The Young Persons Rail Card Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

The Young Persons Rail Card - Essay Example To increase the interactivity on the site, the bloggers will need to prove themselves as the site will be open to popularity voting and other YPRC holders can also blog on the site and topple the current rank holders. Bloggers, who in a given calendar quarter, reach the top of their geographic unit are eligible for a cash prize of 250 along with travel passes for another 250. While viewing blogs will be free, commenting on posted blogs will require site registration and voting or creating own blogs will require that they should be YPRC holders. Another change that is required from current practices is that purchase of YPRC should be available online. This would have a two fold benefit: firstly, it will trap the 'procrastinator' demographic of 14% who have already made up their mind up to purchase but have been 'waylaid' by circumstances into putting off making the purchase till another time; and secondly, the ease of applying online will enable us to reach a wider audience, especially for those who may find it inconvenient or time consuming to visit their local station ticketing offices. While initial information and product education will be disseminated through strategically located posters on school, college and university campuses, Internet advertising will primarily drive acquisition. It is estimated that at 12 million page views will be displayed to our target audience resulting in 120,000 new YPRC holders at a conservative conversion rate of 1%. This will result in a direct revenue increase of 2.4 million. After accounting for campaign costs the net contribution of this campaign would be approximately 450,000. Marketing Plan Objectives Primary Objective: To recruit 96,000 to 100,000 new YPRC holders translating into direct revenue increase of 1.92 to 2.0 million (12%-12.5%) Secondary Objective: Increase average number of journeys by YPRC holders. Situation Analysis (Summary) 16-25 year olds are a 7.9 million strong market. 83% of this demographic are students. Nearly half of these (47%) are living away from home and have a fair degree of financial independence. The drawback with the current 'distribution' system for YPRC is that it is pull based. 97% of YPRC purchases are from station ticketing offices. Buyers are 'pulled' into the 'store' through advertising and other marketing mechanics. This effectively limits the scope of reaching a sizeable segment of 'procrastinators' (14%) who have 'not got round to it yet' The primary competition rail travel faces is from cars. However, there is a marked decline in the perceived convenience of cars, which is a fact that can be leveraged in the campaign. Customers can be broadly categorized as: 16-18 year old Sixth Formers: 17% 1.3 million 19-25 year old Independent & At Home Students: 66% 3.7 million 19-25 yea

American beauty and Existentialism Movie Review

American beauty and Existentialism - Movie Review Example The continual struggle of Lester Burnham regarding the meaning of life eventually endows him with the freedom to assume total responsibility for his life, thereby taking the onus to give a meaning to his life, which though did not affiliate to any organized and systematic philosophical discipline is of immense importance and concern, so far as the life of Lester Burnham is concerned. Hence, eventually in the climax, Lester Burnham arrives at a meaningful conclusion that corroborates the essential existential theme that any valid philosophical quest ought to stand on a foundation comprising of the actual experiences of an individual. The eventual demise of Lester Burnham is not only satisfactory and well deserved in the context of his individual struggle, but is also indicative of the possibility of soliciting happiness by proactively engaging in an existential crisis. The existential themes inherent in the movie American Beauty could only be grasped by having a relevant insight into the actual plot and contexts. The central character in the movie that is Lester Burnham is shown to be up against a midlife existential crisis. In the movie Lester Burnham is shown to be a middle aged American male who is both a husband and a father. Lester is shown to be trapped in a marriage that is of no relevant meaning or interest to him. He happens to be the father of a daughter who actually seems to hate him. Lester is also shown to be trapped in a job that not only devoid of any motivation or interest, but also happens to be morally and ethically debasing and from which Lester Burnham intends to escape for the sake of personal peace and well being. It is only after Lester Burnham gets attracted to her daughter’s young and beautiful friend that he begins to assume responsibility for his life, thereby getting actively engaged in asking questions and making decisions that lead to his eventual sad but personally edifying death. In that context, the movie American Beauty f acilitates a deep insight into the actual motivations behind the so called modern life and the commensurate human struggle to seek meaning and personal contentment. The movie presents to the viewers the varied existential themes marking the contemporary life through the existential struggle of the central character Lester Burnham, at the same time shedding light on the vacuity and inanity of the individuals and organizations surrounding Lester Burnham. The plot of the movie thereby serves two purposes, one to unravel the absurdity and ludicrousness hidden behind the conformist notions of life, and second the possibility of seeking happiness and fulfillment in the small things marking the human existence. One existential theme that continually pops up while being engaged in the unraveling of the seemingly banal and mundane life of Lester Burnham is that of authenticity. In a quest for personal meaning and goal, the existential struggle engaged into by the central character that is Le ster Burnham, the character is shown to be living Sartre’s notion of authenticity, thereby practically symbolizing the fact that â€Å"authenticity implies the assumption of one’s moral responsibility, the recognition that one has to decide what is good (Schilpp 96).†Through his existential struggle, Lester Burnham actually establishes that authenticity is possible that even while being numbly engaged in an existential struggle, there does is a personal unity of consciousness, a personal capacity to be a proactive

Written Critical Analysis of a Literary Text Essay

Written Critical Analysis of a Literary Text - Essay Example Nevertheless, linguists and anthropologists have often marginalized poetics through believing that the aesthetic way of using language is solely parasitic upon the core subjects of linguistics (Achebe, 2012). For instance, the core areas are semantics, syntax, phonology and anthropological fields like social and economy organization. This position emanates clearly in the work of a Nigerian author in his latest work of â€Å"There was a country,† as the article explains. There Was a Country: A Personal History of Biafra by Chinua Achebe Chinua Achebe was a Nigerian writer whose story telling talent and moral courage gifts have left enduring marks on the world’s literature. The release of There was a Country work explains his experience during the Civil War in Nigeria, aka the Biafra War of 1967 to 1970 (Serpell, 2012). The war was not famous because of its impacts on the lives of Biafra’s, who went for numerous days without food or water. The war was the greatest among the humanitarian disasters all over the world. Chinua Achebe and his loving family were caught up in the midst of atrocities. As a worldly known novelist, Achebe resided in a Biafra homestead worked as a ranging cultural ambassador and witnessed the full horror of the war. As soon as the war ended, Chinua acquired one of the academic posts in university based in the U.S (Anya, 2012). for a period of not less than forty years Chinua hardly uttered a word regarding those horrific war years. Nonetheless, he addressed the terrible years solely through his novels and poetry (Achebe, 2012). After spending several years composing â€Å"There Was a Country,† he finally presents a towering reckoning fateful experience covering both his experience and how he came to understand the experience. Chinua uses the context of literature and language, character, narrative and awareness of genre in this book. Marrying memoir and history, weaving the poetry of the author all through the ch apters, the book distills a vivid observation, considered reflection and research (Serpell, 2012). More so, the book relates the birth pangs in Nigeria, on the subject of Chinua’s development both as a man and significant Nigerian writer, as well as, evaluates the obligation of an artist during war. In the past, Achebe has written short stories and poems regarding Biafra such as Girls at War (1972). However, people hoped and waited for a chronicle about Achebe's view on the contested Nigerian history. At long last Chinua produced, a narration titled There was a Country, which is striking because it is not personal for providing details about the war; even though he subtitled it as A Personal History of Biafra. This book serves right the admirers of Achebe, as well as, those who are not yet familiar with his significant work (Serpell, 2012). Some of the parts are same as the passages of his previous essays and interspersed poems in the narrative. The keen followers of Achebeâ €™s work will develop interest while reading some new revelations regarding his life as he states in the first section. However, the book’s second section provides details about the war especially how he foregoes own memory. In writing regarding the crucial events, Chinua utilizes the information about what people told him instead of his own feelings. As a result, the narration leaves the audience with the most nagging dissatisfaction that reflects as if the writer left things unsaid (Achebe, 2012). More so, the book has several glimpses. For instance, on paying a vacation as one of the Biafra ambassadors to Canada, a host contributed a joke. A loud laughter accompanied the joke and abruptly it dawned to Chinua that Biafra was

Landscape Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Landscape - Essay Example This island also inhabits grasslands and mountainous areas as well as plateaus, which spread throughout the country. Its fame also comes from the Blue-Mountains appearing from the southeastern end of the country. The blue haze name emanates from oil droplets trickling from the eucalyptus trees. The many beautiful beaches cap the geographical uniqueness of this island. In Australia, indeed, there are many things to be curious about; it is truly a unique country as this largely feature as the monuments and vernacular landscape traits of the country. Origin of the landscape In the 18th century, Captain Cook discovered the island of Australia 1770. This is where the originality of this country lies even though there might be other chances that another voyage ship might have graced the country. This emanates from the possibility that a Portuguese first sighted the country. The Dutch are also known to have explored the coastal region of the country by the 1640s. It therefore earns the acco lades as the lowest, flattest, and oldest continental landmass on Earth. It had the relatively stable geological history. Its formation involves forces such as tectonic uplift of the mountains ranges or clashes between tectonic plates in early landscape history. This occurred still when Australia was part of Gondwana. T he highest peak of Australia, which resulted due to the tectonic forces, was about 7,310 ft, which is comparatively low in assessment to the premier mountains in other continents (Duncan, Nuala, and Richard 92). The current shape of the continent has its shape because of the erosion, which has heavily weathered Australia’s surface area. The country now sits in the middle of the tectonic plate hence no active volcanism. As a result, the first European settlement in the country was in January 1788. It is this time, after the discovery of the Island. The first fleet sailed into Botany Bay under the command of Command Arthur Philip, establishing Australia first as a penal colony by the 1640s. Ethnic makeup of its people Australia’s original inhabitants, the Aborigines, settled there between the ages of 42,000 and 48,000 years ago. These inhabitants arrived via the land bridge and short sea crossing from South East Asia. At these ages, the sea water levels were relatively low as compared to the soaring heights in today’s Australia. The original inhabitants were soon out-numbered by the settlers (Duncan, Nuala, and Richard 88). The story of migration, like any other country in the era of colonization, brought another sect of its population. Nevertheless, the Australian history of its ethnic population does not stop there. Immigrants keep arriving in this country. This continuous flow of immigrants makes its history steeped with the settlers. Their arrival has had an effect on the land and its people. The Role of religion in forming places In the 21st century, religion in Australia purely comes as Christianity. 61.14 % of the Aust ralian population predisposes itself to Christianity as per the census of 2011. In respect to history, the current percentage is far much higher and the religious landscape is diversifying. This comes along with the multicultural immigration as 22.3% of people with no population. With 8.55% of the population not able to incline to a certain religion, the remaining population consists of a diverse group of Buddhist at 2.46%, Islamic at 2.21%, Hindu at 1.28%, Jewish at 0.45% and Sikh at 0.3% of the entire

Lean Manufacturing--Mass Customization & Marketplace simulation Assignment

Lean Manufacturing--Mass Customization & Marketplace simulation - Assignment Example Knowing what the clients or rather what the customers want is very essential. Thus, the company should be in a position to understand the need for market segmentation. This is because, in today’s marketplace, it is necessary for a company to understand the need of market segmentation because of market fragmentation. In addition, the company should be in a position to explain how the marketers evaluate segments and choose a targeting strategy. In order to choose more segments and to target more clients, the company should be able to evaluate the potential for and success in the marketplace (Cagan, & Vogel, 2002). The process to which a computer producing company needs in order to have a good and continuous improvement is by knowing how much, and the quality and stability of computers the company supplies to the market. The computer company should be able to isolate and validate the goods they process, for instance: keyboards mouse, monitors, and processors among others. While in the market place target other markets. This particular computer company should not only focus on the current marketplace, and it should try to reach out to other markets for more profits. If the computer company invest in more designs and improve the quality and the designs of the machines it produces, it will be able to accomplish the market business stimulation it needs in the

Human Resources Management Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5500 words

Human Resources Management Report - Essay Example In 2005 a survey was conducted and it was reported by the management of the company that they had over 275 million hits on their website. The motto of the company is that they are trying to create a better life for many people through their products and the business idea of the company also supports the vision of the company and that is it provides furniture at reasonable and affordable prices so that many people can afford their products. The objectives it to make profit and as well as serve the society and the environment. The turnover for IKEA in 2007 was $26.1 billion. The objective of this paper is to show that how can IKEA increase its market share in the industry through the effective use of human resource management. As we know that this paper is about how to increase market share of IKEA in the furniture industry through effective human resources management. IKEA is a privately owned, international based company. It is an international retail store that sells flat pack furniture, bathrooms, accessories and kitchens all over the world. The company when it started off, it used to sell flat pack designed furniture at reasonable prices but now it is considered to be the world's largest manufacturer of furniture. IKEA has somewhere around 278 outlets in 36 countries, most of the outlets are based in Europe, United States, Australia, Canada and Asia. ... IKEA has somewhere around 278 outlets in 36 countries, most of the outlets are based in Europe, United States, Australia, Canada and Asia. In 2006 IKEA had opened around 16 more stores and by 2008 they plan to at least 30 more outlets or relocate them. The company has somewhere around 12,000 products available on their website, which is very near to their products range. In 2005 a survey was conducted and it was reported by the management of the company that they had over 275 million hits on their website. The motto of the company is that they are trying to create a better life for people all over the world through their products and the business idea of the company also supports the vision of the company and that is it provides furniture at reasonable and affordable prices so that many people can afford their products. The turnover for IKEA in 2007 was $26.1 billion. Ingvar Kamprad founded IKEA in Almhult, Sweden by in 1943, when he only a boy of 17 years. The word IKEA is the abbreviation of Ingvar Kamprad Elmtaryd Agunnaryd. The company first started out by selling all kinds of products like pens, runners, wallets, picture frames, watches, jewelry, furniture and stockings etc. anything that Kamprad thought that would sell at a reduced but reasonable price. It is the business idea of IKEA that they offer a wide range of home furnishing products at process which are affordable by many people. (IKEA) In 1948 IKEA introduced furniture in their range. The furniture was produced by the local manufactures in the forest closest to Ingvar Kamprad's home. The response to the furniture was a positive one. Kamprad first started to sell the products out of his home and then he used mail order to deliver the products to his

Psychological Treatment of Culturally Diverse Populations Research Paper

Psychological Treatment of Culturally Diverse Populations - Research Paper Example In contrast in 2000, the numbers fell down to 69%. The U.S. Census Bureau foresees that racial/ethnic minorities will constitute a numeric majority by the year 2050. However, other private researches made by the Council of National Psychological Associations for the Advancement of Ethnic Minority Interests (2000) anticipate that this demographic transformation will take place sooner. The following 2000 U.S. Census figures will provide us with an overall idea on some minority groups. The U.S. Census Bureau reported several conclusions on the bases of these statistics. Most importantly, they consider that it is impossible for the mental health clinician not to meet clients who differ in regards to race, ethnicity, and culture. Secondly, what is defined as therapy can vary considerably from the traditional understanding of the mental health professional. And last but not least, mental health workers have to become culturally competent in order to meet the needs of their clients. Attention to diversity and cultural competence and awareness are of great importance for the U.S. society since it has become increasingly diverse. In this paper I will focus my attention on ethical practice with patience from different cultural, ethnic and racial background. I will also concentrate on some recommendations for the psychological treatment of Mexican-American population. The American Psychologica... Guidelines for Providers of Psychological Services to Ethnic, Linguistic and Culturally Diverse Populations (APA, 1993) suggest comprehensible counseling and flexible perspectives for working with such individuals. It is of great importance that each psychologist remains sensitive to diversity issues and possesses general knowledge about the groups that seek mental health treatment. The American Psychological Association Ethics Code (APA, 1992) requires that psychologists are aware of "cultural, individual, and role differences" and "accord appropriate respect to the fundamental rights, dignity, and worth or all people (Principle D: Respect for People's Rights and Dignity, p. 1599)." Further, the psychologists are instructed by the APA Ethics Code (1992) to acquire the necessary training if he is to work with individuals of diverse background. Having the knowledge about the client's culture will aid the therapist to incorporate into the mental health treatment traditional spiritual and healing customs and will reinforce the partnership between the therapist and the patient. Aviera (2002) reports on multiple occasions when disclosing personal details "helps the Latino client feel that the therapist is a caring and real person (p.18)." Familiarity with one's culture, openness and genuineness of human interactions are of prime significance if the psychologist aims to work effectively with culturally diverse client. According to the numbers provided by the 2000 U.S. Census over 35 million identify themselves as Hispanic, which approximately makes 13 % of the total U.S. population. The majority 58.5% are of Mexican origin. Barona (2003) reports that "many ancestors of present-day Mexican Americans resided on this land when national borders were established more than