should be taught. Reading is the active process of constructing meaning from words that have been coded in print. Printed and spoken words are meaningful to the young child only to the extent where his field of experience overlaps that of the author of the printed text. The reader learns from a book only if he is able to comprehend the printed symbols and rearrange them into vivid experiences in his mind. A child’s ability to think, to rationalize, and to conceptualize makes it possible for him or her to accept new ideas from a printed page without actually experienc ¬ing the new idea. He or she must however, possess the knowledge of each symbol that helps make up the new idea. Ideally, the teacher would show a picture of an object and, through discus ¬sion, build the understandings necessary to give children a correct visual image of the object. Because of the unusual shape of some words (e. g. kangaroo) chil ¬dren memorized them quickly, but nothing is usually learned until the words take on meaning. The teacher should give the words meaning by using the childrens experiences. Experience combined with the power of imagery will make it possible for children to acquire new understandings, concepts, and learn ¬ings from their reading of each new word. Reading is not word calling; it is getting the meaning of the printed word from the page. The teaching of reading means assisting children to obtain those skills needed to get the meaning of the word from the printed page. However, the gaining of all the skills is of little or no worth without the experience with the words to make them meaningful. This is a basic component to all reading. It should now be clear why young children, before they can really learn to read, must have a wide range of expe ¬riences to which they have attached a multitude of oral symbols. It should be clearly understood too, why the primary program in reading must be loaded with experiences to which children and teachers apply symbolic expression. This will permit the children to be constantly building up new words in their oral vocabulary so that they will be able to read them. The children’s ability to read is a skill or tool that makes it possible for an author to communicate with them. Children read because they are curious about what is on the page. The reading process itself is not sacred. It is what the reading communicates to the child that is crucial. Reading is not the only important means of communication nor is it the best. To assure the successful development of a good primary literacy program, children must have a large background of experiences, the ability to listen well, and a good oral vocabulary that labels their experiences meaningfully. With this background, almost every child can be taught to read, provided, of course, he also has the required intelligence and has no serious physical, so ¬cial, or emotional problem. Teaching reading as a subject rather than a means for communication can be boring and tedious for children. No one reads reading. The child reads something, be they letters, books, poems, stories, newspapers — and he reads with intent. Each reading experience with chil ¬dren should have meaningful content, obvious purpose, and pleas ¬ant associations. The wide socioeconomic and experiential backgrounds of children, combined with their physical development and intellectual ability, will determine the points at which children are able to begin the formal reading process effectively. The teacher is responsible for the continued development of the child as a whole, and to deprive him of a rich variety of experiences so that he may spend time reading from books is the quickest way to insure reading difficulty among children, in both ability and attitude. When a first-grade teacher sees the teaching of reading as her most important objective and allocates a major part of the childs day to reading, she is capitalizing on the exceptional experiences the home and the kindergarten have provided for the child. For, after all, these give meaning to his reading stories, which, at the first grade level, are based on his first-hand home and school ex ¬periences. She may flatter herself on the excellent reading ability of her children and be smug in her knowledge that she can teach any child to read! What she fails to realize is that unless she continues to provide suitable additional experiences in social studies, community contacts, literature, music, and so forth, she is depriving succeeding teachers of their privilege of doing a good job in teaching reading. This explains why, too often, children start out as good readers but experience reading difficulty by the time they reach third grade. They lose meaning in their reading because planned background experience stops when formal read ¬ing begins. Their real first interest in reading lies in their joy at dis ¬covering they can read. To exploit this joy, and to use it for need ¬less repetition, means to soon destroy the only motivation children have.

Friday, November 15, 2019

The Search for Christian America: History’s Echo Essay -- Christianit

In The Search for Christian America historians Mark A. Noll, Nathan O. Hatch and George M. Marsden address the recent insurgence of desire to return to the American nation’s â€Å"Christian Heritage†; a call to revisit the solid and revered foundations of the colonial period (15). This premise frames the authors’ two-part thesis: first, that America was never a Christian nation and secondly, that the very concept of a Christian nation, after the time of Christ, can be harmful to Christian action and effectiveness within society (17). This assertion, and the evidence which surrounds it, proves that Christians find great value in elements of the founding. When considering the reason behind this assumption the authors suggest many possibilities: love of a glorious myth, preaching and identification with the Mosaic prophecy, a â€Å"city on the hill† mentality, and or nationalistic necessity (108-116). However, these points still with standing, the author s do not fully develop the possibility that Protestants doctrinally resonate with the ideals of the founding. The authors do assert that many use the past as a mirror simply reflecting one’s already established views: â€Å"by a subtle and often unconscious process we pick out . . . those strands which reinforce our point of view† (145, 148). This paper will attempt to bring these two concepts together: asserting that the ideals of the founding, mainly liberty, freedom and individualism, are mirrored in Protestant doctrine itself, providing an echo American Christians can identify with, allowing reverence to be felt toward the founding and urgency to drive the search for Christian America. Toward the end of the text the authors set out to explain the difficulties and the necessity of â€Å"openi... ...ce of similar values or familiar echo, only uphold â€Å" a high regard for our country and its heritage. But . . . not, in the words of the Psalmist (118:9), ‘put confidence in princes’ instead of taking ‘refuge in the Lord† (102). Bibliography Luther, Martin. â€Å"The Appeal to the German Nobility.† In Documents of the Christian Church, edited by Henry Bettenson, 192-197. New York: Oxford University Press, 1976. --------------------Concerning Christian Liberty. Vol. XXXVI, Part 6. The Harvard Classics. New York: P.F. Collier & Son, 1909–14. Bartleby.com, 2001. www.bartleby.com/36/6/. (accessed Jan. 21, 2012). Calvin, John. "John Calvin: Institutes of Christian Religion." Translated by Henry Beveridge, Esq. Center for Reformed Theology and Apologetics. http://www.reformed.org/master/index.html?mainframe=/books/institutes/. (accessed Jan. 21, 2012).

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Ralph Vs Jack Leader Essay

There are always people who prove to have better leadership skills than others. The strongest of these people can often influence the weaker people into following them. However, the strongest person is not necessarily the best leader as it is proven in William Golding’s novel, The Lord of the Flies. Although Ralph is the weaker person, he is still able to demonstrate a better understanding of people than Jack who is stronger. Ralph demonstrates his excellent leadership skills throughout the novel by keeping order among the group, treating everyone with respect, and having the sense to keep his focus on getting rescued. While the boys are under Jack’s control, they quickly turn into uncivilized savages. However, Ralph manages to keep the boys under control by holding meetings. At the meetings, a sense of order is brought on to the boys because the boys are not allowed to speak unless they have the conch. â€Å"l will give the conch to the next person to speak. He can hold it when he’s speaking.† (p. 31) By enforcing this sense of order, he gains respect from the boys and becomes more confident as a leader. Ralph uses his power to make the boys feel more comfortable on the island.

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Journal Entries for habit

Journal Entries for habit one and two Habit 1: Be Proactive According to Stephen Covey, being proactive is part of human nature and humans are responsible for their own lives. He indicated the details of a social map which consist of Genetic determinism (Ancestors), Psychic determinism (Parents) and Environment determinism (Boss or something in the environment). The proactive concept was explained further using the Stimulus and Response relationship and the catalyst story of Viltor Frankl. Between Stimulus and Response, man has the ability or freedom to choose.This means one can decide how to reactive to thing or how to handle each situation. What matters most is how we respond to what we experience in life. We need to take initiative and this means recognizing our responsible to make things happen. We need to act or be acted upon. In Covey’s own words, reactive people are also affected by their social environment, by the â€Å"social weather. † When people treat them w ell, they feel well; when people don’t, they become defensive or protective. Proactive people are still influenced by external stimuli, whether physical, social, or psychological.But their response to the stimuli, conscious or unconscious, is a value-based choice or response. Proactive people aren’t pushy. They’re smart, they’re value driven, they read reality, and they know what’s needed. Another important issue he raised in the book is for people to expand their circle of influence. Habit two: Begin with the end in mind According to Covey, â€Å"Begin with the End in Mind† is to begin today with the image, picture, or paradigm of the end of your life as your frame of reference or the criterion by which everything else is examined.It further means to start with a clear understanding of your destination. Using the principle that all things are created twice, Covey said the unique human capacities of self-awareness, imagination, and conscienc e enable us to examine first creations and make it possible for us to take charge of our own first creation, to write our own script. â€Å"Habit 2 is based on principles of personal leadership, which means that leadership is the first creation. Leadership is not management. † Stephen Covey said as he explained the second habit.He further in the book explained that, in business proactive powerful leadership must constantly monitor environmental change, particularly customer buying habits and motives, and provide the force necessary to organize resources in the right direction. Later in the book, Covey stated that, the most effective way he knows to begin with the end in mind is to develop a personal/ family/ organizational mission statement or philosophy or creed. It focuses on what one wants to be and to do (contributions and achievements) and on the values or principles upon which being and doing are based.Visualization and affirmation were also talked about. Shairay Jones Journal Entries for habit three and four Habit Three: Put first things first. To Covey, we are responsible for our own effectiveness, for our own happiness, and ultimately for most of our circumstances. The third habit is the personal fruit of habit 1 and 2. In Habit 3 according to Covey, we are dealing with many of the questions addressed in the field of life and time management. He used an illustration of four quadrants to show the essence of this habit and time management.Quadrant I stood for both urgent and important things. Quadrant III stood for urgent but not important things. Quadrant IV – not important, not urgent things while Quadrant II which is the heart of effective personal management stood for not urgent, but important things. These things to him are what we should put first before any other thing. He also talked about ‘gofer delegation’ and ‘stewardship delegation’ (taking control and giving control out respectively). Part three: Publ ic Victory At this part, Covey talked about the Paradigm of Interdependence.He asked us to remember that effective interdependence can only be built on a foundation of true independence. Private Victory precedes Public Victory. In the same way, Algebra comes before calculus. To expatiate on this point, Covey noted that independence is an achievement. Interdependence is a choice only independent people can make. So the place to begin building any relationship is inside ourselves, inside our Circle of Influence, our own character. Stephen further recollected an incidence he had with his two sons to explain what attending to little things meant.To him, Small discourtesies, little unkindnesses, little forms of disrespect make large withdrawals in our lives. In relationship for instance, the little thing are the big things. Keeping commitments, Clarifying expectations, showing personal integrity, apologizing sincerely when we make a withdrawal from our emotional bank are important things to do to make deposits in to our emotional banks. Covey mentioned that, with the paradigm of the Emotional Bank Account in mind, we’re ready to move into the habits of Public Victory, or success in working with other people.Habit 4: Think win-win (Principles of Interpersonal leadership) Under this heading, Covey narrated his personal experience at work with a company and at the end he noted that, whether you are the president of a company or the janitor, the moment you step from independence into interdependence in any capacity, you step into a leadership role. You are in a position of influencing other people. And the habit of effective interpersonal leadership is to think win-win. In addition, I learnt from this book that, win-win is not a technique but a total philosophy of human interaction.The principle of win-win begins with character then moves to relationship. Everything else is built on character. Maturity is the second foundation for win-win. To Covey, Maturity is the balance between courage and consideration. To go for win-win, you not only have to be nice, you have to be courageous. You not only have to be empathic, you have to be confident. You not only have to be considerate and sensitive, you have to be brave. That’s why we need to be internally matured, according to Stephen Covey.The third characteristic of a win-win case is the abundance mentality, the paradigm that there is plenty out there for everybody. From the foundation of character, we build and maintain win-win relationship. Shairay Jones Journal Entries for habit five, six, and seven Habit 5: Seek first to understand, then to be understood. Principles of Empathic Communication Stephen Covey began this session by saying this â€Å"if I were to summarize in one sentence the single most important principle I have learned in the field of interpersonal relations, it would be this: Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood. To him this principle is the key to effective interpersonal communication. It shows how we have such a tendency to rush in, to fix things up with good advice. But we often fail to take the time to diagnose, to really, deeply understand the problem first. There is a link between character and communication. Communication is the most important skill in life. In addition to communication, Covey emphasized emphatic listening, another important factor aiding the fifth habit. We must always seek first to understand before seeking to be understood.Empathic listening means listening with intent to understand and that is needed for habit 5. Diagnosing before we prescribe is also needed for this habit. Habit 6: Synergy Principles of Creative Cooperation â€Å"Synergy is the essence of Principle-Centered Leadership. It is the essence of principle-centered parenting and it catalyzes, unifies, and unleashes the greatest powers within people. All the habits we have covered prepare us to create the miracle of synergy†. Stephen Covey. He defined synergy to mean that, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.He illustrated this in different scenarios and talked about synergistic communication. He explained that, when you communicate synergistically, you are simply opening your mind and heart and expressions to new possibilities, new alternatives, new options. He talked about synergy in the classroom and in business. Another important thing he talked about was what he called Negative synergy. He also talked about valuing the difference; this to him is the essence of synergy, the mental, the emotional, and the psychological differences between people.And the key to valuing those differences is to realize that all people see the world, not as it is, but as they are. Part four: RENEWAL Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw Over here, he spoke about the principles of balanced self-renewal. This final habit involves taking time to sharpen the saw and it surrounds the other habits on the Seven Habits paradigm because it is the habit that makes all the others possible. According to him, it involves preserving and enhancing the greatest asset we have. Us) â€Å"Sharpen the Saw† basically means expressing all four motivations (physical, spiritual, mental, and social/emotional). It means exercising all four dimensions of our nature, regularly and consistently, in wise and balanced ways. To do this, we must be proactive, according to Covey. He also used the physical dimension, mental dimension, socio/emotional and the spiritual dimension paradigms to explain this point. Furthermore, he noted that balanced renewal is optimally synergetic.The things you do to sharpen the saw in any one dimension have positive impact in other dimensions because they are so highly interrelated. He, at the end, talked about Inside out again by quoting the words of Ezra Taft Benson†¦ â€Å"The Lord works from the inside out. The world works from the outside in. The world would take people out of the slums. Christ takes the slums out of people, and then they take themselves out of the slums. The world would mold men by changing their environment. Christ changes men, who then change their environment.The world would shape human behavior, but Christ can change human nature. † Shairay Jones Advance Reading Seminar The 7 habits of highly effective people Questions 1. What made Stephen R. Covey write the book? 2. Does he think the 7 habits are still relevant today? 3. Did he think the book would have the type of effect it had on the people? 4. Did the book influence him? How? 5. What habit had the most influence on him? 6. Where did he come up with the seven habits? 7. How does he fell to know that his book sold over 15 million? 8. Did he buy the book when it first came out?

Friday, November 8, 2019

buy custom Cup Cake Business essay

buy custom Cup Cake Business essay Mission statement Our mission at Blue Cream Cakes Investments is to make social functions tasty, creamy and sweet experiences to both confectionery and passive consumers of the same. We pride in delighting cup cake enthusiasts with high quality products taking into consideration a variety and customized brands to satisfy a wide range of customer preferences. With our detailed survey report concerning the rising number of both active and passive confectionery fans; who would not mind having tasty but cheaper confectionery to match those moments of celebration, we intend to reach out to them at all convenient venues to satisfy their needs. Vision Statement Four years from now, Blue Cream Cakes Investments will be one of the best suppliers of cheap but quality confectionery especially cup cakes within the country with a fully satisfied customer base. This should translate to annual revenues of over one million by being consistent in timely delivery, reasonably priced products and organizing thrilling events for both active and passive confectionery enthusiasts. This should boost the societys interest in Bakery through encouraging more of the population to shift from passive to active confectionery enthusiasm. Executive Summary; management strategy The Blue Cream Cakes Investments is a small business venture that operates in the university. The venture is in its pilot state and run by Shneda Edgar an all round Confectionery enthusiast. He is an experienced Baker of quality cup cakes and other confectionery both as a hobby and occasionally provides upon request services to match specific occasions within the institution and interested external clientele. He is familiar with the citys community festivals and seasonal needs and has an advantage of an intensive network of all events within and around the institution. The current target market has no serious competition basing on a study that clearly indicates that no individual or institution had seriously considered institutional celebrations within the city except for the beverages and brewery industry (Cohen, 2006). This is with respect to their short notices and our need to market our Bakerys quality product with minimal advertisement costs. The niche is cut by the fact that consumers only consider a variety in confectionery long after confirming the price levels with regards to the quantity, size and quality on confectionery. Provision of cheaper but excellent quality cup cakes should encourage more active consumption thus an enlarged consumer market. This can also be seen as a forum of offering excellence personal training for confectionery enthusiasts the opportunity for good cake sampling techniques. Therefore they will be able to differentiate our quality products from other available products from possible competitors thus build on bran d loyalty (Kennedy, 2000). Through provision of high standards of staff training within the city, Blue Cream Cakes Investments intends to command personalized customer attention at an affordable price hence a great business opportunity (Kennedy, 2000). The director has secured a central location in the city for easier correspondence with external customers. This should provide a collection point easily accessible from any part of the city through all available means of transport. Proper shop layout combined with Students knowledge and interest should make Blue Cream Cakes Investments a worthwhile and profitable venture. Situation Analysis (SWOT) Blue Cream Cakes Investments is a start-up business currently operating at a low level thus marketing is an integral aspect in its prosperity and subsequent financial gains in high revenues (Cohen, 2006). The venture provides a wide variety of confectionery with specialization being in cup cakes, randomly for new customers and on order placement by existing customers. The basic demand of the market is top quality and reasonably priced cup cakes for all round celebrations. Blue Cream Cakes Investments through extensive market research has information about common desires of the market base which consists of busy customers either studying or working that have serious time constraints to purchase desired confectionery. This is reiterated through our existing loyal customers hence Blue Cream Cakes Investments intends to take advantage of this knowledge to fully exploit the untapped customer bases through expansion plans which includes door to door marketing and delivery networks. The acronym SWOT stands for Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats within any existing competitive market (Debelak, 2000). Our analysis highlights key strengths and weaknesses and further indicates threats and opportunities Blue Cream Cakes Investments is likely to face. Strengths A strong working bond with suppliers and producers of ingredients which enables us to meet our orders in good time. Exceptional location which is mre accessible through all mode of transport in the city (Kennedy, 2000). Properly trained staff members in customer service that are trustworthy and highly efficient in meeting deadlines, thus ensuring a huge chunk of our income comes from repeat business. Weaknesses Blue Cream Cakes Investments has a limited financial outlay to meet branding requirements which is important in our expansion program. It is costly to acquire quality cooking equipment used in mass baking and also train more employees with regards to our current target market. Opportunities An expanding market that is significant in terms of our financial projection that has limited knowledge about Blue Cream Cakes Investments existence. An increasing number of the citys population that are constantly hosting celebrations and social occasions with restricted and low budgets. There is a high profit margin with considerably static costs which makes it easy for budgeting and operational planning. Stiff competition that originates from web based companies who offer constant discounts. Struggle in always having fresh products for the expanding market. Threats Market Needs The venture intends to provide a wide variety of confectionery products which should be able to address most if not all the customer needs. We intend to also have communication options through our website whereby our customers can input their order specifications in good time for maximum satisfaction of their needs to be achieved. The store will be open for reasonable and fluctuating extended hours suitable for any prevailing social events. Further accessibility will be enhanced through our website for special delivery considerations. We intend to maintain and improve quality standards and from time to time provide extra magical moments to our customers through bonus gifts and surprise prizes (Cohen, 2006). Apart from the normal profit pricing factors, our products will be priced according to the celebration atmosphere in the specific times of the annual calendar. This is a unique way of considering emotions in pricing thus a sure point of attracting and retaining clientele. Market Trends The prevailing trend in the confectionery industry is to acquire quality products at a good discount. Blue Cream Cakes Investments has the ability to exploit this because whether new or existing clients, we will provide for extra and free supplies basing on economies of scale that can generally yield high profits at any reasonable discounting rate. Competition At the moment there exists no known serious competition within the city. The bulk of competition arises from scattered general traders who do not specifically bake their own products but retail for other bakers existing outside the city. The competition further deals in bulk consignments that are majorly composed of products suitable for large scale consumption by institutions and large scale dealers like super stores. These products are mostly of uniform nature and luck much in diversity to suit the highly varied customer base in terms of taste. Marketing Mix Elements: Pricing Blue Cream Cakes Investments intends to minimize expansion costs by selling through the consignment contracts whereby we will partially collect ingredients and only pay suppliers after sale of final products. This will fluctuate with the market demand. With proper savings and business establishment, we intend to also deal in a few beverage products to further address any new needs of our existing and most prized customers. Basing on our existing citys consumer base, our positioning in the market will highly rely on excellent customer care that will deliver quality cup cakes that are not common in the city. This is strengthened by the fact that our niche is not explored extensively and our pricing is negotiable between us and the suppliers and might change due to prevailing circumstances in the market. The consignment contract of ingredients gives us room to cover from any financial setbacks in the market hence only pay for storage before considering our suppliers. Pricing As discussed, our startup business has two major pricing objectives which include: To increase our customer base from the university by taking care of other city dwellers too thus increasing our market share. To increase the quantity in sales volume as we target a larger market share. Pricing constraints are those factors which hinder or control our process of setting prices (Debelak, 2000). These factors introduce boundaries and other limits which we have little or no power to decide against them. Some of the possible pricing constraints are: Customers demand will be a major determinant of the set prices because if it goes up we will raise our prices and if it goes down, cup cakes being perishable, we will have no choice but to lower prices in order to move sales volumes and avoid loses. Our Break-even point will determine our least price even in the wake of lower price demands by customers. The customers sometimes determine the price ceilings basing on prevailing market prices in the same industry. This will also affect any additional costs absorption incurred for quality thus controlling our pricing. Our 3 possible sales prices per unit will be; 1, 2 and 3 dollars. The variable cost per unit is 0.5 dollars. The total fixed expenses are 100 dollars. Break-even point can be computed by finding that place where the total sales are equal to the total costs of sale and therefore neither profit nor loss is incurred (Cohen, 2006). Therefore: Sales= Cost of sales. Sales= Variable expenses + Fixed expenses+ profit Sales @ 1 dollar/unit Sales @ 2 dollars/unit Sales @ 3 dollars/unit 1Q= 0.5Q+ 100+ 0 1Q- 0.5Q= 100 0.5Q= 100 Q= 100/0.5= 200 units 2Q= 0.5Q+ 100+ 0 2Q-0.5Q= 100 1.5Q=100 Q= 100/1.5= 66.7 which is 67 units. 3Q=0.5Q+ 100+ 0 3Q-0.5Q= 100 2.5Q= 100 Q= 40 units. 200 units 67 units 40 units Graphical Representation of the 3 break-even points Basing on my diagram, the fixed cost (F. C) is at $100 at all production units. The variable cost (V. C) is worth half a dollar for each unit. Therefore Total cost (T. C) curve is a combination of the F.C curve and V.C curve. It should be noted that the V. C is constant thus at the breakeven level for the: $1 sales price per unit, the value of total cost will be; $100+ 0.5Q. Q = 200 thus T.C= ($100+ 0.5*200). T. C= $ 100+$ 100= $200. Therefore for $1 price per unit, the BEP will be at the 200 units of sales and $200 sales value. The BEP is at P1. $2 sales price per unit will yield a BEP at 67 units of sales and a sales value of ($100+ 0.5*67) which is $ 133.50. The BEP is at P2. $3 sales price per unit will yield a BEP at 40 units of sales and a sales value of ($100+ 0.5*40) which is $ 120. The BEP is at P3. In case the prices adjust reasons being demand, cost, profit or competition oriented, the only way to stay ahead is to ensure we either minimize our expenses/costs or increase our profit margin thus our break even points will shift to the right side but upwards meaning an increase in sales volume but a decrease in prices. Discounts, allowances and geographical adjustments call for an increase in sales volume too, so as to carter for any dip in our current profits thus the BEP will shift to the right but upwards. Therefore my new prices will be: Sales @ 0.6 dollar/unit Sales @ 1.8 dollars/unit Sales @ 2.6 dollars/unit 0.6Q= 0.5Q+ 100+ 0 0.6Q- 0.5Q= 100 0.1Q= 100 Q= 100/0.1= 1000 units 1.8Q= 0.5Q+ 100+ 0 1.8Q-0.5Q= 100 1.3Q=100 Q= 100/1.3= 76.9 which is 77 units. 2.6Q=0.5Q+ 100+ 0 2.6Q-0.5Q= 100 2.1Q= 100 Q= 47.6 which is 48 units. 1000 units 77 units 48 units Basing on the change in environment considerations, our final price will be at $1.8 per unit. Controls The purpose ofBlue Cream Cakes Investmentsmarketing plan is to guide the venture into profit maximization and customer satisfaction hence proper monitoring of Revenues and expenditures on a monthly and annual basis. Conclusion Blue Cream Cakes Investments new market segment and small scale start up does not enable it to have constant financial projections but with the expansion vision we intend to establish a permanent finance and budgeting department. We have consequently established an office space in the City centre fully equipped with the resources to seriously embark on all our departments this year. Buy custom Cup Cake Business essay