High School Life Essay

High School, well i can only say that it’s the best experience while i am living in this planet, without high school, well, life is a bit of boring. Some person i met tells me that high school is the best, yeah i agree with them high school is the best, you know why i agree with them because today my college life is sucks, i think it’s too much intro, i will tell how my high school life changed me and why it’s one of the best part i’ll never forget. Being High School is the best part in my school days, more friends is the more happiness you experience but there is always an antagonists that will ruined your day and sometimes they are your teachers but not all the teachers some are in other school, i mean when it comes to a contest proving that who’s the best school in your small baryo, and including some of your friends that will not complete their day without teasing you and bullying you. Life through high school is an extraordinary feeling of every teenager that’s goes through it. People say that high school s the most exciting and happiest moments on a student’s life. I actually didn’t believe that before because I was in high school and doing many assignments and projects. I hated doing those because it took away the time that I suppose to be having fun. When I became a senior in high school that’s when I started to think that I guess those people were right. My parents to started to asked me about college and my plans after high school. I used to tell them â€Å"later† because I didn’t want to face the fact that I’m growing up. High school is a world where you no longer be treated as a child. This is the time when girls start to wear make up and boys turns into men. My high school life wasn’t always fun. I remembered those days that stayed up late to study for exams, tests and quizzes and writing research pap ers. It was also the time to meet new friends and build a friendship and shared laughter, cried together and had our moments.

Deception Point Page 55

A leviathan was rising from the water beside the iceberg, breaching the surface with an ominous hiss. Like some mythical sea monster, it came-sleek, black, and lethal, with water foaming around it. Tolland forced himself to blink his eyes. His vision cleared slightly. The beast was close, bumping up against the ice like a huge shark butting a small boat. Massive, it towered before him, its skin shimmering and wet. As the hazy image went black, all that was left were the sounds. Metal on metal. Teeth gnashing at the ice. Coming closer. Dragging bodies away. Rachel†¦ Tolland felt himself being grabbed roughly. And then everything went blank. 64 Gabrielle Ashe was at a full jog when she entered the third-floor production room of ABC News. Even so, she was moving slower than everyone else in the room. The intensity in production was at a fever pitch twenty-four hours a day, but at the moment the cubicle grid in front of her looked like the stock exchange on speed. Wild-eyed editors screamed to one another over the tops of their compartments, fax-waving reporters darted from cubicle to cubicle comparing notes, and frantic interns inhaled Snickers and Mountain Dew between errands. Gabrielle had come to ABC to see Yolanda Cole. Usually Yolanda could be found in production's high-rent district-the glass-walled private offices reserved for the decision makers who actually required some quiet to think. Tonight, however, Yolanda was out on the floor, in the thick of it. When she saw Gabrielle, she let out her usual shriek of exuberance. â€Å"Gabs!† Yolanda was wearing a batik body-wrap and tortoiseshell glasses. As always, several pounds of garish costume jewelry were draped off her like tinsel. Yolanda waddled over, waving. â€Å"Hug!† Yolanda Cole had been a content editor with ABC News in Washington for sixteen years. A freckle-faced Pole, Yolanda was a squat, balding woman whom everyone affectionately called â€Å"Mother.† Her matronly presence and good humor disguised a street-savvy ruthlessness for getting the story. Gabrielle had met Yolanda at a Women in Politics mentoring seminar she'd attended shortly after her arrival in Washington. They'd chatted about Gabrielle's background, the challenges of being a woman in D.C., and finally about Elvis Presley-a passion they were surprised to discover they shared. Yolanda had taken Gabrielle under her wing and helped her make connections. Gabrielle still stopped by every month or so to say hello. Gabrielle gave her a big hug, Yolanda's enthusiasm already lifting her spirits. Yolanda stepped back and looked Gabrielle over. â€Å"You look like you aged a hundred years, girl! What happened to you?† Gabrielle lowered her voice. â€Å"I'm in trouble, Yolanda.† â€Å"That's not the word on the street. Sounds like your man is on the rise.† â€Å"Is there some place we can talk in private?† â€Å"Bad timing, honey. The President is holding a press conference in about half an hour, and we still haven't a clue what it's all about. I've got to line up expert commentary, and I'm flying blind.† â€Å"I know what the press conference is about.† Yolanda lowered her glasses, looking skeptical. â€Å"Gabrielle, our correspondent inside the White House is in the dark on this one. You say Sexton's campaign has advance knowledge?† â€Å"No, I'm saying I have advance knowledge. Give me five minutes. I'll tell you everything.† Yolanda glanced down at the red White House envelope in Gabrielle's hand. â€Å"That's a White House internal. Where'd you get that?† â€Å"In a private meeting with Marjorie Tench this afternoon.† Yolanda stared a long moment. â€Å"Follow me.† Inside the privacy of Yolanda's glass-walled cubicle, Gabrielle confided in her trusted friend, confessing to a one-night affair with Sexton and the fact that Tench had photographic evidence. Yolanda smiled broadly and shook her head laughing. Apparently she had been in Washington journalism so long that nothing shocked her. â€Å"Oh, Gabs, I had a hunch you and Sexton had probably hooked up. Not surprising. He's got a reputation, and you're a pretty girl. Too bad about the photos. I wouldn't worry about it, though.† Don't worry about it? Gabrielle explained that Tench had accused Sexton of taking illegal bribes from space companies and that Gabrielle had just overheard a secret SFF meeting confirming that fact! Again Yolanda's expression conveyed little surprise or concern-until Gabrielle told her what she was thinking of doing about it. Yolanda now looked troubled. â€Å"Gabrielle, if you want to hand over a legal document saying you slept with a U.S. senator and stood by while he lied about it, that's your business. But I'm telling you, it's a very bad move for you. You need to think long and hard about what it could mean for you.† â€Å"You're not listening. I don't have that kind of time!† â€Å"I am listening, and sweetheart, whether or not the clock is ticking, there are certain things you just do not do. You do not sell out a U.S. senator in a sex scandal. It's suicide. I'm telling you, girl, if you take down a presidential candidate, you better get in your car and drive as far from D.C. as possible. You'll be a marked woman. A lot of people spend a lot of money to put candidates at the top. There's big finances and power at stake here-the kind of power people kill for.† Gabrielle fell silent now. â€Å"Personally,† Yolanda said, â€Å"I think Tench was leaning on you in hopes you'd panic and do something dumb-like bail out and confess to the affair.† Yolanda pointed to the red envelope in Gabrielle's hands. â€Å"Those shots of you and Sexton don't mean squat unless you or Sexton admit they're accurate. The White House knows if they leak those photos, Sexton will just claim they're phony and throw them back in the president's face.† â€Å"I thought of that, but still the campaign finance bribery issue is-â€Å" â€Å"Honey, think about it. If the White House hasn't gone public yet with bribery allegations, they probably don't intend to. The President is pretty serious about no negative campaigning. My guess is he decided to save an aerospace industry scandal and sent Tench after you with a bluff in hopes he might scare you out of hiding on the sex thing. Make you stab your candidate in the back.† Gabrielle considered it. Yolanda was making sense, and yet something still felt odd. Gabrielle pointed through the glass at the bustling news room. â€Å"Yolanda, you guys are gearing up for a big presidential press conference. If the President is not going public about bribery or sex, what's it all about?† Yolanda looked stunned. â€Å"Hold on. You think this press conference is about you and Sexton?† â€Å"Or the bribery. Or both. Tench told me I had until eight tonight to sign a confession or else the President was going to announce-â€Å" Yolanda's laughter shook the entire glass cubicle. â€Å"Oh please! Wait! You're killing me!† Gabrielle was in no mood for joking. â€Å"What!† â€Å"Gabs, listen,† Yolanda managed, between laughs, â€Å"trust me on this. I've been dealing with the White House for sixteen years, and there's no way Zach Herney has called together the global media to tell them he suspects Senator Sexton is accepting shady campaign financing or sleeping with you. That's the kind of information you leak. Presidents don't gain popularity by interrupting regularly scheduled programming to bitch and moan about sex or alleged infractions of cloudy campaign finance laws.† â€Å"Cloudy?† Gabrielle snapped. â€Å"Flat out selling your decision on a space bill for millions in ad money is hardly a cloudy issue!† â€Å"Are you sure that's what he is doing?† Yolanda's tone hardened now. â€Å"Are you sure enough to drop your skirt on national TV? Think about it. It takes a lot of alliances to get anything done these days, and campaign finance is complex stuff. Maybe Sexton's meeting was perfectly legal.†

From Boy to a Man: Soucouyant

Living in the past is a challenge, especially when your past is racing in front of your future. The narrator from Souycouyant written by world famous author, David Chariandy, seems to have taken the role from child to caretaker when his mother, Adele, had been diagnosed with dementia. Upon facing reality, the narrator chased and followed his dreams in the begginging of the novel, but in the end, learned that you can never escape where you came from. The narrator had foreseen the future when he had left Adele along with his brother and father, but then returned feeling regret and guilt. By doing so, the narrator turned from a boy to a man when taking on the responsibilities a child should never have to bear. At the age of seven, the narrator found it hard to cope with, let alone, understand what dementia even was. â€Å"I don’t know what scientists called it; it was hard to understand, some sort of memory loss syndrome† (Chariandy 18). During the beginning of the novel, the young boy had been going through many struggles and was seen as a target for racism and discrimination. â€Å"Get off the bus; you don’t deserve to be here† (Chariandy 12). (EXPLAINATION, WHO SAID THIS, AND WHAT SITUATION? Coming to Canada was meant for a brighter future, FOR WHO? as the family had planned out there lives. But, in the hindsight of these terrible events, reality had taken over their dreams. The narrator did not have the chance of going to TO WHERE? because his father and brother both left the family in their own ways. â€Å" Father had died not long af ter being laid off at work, and my brother left quietly because it was who he was† (Chariandy 16). Adele and her son were both alone and it was up to the boy to take care of her. It seemed as if the opposite of everything that was planned for the family had turned up. Instead of the mother taking care of the son, the son was taking care of the mother. In addition, it was hard for a seven year old to do this when her mother did not even know her own name. â€Å"Adida, Adida is me† (Chariandy 31). Moving to Canada was done in hopes of more prosperous chances, but instead, the narrator and Adele are facing the exact opposite and seeing their dreams come to an end. As the years passed by, the narrator had grown old and tired of Adele. He wanted to move on in search of becoming an engineer and repairing vehicles. â€Å"Mother, I can’t stay with you for long. I am going to become and engineer you know† (Chariandy 89). The narrator had left, leaving Adele all alone. It was as if this related to the title of the story. A Soucouyant is a vampire who sucks the blood out of humans. Comparing this to the novel, Adele has had all of her loved ones â€Å"sucked† away from her, including her own memory. From being trapped in a house with nowhere to go, the young boy had escaped the shadow placed around him by his mother and instead, left her, showing how the protagonist was persistent in his journey to moving forward. After leaving, he lived in a city called Scarborough in a small apartment. Becoming an engineer was impossible, as he had no education or money to get started. He worked at the local restaurant cleaning dishes and unloading the delivery truck CHANGE TO DELIVERY TRUCK(S). â€Å"Inside I was dead, and on the outside, I was hurt from all the work I’ve bin doing just to pay for rent† (Chariandy 129). The narrator felt regret by leaving his mother. Knowing that she cannot take care of herself, the narrator, now a teen, made a plan to work until he got enough money to return back to Adele and get her the aid she really needs. Leaving Adele perceived the narrator to be moving on forward, but returning back to her shows the real growth from a boy to man. Now a fully grown man, the narrator had retuned back to Adele but felt weary and out of place. â€Å"I don’t know if mother has been hurt by my absence, or if she’s even noticed it. I don’t know what meaning there can be between us now† (Chariandy, 144). By coming back home to his mother, the narrator had taken a huge step forward into his growth because he had left his mother because he felt that he was not growing, but returned back because he is now grown. With the money he had received from the countless hours of work he had done, the narrator hired a nurse to look after Adele. â€Å" Mother, I have found a nurse named Meera who will be taking care of you when I’m off at work† (Chariandy 156). Taking on the responsibilities of a Father, the protagonist is now able to help Adele while moving on with his own life. â€Å"With the scrapes of money left over, I will be able to go to school and get a degree in engineering† (Chariandy 171). Furthermore, it seems that the tragic events that happened to the narrator all made up at the end of the novel. He enrolled in an engineering class while Meera was doing her job of taking care of Adele. The opposite had happened from dreams verse reality to reality facing their dreams. Without a father, the narrator took on the role of one and took care of his mother and had taken the steps towards getting the job he had dreamt of. In the beginning, the protagonist was immature and knew little, but as he got older and learned more, he grew as a man by taking on the huge obstacles that were in his way. The growth of the narrator is evident throughout the novel. From coping with his mother’s dementia, leaving, and then coming back to help her, the protagonist dealt with responsibilities that he should never have to face. Not only did the narrator grow to help his mother, throughout his journey he had learned that the tragic events of his fathers and brothers passing were not meant to be disappointments, rather to be an alarm to start growing. As David Brinkley once said, â€Å"A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks others have thrown at him†.

Managing the risks of organizational accidents by James T. Reason Essay

Managing the risks of organizational accidents by James T. Reason - Essay Example As the above diagrams elucidate there are layers of defenses placed at every step of operation. When a latent error happens due to at one stage the next operating layer has defenses so that the mistake is not passed on in the chain of procedures. Only when all the layers of operation fall in line to allow for the lapse to carry on does the entire system come crashing down. The first chapter on "Hazards, Defenses and Losses" brings to light the type of errors (human or organizational) that may occur, the precautions or defenses a person or an organization may take in order to prevent them. Also talked of are the tangible and intangible losses that have to be borne. "The Human Contribution" is a chapter devoted to the prospect of human error. Though the book in its entirety does not hold individuals responsible for a systemic failure, the many times human errors led to large scale mishaps are explored here. Important examples include the Apollo 13 slip-up, Glenborough disaster, Three Mile Island nuclear reactor accident etc. "Maintenance cans Seriously Damage your System" is a misnomer as the author presents sets of bad maintenance leading towards the damage of the entire structure. It is a continuation from the previous chapter of the human factor responsible for great errors. "Navigating the Safety Space" is a chapter wherein the author forays into the amount of leeway allowable to a system before it crashes. The next four chapters are useful instruction guides to policy makers; design engineers etc. to make for defect minimizing systems. In "A Practical Guide to Error Management" the author writes on the hands down approach to managing errors. The chapter "The Regulator's Unhappy Lot" explains the measures and methods of restructuring an organization to steer clear of catastrophes. Chapter 9, "Engineering a Safety Culture" suggests a whole lot of relevant arguments for creating a safety culture within an establishment. "Reconciling the Different Approaches to Safety Management", the final chapter calls upon managers, engineers and the maintenance people to adapt to appropriate safety techniques in order to avoid the risks of ending up with a disaster financially, materially or otherwise. Critique: The book is a compulsory read for all personnel working in risky atmosphere, hazardous industries etc. The author has used all his expertise in dealing with the issue of accident negation or at least reduction. Strengths: The strength of the book lies in its simplicity. The easy to understand language and lucid style make it a universal reference guide for managers and workers alike. Weaknesses: Apparently there appear no

The Polarization Of American Politics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The Polarization Of American Politics - Essay Example The segregation of America into blue and red states aids in strengthening the perception of non-polarization of the American politics. Views of people in both states tend to be similar on common issues, such as the fiscal policy. Polarization is only evident among the elites in the society, but not the mass public. A weakness of the argument is that the basis of segregation of states into blue and red states. It is not realistic to elude that everyone in the blue states is Democrats and vice versa. In the second paper authored by Saunders and Abramowitz; with the title,†is polarization a myth?† supports the view that America is polarized. This is based on the ideological and party identification. It noted that politics from the yardstick to polarization. A weak point in this paper is that the perceptions are based on individuals rather than a percentage of masses that hold different views. In the final paper, â€Å"Rich State, Poor State, Red State, Blue State: What†™s the Matter with Connecticut?† the pattern of voting forms the basis of the argument. The paper argues that Republicans have more support from the rich while Democrats have more support from the poor. Perception of the argument changes preceding this week's discussion. The argument should focus more on the impact of polarization on the country rather than finding out if America is polarized. I believe that having the knowledge on the impacts of polarization should be prioritized to an analysis of the polarization of America.

Rotork Fluid Systems as a Global Company That Is Designed To Serve Essay

Rotork Fluid Systems as a Global Company That Is Designed To Serve Customers for All Needs That Are Associated With Fluid Powered Actuators - Essay Example It is evidently clear from the discussion that Rotork Fluid Systems have their manufacturing plants in the United States, Germany, and Sweden which is supported through the application of a strategic network of Centres of Excellence, control system packing, serving application engineering, and commissioning and support sales support for local industries installation. Rotork Fluid Systems practices quality and safety production of pneumatic and electrical actuator valves using a custom test systems that test the correct operation and product functionality and assist with the development and research. Rotork Fluid Systems manufacture high-quality Pneumatic Actuators. Actuators that do not perform well have serious consequences to the production process. Pneumatic actuators are used to plug, ball and butterfly valves. In addition, they can be used in various quarter turn applications that include pressure regulators and dampers. They are made of aluminum alloys of high duty that provide corrosion resistance and optimum strength. They have different variety and sizes that range between twelve to four thousand nanometers. Pneumatic actuators are produced in two versions; the single and double acting. The two versions have been designed in a way that there are no movements on the outside. By this, they become safe, easier installation and low maintenance needs. In addition, the pinion construction and pinion rack mean that they are lightweight and have a little volume to occupy. The double and single acting actuators are made use of in most safety systems. They have the ability to return automatically to fail-safe positions and have modular spring packages that ensure they are easily applied within a wide prospect of supply pressures and operating conditions. The actuators are fitted by use of drive inserts. This is done to enable them to become directly mounted onto the right valves and eliminate the call for a coupling and bracket type of mounting kit. The continue d use of directs mounts cut the costs of a valve assembly. The choice of an actuator is dependent on the valve torque requirement.

Financial Management Individual Work 2 Week 6 Essay

Financial Management Individual Work 2 Week 6 - Essay Example theory that explains that dividends at hand are preferred by investors to dividends retained in a company in which the dividend policy would have affected the value of the firm. The theory was put forward by John Lintner and Myron Gordon. They argued that investors perceive dividends at hand to be less risker than dividends of potential future capital gains. Stockholders therefore prefer actual dividends to retained earnings. Tax preference theory knows that there are two tax related reasons for believing that investors may prefer low dividend payout to higher dividend payout. The taxes on capital gains are only paid when the stock is sold but when it is held by a person; no capital gains will be due at any given point in time. a.3 The theories are one way traffic such that if the dividend irrelevance theory is right, then dividend payout has no significance hence the firm can follow any dividend payout. If the bird in the hand theory is relevant, the firm can set a high payout if it wants to maximize the stock price. If the tax preference is accurate, the firm can set a low payout if is to maximize the stock price. Therefore in general, the theories are in total war with one another. a.4. Regrettably, empirical tests of theories have not been in conclusion, so it is absolutely difficult to tell if investors prefer either dividends or capital gains. However, the firms’ managers’ can use the analyses to a reasonable and rational decision over dividend policy. b. 1.Different groups of stockholders choose different kinds of dividend payout policies for example pension funds which are tax bracket. This kind of group of stockholders might prefer high payout stocks. Investors can sell their stocks and incur some transaction costs hence forcing sales to be made in a down market. 2. Clienteles are in existence and the question that arises is whether there are more members of one clientele than the rest. There are relevant costs such as taxes and brokerage costs

Analyze Roger Dubuis' (high-end watches) press kit Essay

Analyze Roger Dubuis' (high-end watches) press kit - Essay Example The mission of the Company is also stated and the major underlying themes are clearly spelt out: creativity, innovation and boldness. The Press kit then sets out in detail, each of the individual items that was summarized in the capsule of information presented at the outset. Firstly, it presents a timeline of the Company’s history sets out the history of SOGEM S.A., which was founded in 1995, including the development of the various collections and their distinguishing features. The next section of the Press kit deals specifically with the development of the sports watch collection and the development of the Geneva boutique. The two original collections â€Å"Hommage† and â€Å"Sympathie† have been rejuvenated in 2004, into two collections that are different from the original both aesthetically and technically. These two collections cater not only to men but also to women. This is followed by yet another section of the report which explains the features of the â€Å"Just for Friends† collection. The distinctive element of this collection is pointed out, i.e, it contains an engraving from Dubuis – â€Å"Just for friends†, which in turn makes it an exclusive sports watch. The next section of the Press kit focuses specifically with the Company’s ability to maintain a leading edge by constantly establishing new standards for technology, quality and design by adhering to the strict requirements for the Geneva seal. The next segment of the report summarizes the progress of the Manufacture Roger Dubuis and the expansion of the building to cope with the future demands that are likely to arise. The last segment of the report explains the expansion plans of the Company and the proposed boutiques which are to be set up at various locations in Asia. The Press Kit provides a capsule of the communication strategy the Company has followed , including the transmission of images of glamour and

How And Why Do NGOs Attempt to Scale up Their Development Efforts Essay

How And Why Do NGOs Attempt to Scale up Their Development Efforts - Essay Example This report stresses that twentieth century globalization gave NGO’s a whole new lease because many problems arose that could not be solved within a nation. International treaties and organizations such as World Trade Organization were considered biased towards capitalist interests. NGOs lay emphasis on humanitarian issues, developmental aid and sustainable development which helped in counterbalancing the capitalist trend. A prominent example of this is the World Social Forum, a rival convention to the World Economic Forum held annually in Davos, Switzerland. The fifth World Social Forum in Porto Alagre, Brazil, in January 2005 was attended by representatives from more than 1,000 NGOs. This article makes a conclusion that in the era of information technology, individuals and organizations serving community interests are challenged to incorporate new skills and strategies to scale-up their impact in response to social challenges. In an increasingly interconnected and information-intensive environment, strategically managing information and value systems is rapidly becoming as important as sound financial management to an organization's effectiveness and sustainability. A firm value system helps Visioning and valuation-facilitating the development of organization-wide commitment to enhanced communications and Communications planning to construct innovative and appropriate organizational strategies which aids in Fostering internal and external networking.

The name China most likely came from the Qin Dynasty Essay Example for Free

The name China most likely came from the Qin Dynasty Essay The name â€Å"China† most likely came from the Qin Dynasty (pronounced â€Å"Chin†), and has had a great impact on Modern China. While the Qin Dynasty only lasted 9 years, the impact of the Qin Dynasty and Emperor cannot be underestimated. Ancient Chinas’ Qin Dynasty united China into a solid union under a legalist form of government, created beautiful yet functional art, and had an Emperor that standardized the currency, measurement and script of the country for the first time. The Qin family was the first family to unify China as a whole, after being the most powerful family during the Warring Period. The Emperor managed to standardize measurement, currency and written script across all of China to improve communication. The Qin Dynasty is also famous for its’ beautiful and unique art that has lasted even up to today. The Qin family came to power in 221 BCE as the most powerful family after the Warring Period (475-221 BCE) in China. After essentially winning China over from the other families, the Qin Emperor quickly united China to avoid another Warring Period. China was ruled under a legalist form of government, like the late Qin state had been ruled by. The land of the China was divided to 36 commanderies, which were in turn divided into sub countries. Each of the commanderies had a civil governor, a military commander and an imperial inspector who had to report to the Emperor (China Culture par. 2). The Qin was not the most culturally advanced family, but had the strongest and largest army of the warring families during the time before the Qin Dynasty. In order to keep order the Qin Dynasty rulers utilized many new warfare technologies and tactics, especially in the cavalry divisions. Another lasting impact of the Qin Dynasty is the power of a leader’s personality in China. Even after the end of the Qin Dynasty, the next Dynasties based their practices on many practices of the Qin Dynasty. Although the Qin Emperor was not well liked (China Culture par. 4), he brought together his country into a solid state with good communication between the people and the Emperor. From serving in the afterlife to protecting all of China, art in this Dynasty was beautiful as well functional. Many families during the Warring Period built walls to protect their land (Great Qin Wall par. 2). It was not until the Qin Dynasty started the previously built walls were connected into a 5,000 km wall (Great Qin Wall par. ). The wall stood for many centuries, and sections of it still stand today, however the Great Wall that you see today has either been rebuilt over the over all or constructed completely new in the Ming Dynasty. The sections of the Qin wall that still stand are well preserved and had stood the test of time. This wall not only stood as a means of protection, but as a symbol of power over the other states and to the Emperor. The most famous pieces of artwork of the Dynasty are the 7,500 clay sculptures that make up the terracotta army in the burial chamber of the Emperor. These sculptures were placed in the chamber in place of the servants that used to be buried with Emperors, to protect and serve in the afterlife (China Culture par. 3). The sculptures are outfitted with real weapons, chariots and pottery horses. Each face and pieces of armor were carved individually so that none of them look exactly the same (Hollihan-Elliot 15). These pieces of art had functionality, and were unique to China and the Qin Dynasty. The Qin Emperor standardized many things to further his country and improve communication across the large mass of land. Writing and numbers were standardized in the written script to improve officials’ communication with each other and the Emperor. During the Warring Period, many different types and variations of scripts were used, making communication difficult for everyone (China Culture par. 3). Standardizing written script into a single script was less confusing for the people who ran the vast country. Cart axel measurements were standardized and made equal all over China. Cart wheels made deep ruts in the soft paths and cart that did not have the same width wheels and axels had difficult times travelling on the imprinted roads (Dynasties of Asia par. ). The carts were needed to bring things for trade in and out of the main cities, and if they could not travel properly on the roads, the shipping was delayed or the carts toppled over, losing varies supplies and food. Currency was simplified into a round copper coin, with a square hole in the center for stringing them on the rope. These coppe r coins completely removed the bartering system (Dynasties of Asia par. 3). These standardizations, most of which are still in place today, more solidly unified China and helped pushed the influence of China and its culture forward. Ancient Chinas Qin Dynasty had beautiful, unique and functional art, was the first true unified China, and had an Emperor who standardized the country. This Dynasty is the greatest Dynasty simply because these things, many of which have stuck around for centuries in Chinese culture even up until today. While the Qin Dynasty was short, its legacy has lead other, better Dynasties up to what they were. Most other Dynasties practiced were tweaked based on the Qin Dynasty, making it the greatest Dynasty in Chinese history.

Emirates Airlines: Key Performance Indicator Analysis

Emirates Airlines: Key Performance Indicator Analysis In this simulation you chose a sector to operate in (budget, mid-range or luxury). What have you learned about these sectors as a result of your experience in this simulation? What would you have done differently at the beginning of the simulation and why? What would you have done differently to be more successful during the simulation and why? In this sector we operated as Emirates Airlines in mid-range as a view that there is a huge population in the sector and even if circumstances favours even budget and luxury passengers would opt for mid-range. In this sense during the start we sold 3 flights which we had as it doesnt had head room and toilets and leased three flights for the operation. We started 1st quarter selling tickets for 35 cents and its a mistake that we changed to luxury airline selling for 48 cents right after the 1st quarter. As this would have changed our target customer and all the operation should also been changed accordingly. We incurred heavy expenses on Promotion and advertisement which hadnt created any impact. There were complaints from customer for poor food services which we realised and started allocating cost for quality and services. High concentration would have been made on maintenance and market research which is the important factor in competitive industry like Airline. There are certain factors which can be focused and done differently at the beginning of the stimulation: Strategic Approach: we did not have any strategic approach when we started our simulation. And that is the reason we had made unreasonable decisions like shift to luxury and sales of aircraft. if we had a strategic approach we would have sold the flights when there is huge profit and avoided lease payment to be added in the expenses. Also we would have shifted to luxury at least after the 4th quarter when we had a good customer base and market. Hence instead of having a single strategy, it would have been better if we had followed a mixture of strategies in terms of pricing, marketing and services. Systematic Approach: there is no systematic approach at the beginning of the simulation. We blindly sold the flights without ascertaining the financial position and brought new flights during 6th quarter which we wrongly numbered and resulted in the purchase of another 3 flights when the company is already in a loss and thereby realised and sold a flight at 7th quarter. The fuel, flight operation and maintenance cost got drastic increase and because of the increase in the number of passengers we did not suffer huge loss. Hence if we had a systematic approach from the beginning we would have reached a good profit. Pricing: A price cue is defined as any marketing tactic used to persuade customers that prices offer good value compared to competitors prices, past prices or future prices (Rao, 2010: 150); at first we sold the tickets for 35 cents as mid-range airline and suddenly hiked the price to 48cents as luxury airline. We did not have idea about the impact and did not take steps to offer service according rather invested in promotion and advertisement. We realised it as mistake and felt that the pricing is an important factor in attracting customers only during 5th quarter and reduce the price to 40 cents and only after that we were about to increase the number of customer. Hence if the pricing factor has given significant importance on the start of the simulation, the company would have escaped from losses. Actions would have been taken during the stimulation for success: Proper maintenance of aircraft in order to avoid fine from FAA. Good system for customer reservation system to be flexible, fast and user-friendly. Strong investment in market research to enable sales forecast and market situation analysis. Proper training and quality to make the customer feel satisfied and get the luxury in food and other services. Good systematic maintenance of accounts in loan interest repayment, lease payment, depreciation in order to have a clear view of the actual profit. Strategic allocation of expenses on promotion and advertisement, sales forecast and social performance Strategic approach on pricing and increasing the number of sales person according the number of flights operated. What were the KPIs you used in running your airline and did they change? Critically appraise the value of the information you had available to you in the results packs during the simulation. How did you use this to affect your decision making? The below are the Key Performance Indicator we as a team of Emirates Airlines believed at the beginning of the simulation which we tried following throughout the quarters but some were forced to reframe it due to companys situation and response. Thus once an organization has analyzed its mission, identified all its stakeholders and defined its goals, it needs a way to measure progress toward those goals. Key performance indicators are those measurements which help to define and measure progress towards organizational goals (Geoff, 2009: 419) Flight Operation: The important KPI we followed is in terms of flight operation. We believed that achieving 80% of maximum mileage per day would definitely yield a profit. As flights can be flew only with the maximum passenger and also includes the number of flights used. Hence it can achieve all in one KPI. We achieved this until quarter5 reaching 70% in each but it got changed due to purchase of 3 more flights without knowledge which made the company to focus on the reduction of expenses and deviated from the miles operating. Promotional and sales forecast: Emirates Airline team believed that high investment in promotion, advertisement and sales forecast can lead companys success. In terms of sales forecast, our KPI was in a correct way. But in terms of promotion and advertisement we changed and reduced the level of expense as the company started to incur loss. Financial Perspective: we thought revenue is an important factor for an airline company to be successful as there will arise uncertain circumstances due to weather or fuel price, hence had a KPI to increase the revenue through Fares. We started a s mid-range and attracted maximum customers and shifted to luxury charging huge fare as a KPI of increasing the revenue. We are badly affected till 5th quarter because of this factor and then reduced the pricing. The information we got through the value packs and incident feedback was very helpful in refining our performance and take corrective measures. Not only in terms of finance but also in terms of flight operation and service, the index feedback gave us the measures for improvement. The company was in a tough situation after the shift to luxury airline, where the incident feedback helped us to identify what was going wrong. The below are the some changes we effected from the information we got through the value packs, Increased the number of flights and number of flight routes. Decreased the ticket fares in order to increase the number of passengers. Concentrated on cabin services to increase the quality service to the passengers and reduce complaints. Taken measures and allotted funds on aircraft maintenance to avoid accidents and escape from fine. Got knowledge that the huge loss of the company is due to the purchase of 3 additional flights resulted from mistake in numbering in the software. Came to know that a flight was unused hence sold the flight to avoid maintenance expenses. We felt the importance of passenger service and allotted more fund towards it. Giving due consideration to theory, evaluate how a merger or acquisition might have changed your outcomes and the way you operated during the simulation? What additional implications would there have been for your company? Merger and Acquisition are often used inter-changeable concepts while merger is the combination of two companies in order to form a new company and Acquisition is a companys purchase of another company where there is no formation of new company (Scott C. Whitaker, 2012). Merger and acquisition have a common goal of attaining synergy. There are certain factors that should be taken care while going in for merger or acquisition as it results in cultural risk, business, employees and customer retention risk. These risks may not be applicable if Emirates would have planned the merger or acquisition in the initial stage that is before 4th quarter but if it is after that the above said risks should be taken care of. Hence it is evident that the nature of company to which going to be merged or acquired should be taken into account that it should be similar in business and should be stronger in operation as emirates are operating in a tough situation. There are many advantages for company to go in for a merger or acquisition. We as a emirates airlines can merge or acquire a financially strong airline whereby we become economically strong and can reduce the cost of capital (Donald M. DePamphills, 2009). In emirates during 5th quarter, we had a NIL balance of cash flow after the overdraft loan hence during such situation merging with company with good cash flow will be a potential decision. Also there will be a positive impact on the stock price especially for companies like emirates where we had our stock price in negative numbers. Not only in financial terms, merger and acquisition also helps in terms of operation synergy. For e.g., if we Emirates team go for a merger during our mid-quarter with a company which is technologically strong we would have had a chance for competitive advantage and fast growth platform (Scott C. Whitaker, ). We would have not made a mistake of unsystematic approach in buying a flight during our 6ht quar ter by which we suffers a heavy loss. There are major operating cost involved in terms of Airlines they are fuel, maintenance, interest expenses, lease amount, promotional activities, market research, taxes and so on. These costs would have been spread between two companies after merging. Merger and acquisition are also helpful to use the assets and skills of the other companies merging or acquiring with. We as Emirates team lacked in terms of allocation of expenses and proper maintenance of aircraft. Hence merging with a managerial strong company would have helped us to move in the right path. It helps in improving the operating efficiency with a combined activity of the merging firms thereby can enjoy the market power. This is called market power theory. With this the company can have a control on the pricing and suppliers and also can have customer base. As a team of Emirates Airlines only in the 1st quarter we were able to make a profit. It may be because of the sudden shift to luxury airlines which made us to suffer from continuous losses till 6th quarter. Our stock price also went on negative price. Hence merger or acquisition during the mid-quarter would be the better decision as it would have reduced the cost and share the total cost. We also had a reduction of pricing on 5th quarter which can be avoided when we had merger with our competitor. We lacked in many operation areas like customer satisfaction, aircraft maintenance and proper allocation of expenses, hence merger and acquisition would have been potential at early stage. Appraise how successful your company was in your industry. Were your relative success / failure due primarily to your analysis and diagnosis or the choices and decisions you made? Which models and theory did you consider when participating in the game and how did this help you? Planning, executing and monitoring are the key aspects for a company to be successful. And in industry like Airline where there are ample numbers of risks, it is important that the firm follows a strategic approach. We as a team started to operated Emirates airlines as mid-range where in the first quarter we are able to have a good level of passengers and thereby revenue. We did not have a view on the level of risk in shifting to luxury range all of a sudden in the second quarter and increased the fare at a higher rate. Only during fifth quarter we came to know the importance of price factor and reduced the fare. The team did not understand that shifting to luxury range should be accommodated with high quality service to be competitive. We felt its importance from the incident report at the time when the company is already in loss. To my knowledge the company started off well but faced tough situations and failures and also attained the survival stage where it can reach a decent prof it in the next quarters. We had a systematic approach to some extent and made many innovative measures like online reservation system which is a success to us, but the decision what we made to buy a flight when we were in deficit lead to failure. Also we are not managerial approach as we wrongly numbered and the software bought additional 3 flights which added to a further loss. We had a clear view in allocating resources for aircraft maintenance, but because of the above mistakes we made during the simulation, we were unable to allot adequate resources for maintenance which lead to engine failure and fine from FAA. At the beginning of the simulation we used resource dependency theory (Aldrich, 1977) where we believed the company can be affected to some degree with its external environment. Hence we took measure to influence the environment. Our external environments are customers, public and the airline industry. We thought investing heavily in promotion and advertisement would definitely create competitive advantage and a brand image among the customer where a hike in the fare will become a hidden factor. Hence during the second quarter we allotted $40000 on advertisement and shifted to luxury airlines with fare of 48cents. But only during the subsequent simulation we felt that there is no relation between the promotion and competitive advantage in a highly completive airline industry and understood the importance of cost and service factors. Hence we reduced the price and concentrated on quality and training. We also started concentrating on cabin services and passenger services with the rise of customer complaints which came to our knowledge through incident feedback. We as a team felt the importance of strategic approach during the simulation. During the end of the quarter we were clear about the strategies to be followed and we were sure that our company will make a good profit if it has another two quarters as we could find the changes in stock price with our corrective measures. The simulation gave us a vast experience about the concept of risk management, strategic approach and resource allocation. We also felt the importance of group dynamics in running a successful business.