Student Democratic Party Platform Essay -- Political Science Politics

Preamble As we look back upon the 20th Century we see the birth of American prominence. The century is marked with glorious American achievements ranging from the birth of the Space Age to the development of the Information Age. Now, as we venture through the new millennium, the potential of further American prosperity is enormous. At times this journey will be a perilous quest, but with valiant leadership this nation shall flourish. Only the Democratic Party is prepared to guide America towards this future. Under the watchful guidance of President Bill Clinton and the Democratic Party, America is finally moving in the right direction. In 1996, we, the Democratic Party, adopted and enacted a platform that has reinvigorated the American spirit of opportunity, responsibility, and community within our national character. Along with the hard work and determination of the American public this nation has achieved an unprecedented level of prosperity. Currently, the American economy is on a record setting pace that is continuously strengthening our economic security. The level of unemployment in America is at a record low. Almost every able-body American is on the job working towards their American dream, and we, the Democratic Party, will not be satisfied until everyone can enjoy their American dream. Through Democratic leadership the quality of life in America has vastly improved. America’s education system is improving, the environment is cleaner, families are healthier, and our streets are safer. Today, any American can claim that their lives are better off than they were 8 years ago. All across America the success of the Democratic Party platform can be seen. But we want more. The Democratic Party is determined to giv... ... first two years of college are free at any State or City University. This will result in a stronger economy and nation because as a whole society, we are strengthening the knowledge of our youth. A substantial amount of Americans are without health insurance. We propose tax credits for small businesses that provide health insurance, retirement benefits, and employment and internships to students. We also propose that tax credits be given to businesses that practice clean air and environmental safety. We believe that our youth is a key concern of the nation and we need to set certain measures to make them feel safe and secure as Americans. A measure that we feel that needs to be taken is to raise taxes on such products as cigarettes and guns. The Democratic Party believes in helping American families economically and socially through more equitable tax benefits.

Factors Influencing Employee Performance Essay

1. Introduction 1.1 Background of the study There are many challenges which hinder the delivery of public service reforms in Africa (Lienert, 2003). The factors include those relating to human resources like manpower deficiencies and lack of psychological dispositions and shortage of financial and material resources necessary for effective delivery of services. The problems of accountability as well as ethical issues also continue to affect effective delivery of public service. In an effort to mitigate some of these challenges, the Government of Kenya (GOK) has in the past launched several reform programs to improve service delivery. Some of these reform efforts include the Civil Service Reform Program (CSRP) (GOK, 1993) whose aim was to enhance public service efficiency and productivity. The program was designed to contain costs, improve performance in the public sector, and consolidate and sustain the gains made by reform initiatives (Opiyo, 2006). The other reform initiatives included the implementation of Results – Based Management that was guided by Economic Recovery Strategy for Wealth and Employment creation (GOK, 2003) whose strategies included developing benchmarks and evaluating the performance of public institutions. In order to enhance the performance of public officers, the government introduced a program where rewards and sanctions were to be used to encourage provision of quality services in the public sector. This paved way for the piloting of the process of in state corporations in 2003 which saw the introduction and implementation of performance appraisals in the entire public sector. Most firms in Kenya now employ some performance appraisal system (GOK, 2009). The Performance Appraisal System (PAS) was introduced by the GOK to refocus the mind of the public from a culture of inward looking to a culture of businesslike environment, focused on the customer and results in addition to improving service delivery (Obong’o, 2009). According to the new PAS, the evaluation of staff performance is supposed to run concurrently with the duration of ministerial performance contracts and the Government Financial year. Targets should meet acceptable quality standards and benchmarks as determined in each category of service delivery; the system should be supported by training of staff, particularly those with managerial and supervisory responsibility; and the process should be regarded as interactive, for mutual agreement between supervisors and appraisers (GOK, 2009). Longenecker and Goff (1992), observed that managers and human resource professionals belief that a PAS is a good tool for human resource management and performance improvement. If well designed and implemented it can benefit both the employees and the organizations (Coens and Jenkins, 2000). According to GOK (2009), the PAS has caused a cultural transformation within the public service from a baseline of extremely poor performance before 2003. The GOK has in the past made some efforts in launching and implementing Public Service Reform initiatives aimed at improving the performance of public servants in service delivery (GOK, 1993; GOK, 2003). However, these reforms have not achieved the envisaged results (AAPAM, 2005; Opiyo, 2006). The introduction of the new PAS (GOK, 2006) is yet another attempt by the Government to manage and improve performance of the Civil Service and Local Authorities by enabling a higher level of staff participation and involvement in planning, delivery and evaluation of work performance. Despite the successful roll out of the program, there is evidence of room for improvement in the process (GOK, 2009) and a lack of knowledge on the factors that influence the PAS in the Ministry of State for Provincial Administration and Internal Security, (MoSPA) Nyamira district, Kenya. Specifically, this study addresses this gap by: (a) Establishing how the implementation process of the PAS in the public sector influences the system; (b) Determining how rater and ratee interpersonal relationship in a PAS context influences the system in the public sector; (c) Determining how psychometric rater accuracy in a PAS context influences the system in the public sector; (d) Determining how the level of information exchange between the rater and the ratee in a PAS context influences the system in the public sector; and (e) Establishing how the attitudes of employees towards the last PAS rating, towards the rater and towards the PAS influence the system in the public sector.

Performance Appraisal Notes

A. Explain the benefits of performance appraisal systems within an organization in which you address the following: A1. Present the optimal results of a well prepared and well-delivered performance appraisal. *If the company establishes a well prepared and well delivered performance appraisal, what are the best results the company can expect? (employee prospective and company perspective are good here) Performance appraisals are a tool that most companies use when assessing their employees.A well prepared and well delivered performance appraisal can be beneficial to both the employee and the company. The company benefits in many different ways when they deliver this type of performance appraisal. The performance appraisal process allows the company to reiterate the goals that they have, as well as change the priority of previous goals. Things change all the time and the evaluation would be the perfect place to make this aware to employees. The company also can use these performance e valuations when they are preparing to promote within the company.When the company promotes from within it creates a moral boost to current employees by letting them know that there are chances for growth within the company. The evaluations also give the company a paper trail of documentation for use if legal actions are ever taken. This will show just cause for the decisions made by the company. These decisions could be linked to promotion, termination, salary raises, and even poor performance documentation. It is always in the best interests of the company to keep documentation that will justify all decisions.The company also benefits by learning areas of needed improvement to help raise productivity and moral throughout the company. Employees will see the loyalty the company has towards them when the company invests time and money into their employee’s improvement. Personal goals of the employees is another benefit the company has through performance evaluations. The compan y can see where the employee wants to be in the future, which may uncover a potential management trainee that was overlooked. Companies can greatly benefit by promoting employees that have personal goals that match company goals.The company is not the only entity that benefits from these performance appraisals. The employee benefits as much as the company does. The performance appraisal process gives each employee a face-to-face meeting with their supervisor or manager. This is a perfect chance for the employee to learn exactly what the company expects from them. This gives a chance to clear up any issues or questions that may have been weighing on the employee. A well prepared and well delivered performance appraisal will raise the moral of the employee as well.The employee will know what specific things he has done well, which will enable them to keep them up. The areas that the supervisor feels needs improvement will be discussed and they can both agree on a way of getting the em ployee more training. The employee feels more involved in these decisions when the supervisor allows for their input on decisions. This makes the employee feel the company has loyalty and therefore the company wants to help the employee achieve all their performance goals. The employee also benefits by letting the company know their future goals.This will allow for the company to help the employee out in all ways possible. For example, the employee may want to be in a different department in the next year. The company could possibly start cross-training the employee in that department, therefore helping both parties reach their goals. This could benefit both the company and the employee by showing support and possibly raising performance. These regularly scheduled performance appraisals will promote better performance through employees knowledge of what is expected of them.A2. Recommend pre-appraisal activities that ensure they are performance appraisal processes that are beneficial to the employee and the company. *What happens before the appraisal? (suggestion: ongoing activities and in the time proximal to the performance review) It is important to make time for pre-appraisal activities to make sure that the benefits are at max potential. It will hurt the chances of maximizing gains for both the company and the employee if the following activities are not done beforehand.The most important thing when it comes to being ready for the performance appraisal is being well prepared. The manager needs to make sure that he sets aside enough time to perform the pre-appraisal activities. These activities include establishing a time for the appraisal and relating it to the employee, making sure to lay out all new and old goals for the employee, giving the employee an advance copy of the review, collecting the employee’s review of themselves, and collecting all notes taken that may validate your points and emphasize your decisions as well as the last  performa nce appraisal.It is important to make sure that the employee has enough time to prepare for the appraisal. This allows for quality feedback from them and will also lead to quality questions. In order to make it the most beneficial appraisal possible, then both sides need to be well prepared. Goals and expectations will be completely understood if both parties have an idea of what’s expected of them. The employee can have questions ready for things that they may not understand. There may be instances where they can ask for additional training in areas they know they are weaker in.The act of giving the employee the advance copy of the review will make sure that the employee is not blind-sided and will significantly lower the amount of defensiveness. The employee will have questions ready to ask their managers, which will in turn make for a more rewarding appraisal. The employee’s review of themselves will also let the manager know where the employee sees himself performi ng. This could in turn get the manager ready for an employee that felt he was above expectations on everything, but in reality the manager seen the total opposite.This will allow for the manager to prepare himself with the necessary responses for the possible situations or questions. It is also important for the manager to have all the documentation that supports his thought or decisions. A copy of the previous appraisal will also allow for the manager to show what strengths and weaknesses the employee may have had in reaching previous goals. The manager will have more backing and a proper paper documentation basis for all decisions. A well prepared appraisal will lead to a happier and a more beneficial meeting between the two parties.A3.  Recommend post-appraisal activities that ensure there are performance appraisal processes that are beneficial to the employee and the company. *What happens after the appraisal? Activities that occur just after the performance review (meeting) u p through 364 days after. The appraisal is has now been concluded and it is time to make sure that it remains beneficial. It is important that the employee knows that the manager is going to do everything possible to make sure the employee can be the best he can. It is now time to implement the training programs that were discussed with the employee.This will show the employee that the company is investing the time and money on them. The company and the employee will both benefit if the employee reaches their full potential. Daily, weekly, or monthly follow-up meetings with the employee may also be necessary and beneficial. This will allow for a personal relationship to be formed between manager and employee, which will in turn give a sense of trust towards management. Managers can also continue to take notes on observations about what the employee is improving at, or can document what the employee seems to be struggling with.This will give the manager things to go over when they ar e having these follow-up meetings. It is also important to let the employee know that he can come to the manager if they have any questions or concerns about their progress from the previous appraisal. This will allow for the manager to give the employee the proper accommodations to fulfill their goals. A4. Illustrate what can go wrong when giving feedback. *If you consider the performance review a communication loop or conversation, what can go wrong during this critical feedback period?Illustration means giving detail and specifics. There are a lot of issues that can go wrong through the process of giving feedback during a performance appraisal. An employee’s moral can drop significantly if the manager spends all his time telling the employee only the things they do wrong. The appraisal process should focus on what the employee is doing right and what areas the company can help them improve in. It is important that the manager emphasizes that both the company and the employ ee benefit from maximizing the employee’s performance.The employee should have some input on the areas of training they need to improve in. This will allow the employee to have a sense of ownership in the training process. They will be more inept to go along with the accommodations and training programs decided upon. Employees may also become defensive if they feel the manager is throwing a bad performance review on them. An employee may walk into a performance appraisal thinking they have been doing a good job, but the manager throws them a curve that suggests they are not performing to the companies standards.If the employee has no idea what’s coming, then they will be prone to defend themselves in order to not look as bad. There will be a less chance of the employee agreeing with the training suggestions for improvement. Another affect from this scenario would be that the sense of trust between the manager and employee could be lost. In this event, the employee went in to the meeting thinking all was good, but now they feel that they can no longer trust the manager. There is also the possibility of a biased review when it comes to performance appraisals.This could happen if the manager rated the employee a certain way because they were not liked on a personal level. There may be a promotion coming up and the manager wants someone that they are friends with to get that new opening. This could lead to a biased review that could potentially lead to legal issues. There are always the possibility of reviews being biased, which could lead to legal actions being taken. A5. Discuss steps that a manager might take when delivering a performance appraisal for optimal value. *Of all those things can go wrong in A4, how can we avoid those? What steps can a manager take?It is very important for the manager to follow steps that will lead to the delivery of an optimal valued performance appraisal. The things that must be present in order to achieve this are t he idea that the evaluation is based off the performance of the employee, maintain an environment during the meeting that promotes moral and includes the employee’s thoughts, keep the evaluation focused on the employee, equip the employee with the appraisal before the meeting, remain unbiased in the employees evaluation, and to keep in mind the possibility of legal issues that could come from a biased evaluation.A performance evaluation is given to do just what it says, evaluate only the performance of the employee. It is extremely important to make sure that the focus on the evaluation is that of the employee’s performance. If this is followed when doing the employee’s appraisal, then it leads to making sure the employee understands that all topics will relate to performance only. It is also important to make sure that the manager promotes an environment to promote moral for the employee. This can be done by specifically telling the employee what he has done we ll since the last appraisal.It is important to make sure the meeting is not based just off what the employee is not doing right, but instead about areas he is excelling at and areas that he could improve in. Moral can be boosted by taking the employee’s thoughts into consideration for the training and accommodations that they need. The employee will feel valued by the company and manager if they have some sort of contribution. It is possible to have an employee that has underperformed in every area leave the meeting with a moral boost, but this depends on the environment which has been setup by the manager.It also a must to equip the employee with a copy of your appraisal before the meeting. This will allow for the employee to come to the meeting prepared and with a knowing of questions that will maximize his performance growth. The manager can even ask for a list of questions from the employee. This will allow for the manager to be prepared to give the employee the best corr ect response. The employee will not feel that they have to be defensive when they have some sort of idea what is coming in the review. Managers must maintain that all appraisals are based on the employee’s performance and are free of bias.It is a manager’s duty to make sure that they exclude any biased evaluations for their employees. Managers could get the company into legal troubles by allowing for biased evaluations. It is critical that they keep in mind all legal issues that could arise from their meetings with their employees. The company can be found liable for any discrimination that the manager promotes or demonstrates. It is important to keep the appraisal about performance only. A6. Discuss the benefits to the company of working with employees to further their career goals.*Company perspective—what are the positive consequences of discussing career goals with employees? The company benefits in many ways when it works with employees to further their car eer goals. A big benefit for the company is the increased performance that comes when it helps employees reach their career goals. Performance is an area that is important to all companies and getting the most out of each employees is key to helping the employee grow. These employees that can reach their potential have the foundation to move up within their company.Some companies have special programs that monitor potential management trainees. This keeps the company on top of these employees and makes sure they keep challenging them. If companies take an interest in furthering their employee’s career goals, then these employees feel a sense of loyalty and are less prone to leave the company for career advancement. This keeps the turnover down for the company, which in return saves money for the company by not having to reinvest time and money in new employees. It will also boost moral by allowing employees to see that promotions are made from within the company.This will all ow all employees to see that the company is just as committed and loyal to them, as they are to the company. This will make it easier for the employees to see that there is potential for promotion. The company also invests time and money into employees as they are prepared to advance through the company. The company can learn that an employee is interested in moving up within the company, which the company could then evaluate a plan of training for the employee. The company could also implement career development programs that their employees could enroll.Managers could also recommend employees for these development programs. The perfect time to talk to employees about personal career goals is during the performance appraisal. This will help the manager set goals that will lead the employee towards reaching his career goals. It will become very valuable for the company to learn that their goals are a match to an employee’s. B. Discuss the evaluation of teams within an organiz ation in which you address the following: B1. Summarize research of effectively assessing team performance. There are various models that can be used to assess team performance.The assessment of team performance is becoming more and more standard with the emergence of team environments. The three models that I have decided to research to evaluate team performance are the absolute judgment method, the behavioral appraisal method, and the management by objectives (MBO) method. These are all valuable assessment methods that are used by many different types of organizations. It is important to remember that no single assessment method is 100% perfect, so be sure to take into consideration which works best for the company.The absolute judgment method is an assessment of performance that is based only off the performance standards that are set. It does not compare one employee to the next, therefore there could be multiple employees with the same ratings. In the textbook Managing Human Re sources it states, â€Å"the dimensions of performance deemed relevant for the job are listed on the rating form, and the manager is asked to rate the employee on each dimension. †1 This method allows for a manager from a different area to assess the performance of the team, since there are set standards set.We can use the example that each of our sales  teams has a performance standard of making 15 sales per week. If the team has averaged 18 sales per week over the last six months then any manager could see that their performance is above performance standards. The idea that there are preset performance standards that are known makes it easy for the manager to rate the team’s performance. The benefits of this system is that it doesn’t put employees against each other during the evaluation and that there is documentation that supports the assessment of the employee. In the event of legal issues, this method makes it easier for the company to prove why the asse ssment is rated the way it is.The negative side of this method could be variances in evaluation standards of different managers and also there could be issues judging individual performance when assessing the team. It is important to make sure that assessments reflect not only the team, but also the individuals on each team. The behavioral appraisal method is another method that could be used to assess team performance. This method looks at the behaviors that are performed by the team and its individuals. A manager may focus on things like whether the team is back from lunch on time, whether the team is prepared for meetings, or whether the team shows up for work daily.The focus is laid on behaviors that the company deems important to improve performance. The most commonly known example of this method is the Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scale (BARS). Robert Bacal describes its differences by stating, â€Å"it focuses on behaviors that are determined to be important for completing a job task or doing the job properly, rather than looking at more general employee characteristics. †2 This method is used to appraise whether a person is doing what is expected of their job. For example, a salesperson may be evaluated on whether or not they successfully ring up every piece of merchandise on every transaction.This is a very valuable step for a salesperson’s job description. This step is extremely important to make sure the company is not losing money. The behavior’s that are being evaluated in this type of appraisal are more specific to the job at hand. The benefits of this type of appraisal is that it makes it easier on the company to spot areas that need improvement and to provide possible solutions, it promotes the behaviors that are necessary for the employee to be successful and productive, and it provides documentation that supports the legal aspect of backing up the evaluation.The job description and role  of the employee has to be resear ched to make sure this type of assessment is appropriate. Management by objectives (MBO) is another strategy that can be used to evaluate performance. MBO is a strategy that relies on setting goals or objectives that the employee is expected to reach. This strategy can be a little time consuming if the job description relies on a steady change of objectives. In order for MBO to be an effective strategy for appraisal, then the manager would have to meet with the employees either daily, weekly, monthly, or possibly quarterly to go over the objectives.It is important for the manager to make sure that all objectives are given to the employees and they are understood. A major benefit for this type of assessment is that the evaluation of specific goals does a fantastic job of cutting out the chance for biased evaluations. It is also a benefit that the objectives can be changed for each job description rather quickly. An issue with this type of assessment is that employees tend to focus ma inly on the objectives and goals that are set by managers, which in turn could lead to other areas falling. Paul Kevin Michaelree states, â€Å"the MBO process focuses attention not on the person but on the job.†3 This shows that the MBO is focused on reaching objectives and does not leave room for a biased evaluation. This assessment focuses more of setting goals for specific jobs and not for specific people. A manager should set objectives or goals for all production workers to be the same. This would mean that each person under the job title production worker would have the same goals or objectives. This would leave solid documentation for future possible legal matters. Behavioral Appraisal Instruments Management by Objectives (MBO) *Research and discuss 2-3 models of team performance. How can the company evaluate team results effectively?  (need sources: in-text citations and references)B2. Recommend a strategy for the company to adopt to assess team performance. *Which one should the company use? Why? I believe the best appraisal method for our organization would be MBO. I believe that our company would benefit the most by aligning the objectives of the company to the objectives of the employee. Our managers have a great deal of knowledge in the company’s goals and objectives. They can look at the jobs that are done in their departments and make sure that the goals and objectives for their employees are steps in the direction of the company’s.The MBO strategy will give the company goal seeking employees. We will see a change of direction in the way things are done by the employees. There are beliefs that we could lose employee performance in other, non-objective areas. The answer to this is to make sure that the company’s ethics policy is followed at all times. The new performance assessment strategy may have the employees thinking heavily about quantity, but the managers must continue to stress the importance of quality as w ell. This method of assessing the employees will also take away the error and bias that come along with other methods.The assessment of a team will no longer have room for the manager to use bias when evaluating, since all teams doing the same job will have the same objectives. There may be individuals, like team leaders, within the teams that may have added personal objectives. The idea of the managers spending more time with the employees is also a benefit for the company. Each manager will have to spend more time with individual employees as well as the teams. Managers will have to meet with the teams weekly, monthly, or quarterly to ensure the objectives are understood.This makes it easy for the managers to make sure changes in objectives are relayed quickly. It will mean that our employees will not have to wait until their next assessment to find out their new goals. This could make it easier to see which teams are performing and which are not. We can easily make accommodations or setup training for teams that need it. This method of assessing our company will work the best for growing our employees, managers, and the company in whole. B3. Illustrate the benefits to the company of working with employees to further their career goals.*Illustrate differences between team and individual performance assessment. Bloom’s Taxonomy clarifies that â€Å"illustrate† means: solve, calculate, interpret, relate, apply, classify or put into practice. So, even though you won’t really â€Å"paint† for this illustration, you are trying to show that you can apply what you have learned from section A, B1, and B2. Discuss and give examples. Our company would benefit by working with employees to help them further their career goals. Our company does both individual and team performance assessments.It is vital to our company’s growth that we make sure to work with our employees to help them further their career goals. Individual performance a ssessments allow our managers the chance to talk with their employees about their career goals. Managers will then look at how their employee’s goals complement our company’s goals. Managers will have an idea of whom they feel has long term ties to the company are willing to move up in position. It is cheaper on the company to keep a low turnover ratio and not have to keep training new people.It also will bring up moral, throughout the employee ranks, as they see promotions within the company. Employees will continue to perform and work hard if they see that there are rewards waiting. Career advancement consists of moving up the ranks, whether at the same company or at a new one. It benefits our company to keep our loyal employees. Manager trainees are most often found within the company through these performance appraisals. For example, the manager of the shipping department may have an employee that has shown advancement capabilities in the last two annual appraisals .This year the manager learns that shipping will increase and he will need another lead. The manager could easily pick the employee that has showed promise for the last few years, which could lead to another promotion a few years down the line if he keeps his performance up. Team performance appraisal also benefits the company in a lot of the ways the individual performance assessment does. Team performance is increased when you show that the company has furthering their career goals in mind. It is always a benefit to the company when performance levels are increased.The company also benefits from employees helping train and educate their teammates. This saves the company money from having to setup special training classes for certain people. Teams understand that their performance are not based off individual success, but rather what they do as a whole. There is understanding that if one person in the group fails to pull their weight, then the whole team suffers. Companies also get a good idea of whom the leaders are in each group. This works out to the company’s advantage as they can easily spot individuals who are ready to advance in the company.It is up to the manager to make sure the employees know that the company is here to help them advance their careers as much as possible. Comments on this criterion: The presentation identifies a few differences between evaluating team performance and individual performance, such as the training that is conducted and how success is obtained, but the presentation focuses more on the company's benefits for furthering goals of each type of performance, rather than on the differences that exist when evaluating team performance and individual performance.Please provide additional detail and discussion on the differences that exist when evaluating team and individual performance, in order to appropriately satisfy the task prompt. There are differences that exist when evaluating team performance and individual perfor mance. Individual performance evaluations usually tie in with the salary raises of the individual. The individual performance evaluations are based on the job description for which position they were hired for. Individual objectives and the duties of the job are the things that the manager will evaluate and then decide what the individual needs improving on.A team performance is based on the goals and objectives set for the team. The manager will evaluate how the team has done as far as accomplishing their goals. Team performance evaluations can look bad if one member is not capable of pulling their weight. It would be up to the other teammates to make sure to help the individual out as far as training and development. The team realizes that if one member fails, then the whole team fails. Individuals of the team are aware that the evaluation process is uniquely different than what an individual performance evaluation brings.Accountability is hard easy to evaluate in individual appra isals, but in team appraisals it is easy to overlook a weak member if the rest of the team picks up the weight. Peer reviews are a way of looking at how the team works together. This form of appraisal is a good way to account for all individuals in the group, but biased appraisal could be an issue. Team performance greatly depends on accountability, communication, and decision making. It is important to make sure that there is good communication between the team and that a leader emerges to take control of making sure team objectives are met.This will make sure that all members are held accountable for their work within the group. Individual performance appraisals typically happen once or twice a year. Team performance appraisals could happen as often as every project change. This leans toward team evaluations happening a lot more often than individual performance appraisals. Rewards and compensation are linked to appraisals, but can differ in the ways they are seen from the individ uals. Individual appraisals will reward and compensate the individual on how good they were at doing their job and reaching their goals and objectives.Managers have to manage their time allotted for evaluations differently based on which type of review they are doing and depending on how often they will evaluate. Team performance can also reward and compensate, but sometimes it is deemed unfair. Members can sometimes feel cheated when a weaker team member is rewarded the same way. This can come back to a faulty evaluation if peer reviews are not used. The differences in the two types of appraisals can vary from time, accountability, rewards and compensation, and methods of evaluations.It is very important to make sure all communication about goals and objectives are understood between managers and employees, which will lead to better performance throughout the company. C. Discuss the concept of succession planning with an organization in which you address the following: C1. Present reasons for adopting succession planning. *Why would a company do succession planning? Addresses company needs ahead of time Allows company to select best candidates Focuses on the future Meets company needs by finding competent employeesSuccession planning is very important when it comes to continuing the company’s success in the future. It seems that a lot of companies are realizing that replacement hiring is not the best option for long term quality employees. Companies are starting to realize the commitment level that employees are willing to give when they have companies that train and promote within. Succession planning looks within the company and finds its future leaders and manager from the ranks. The company will then send the selected employees through various training and developmental programs to get them ready for future succession.This could be a lengthy process and employees should not look at this plan as a two week training period. Succession planning is a d rawn out process for the future needs of the company. A replacement hiring method usually brings people in right away for a specific job opening that the company was not preparing or planning for. Succession planning allows for the company to pick candidates that are right for a position that may have someone retiring in the next two years. This will give the employee a two year period to learn and train with the person they are taking over for.It is important for the company to choose the best of their talent pool when they are planning for future trends. Succession planning also allows for the company to give employees a shot at reaching their career goals within the company. It is always a good thing for an employee to know they do not have to leave their company in hopes of advancing. Moral and performance are usually higher when employees know that they are not working in a dead end position. Our company will give all employees the chance to further their careers. C2. Discuss h ow succession planning can be used by the given company. *How to use it?What are the side benefits? What may happen in the process of implementing the components of a succession planning system? What can go well if these side benefits occur? Succession planning can be used in all sorts of way depending on how each company wants to go at the process. I believe that our company can benefit greatly and build a future that has no boundaries. I believe that our company can use succession planning to our benefit by keeping a deep group of candidates for possible promotion within the company. It is always good to have someone trained and ready to take over in the event we have someone leave the company.The company should have an idea of what members of leadership are coming upon retirement or which ones are approaching the end of their time with the company. We must understand that there are going to be instances where we may lose people that we are not planning on losing. Succession plann ing will come in handy and have people ready to assume these positions in these instances. It is crucial to have people being trained and obtaining the knowledge that our leadership can pass on. This will entail for our company’s morals and prior knowledge to be passed down to our new leadership recruits.I also feel that it will continue to give our company a good reputation as being a place that challenges our employees and works dramatically to enhance their careers. People look for places like this when they are transitioning their careers. This program will make us the place all career oriented people will want to work. This will allow for us to keep recruiting the top talent for both our organization and our succession planning program. Succession planning also comes with side benefits for the company. Implementing this program here at our company will allow us to keep employees loyal.Loyalty can save the company a lot of money, which will keep costs of training new asso ciates down. Our company invests time and money into training employees and we want to make sure we are not wasting these assets. Employees will have an idea of what things they need to do in order to become potential candidates for succession planning. This will give our employees drive and motivation to keep performing at high levels. The company also benefits by passing knowledge from our older leadership into the younger leaders of tomorrow. It is very important that knowledge is not lost in the transition.Young leaders can learn resourceful information that will keep them from making past mistakes over again. We also benefit by maintaining a good reputation as a solid company that promotes career goals of employees. This reputation will help the company keep pulling in promising talent for both the company and the program. This will help us keep that company moving forward in the direction that past leaders have set us up for. The side benefits will help our company in growth t hroughout the future as long as we keep the goals and objectives matching future outlooks.We must remember that this program is setup to keep us going forward. There are lots of possibilities that could come from us implementing succession planning. Some of the possibilities are good and some are not so good. Time constraints could be a negative possibility that could come in various instances. A few examples of how time constraints could hurt us would be that all members of the succession planning team keep having things come up or that it just takes too long to prove to the employees that this will work. Employees will want to see this program successfully in action before they buy in to it totally.There is also the possibility of communication issues. Employees that do not receive the information effectively will think they are excluded. It is key to a successful succession plan that all communication lines are effectively thought out and successfully implemented. We must make su re the employees know how this will benefit their careers and what is required of them for this program. This could also be a benefit for the company because it could give a better communication line between leadership, employees, and HR. Communication is always important in the company and we can benefit greatly from it.Goals, ethics, and company morals are all things that must be successfully communicated between the company’s employees. The company will also benefit by finding stronger candidates for the program. The implementation will help the company find the best candidates that could end up leading the company into the future. C3. Illustrate a succession planning process for the company. *What are the steps of a succession plan? Be specific. (â€Å"illustrate†) The succession planning process will not go anywhere if we do not have the backing and support of upper management and the CEO.It is crucial to the plan that these managers are around showing support at various times. Once we have the backing we need we must research the objectives and core concepts that are to be gained through implementing the succession planning program. We must look at ways to get the employees to back the program, we have to develop ways to estimate what we will need as far as future management openings go, and we have to look into current managers that could make a good succession planning team. We must then select a development team that should come from various areas of our company.This will help us diversify the way our program works by bringing in people with different skill sets to help lay the foundation for our succession planning program. This highly diverse team will research the company’s potential for growth in all areas and will estimate potential moves that will be made in the future. This will help our team develop a highly successful design that focuses on the company’s future goals and projections for growth. Possible future move s will be accounted for and our program design will leave room for reviews and possible adjustments.It is extremely important that we focus on a communication plan to help announce it to the company. We will want our employees to realize that this is in place to help them and that we welcome all forms of communication from them. We will stress the importance of communicating possible problems or possible solution they may have thought about. This open communication will help the company by making it easier for the employees to buy into. We want to make sure that no one is left out when we make this official to everyone. A good communication plan will get this information out to all employees through various avenues.We will use e-mail, intranet, bulletin boards, departmental meetings, and any other ways that we feel are potentially used to communicate important company information. We must also make sure that we successfully communicate what requirements are associated with getting p icked for the program. This will help in keeping the moral, loyalty, and performance levels at a high. As the program is implemented we must make sure it is reviewed and evaluated, which will help us make changes to the process if we deem there are necessary changes that need to take effect.It is crucial that the designed program has room for changes as the company or business changes. If we spend the time to build the program and leave no room for change, then we will end up scraping it down the road and it will be a short-term plan instead of a long-term investment for the company. CONCLUSION It is important to remember that the company’s growth and prosperity is greatly tied to the three main areas we have discussed. We must continue to improve our performance appraisal systems, which will in turn allow us to notice possible candidates to promote within the company.We must realize that both the company and the employees benefit from these performance appraisals. Some on th e benefits the company receives is that we can promote from within, it allows us to reiterate or change goals, paper trail for documentation, it identifies weak areas and allows us to give training, and it boosts moral and performance. The employee benefits by having moral and performance boosted, face-to-face time with managers, better understanding of company expectations and goals, and they feel a sense of loyalty from the company.Pre and post appraisal activities are also important to ensure that these appraisals are as effective as can be. Pre-appraisals activities include establishing meeting times, collecting new and old goals, make sure to give employees an advance copy of their appraisal, and collecting all notes and previous appraisals. Post-activities would include the implementation of discussed training programs, scheduling follow-up meetings with employees, continue to observe and make notes on employees, and reinforce an open door policy to all employees.These are key steps to make sure that these performance appraisals benefit the company as much as possible. An effective appraisal system put in place within our company will benefit all areas and aspects. An importance should be put on making sure the proper steps are taken for optimal performance appraisal. These steps should include things like managers basing evaluation off performance, promote moral and including employee’s thoughts, focusing on the employee, give them access to your evaluation before the meeting, remain unbiased, and to keep possible legal issues in mind while performing the performance appraisal.It is also a benefit to incorporate the employee’s goals into the performance appraisal. Employees will feel that the company is loyal to them by making their objectives match some of their personal career goals. It is important to stress the importance of promoting the employee’s career goals to all managers that do performance appraisals. This will help rais e the performance level of our company. Team performance appraisals are also important for the benefit and growth of the company.There are many different techniques that can be used to assess the performance of teams, but I recommend that our company base appraisals off the management by objectives (MBO) model. This will help us assure that employees are focused on goals or objectives, it will help remove added chance of errors or bias in appraisals, and it will give the managers a chance to spend more time with employees. There are benefits for both individual and team performance appraisals.Individual appraisals benefit the company by helping to identify which employee’s career goals match the companies and it helps increase the individual’s performance. Team appraisals benefit the company by raising performance of teams, having employees train other team members that need additional development, and it gives management an idea of which people may be ready for an upw ard movement within the company. Furthering the career goals of employees will show everyone in the company that we are invested in them.Succession planning is the last area that we discussed, but it is an area that can help the company as it moves into the future. Succession planning will help us generate candidates that will be trained for potential management positions that become available. The company benefits of this plan include the addressing of needs before they occur, allows the company to select and train best candidates, it focuses on the future of the company, and it will keep employees loyal to the company. The right steps for a succession plan are also important to ensure that it will be successful.It would not be a good thing to invest time and money into a program that was not developed for success. The rights steps include getting proper backing from upper management, researching objectives and core concepts of the company, select a team from various areas with var ious skill sets, research future needs and goals of the company, develop an effective communication plan, implement communication plan to get program out to all employees, and continue to evaluate and review the program to ensure it changes as the company’s goals and objectives change.These are the steps that are important when implementing a successful succession planning program. The CEO and board of directors should implement these area into the company. The performance reviews would be an issue that HR could complete and make sure all managers understand the new performance appraisal policy. There could be training scheduled to help managers get comfortable with the new appraisal process. We also need to make sure the employees are made aware of the benefits that they will gain by this new appraisal process.The upper management really just needs to make sure that the company knows that they support the new process. We need to make sure that managers incorporate the furthe ring of employee’s career goals into the objectives and work goals that they establish for the employee. This will keep employees loyal to our company, as we show the employee that we are loyal to them. Team performance appraisals also need to be established to be effective. This will be done by adopting the MBO appraisal process for team performance appraisals.Our employees will be more goal oriented and will perform at a high level in order to accomplish these goals. It is important that managers continue to stress the importance of quality to all workers and establish that the code of ethics should be followed all the time. We do not want short cuts taken to raise performance levels. Succession planning is an area that will need more time from upper management. The CEO and the board of directors need to fully believe in and support the succession plan that is put into effect. This plan will not work without the proper backing from upper management.HR will start the process and select the most diverse group to bring the most skill sets as possible. This team will then come up with a design to implement for succession planning. Upper management should stay involved and show the company that it supports all that is going on. Inputs and thoughts can be added or given to the design team. This success of this program will be the success of the company. Upper management has invested many years in making sure the company has grown as commanded, but now this design will lead the company to the same success in the future.

Case Study: Nordstrom

Answer Question 1: How else can Nordstrom continue to provide exceptional customer service and increase brand loyalty? Brands is the relationship between products and customers. It contains a collection of quality and service that customers expect. The loyalty of the customer service for brands is due to meet the expectations of customers, or even better, exceed their expectations, giving customers prefer interesting .Nordstrom , a department store in the synthesis of America ‘s most successful , with the index ranking for customer loyalty high , there are many stories about companies that are spread among customers and others . We have heard the story about the man walked into Nordstrom stores carry tires for automobiles , and demanded a refund . Nordstrom has returned the money to him . Nordstrom It is not attractive selling automobile tires .Now that is customer care . If you buy shoes at Nordstrom , and your feet are not the same number , the sellers will take a number just one side with your legs and a foot to the other to the other side of you , but only charge a shoes . If you have to buy a cashmere sweater blue but according to the ad has been sold , the sellers will certainly make suggestions to find a shirt like this or a similar store competitors competition and will send it to you .Nordstrom has been particularly successful in completing strategic customer service , customer is a centric approach and attentive customer care . The consistent , customer is a centric with innovative thinking has helped to speed up development Nordstrom and stayed for more than a century, after many turbulent economy . Beside, to build brand value, Nordstrom to ensure customer loyalty through brand awareness and ensure it meets the needs , wants of customers . Enhance product awareness , increasing the perceived quality .Enhance perceived value and enhance consumer experience of our customers. Considerate service, return policy surrender unconditionally, email reg imes that include photos of new products for our valued clients and thank you card after purchase are factors to help retailers are not too worry about the price and competition. Nordstrom never focused on the company or its employees, All energy of Nordstrom is put on both the customer, and that is the secret to success of them.

Sase study on target disaster in Sanada Essay

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Globalisation had an increasingly significant impact on international marketing. As the cost and complexity of operating in overseas market has been reduces by globalisation, more and more markets are now becoming open to international organization. This system has resulted into increased market competition which in turn increasing the importance of effective international marketing. Most of the companies want to explore themselves in international market rather than becoming a player in a long held domestic market. All in all, this paper aims at explaining and defining the strategies through which international organizations can adapt to the ever changing environment, tastes and preferences of customers and policies through which the company can ensure successful business operations in the global market. . In order to capture international market, the Target Corporation also enter into Canada to attract more and more buyers as a result more profits. Despite target being a successful player in neighbour country of America, but fails to attract customers in Canada. Target got so many big competitors in Canada and competes with traditional and off-price general merchandise retailers, apparel retailers, internet retailers, wholesale clubs, category specific retailers, drug stores, supermarkets and other forms of retail commerce. Target fails to explore itself in canada which can be easily seen by understanding the case study of TARGET DISASTER CANADA. BACKGROUND: In 1881, native New Yorker George D. Dayton decides to explore the growing Midwest markets. After many years in banking and real estate, Dayton decides Minneapolis offers the strongest opportunities for growth. He purchases land on Nicollet Avenue and forms the Dayton Dry Goods Company–today, known as Target Corporation. He became a partner in Goodfellow’s Dry Goods Company, the fourth largest department store in Minneapolis, Minn. The following year, showing greater involvement, Dayton took sole ownership of the store and became the first President of the newly named Dayton Dry Goods Company. In 1911 because of the rapid growth, The Dayton Company reflected its wide  assortment of goods and services. It was started to be known as Dayton’s department store. On May 1, 1962, Target’s first store was opened with a grand opening in Roseville, Minn. It was taken as a new idea in discount stores. Target distinguished itself from other retail stores by joining many of the best department store’s features like fashion, quality and services with low prices. By the end of 1962, Target opened its additional locations in St. Louis Park, Crystal and Duluth, Minn. In 1966 Target opened its first stores outside Minnesota in the Denver metro area. In 1969 Dayton Corporation seams forces with the J.L. Hudson Company of Detroit to create the Dayton-Hudson Corporation. The two companies had parallel merchandising values of promise to outstanding corporate governance. After the merger they establishes the corporation as one of the 15 largest non-food retailers in the nation. In 1975 Target Stores becomes the No. 1 revenue manufacturer of the Dayton-Hudson Corporation. In the mid-1980s, manufacturers began to test and implemented the UPC bar-code packaging technology. In 1988, Target became the first form of merchandiser to present UPC scanning at all Target stores and Delivery Centres In July 2001 Target Stores licensed a main landmark as a national retailer after opening its 1,000th store. Guests were having 1000 reasons to celebrate with a greater selection of style and value in more locations. 2004 Associated Merchandising Company is renamed Target Sourcing Services. In 2005 For the first time, Target exceeds $50 billion in annual sales and In 2007 Target Corporation presents the Target Check Card. In 2013 continuing the tradition of Target’s strategy philosophy that great design should be reasonable and reachable to all Target Canada teams up with its first VENTURING IN INTERNATIONAL MARKET There are numerous factors that urged Target to go worldwide and expand its business operations outside the Australia. One factor can be that Target had reached its maximum in U.S and there was no further room for improvement and expansion and competition was very high. Target Canada’s main rival in the  discount store category was Walmart; while there was also competition with supermarket chains such as Loblaw’s, Metro, and Sobeys (despite having an agreement with said grocer), and other retailers such as Costco, Sears Canada, Canadian Tire, and Shoppers Drug Mart. One concept that Target had while going in Canada was that it had winning strategies because of which it succeeded in U.S and it will achieve success in any part of world. Target opened first store in Canada in 2013 and within one year it successfully expanded to 130 stores in all over Canada. The local success factor of Target was its economical prices as cost advantage is the major part of its strategy, Cost advantage strategy is company’s ability to lower its cost base by low-cost labor, low-cost sourcing, economies of scale in production, efficiency (Lasserre, 2012). Large volume sales, and the supply chain was also excellent but this was normal because U.S was the home for target and these factors were easily controllable by Target. But in Canada it was not so efficient in its operations because of transportation costs, distribution costs and the fuel costs were higher, wage rates vary across the country, the tax rates are different, cost of goods are different. The approach of Canadians plus their culture mostly favors the medium, and small sized retailers who know inside out of the complex labor laws, the distribution systems that are multi layered and restricted business hours in the country but even though they have big retailers like K-Mart as well. It was difficult for Target to succeed in Canada because they didn’t study the Canadian preferences and culture in depth and one main factor can be the low commitment of the expatriates. Target usually focus on its low prices and have an edge because of that but in Canada this thing didnà ¢â‚¬â„¢t worked much because of the fact that Canadians when they were buying low priced products they were concerned about the quality of the product they were buying and its also not so easy to trust a new business chain easily. ENTRY IN CANADIAN MARKET Targets entry into Canada became a game changing event for Canadian retailing, and shook the industry to its very foundations. On January 13, 2011, the announcement was made that within two years of time, Target Corporation is entering into Canadian market for the first time. The target corp took over Canadian leases for zellers stores owned by hudson’s bay co,  one of the north America oldest company. The lease agreement was signed between target corporation and hudson’s bay co of leasing up to 220 zellers stores for C$1.825 billion. Target opens its first Canadian store in March 2013 by acquiring the leaseholds of 189 locations with intent to use 125 stores of these sites to open target stores. Further, target management anticipated that by 2017, the Canadian target chain will grew into more than 150 stores. The first store of target was opened in the Toronto area and their entry had change Canadian retail and the Canadian real estate industry, from coast to coast. The strategy of target while entering into Canada was not a unique strategy. It was simply unprecedented for a retailer to come to Canada and open so many stores at once but target successfully executed its strategy correctly. Target management team expected to get more than CAD $6 billion from its annual sales in Canada. Target acquired its warehouse located near Quebec border near Calgary. Target hired eleven points’ logistics and a subsidiary of Pittsburgh based Genco, to run its three warehouses in Canada. Each warehouse covers around 1.5 million square feet which is almost similar to 26 American football fields In Canada, Target main rivals in the discount store category were Walmart and Costco as well as competition with supermarket chains such as Loblaw’s, Metro, and Sobeys. The consumers were pretty excited about target stores coming to Canada but target’s opening disappointed consumers as Canadian shoppers were met with empty shelves, higher prices and different labels. Target acquired existing sites from Canadian discount retailer sellers and since the stores were not built with Target in mind, there were quirks, such as apparel being on the second floor of a store while the dressing room was on the ground floor. (Karabus, 2014) PROBLEMS IN CANADA: Retailers setting up operations in Canada are quickly learning it isn’t as easy as packing a bag and heading north. (G. Krystina, 2014). Following are some major problems pointed out by us, 1 The supply chain disaster When target was opening its first store in Canada, the chief executive, Gregg Steinhafel told its investors that he was happy the way his workers and systems were handling the launch. But things were way different from what  everyone expected. The major problem was found in the supply chain as goods reached the warehouses very quickly but were unable to reach the stores as there was a mismatching between the barcodes on the items and that on the computer system. For instance, when the shirts arrived and checked 12 shirts per box, the system was showing 24. The cause of such errors is not clear. As a result of the inconsistency between the goods and the computer, the goods in the stores were piled up thus leading to a chain reaction of delays. The target canda story will go down in history books as on eof the great supply chain disasters of Canadian history. (M. Allison, H. Solarina & T. Susan, 2014) 2 The adoption of U.S store culture Target Canada has been described as a â€Å"botched† effort to foolishly run a Canadian operation with American executives. A management level employee from target Canada stated in a report that the expatriates or the international assignees were sent by the United States for a limited period to help in the setting up of the stores and how to team for success. On the contrary, the assignees were found as obstacles instead of guides. Canada is demographically and regionally different from United States on a large scale. The expatriates adapted the same U.S store culture rather for team members and customers rather than adapting according to the Canadian tastes and culture. Stores were left with empty shelves; the managers restrained the employees from refilling them. Items which were required could not be found and the items which were in less demand were available in abundance. For example, Barbie SUV’s. basic items like milk, food or consumables which were always in de mand were never available in the stores. 3 The inventory and distribution problem Another major problem was the store inventory and the distribution of the right product required or needed by a store. There were 3 national distribution centres to service the requirement and demands of around 124 stores. The stores had no idea what was loaded in trucks and what was present at the distribution centres. The employees used to open a 54 foot trailer and would be scared whether the product required was present or not in the truck. To their bad luck, the product what was required, was never found in the trucks. Therefore, the stores had to stock and fill the backrooms. 4 Failure to compel to change their habits Target failed to change the shopping habits of the customers. The stores couldn’t compel to attract the customers with the items which were present in the stores. For example, items like milk, eggs and bacon could not be replaced with apparel. The customers got highly dissatisfied as what they were looking for was never found in the stores. 5 Reduction of staff Another major problem faced was the significant reduction in the staff by the target headquarters in U.S around 40% of the staff was said â€Å"goodbye† by the senior leaders. Canadian culture emphasis more on customer service rather then self-service. Slowly and slowly the staff started moving out as they were not satisfied with their jobs and also had a fear of being terminated anytime. Now the requirement for the best retail talent was undertaken. 6 Deadline to open stores Another major problem faced by target was the renovation of 124 stores and that too in one years’ time as all the major landlords did not allow to close the stores for such a long time. With unfurnished stores and stiffed penalties, there was a deadline to make the stores fully operational. Therefore, seed were sown way before even the opening of first store was done. CONCLUSION Target Canada is an unmitigated disaster. From the customers to investors to the company’s executive agree about the wrong strategies followed by Target. In the second quarter, Target lost around US$200 million. Target was having a tough competition with Walmart and Costco. Canadian used to cross the border into the United States on shopping excursions, Target was a prime destination but when it came to Canada the magic somehow vanished. The main reason why customers do not prefer to go into target stores in Canada was the pricing policy as well as supply chain delays by Target. The consumers who had already shopped at target stores in the U.S anticipated the same low price but the prices of the newly open target in Canada outlets were higher than in the U.S target. In justification to pricing policy, the management said that the prices are higher because of higher rates for transformation,  wages, taxes, duties, and cost of goods. Whereas the same goods and products are off ered by the competitor at comparatively low prices. The cause of target’s stumble in its first foreign excursion is the wrong policies of opening 124 stores in a new market within months. Most foreign retailers launch with a smaller number of stores that’s where Target took on a very big challenge which leads to its failure. Inventory problem have often lead to empty shelves and many of the stylish, exclusive brands what Canadian see in target’s American stores did not come to Canada. Moreover, the announcement regarding arrival of the target in Canada was made 2 years before so the competitors had enough time to plan their strategies accordingly. Analysis 1. Unable to understand the Canadian tastes and culture The target failed to understand and appreciate that though Canada and u.s. are closely related but there was a huge difference between the tastes and the culture. This means that the company should have understood the culture, the likes and dislikes and the do’s and don’ts of Canadian people rather than assuming that what tastes and culture is going in U.S, will go the same way in Canada too. It is hard for target to succeed in Canada until and unless it does not understand its culture. This could be seen there was a loss of 1 billion dollars in the very first year. 2. Failed to carry risk analysis The company failed to carry the risk analysis and opened 124 stores in one go. It was a huge risk which it carried. Target should have a different strategy before entering in Canadian markets. The customer demands, pricing polies, differences in the wages, all these factors should have been kept in mind before venturing in Canada. Moreover, the renovation of 124 stores and that too in such a short period of one year was a major risk which the company took. 3. Supply chain failure The company faced a major problem in the supply chain, what was needed was not available. The mismatching of the barcodes and the computer systems, etc, was a major hurdle in letting the products goes to the right place. Demand was more and supply was equally there but of the products which were not required. Tonnes of products were kept in the backrooms with empty shelves in the stores. This led to customer dissatisfaction as the customers never found what they wanted. Target tried to change the customer’s tastes by offering products which could not be used on daily basis but gradually it failed. RECOMMENDATIONS In order to get successful in Canada, the Target corporation has not focus on its new entry strategy in the country. Joint Ventures or Acquisitions One entry strategy that the company can think off in order to capture major share in retail market is joint venture or mergers and acquisition with other retail companies. A joint venture is a business agreement in which different companies deal with each other and agree to come up with new asset or entity by giving mutual equity. It basically means that company will share the assets, expenses and revenues of the company. The other policy is merger and acquisition. Acquisition basically means an act of acquiring an existing company and recognizing its own. On the other hand merger means combining forces with another company and seeing it as one. This strategy can act well for Target as this company’s already exist there and The attitude of Target plus their culture only favours the medium, and small sized retailers who know inside out of the complex labour laws, the distribution systems , the supply chain that are multi layered and restricted business hours in the country. Thi s would limit the risks associated in entering a new environment as the existing company are already familiar with it and can initiate the company in the new environment. Environmental and Strategic Analysis Tools In order to get successful, the other factor that target corporation must consider is to take a complete environmental analysis on the whole country. Studying about the environmental analysis of the country is important as it it helps in analysing, determining the strategies, risk associated in entrering that country, political economical and social well-being of the country. Moreover it also helps in analysing the tastes and preferences of the customers. In Canada, most of the year is cold so demand for warm clothes and warm products will be preferable. The target corporation needs to work out on the pricing strategy. Pricing policy is an act of the company by which they determines the wholesale and retail prices for its product or services. A good pricing strategy is the one which aims at optimise prices for the products typically including overall marketing objectives, consumer demand, product attributes, competitors pricing and market and economic trends. The Target Corporation needs to look on all these issues as the foremost reason of failure of target was higher prices of products in Canada than America. In order to capture market of Canada, the company can make use of strategic analysis tool i.e. PESTEL. Its meaning is analysing the political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal environmental factors which affect the growth and establishment of the company. Another tool which company can use to get triumphant and to get desired result or profits is using the policy or theory of SWOT. Basically, SWOT recognize the strengths, weaknesse s, opportunities and threats of entering into a new country and identifies both internal and external factors affecting an organization. REFERENCES: Butler, H. N. (1988). Corporation-Specific Anti-Takeover Statutes and the Market for Corporate Charters. Wis. L. Rev., 365 Contemporary strategic management: an Australasian perspective. Brisbane: Wiley. Lasserre, P. (2012). Global strategic management (3rd ed.). New York: Palgrave Macmillian. Oster, S. M. (1999). Danbolt, J. (2004). Target Company Cross†border Effects in Acquisitions into the UK. European Financial Management, 10(1), 83-108. Forsey, M., Davies, S., & Walford, G. (2008). The Globalisation of School Choice?. In Symposium Books. Symposium Books. PO Box 204, Didcot, Oxford, OX11 9ZQ, UK. (G. Krystina, 2014) (Karabus, 2014) (M. Allison, H. Solarina & T. Susan, 2014) Mayrhofer, U. (2004). International market entry: does the home country affect entry-mode decisions?. Journal of International Marketing, 12(4), 71-96.

Review of Related Literature About School Website Essay

Why do schools have district websites? The benefits include the following: linking schools in the district, developing communication in classes, grade levels, and cultures, encouraging parental involvement, presenting information to visitors about the school and acquisition of technology skills (Miller, Adsit & Miller, 2005). The digital divide holds with it a social justice goal to ensure that students regardless of socioeconomic status have equal access to new technologies both in the form of information and communication. The No Child Left Behind Act (2001), the Enhanced Education Through Technology program identifies among its purpose â€Å"to support local efforts using technology to promote parent and family involvement in education and communication among students, parents, teachers, principals, and administrators† (Education, 2001 p.2). The importance of the Internet as an essential addition to the school landscape is becoming very evident (Hartshorne, Friedman, Algozz one & Isibor, 2006). The elementary process and, in the development of such; teachers need to find new and exciting ways for knowledge attainment. The use of technologies, such as the Internet, allows students to communicate globally, parents to become more involved and provides a place for supplemental curriculum material to be accessed by all persons associated with the educational process. The Internet is an attractive source of information for parents because of its round-the-clock availability, speed, and enormous range of information (Martland & Rothbaum, 2006, p. 839). A high school website can provide a comprehensive illustration of a school’s curriculum, and its development can be a collaborative effort, addressing the goals and needs of different elements within the school (Hartshorne, Friedman, Algozzone & Isibor, 2006).

Feature pitch Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Feature pitch - Assignment Example Only one third of Australians take part in physical fitness activities and sports. Keeping fit and recreation are the main motivations for the Australians that exercise. This has serious implications not only health-wise but also on the level of professional sports in the country. This story; therefore, seeks to critically analyze this tendency with a view to proposing the way forward. There are other factors that motivate Australians to take part in sports and physical fitness programs. They include peer pressure and checking weight. Some people exercise because their contemporaries are doing it. This is especially the case for young adults. As for older citizens, their major concern is weight. They; therefore, exercise in order to reduce weight. However, the frequency at which citizens are exercising is a major point of concern. 34% of the research sample did not participate in any sports or physical fitness activity while another 6% took part only occasionally. Only 29% of the people interviewed exercised more than twice a week. Is Australian a physically unfit nation? Do these findings have any implications? What is the government’s role in ensuring that Australia is physically fit? What measures can be put into place to remedy this situation? Of course, every individual is responsible for their own health. However, they need an enabling environment to help them uphold healthy practices. In essence, the story will recommend the way forward, basing on available resources. 1. I have planned to hold an interview with Peter McKay, the Chairperson of the Standing Committee on Recreation and Sports Research Group, at Sydney Gardens on 20 May 2014 at 4.00pm. He heads the research group that investigated the factors that motivated or de-motivated Australians in relation to physical fitness and sports. 2. Will hold another interview with Marisol Freanken, the Administration Coordinator, at Kiwi Square on 20 May 2014. Mr. Freanken will shed