Notions of Differences in Nervous Conditions by Tsitsi Dangarembga

Identify the  three notions of differences  mentioned in the attached documents in  Nervous Conditions  and show how they relate to issues of identity. Three notions of differences : 1. The act of veiling 2. The use of silence 3. The question of subjectivity 1)The act of veiling will result in loss of identity as the people choose to remain oppressed by the so called more superior people. These people chose to stay veiled by the more superior and fighting against because they somehow felt comfortable and is alright with the current situation. However, this is extremely injustice towards the people who takes the act of veiling to protect themselves. Eventually, the so-called more superior people will dominate the people and seize more power against them. Tambudzai, the main character of Nervous Conditions who realizes that she did not want to be oppressed, stood up to take off the mask of veiling to avoid being continuously oppressed by the more superior men in her life. Slowly, Tambu is said to lose her identity as an African as she no longer follows her original traditions and yet started to fantasize the West and follows the western culture. 2)The use of silence can be clearly seen in mostly the elder women in Nervous Conditions. Women in the story is constantly oppressed by the men however they did not choose to fight for their rights but remained silent and followed whatever the men says. This can lead to the loss of dignity of women and also human rights. Tradition says women should only learn how to be housewives and not receive education. Looking into this matter, women should all stand up and protest against their rights and that women too can serve the country well with proper education. Remaining silent is really not a good solution to problems as it will only lead to greater problems in the future. 3) The question of subjectivity consists of ideas and opinions of a person and the choice that would like to be made by the person. Everyone has their own thinking and behaviour and people are different in terms of that. Oppression is an act that takes away people’s thinking and in fact oppressing them with matters that they don’t like. Subjectivity is indeed a subjective matter where normally people cannot question about it. People should be given opportunities to have their own opinions and not having to blindly follow what other people says. At times, we might be at the right side and we do have to voice out if the opponent is actually wrong. There are distinct differences between the three notions but they actually work together to form a strong barrier that makes people fear of voicing out or speaking out. The women mentioned in Nervous Conditions often comprises the three notions that made them incomparable the men. They had to follow what the men say and silently doing their assigned duties without uttering a word. This is hard for the women as they slowly lose their identities as women and the chance of being at equal with the men.

Analysis of ‘The Death of a Moth” Essay

Virginia Woolf is a British writer born in 1882 and she died a horrific death in 1941. She jumped unto River Ouse wearing an overcoat filled with rocks. She committed suicide as she was depressed and has a pessimistic feeling towards life due to a mental illness she has been cursed with. She wrote ‘The Death of the Moth’ in 1942. This essay contains a wide variety of rhetorical devices that makes it intriguing. Although the essay is short, she wrote a detailed story with an underlying metaphor. In this non-fictional essay, she effectively conveys her ideas through the use of figurative language. She uses an extended metaphor in which the moth symbolizes humans in the way it lives its life. The essay entraps the reader into the outgoing struggle of our own mortality. Throughout the essay, the reader becomes aware of the tragedy that all life has to offer and that is the inevitable death. The theme is not lucid in the beginning. But in the latter part of the essay, one can deduce that the moth actually symbolizes humans and life. In the essay, she illustrates the struggle between life and death. Her purpose in writing this passage is to depict how pathetic life is in the face of death, and to garner respect for the awesome power that death has over life. Throughout the essay, death is described from many different angles. The purpose of this is to remind us of the power that death has over life. She shows us the death is certain and unavoidable. She does not convey this message with logic, but with instead with emotions, feelings, and implicit ideas. She makes us feel the death of the moth to impart us a more complete understanding of the eternal power of death. She uses several different types of figurative and literary language. As mentioned earlier, the essay is an extended metaphor. She used simile several times. For example, â€Å"†¦ until it looked as if a vast net with thousands of black knots in it had been cast up into the air. † In this simile, she describes a gathering of crows in the trees outside her window. In addition, she uses parallelism, which occurs when she writes: â€Å"That was all he could do, in spite of the size of the downs, the width of the sky, the far-off smoke of houses, and the romantic voice, now and then, of a steamer out at sea. † A good example of hyperbole is present when the author describes: â€Å"One could only watch the extraordinary effort made by those tiny legs against an oncoming doom which could, had it chosen, have submerged an entire city, not merely a city, but masses of human beings†¦ † By using such a simple creature’s struggle against death as a metaphor, Woolf creates a beautiful essay on the fragility of life. Her simplicity and detail keeps her essay from becoming overcomplicated, overly dramatic, or depressing. It was a surprisingly light and meaningful essay on an event that most people would probably overlook.

Employee retention Essay

1. INTRODUCTION In these changing times both the employee & employer are under tremendous pressure to perform. There is fierce competition not only in the industry but also across categories. This new liberalized cutting edge technology driven environment has made employee retention mind-boggling. The fast pacing change across the globe has made the new employee & employer relationship irreversible. However all corporations not only in IT sector but also traditional manufacturing sector are attempting to stem attrition. This paper attempts to unravel this paradox & study the various facts that surround this burning issue. There are many tactics and strategies used to retain employees in organizations. The basic purpose of these strategies is to increase employee’s satisfaction, boost employee morale, and achieve retention. Sometimes, retention strategies are not used properly and wrong retention strategies are used. As a result of this, these strategies fail to achieve the desired results. There are costs associated with employee turnover. The impact of employee turnover on organizations is that it often engenders far-reaching consequences and may jeopardize efforts to attain organizational objectives (Hill and Jones, 2001). In addition, Hill and Jones (2001) indicated that when an organization loses a critical employee, there is a negative impact on innovation, consistency in providing service may be jeopardized, and major delays in the delivery of services to customers may occur. A decline in the standard of service could also adversely affect the satisfaction of internal and external customers and consequently, the profitability of the organization. It is for these reasons that the paper sought to assess retention strategies in organizations and how they affect workers‟ performance. Let us see what â€Å"Employee Retention† used to mean This entails understanding just a little history. The term â€Å"employee retention† first began to appear with regularity on the business scene in the 1970s and early ’80s. Until then, during the early and mid-1900s, the essence of the relationship between employer and employee had been (by and large) a statement of the status quo: You come work for me, do a good job, and, so long as economic conditions allow, I will continue to employ you. It  was not unusual for people who entered the job market as late as the 1950s and ’60s to remain with one employer for a very long time—sometimes for the duration of their working life. If they changed jobs, it was usually a major career and life decision, and someone who made many and frequent job changes was seen as somewhat out of the ordinary. What is Employee Retention? Employee retention refers to the various policies and practices which let the employees stick to an organization for a longer period of time. Every organization invests time and money to groom a new joinee, make him a corporate ready material and bring him at par with the existing employees. The organization is completely at loss when the employees leave their job once they are fully trained. Employee retention takes into account the various measures taken so that an individual stays in an organization for the maximum period of time. The human resource of an organization consists of management and employees. Human resources are key assets to organizations. Employees have to be motivated to stay in an organization. When employee retention strategies function properly, they increase the commitment of employees towards organizational goals. Thus, if the commitment of employees is won by management through employee retention strategies, it increases job satisfaction, motivates employees to work hard as well as encourages workers to stay in their organization. Hence, employees will be satisfied with their job and be motivated to work hard, thereby leading to improved employee performance. Improvement in employee performance leads to achievement of organizational goals. 1.1. LITERATURE REVIEW Williams and Dreher (1992), wages is the key factor influence in the employee attraction and retention, and play important role in the recruitment process. Highhouse et al, (1999) recommend that only pay is not sufficient to retain the employees. He argues that low pay package will drive workers out the organization but it is not necessary that high pay package bring and keep the workers in the organization. Ultimately, the workers stay in the  organization due to others factors i.e. work environment, co-workers behaviour and supervisor support etc. which compel the employee to retain in the organization. According to Osteraker (1999), the employee satisfaction and retention are considered the Cornerstone for success of organization. Past study divided it into social, mental or physical Dimension. The grouping is based on social contacts at works, characteristics of the work task or the physical and material circumstances associated with work. The retention factors of the mental dimension are work characteristics, employees are retaining by flexible tasks where they can use their knowledge and see the results of their efforts. The social dimension refers to the contact employees have with other people, both internal and external. The physical dimension consists of working conditions and pay. order to retain employees the organization need to gain information about the dynamics that characterized the motivation to work. According to Smith (2001) money bring the workers in the organization but not necessary to keep them. According to Ashby and Pell money satisfies the employee but it is not sufficient to retain the employee means it is insufficient factor. Money is not considered as primary retention factor (Brannick, 1999). Many organization implement very good employees retention strategy without offering high compensation or pay based retention strategy (Pfeffer, 1998). In such circumstances a wide number of factors are seems for successful retention of employees. The existence of other retention factors cannot be ignored. Kehr (2004), explains that the implicit retention factors in spontaneous, expressive and pleasurable behaviour and can be divided into three variables; power, achievement and affiliation. Power refers to dominance and social control. Achievement is when personal standards of excellence are to be met or exceeded and affiliation refers to social relationships which are established and intensified. Implicit and explicit retention factors relate to different aspects of the person, but both are important determinants of behaviour Thompson and Prottas (2005) examined the relationship between employee turnover intention and organization support such as supervisor support, flex time work family culture and co-worker support etc, and they conclude that organization support reduced the employee turnover intention. Pasewark and Viator (2006) places flexible work arrangement as an very important part of work family support that plays pivotal rule in the retention of employees. Ihsan and Naeem (2009), indicated that Pharmaceutical sales force rated pay and fringe benefits as the most important retention factor which is supported by the findings of past studies In addition, it indicate that pay and fringe benefits is highly valued by the sales force of all demographic Backgrounds. It’s possible explanation could be that pays and fringe benefits enable salespersons to fulfil their physiological as well as esteem needs. Thus, critical review of the current incentive schemes is required to make them more effective to cater to needs of the sales in both multinational and local pharmaceutical companies to retain their talent workers. Yanadoria and Katob (2010) investigated the family support effects at workplace and concluded the statistical importance of relationship between work family support and employee retention, the recent research recognize that existence of family support within the organization reduce the turnover intention and help the retention of talented employees in the organization. According to BC Jobs, in a survey commissioned by their company, only two percent of executives said employees leave because of lifestyle changes, such as relocation. When top performers start jumping ship, it’s most often for professional, not personal, reasons. In another survey commissioned by the same company, executives said that good employees leave primarily because of limited opportunities for advancement (39 percent), unhappiness with management (23 percent) and lack of recognition (17 percent) (BJ JOBS, 2012). Employee retention techniques go a long way in motivating the employees for them to enjoy their work and avoid changing jobs frequently. Why do Employees Leave? Research says that most of the employees leave an organization out of frustration and constant friction with their superiors or other team members. In some cases low salary, lack of growth prospects and motivation compel an employee to look for a change. The management must try its level best to retain those employees who are really important for the system and are known to be effective contributors. It is the responsibility of the line managers as well as the management to ensure that the employees are satisfied with their roles and responsibilities and the job is offering them a new challenge and learning every day. Let us understand the concept of employee retention with the help of an example: Manisha was a talented employee who delivered her best and completed all her work within the desired time frame. Her work lacked errors and was always found to be innovative and thought provoking. She never interfered in anybody else’s work and stayed away from unnecessary gossips and rumours. She avoided loitering around at the workplace, was serious about her work and no doubts her performance was always appreciable. Kumar, her immediate boss never really liked Manisha and considered her as his biggest threat at the workplace. He left no stone unturned to insult and demotivate Manisha. Soon, Manisha got fed up with Kumar and decided to move on. Situation 1 – The HR did not make any efforts to retain Manisha and accepted her resignation. Situation 2 – The HR immediately intervened and discussed the several issues which prompted Manisha to think for a change. They tried their level best to convince Manisha and even appointed a new boss to make the things better for her. Situation 1 would most likely leave the organization in the lurch. It is not easy to find an employee who gels well with the system and understands the work. Hiring an employee, training him and making him fit to work in an organization incur huge costs and thus sincere efforts must be made to retain the employee. Every problem has a  solution and the management must probe into the exact reasons of an employee’s displeasure. Employees sticking to an organization for a longer time tend to know the organization better and develop a feeling of attachment towards it. The employees who stay for a longer duration are familiar with the company policies, guidelines as well as rules and regulations and thus can contribute more effectively than individuals who come and go. 10 important factors that can impact employee retention in the organization Shorten the feedback loop- Do not wait for an annual performance review or evaluation to come due to give feedback on how an employee is performing. Most team members enjoy frequent feedback about how they are performing. Shortening the feedback loop will help to keep performance levels high and will reinforce positive behavior. Feedback does not necessarily need to be scheduled or highly structured; simply stopping by a team member’s desk and letting them know they are doing a good job on a current project can do wonders for employee morale and help to increase retention. Offer a competitive compensation package- Any team member wants to feel that he or she is being paid appropriately and fairly for the work he or she does. Be sure to research what other companies and organizations are offering in terms of salary and benefits. It is also important to research what the regional and national compensation averages are for that particular position. You can be sure that if your co mpensation package is not competitive, team members will find this out and look for employers who are willing to offer more competitive compensation packages. Balance work and personal life- family is incredibly important to team members. When work begins to put a significant strain on one’s family no amount of money will keep an employee around. Stress the importance of balancing work and one’s personal life. Small gestures such as allowing a team member to take an extended lunch once a week to watch his son’s baseball game will likely be repaid with loyalty and extended employment with an organization. Beware of burnout- staff adequately to reduce the amount of unwanted overtime a team member must work. Some employees enjoy the extra money that accompanies overtime hours, while others would rather spend their time with their  families or doing other activities they enjoy. Burnout can be a leading cause of turnover. Recognize the warning signs and give employees a break when they need it. Provide opportunities for professional development and growth – offer opportunities for team members to acquire new skills and knowledge useful to the organization. If an employee appears to be bored or burned out in a current position offer to train this individual in another facet of the organization where he or she would be a good fit. Nobody wants to feel stuck in their position will no possibility for advancement or new opportunities. The ability to provide input and be taken seriously – everybody has opinions and ideas, some are better than others. However every team member wants to feel that their input is welcome and will be taken seriously without ridicule or condescension. Some of the greatest ideas can come from the most unlikely of places and people. Creating a culture where input is welcome from all level of the organizational chart will help your organization grow and encourage long term employee retention. Management must take the time to get to know team members- it’s not a big surprise that one of the greatest complaints that employees express in exit interviews is a feeling that management didn’t know they existed. Nobody wants to feel like just another spoke in a big wheel. Managers are very busy – everybody is busy, but it is crucial that managers and supervisors take the time get to know the team members who work under them. Learn and remember a team member’s name , what skills and talents they bring to the table, and what their business interests are. The time spent by management getting to know team members is well invested and can eliminate the headaches caused by having to continually hire and re-train new employees. Provide the tools and training an employee needs to succeed- nothing can be more frustrating to an employee than a lack of training or the proper tools to successfully complete his or her duties. You wouldn’t try to build a house without a hammer, so why should an office job be any different? Providing a team member with the tools and training she needs to be successful shows a commitment and investment in that employee and will encourage the team member to stay with the organization. Make use of a team member’s talents, skills, and abilities- all team members have knowledge, skills, and abilities that  aren’t directly related to their job description, but are still useful to an organization. Utilizing a team member’s talents in areas other than their current position will indicate to an employee that management appreciates and recognizes all that an employee has to offer to the organization. This can also provide work variety and helps to break up the everyday grind of work. Never threaten a team member’s job or income – While threatening an employee with termination or demotion might seem like a surefire way to get the results needed from him or her, doing so will likely cause the employee to leave the organization. Put yourself in the employee’s shoes, what is the first thing you would do if your job was threatened? Odds are you would probably update your resume and start checking for open job postings expecting the worst. If a team member’s performance is not what you had hoped it would be, work with that team member on ways to improve his performance, saving termination only as a last resort. The Advantages of Employee Retention Acquiring Talent When organizations retain their employees, they avoid hiring costs. These are often hidden costs. The cost to post on job boards can be annual or a one-time expense. Agencies charge a percentage of an employee’s annual wages. Larger companies may have staffing departments whose sole responsibility is screening and interviewing talent. Other companies may assign this task to department heads or other individuals in the organization. The time an individual spends screening and reviewing resumes takes him away from his main job responsibilities. The hiring process is risky. Background checks, personality testing and aptitude testing can predict a candidate’s capability, but there is still a risk. Training and Development Retaining workers reduces training costs. Recruits need to be trained in business practices specific to the employer’s software, culture and office practices. Training requires one or more current employees to take time away  from their job responsibilities to educate the new employee on the organization’s way of doing business. Two or more people are on the company payroll producing the results of one person. In the first 90 days, a new hire costs the company money. When companies retain employees, training dollars can be used to further develop the work force. Long-term associates have the experience to review what has worked before and apply that knowledge to future situations. Skilled Labour Force Employment retention develops a strong staff. Working individually or in teams these individuals share knowledge and expertise. The future managers of an organization come from this work pool. These employees are the historians of an organization’s successes and challenges, and provide mentoring to new hires They are committed to the continued growth of the origination and its work force. These individuals have finessed the inner workings of an organization. As they continue to develop their skills, the organization benefits. Impact on Customer Service Employee retention has a positive impact on customer service. Turnover brings disruption in customer service, loss of business and possible negative business impacts. An organization’s customer base expects consistent and reliable service. There is a learning curve with new hires and thus the potential for error or poor communication with a client. This can impact business relationships. Long-term employees develop relationships with customers. They know the clients’ preferences and can anticipate future needs. This knowledge develops over time. 1.2. COMPANY PROFILE Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd, is a pharmaceutical company based in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India. The company was founded by Anji Reddy, who had previously worked in the publicly owned Indian Drugs and Pharmaceuticals Limited, of Hyderabad, India. Dr. Reddy’s originally launched in 1984 producing active pharmaceutical ingredients. In 1986, Reddy’s started operations on branded formulations. Within a year Reddy’s had launched Norilet, the company’s first recognized brand in India. Soon, Dr. Reddy’s obtained another success with Omez, its branded omeprazole – ulcer and reflux oesophagi is medication – launched at half the price of other brands on the Indian market at that time. Within a year, Reddy’s became the first Indian company to export the active ingredients for pharmaceuticals to Europe. In 1987, Reddy’s started to transform itself from a supplier of pharmaceutical ingredients to other manufacturers into a manufacturer of pharmaceutical products. Dr. Reddy’s manufactures and markets a wide range of pharmaceuticals in India and overseas. The company has over 190 medications, 60 active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) for drug manufacture, diagnostic kits, critical care, and biotechnology products. Dr. Reddy’s began as a supplier to Indian drug manufacturers, but it soon started exporting to other less-regulated markets that had the advantage of not having to spend time and money on a manufacturing plant that would gain approval from a drug licensing body such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). By the early 1990s, the expanded scale and profitability from these unregulated markets enabled the company to begin focusing on getting approval from drug regulators for their formulations and bulk drug manufacturing plants in more-developed economies. This allowed their movement into regulated markets such as the US and Europe. By 2007, Dr. Reddy’s had six FDA plants producing active pharmaceutical ingredients in India and seven FDA-inspected and ISO 9001 (quality) and ISO 14001 (environmental management) certified plants making patient-ready medications – five of them in India and two in the UK. In 2010, the family-controlled Dr Reddy’s denied that it was in talks to sell its generics business in India to US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer, which had been suing the company for alleged patent infringement after Dr Reddy’s announced that it intended to produce a generic version of Atorvastatin, marketed by Pfizer as Lipitor, an anti-cholesterol medication. Reddy’s was already linked to UK pharmaceuticals multinational Glaxo Smithkline. VISION: To become a discovery ruled global pharmaceutical company with a core purpose of helping people lead healthier lives MISSION: To be first Indian pharmaceutical company that successfully takes its products from discovery to commercial launch globally VALUES: In pursuit of purpose of providing affordable and innovative medicines for healthier lives, Dr. Reddy’s will create an environment of innovation and learning while continually reaching for higher levels of excellence. Integrity and Transparency: Dr. Reddy’s will uphold the highest standards of integrity and transparency in all their interactions. Safety: Dr. Reddy’s are committed to providing safe working environments through continuous improvement of their infrastructure, work practices and behaviors. Quality: Dr. Reddy’s are dedicated to designing quality into their products and processes to delight their stakeholders. Productivity: Dr. Reddy’s strive to achieve more with less through a culture of innovation, continuous improvement and a sustained focus on elimination of waste. Respect for the Individual: Dr. Reddy’s are committed to creating a work environment that encourages diverse perspectives and upholds the dignity of work and of individuals. Collaboration and Teamwork: Dr. Reddy’s will leverage expertise and resources from across their global network to create greater value for their stakeholders. Sustainability: Dr. Reddy’s will create value for all their stakeholders in a manner that respects their natural environment and serves the best interests of the communities in which they live and work. BOARD OF DIRECTORS: Dr. Reddy’s board of directors are experts in the diverse fields of medicine, chemistry and medical research, human resource development, business strategy, finance, and economics. They review all significant business decisions and committees appointed by the board focus on specific areas. WHOLE-TIME DIRECTORS: G.V. Prasad – Chairman and chief executive officer Satish Reddy – vice chairman and managing director INDEPENDENT AND NON-WHOLE TIME DIRECTORS: 1. Dr. Omkar Goswami 2. Mr. Ravi Bhoothalingam 3. Mr. Anupam Puri 4. Dr. J. P.Moreau 5. Ms. Kalpana Morparia 6. Dr. Bruce LA Carter 7. Dr. Ashok Ganguly 8. Mr. Sridhar Iyengar BOARD COMMITTEES: There are seven board- level committees at Dr. Reddy’s, namely 1. Audit Committee 2. Nomination, Governance & Compensation Committee 3. Risk Management Committee 4. Science, Technology and Operations Committee 5. Shareholders’ Grievance Committee 6. Investment Committee 7. Management Committee The Management Council is the top tier of Dr. Reddy’s company’s management structure. The management of Dr. Reddy’s has developed and implemented policies, procedures and practices that attempt to translate our company’s vision, mission and purpose into reality. The management also identifies, measures, monitors and controls the risks factors in the business and ensures safe, sound and efficient operation. The Management Council meets every quarter under the chairmanship of the CEO. Global employee strength of DR. REDDY’S Fig 1.2.1 Employee turnover Turnover Rate 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 Overall India 16.20% 16.30% 14.30% 12.70% 18.20% 18.00% 0.70% 20.80% Fig 1.2.2 1.3. EMPLOYEE RETENTION AT DR. REDDY’S: Dr. Reddy’s has dozens of individual and team-based awards that recognizes teamwork, innovation, institution-building, and social Dr. Reddy’s uses extensive structured coaching to encourage continual dialogue between managers and employees to enhance employee engagement. As well, the company has a formal system in which senior managers mentor employees and job mentors serve as mentors in plants. Respect for the Individual: They are committed to creating a work environment that encourages diverse perspectives and upholds the dignity of work and of individuals.They have begun to have more presence at campuses, they have announced higher rewards for team members on successful referrals of women or differently able professionals to the organisation and they continue to encourage employees to shift within the organisation to different domains and functions through internal job posting opportunities. One of the key attempts of the leadership at Dr. Reddy’s is to enable each one of their talented employees to see the cathedral they are helping to raise, and give  them a hand if they run into rough spots. Building this environment to inspire are several elements drawn from global HR experiences and the best of management intuition. Exit interviews: Exit interviews are conducted with departing employees just before they leave. From the employer’s perspective, the primary aim of the exit interview is to know the reasons for the person’s departure, on the basis that criticism is a helpful driver for organizational improvement. Good exit interviews should also yield useful information about the employer organization, to assess and improve all aspects of the working environment, culture, processes and systems, management and development, etc. 2. OBJECTIVES To find out the Factors that make employees retain in the organization for a long period of time. To know the reasons why employees move out of the organization How is Dr. Reddy’s putting efforts in understanding employees? What are the steps taken by the company to retain their employees? What are the important elements that an employee looks in an organization to work? 3. SCOPE The scope of this project was to focus on employee retention in DR. Reddy’s Laboratories CTO1 Bollaram, Hyderabad , India (pharmaceutical company). The scope is limited to R0 and R1 employees in the organization. The approx. number is 100. The sample size is 40 employees out of 100 R0 and R1 employees. LIMITATIONS No proper inputs were provided by Dr. Reddy’s laboratories CTO1 management. Dr. Reddy’s has instead to limit the questions in a questionnaire to 10. Duration for of the project was just two months. 4. Research Methodology 4.1. Research Design In this study where we translate a research problem into questionnaires, and then use the questionnaires to create data and also indicated that survey is a process of asking many people the same questions and examining their answers. Hence, respondents were asked the same questions. The aim of a survey is to obtain information which can be analyzed and comparisons made 4.2. Sample Selection The target population for the study was all employees working in DR. Reddy’s. The list of all the workers in the organizations served as the sampling frame. Out of the sampling frame, the sampling units were identified. The individual persons in the organizations such as R0 and R1 categories of employees were used as sampling units for the study. The study population was junior and senior staffs DR. Reddy’s. The total number of employees in these categories is approximately 100. Out of the 100, 40 respondents were selected to specifically provide information that would be relevant to the study. The sample size was obtained by calculating 40% on the total population. 4.3. Data Collection Methods for Collecting Primary Data Questionnaires were the tools used for collecting the primary data for the study. The questionnaires contained closed-ended questions. The questions focused on employee’s work satisfaction in the organization. Questionnaires and face-to-face interviews were effective methods used in collecting the primary data. Questionnaires were useful for the research since I could reach many respondents within a short time. Moreover, the face-to-face interview also enabled me to observe the surroundings and nonverbal communication of respondents. The language that was used for the face-to-face interview was English, Hindi and Telugu. 5. ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION: 1. How long have you been employed at Dr. Reddy’s? Graph 5.1 Interpretation: As per the respondents 0% of employees mentioned that they have been employed at Dr. Reddy’s for less than 1 year, 15% of employees mentioned that they have been employed at Dr. Reddy’s from 1-3 years, 30% of employees mentioned that they have been employed at Dr. Reddy’s from 3-5 years, 35% of employees mentioned that they have been employed at Dr. Reddy’s from 5-10 years and 20% of employees mentioned that they have been employed at Dr. Reddy’s for more than 10 years. 2. What factors have influenced you to remain with Dr. Reddy’s? SCORE 3 as most preferred, 2 as second preferred and 1 s last preferred) Graph 5.2 Interpretation: As we can see in the above graph, leadership (brand) has got majority score, which is actually retaining the employees in the organization. Benefit packages, working conditions and shift works are also motivate employees in a large scale to retain in DR. Reddy’s. Pay has got the lowest score as per the respondents i.e. 8.75% 3. How satisfied are you with your career development within Dr. Reddy’s? Graph 5.3 Interpretation: As per the respondents 0% of employees mentioned that they are dissatisfied with the career development at Dr. Reddy’s, 17.5% of employees mentioned that they are somewhat dissatisfied with the career development at Dr. Reddy’s, 27.5% of employees mentioned that they are neutral with the career development at Dr. Reddy’s, 70% of employees mentioned that they are satisfied with the career development at Dr. Reddy’s, 10% of employees  mentioned that they are very satisfied with the career development at Dr. Reddy’s Regarding the promotions and hikes within the organization, majority of the employees seem to be satisfied. This is a good sign, but still Dr Reddy’s laboratories ltd management need to work on this issue as this plays a vital role in retaing employees in the organization for a longer period of time 4. What is your level of satisfaction with the attitude of teamwork within Dr. Reddy’s? Graph 5.4 Interpretation: As per the respondents 32.5% of employees mentioned that they are neutral towards the level of satisfaction with the attitude of teamwork at Dr. Reddy’s, 67.5% of employees mentioned that they are satisfied with the level of satisfaction with the attitude of teamwork at Dr. Reddy’s and none of the employees choose the rest of the options i.e; dissatisfied, somewhat dissatisfied and very satisfied. Most of the employees seem to be satisfied with their colleagues which will in turn reduces the internal conflicts between the employees. 5. I feel that my contribution is respected and appreciated by the department. Graph 5.5 Interpretation: As per the respondents 0% of employees mentioned that they strongly disagree that their contribution is respected and appreciated by the department, 0.05% of employees mentioned that they disagree that their contribution is respected and appreciated by the department, 42.5% of employees mentioned that they are neutral that their contribution is respected and appreciated by the department, 47.5% of employees mentioned that they agree that their  contribution is respected and appreciated by the department and 0.05% of employees mentioned that they strongly agree that their contribution is respected and appreciated by the department. Approximately 50% here agree that their work is appreciated by the department which is a good sign. But Dr Reddy’s laboratories ltd needs to work more in this area to increase these figures in a positive way. 6. I have a comprehensible course for career advancement inside Dr. Reddy’s. Graph 5.6 Interpretation: As per the respondents 0% of employees strongly disagree that they have a comprehensible course for career advancement inside Dr. Reddy’s, 20% of employees disagree that they have a comprehensible course for career advancement inside Dr. Reddy’s, 57.5% of employees are neutral that they have a comprehensible course for career advancement inside Dr. Reddy’s, 22.5% of employees agree that they have a comprehensible course for career advancement inside Dr. Reddy’s and 0% of employees strongly agree that they have a comprehensible course for career advancement inside Dr. Reddy’s Coming to career development within the organization employees are not much satisfied and they are on a diplomatic side by answering neutral. 7. The workload placed on personnel is fair and realistic. Graph 5.7 Interpretation: As per the respondents 0% of employees strongly disagree that the workload placed on personnel is fair and realistic, 7.5% of employees disagree that the workload placed on personnel is fair and realistic, 17.5% of employees are neutral that the workload placed on personnel is fair and realistic, 52.5% of employees agree that the workload placed on personnel is fair and  realistic and 22.5% of employees strongly agree that the workload placed on personnel is fair and realistic. These figures tell us that Dr Reddy’s laboratories ltd is a friendly environment to work with, where there is no work pressure. 8. Have you ever considered leaving Dr. Reddy’s? Graph 5.8 Interpretation: As per the respondents 32.5% of employees mentioned that they considered leaving Dr. Reddy’s and 67.5% of employees mentioned that they never considered leaving Dr. Reddy’s. It’s a good sign were approximately 70% of the employees are not considering to leave Dr Reddy’s laboratories ltd. 9. If your answer was yes to the previous question; what would be the reasons? Previous question (Have you ever considered leaving Dr. Reddy’s?) Graph 5.9 Interpretation: We can notice as majority of the employees i.e. 48.75% of employees want to leave the organization for better pay and benefits. Better opportunities and relocation are also playing a vital role in employees leaving the organization. Only 6% of employees feel there is no proper communication in the organization. 6. FINDINGS Retention is all about managing people. If an organization manages people well, employee retention will take care of itself. Organization should focus on managing the work environment to make a better use of human resources. As per the survey, Dr Reddy’s laboratories ltd employees like to work where these are present. Appreciation for the work done by the employee. More opportunities to grow within in the organization. A friendly and cooperative environment between the employees. A feeling that the organization is second home to the employees. Findings regarding Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Effective leadership is also motivating them to work with Dr. Reddy’s. Salaries are not up to the expectations of the employees in Dr. Reddy’s. Dr. Reddy’s is having an employee friendly environment. Where employees feel more comfortable while working. Dr. Reddy’s has cross-functional project teams, encourage employees to shift within the organization to different domains and internal job posting opportunities. Dr. Reddy’s SPEAK OUT program is a communication channel open to all employees. The program is conducted every month by the Senior Managers of the respective locations encourages the employees to open up and discuss any issues be it professional or personal. Dr. Reddy’s REACH OUT program similar to speak out, which encourages employees to use drop boxes to convey their suggestions, raise or highlight any issue which they may not be comfortable to come forward or if they wish to maintain anonymity. Dr. Reddy’s has a team-based award that recognizes teamwork which in turn motivates employees. 7. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS Conclusion Retention has emerged as one of the dominant themes in management studies during the past decade. The goal of this report was to understand the reasons behind employee’s retention in the organization. The report attempts to provide the facts with a better understanding of employees and their needs. The employee demands such as good working conditions and having development opportunities are just two factors to be mentioned. Dr. Reddy’s laboratories should have good communication, hiring management with strong  human relation skills, providing growth opportunities and consulting with employees, formally and informally, will strengthen the bond with the organization, but will not guarantee their loyalty. Herzberg, through his motivation-hygiene theory suggests that job satisfaction and job dissatisfaction are produced by different work factors. What makes people unhappy is not what they do but how well they are treated. Recommendations Though Dr Reddy’s laboratories ltd is doing a great job it can still improve its working conditions to have work satisfaction in the employees and to retain them for a longer period of time. Dr. Reddy’s management can provide support in the form of work-life balance. Work life balance includes Flexible hours Alternate work schedules Vacations Dr. Reddy’s management should give little more importance to the Career growth and development of the employee within the organization. A manager plays a role of a mentor, they are the ones who involve employees in the work. So they need to hire managers who can make and maintain good relations with their subordinates. Promoting team work will improve the relationship between employees. This can lead to good and healthy competition and relation between the employees. Management of Dr. Reddy’s can support employees by providing them recognition and appreciation. 8. ANNEXURE 1. How long have you been employed at DR.Reddy’s? 1. Less than 1 year 2. 1-3 years 3. 3-5 years 4. 5-10 years 5. More than 10 years 2. What factors have influenced you to remain with Dr. Reddy’s? ( SCORE 3 as most preferred, 2 as second preferred and 1 s last preferred) 1. ___ Pay 2. ___ Benefit Package (Health Insurance, ect.) 3. ___ Promotional Opportunities 4. ___ Work hours/Shift work 5. ___ Loyalty to community 6. ___ Team culture/peer relations 7. ___ Working conditions( i.e. Safety) 8. ___ Leadership (Dr. Reddy’s only) 9. ___ Training 10. ___ Retirement plan 11. ___ Contribution to the Organization 3. How Satisfied are you with your career development within Dr. Reddy’s? 1. Dissatisfied 2. Somewhat Dissatisfied 3. Neutral 4. Satisfied 5. Very Satisfied 4. What is your level of satisfaction with the attitude of teamwork within Dr. Reddy’s? 1. Dissatisfied 2. Somewhat Dissatisfied 3. Neutral 4. Satisfied 5. Very Satisfied 5. I feel that my contribution is respected and appreciated by the department. 1. Strongly Disagree 2. Disagree 3. Neutral 4. Agree 5. Strongly Agree 6. I have a comprehensible course for career advancement inside Dr. Reddy’s. 1. Strongly Disagree 2. Disagree 3. Neutral 4. Agree 5. Strongly Agree 7. The workload placed on personnel is fair and realistic. 1. Strongly Disagree 2. Disagree 3. Neutral 4. Agree 5. Strongly Agree 8. Have you ever considered leaving Dr. Reddy’s? 1. Yes 2. No 9. If your answer was yes to the previous question; what would be the reasons? (SCORE 3 as most preferred, 2 as second preferred and 1 s last preferred) 1. Pay and benefits ____ 2. Better opportunity ____ 3. Family reasons ____ 4. New challenges ____ 5. Relocation ____ 6. Leadership ____ 7. Poor or no communication ____ 8. Job security ____

Velocity in Soccer Paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Velocity in Soccer - Research Paper Example The speed involved in the velocity is defined as the distance an object covers by time, which means that speed is equal to distance. It is usually measured in meters per second. Velocity, which is usually abbreviated as â€Å"V,† is proven by the formulae V= displacement/ time. This means that for there to be any velocity, there has to be a displacement of an object, which is subject to the time that it covers usually measured in seconds. This article looks at the various velocity forces that are effected in soccer among various world known soccer players. It looks at the differences in horizontal and vertical velocity while still keeping focus on accuracy, which is hitting the goal. Velocity acceleration shows how an object changes its speed overtime within a given duration of time. When the object is travelling at a constant velocity, it means that the object is travelling at a steady speed in a particular direction. When an objects speed is increased when moving to a partic ular direction, it means that the object is referred to be accelerating. Contrary, if the object is reducing its speed, the object is said to be decelerating. In a mathematical approach, we can derive the formulae of velocity as follows. Average Velocity (V) = change in position = Displacement (D) Time (T) Time (T) One of the velocities that affect soccer is angular velocity. This special measure is used to evaluate the speed at which an object such as a soccer ball spins if it is locating on its axis in a circular movement. Soccer balls are usually circular in shape. This measure is usually described in radians per second or per minute. In other measures, it is usually measured in cycle per minute or even rotations per minute. If the soccer ball is measured in rotations, we describe this as rotational speed. Secondly, we have horizontal velocity. This special measure is used to evaluate the speed at which an object such as a soccer ball moves in a horizontal direction over a given time. Similarly, to the angular velocity, the horizontal velocity measure the speed, distance covered, and time spent by that object to cover that distance. It involves the displacement of an object from one position to another. The third type of velocity is the vertical velocity. This involves the displacement of an object such as a soccer ball to move vertically into a higher position from its original surface or to move vertically from a higher surface towards a lower position without moving into another direction. An example can be hitting a soccer ball into the air, vertically, or throwing a stone upwards aiming to hit a bird that is up in the air. All this types of velocities are used in the soccer game. They involve the players hitting the ball to pass to a different player, or aiming to score a goal. Velocity has a direct relation with soccer. When a player hits the ball, it accelerates and gains speed or velocity. This happens in that the ball moves to the direction, which is hit. However, this ball reduces the speed as it moves to the direction. A cause of this reduction in speed is often due to the resistance that the soccer ball faces. One of the causes is wind. The ball displaces the air where it is headed to, which causes resistance. This in turn slows the ball and eventually slows down. A recent research was carried out on the effect of velocity on soccer. It involves soccer players Marco Van Basten, Dennis Bergkamp, Lionell Messi and Robin Van Persie. These soccer players

With respect to the 4th ammendment, briefly explain the following Essay

With respect to the 4th ammendment, briefly explain the following concepts, in doing so be sure to present the respective cases - Essay Example In the landmark case of Silverthorne Lumber Co. v. United States [1920], Federal agents that illegally seized tax books of a suspect and made copies as records of tax evasion. The Court held that such illegal seizure circumvented the Fourth Amendment, and that the records made are fruits from the poisonous tree (illegal seizure of tax books), hence may not be considered in court. However, under the independent source doctrine evidence that is obtained based upon information unrelated to an unlawful search is not fruit of the poisonous tree. In the case of Segura v. United States (1984), law enforcers entered the private premises of the suspect and remained in there until the search warrant arrived. The Supreme Court admitted the evidence found after the search warrant arrived but excluded all others as upon entry without the warrant. The Court held that the question on the legality of entry was irrelevant to challenge the admissibility of evidence due to the independent source of the warrant. In the case of United States v. Leon (1984), a police officer that relied on a defective search warrant with no knowledge of the validity of the basis for how it was obtained was said to have acted in good faith, and the evidence obtained from such defective search warrant was allowed in Court.

Amenorrhea in Adolescent Girls Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Amenorrhea in Adolescent Girls - Essay Example It has been gathered that 75% girls begin breast development by age 11.5 years. By age 12 more than 95% girls begin breast development. So it is perfectly fine to evaluate no menstruation state after age of 13 years. Eating disorders is considered one of the causes of primary amenorrhea. Appropriate evaluation and referral becomes necessary in such cases. Around 0.3% to 0.5% of young women are found to have the condition of Anorexia Nervosa and majority of the cases are in age group of 15 to 19 years. While diagnosing anorexia nervosa, amenorrhea is found as one of necessary features. Other contributing factors are excessive exercise, low body weight, and stress -induced activation of the hypothalamic function. Low body weight and amenorrhea has some kind of relationship; however, it is not always the case. It has been found that around 20% of the women with anorexia nervosa have been found to develop amenorrhea before they lose significant body weight. It is important to notice that young women with bulimia nervosa are of normal weight even then they are found to suffer from irregular menses, perhaps due to dietary restriction. At times, many women do have some kind of eating disorders that cannot be classified as anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa adolescents but they are part of an eating disorder not otherwise specified (EDNOS) and some of them are also found to have amenorrhea. Usually, weight restoration and nutritional food resumes menses. Amenorrhea may also occur due to prolong use of antipsychotic medication. Antipsychotic drugs have been found to block dopamine D2 receptors increasing prolactin secretion by 5-10 times from the pituitary gland. Antidepressants too have been found to increase prolactin levels. Contraceptives in injectable form also cause amenorrhea. The use of medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA) causes amenorrhea in 50% of cases and that number increases to 75%, if its use continues for two years. Stress, physical or

Both Faustini and Cavalli's Calisto and Quinault and Lully's Atys are Essay

Both Faustini and Cavalli's Calisto and Quinault and Lully's Atys are mortals who find themselves ensnared in a web of amor - Essay Example This idea of progress, thumbing one’s nose at the intentions and designs of the deities, was understood to be tantamount to the worst possible crime that could be committed by man against the gods. Understandings of progress and an appreciation for mythology has pervaded European culture throughout the centuries. As such, at the time that operatic dramas began to be exhibited within Europe, near the beginning of the Baroque period, an understanding and general appreciation for the compliments of mythology and the idea that humans were merely the playthings of the gods, was carried alongside the musical development and plot design that came to define these operas. As a function of understanding this to a more full and complete degree, the following analysis will discuss the way in which Faustini and Cavalli’s â€Å"Calisto† as well as Quinault and Lully’s â€Å"Atys† represented mere mortals that were operating merely as pawns in a struggle for self- determination and freedom from the gods. Although this may be relevantly understood with regards to a description and discussion of mythology, the following analysis will present such a determination with regards to the way in which the musical composition of the individual librettos indicates this in and of itself. Firstly, with regards to the way in which a sense of helplessness is represented and the overall resignation to fatalism is accepted in both pieces, the listener must be keenly aware of the nuanced transition from major to minor keys to take place throughout the individual librettos. These transitions occur not indiscriminately but with respect to the subject matter that is being engaged in the actual plot development that is occurring. Ultimately, the individual characters briefly hope for a release from the fatalistic and resigned nature that they have experienced; however, as reality begins to seep in and they become more and more aware of the hopelessness of determin ing their own flight and fighting for their own future, the transition from major to minor invariably occurs (Deacon 37). Whereas the human spirit is represented as eternally hopeful, this hope turns into doubt, foreboding, and resignation as these individual shifts take place. Another means through which the fatalism is evidenced throughout both of these respective pieces is with regards to the dramatic pause that the composers were able to provide. Whereas a dramatic pause in music has been utilized for a great many things, the dramatic pauses that were included within the librettos included pointed to the fact that the characters in question were becoming fully aware of the reality of their situations and/or considering the foolishness of their hopeful expectations. Invariably, these dramatic pauses were leveraged as a means of alerting the viewer that a shift in thinking and a fundamentally different approach than had previously been presented was taking place. Another mechanism through which hope, despair, and fatalism is presented is with regards the way in which an uptick in tempo and an increase in the suspense of the music prior to revelations of actions by the gods and the means by which these will impact upon the respective characters is exhibited. In this way, a type of foreshadowing is created by the respective composers as for knowledge

Fundamentals of Economics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Fundamentals of Economics - Essay Example Aside from prices, there are a host of factors that may either push for an upward or downward effect on the volume of demand or supply exerted towards the market. Among the determinants for demand include taste and preference of consumers, income level of consumers, availability of substitute products, and population. For supply, the determinants include, but are not limited to, production cost, taxes and subsidies, number of producers or suppliers, available technology, and prices of substitutes. Applying some principles in marketing, demand can further be described or categorized as latent demand, and effective demand. While consumers may want to have a number of units of a particular commodity constituting the latent demand for that commodity, only consumers who have the capacity to pay for that commodity at a price level producers are willing to supply will constitute the effective demand. Elasticity, on the other hand, can be simply defined as the degree of change on the volume of demand or supply of a particular product in relation to changes in the behavior of its determinants. For example, a product that has an elastic demand is a product whose volume or quantity being demanded in the market has increased tremendously due to a lower tag price offer in the market. At the same time, such product with elastic demand would have a tremendous decrease in volume of quantity demanded should its price suddenly becomes a bit more than what it previously offered to the market. In other words, elasticity can be described or defined as the degree of changes in the volume of quantity demanded or supplied given the degree of changes in its determinants. Elasticity determined by changes in prices has been referred to as price elasticity, as shown in the example that has been mentioned above. Demand or supply behavior that

Koro Syndrome Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Koro Syndrome - Essay Example For example, there has been the existence of varied anxiety syndromes that involve fright of death, fear of getting castrated and concerns regarding sexual potency. The Nigerian Yoruba believed that the main cause of male impotence was â€Å"bewitchment†, in such cases a male witch would steal a mortal man’s penis to use it for having intercourse with the wife of the victim or any other woman and then return it back in an altered and manipulated form thus making him impotent for life (Koro-A culture-bound depersonalization syndrome, n.d.) What is Koro Syndrome? Koro is primarily an anxiety disorder characterized with sexual dysfunction hysteria and death. In psychological terminology, koro is basically â€Å"genital retraction syndrome† (GRS). In layman terms, it is the delusion that the genitals will be completely shrinked into the body. The male victims of Koro mainly suffer from the fear of the fact that their penises are retracting to their abdomen and as a r esult they will die when the process gets completed. In females, it is characterized by shrinking of nipples inside the breast mass. Koro mainly occurs to men and is occasionally seen in women. ( Koro- the Genital Retraction Syndrome, 2001) However, Koro is often considered a culture-specific disorder, which means only people of certain specific cultures and territories get affected by this disease, and it is not really one of those diseases generally recognized by Western medicines. It is seen mostly in Southern China, Malaysia, Singapore as well as certain parts of Africa, Afghanistan, India and even in some parts of the West. Every region has different names for the disease, like in China it is known as â€Å"suo-yang† (suo=shrinkage yang=penis), in Cantonese it is known as â€Å"suk-yeong†, in India â€Å"jhinjhini bimari† (=tangling disease) etc. (Garlipp, 2008). Koro, primarily seen in the South China region, mainly affects young normal Chinese males in th e age range of 21-40 years who have prior experiences of premorbid sexual inadequacies and maladjustments. Most commonly cited reasons of Koro Syndrome mainly include masturbation, illicit sexual encounters with prostitutes, witchcraft etc. Psychologists who laterally analyze different cultures are of the view that koro is closely integrated to panic attacks due to sexual apprehensions. Attacks are often experienced by men in situations which generally cause genitals to retract slightly, such as cold weather or emotional anguish (Koro-the Genital Retraction Syndrome, 2001). Most koro attacks occur usually at nights with common symptoms like senselessness, palpitation, pounding heart rate, fear of death, loss of penile shape and muscular tone, loss of sexual desire and power and genital tingling. It has been argued that these can be sufficient criteria for diagnosis of koro but not really necessary in any ways. The fear of depersonalization is so acute in certain cases that people of ten hold on to their penis all along during the course of the attack in fear that it might disappear inside their abdomen forever. They prefer to visually inspect their penis and touch them often to be sure of its existence and size (Koro-A culture-bound depersonalization syndrome, n.d.) Cultural Stigma One can get some insights into the causes of Koro from the Basic Chinese Culture. Koro means head of a turtle in Chinese. The Chinese, for long have been using the turtle symbol for long lasting lives and for

Critical Summaries Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Critical Summaries - Essay Example Mimics and gestures are also predetermined by culture. At the same time, some facial expressions are universal. Russell (1991) considers different points of view and recognizes limitations of his study. Provided literature review clearly explains different approaches to emotion categorization. Significance of culture and language in emotion cognition become clear when Russell (1991) supports them with examples and observations. This article becomes the point of departure for further research in sociocultural aspect of emotions. The article The Construction of Emotion in Interactions, Relationships, and Cultures by Boiger and Mesquita (2012) presents the main argument that emotions are constructed in the process of social interactions. Authors list three main contexts of interactions which can be moment-to-moment, ongoing relationships and sociocultural. Moment-to-moment interactions motivate emotional responses in people which become parts of ongoing relationships that exist in bigger sociocultural context. All these contexts define uniqueness and character of emotional response people express in the process of communication. Boiger and Mesquita (2012) oppose naturalist models which define emotions as universal, invariant and innate programs. Their line of reasoning relies on developmental psychology which studies emotion formation in infants and adults. For instance, infants develop their in the process of interaction with their caregivers. Being in relationships, people do not only express their emotions, but share them. As a result, their emotions adapt to the kind of relationships they have. Finally, sociocultural context often defines expected emotional responses in particular situations. Overall, Boiger and Mesquita (2012) back their argument referring to other relevant research with makes their article persuasive. They present enough facts and examples to apply their theory practically and show how it works.

Toxicology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

Toxicology - Essay Example gy disciplines, which relate well to occupational health and safety as they protect the staff from toxicity exposure at their work places (Greim, & Snyder, 2008). Clinical toxicology dwells on the effects of drugs as well as other chemicals in human beings. Every human being is exposed to chemicals and drugs at least once in their lives and it is usually accompanies with effects. This discipline tries to analyze the relationship between the doses of drugs and the effects they cause on people. Usually, a clinical toxicologist is in charge of this sector and usually aims at treating people who have faced such exposures. The clinical toxicologist is present in clinical settings to handle such incidents. This way, occupation health and safety is enhanced because the clinical toxicologist will first observe the symptoms and provide a treatment plan as well as advising on how one can cope with some adverse effects. Industries are known for their manufacturing and processing procedures. The goods produced are of a wide variety and some are consumables. This discipline of toxicology aims at ensuring that the products a company produces are safe hence do not pose a risk to consumers as well as employees (Kacew, & Lee, 2013). This discipline relates to occupational health and safety since it ensures that laboratory tests are conducted to ensure that the components used in manufacturing the products do not have negative side effects. This is necessary since the employees are constantly in contact with the raw materials during processing and even the final products as they conduct sales to the consumers. This puts them at risk and a company should therefore have industrial toxicologists that will ensure that the wide range of products is safe and effective. Forensic toxicology is a discipline of toxicology, which deals with gathering and providing information to the authorities following the event of drugs and poison exposure (Kacew & Lee, 2013). Forensic toxicologists

Electrinic and Digital Media Paper Essay Example for Free

Electrinic and Digital Media Paper Essay Historically the role of media in our society was one of delivering news and information for the sake of knowledge. According to Vivian, the news media served as the major watch dog in the gathering and sharing of information across the world. Traditions of a culture, such as China, have long been created an opportunity for free creative and artistic expression as a means of media exposure in countries where there is great government regulation. Now in a more contemporary role, media has become so integrated in people’s lives that many are swimming in a mass media ocean of communication. Media multitasking has become such of a normal routine for most people, that without media their lives would be empty (Vivian 2011). Over the years mass media has advanced in so many areas, becoming the technological assisted transmission of messages to mass audiences (Vivian 2011) of photography, sound, and transmission. Technology has been the foundation of mass communication in the media industry for years. If not for the invention of the printing press, books and newspapers may have never been published. Mass media has become almost solely dependent on the technology of today. Technological development of the Internet offers the potential, if appropriately utilized, to be an enabler of a more sustainable future (Ahmed 1999). Mass communication has evolved through the years with the emergence of various technologies such as printing, chemical, digital, and electronics. These technologies have contributed to media growth far beyond what anyone could believe early in the history of Mass communications. Particularly with the emergence of Chemical and Electronic technologies movies became popular and the radio and television mediums sky rocketed in popularity. Photography early on helped to increase the power of the printed word by bringing words to life by leading the charge in producing pictures in books, newspapers and magazines. The recording industry has evolved from the phonograph to the iPod allowing for radio to be everywhere and communication being transferred through airwaves for audiences which printed sources could not reach. Much of the technologies from above have become more of a necessity rather than a luxury by which only a few persons can benefit. With the invention of the printing press the newspaper industry has been able to mass produce a product from an initial template of an idea. Cameras and projectors have moved past capturing a moment into creating a moment vision, by understanding the eye retains a vision of a period of time, and if multiple photos could be taken, linked together, and flipped quickly, the human eye could be tricked into visualizing motion of an object. Creating a continuous motion, which later became known as â€Å"Film† and now digital photos. With the development of digital technology there has been great efficiency brought to various aspects of many people’s lifestyles. (Vivian 2011). Bell Labs lead the way in revolutionizing a new media avenue known as â€Å"The Net†. The internet in the early 1990’s was vastly evolving into the next means of mass communication. Bell Labs was in the forefront of the digital age by walking us into a media convergence. Where bits of data, we commonly refer to as messages, could be transmitted over the internet in large capacity at a certain rate of speed and reassemble as readable text upon reception at its destination. Now in 2012 because of the efforts of Bell Labs the digital age has advanced throughout time to where we once dialed a phone number from memory, we now speak a name and our phones dial for us. Smartphone devices have opened up a new world where everything is truly at your finger tips. Where Companies once relied on Trucks and warehouse for logistical need for distributing their products, they now have cut cost by utilizing the internet. Products such as books, magazines, and newspapers, printed media, have bought in to the immediate delivery of their brands in a matter of minutes versus days or weeks even. In the last 20 years all of the new trends and developments within the electronic and digital media industry the role of mass media has changed but yet still remains the same in its function. Persons, who once in casual conversation referred to their business as the newspaper business, now have restricted their verbiage and now work in the news business. References CREATIONISM Study teaching; MASS media; GREAT Britain; ROYAL Society (Great Britain); RELIGION science; REISS, Michael Ahmed, Pervaiz K.; Hardaker, Glenn. Business Strategy the Environment (John Wiley Sons, Inc). Jan1999, Vol. 8 Issue 1, p75-81. 7p Vivian, J. (2011). The media of mass communication (10th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn Bacon.

International Operation Strategy of Eucerin: SWOT

International Operation Strategy of Eucerin: SWOT Chapter 1 Introduction 1.1 Research Background The use of cosmetics was over thousands of years. The earliest archaeological evidence can be traced back to some royalty in Ancient Egypt times, where the Ancient Egyptians mixed perfume, sandalwood incense and aromatherapy products with oil applied to human bodies for pilgrimages or as an antiseptic. The Ancient Greeks and Romans also used cosmetics containing often lead and mercury. In the West, the popularization of cosmetics usage began in the 17th century and was originally intended to cover face scars of female patients healed from smallpox. In the19th Century, Queen Victoria once declared publicly that the use of makeup was â€Å"improper, vulgar, and acceptable only for use by actors†. Nevertheless, by the Second World War, cosmetics have been widely used in the West (except Nazi Germany). Today, the worldwide market size for Beauty and Personal Care Industry (BPC Industry) has increased 36% during 2005-2010 and reached USD 382.3 billion last year.Despite the significant influence of global economic recession in the year of 2009, BPC industry still showed stable and continuous growth in certain regions with emerging markets, particularly in Asia Pacific and Latin America. It is forecasted that these two dynamic regions will drive the BPC future global sales and become equally the joint largest market (with Western Europe) by 2014. Figure 1 and 2 below shows the global and regional market value of BPC industry during 2005 to 2010. Cosmetics industry, also called Personal Care Products Industry, Cosmetics and Toiletries Industry, Health and Beauty Industry, or Beauty and Personal Care Industry in this paper, in which companies manufacture and/or market personal care products such as creams, lotions, perfumes or makeup, covers a fully 13 key sub-sectors (Fig. 3). Recent reports show that Skin Care is the largest sector in the BPC industry (Fig. 4). It is predicted that in 2014, Skin Care, together with Hair Care, Colour Cosmetics and Fragrances sector will become the principle contributors to global BPC sales value growth due to the booming market in Asia Pacific. In Asia Pacific region, China represents today one of the most important and attractive BPC markets in the world due to its huge population, the increasing purchasing power of consumer and a better awareness of fashion among the younger generation. According to National Bureau of Statistics of China, the retail value of Chinese BPC products reached RMB 133.24 billion (proximately USD 20.51 billion) in 2010 with a 11.4% nominal growth compared to 2009. The total Chinese BPC market value is expected to reach as much as RMB 206 billion (proximately USD 31.7 billion) by 2014. However, in spite of this rising trend, industry players talked about that the increasing costs such as rental, labour, logistic and advertisement has given heavy pressure on cosmetics companies particularly those who had poorer brand equity were losing their profit margin. 1.2 Research Motivation Funded by Dr. Lifschà ¼tz in 1900, Eucerin ® is now Germanys largest and worlds 4th leading dermo-cosmetics brand in pharmacy segment in Skin Care industry. Belonging to famous German Group Beiersdorf AG, Eucerin sees itself as a â€Å"dermatologist-recommended skin care brand† that provides reliable, high quality and effective dermo-cosmetic products and expertise. Currently, Eucerin provides skin care products that are catalogued in 4 major lines: Face Care, Sensitive Skin Care, Dry Skin Care (medical products) and Sun Protection. Each line contains quite a few sub-lines that are assorted either by skin types / products functions (pure, dry, very dry, problematic, sensitive skin, etc.) or by products application places of the skin (face, body, deodorant, hair, etc.). While Eucerin firstly entered into Asian BPC markets in 1991 and quickly built its brand awareness and popularity among the world of pharmacy skin care products in Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore and Malaysia, in China, however, it has being constantly a big â€Å"missing piece† to complete its global share of market. As Chinas BPC market size is currently rated in the 3rd position after the US and Japan and is still possessing enormous growth potential (12% market growth is expected during 2011 to 2014), and the Skin Care segment is the primary driver for BPC market, it is for Eucerins greatest interest and challenge how to exceed existing international and local skin care competitors to complete its global entire territory. 1.3 Research Scope and Objectives The purpose of this study is therefore attempting to assess and analyse the international operation strategy of Eucerin. Through the SWOT analysis, identify and highlight the key internal and external factors of corporate ongoing strategic planning, gaining an in-depth understanding of the companys strategic operational issues, critical success factors, emerging market opportunities and future marketing challenges and trends. The research scope covers issues including the study of BPC and dermo-cosmetics industry: market sales, market share, Chinese cosmetic market regulations, marketing strategy of Eucerin: marketing segmentations, positioning, and Chinese consumer behaviours. 1.4 Research Process and Chapter Structure The process of this research is approximately composed eight stages summarized as figure 6 underneath. By the case study of Eucerin a Beiersdorf owned dermo-cosmetics brand of BPC Industry, through the literature review, SWOT and critical success factors analysis, attempting to analyse, assess and obtain an embedded understanding of the companys strategic operational issues and its future marketing challenges and trends in Chinese BPC market. Chapter 2 Literature Review 2.1 Beauty and Personal Care Industry The global Beauty and Personal Care market (BPC market), also called Cosmetics and Toiletries market has generated total revenues of US$ 382.3 billion in 2010, representing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 36% for the period 2005-2010. By comparison, markets of Asia Pacific, Western Europe and North America brought out 70% of global BPC market in 2010 (Fig. 8). Most interestingly, both Western Europe and North Americas BPC markets has witnessed the economic recession, showed a negative growth in 2009 and decelerated performance afterward, while markets in Asia Pacific and Latin America, sales growth continue and for the first time the BPC market of Asia Pacific region (mainly referable to China) overtook the first position of global BPC market (Fig. 9). 2.1.1 Market Segmentation and Differentiations BPC products cover all daily personal care cosmetics such as makeup, nail polishes, hair sprays, hair colours, creams, lotions, perfumes, deodorants, shower and bath gel, bath salts, and lots of other product types. The market can be sorted into a completed 13 key sub-sectors scope as we have mentioned earlier (Fig. 10). Skin Care segment is the leading category that generates 22% of worldwide BPC market due to Asia Pacifics booming sales, the rising demand of anti-age products also conducts the segment as the key contributors to global BPC market over the forecast period. Global skin care brands can be also sorted by their marketing positioning into six classes: professional brands, luxury/premium, pharmacy/dermo-cosmetics (cosmeceuticals), organic/natural brands, direct-selling and mass market products. Each segment targets different consumers according to their purchasing power, quality requests or specific needs, etc. Key competitors of each class are listed below: Professional skin care brands (distributed mainly by beauty salons, spas): Sothys Paris, Lexli, RVB, Sparitual, Lotusdream, etc. Premium skin care brands(distributed mainly by department stores, perfumeries), : Shiseido, Està ©e Lauder, Lancà ´me (LOrà ©al Group), Clinique (Està ©e Lauder Group), Kanebo (Kao Group), Chanel, Christian Dior (LVMH Group), SK-II (PG Group), Yves Saint Laurent (LOrà ©al Group), etc. Pharmacy/dermo-cosmetics brands(distributed mainly by pharmacies, drugstores or via dermatologists recommendations): Vichy (LOrà ©al Group), La Roche-Posay (LOrà ©al Group), Boots, Eucerin (Beiersdorf Group), Johnsons, Avà ¨ne (Pierre Fabre SA), Caudalie, Lierac, ROC (Johnson Johnson), Nuxe, Galenic, etc. Organic/natural brands(distributed mainly by speciality stores, natural food stores): Yves Rocher, The Body Shop (LOrà ©al Group), LOccitane Direct-selling brands: Avon (USA), Natura (Brazil), Mary Kay (USA), Oriflame (Luxembourg), Artistry (Amway corp. USA), DHC (Japan), Nu Skin (USA) Mass market brands(distributed mainly by supermarkets, hypermarkets): LOrà ©al Paris, Nivea (Beiersdorf Group), Garnier (LOrà ©al Group), Olay (PG Group), Neutrogena (Johnson Johnson), Ponds (Unilever Group), Vaseline (Unilever Group) Eucerin ® is catalogued in the pharmacy/dermo-cosmetics brand of skin care industry as its products can be only purchased in pharmacies or drugstores. 2.1.2 Skin Care Industry in Western Europe For BPC industry and consumers, it has been tough in the past couple of years. However, the latest data showed that Skin Care was the only category managing to sustain an average of positive 4% growth during the economic downturn.Comprising 23% of global BPC sales in 2010, it remained the most valuable category during 2005-2010. Despite the growth of Skin Care sector slightly slowed down due to the decreased consumptions on non-essential purchases, the global sales of Skin Care sector was still largely focused in mature Western countries. Anti-age cosmeceuticals were considered and predicted as the star performer for Skin Care market for the future couple of years while the premium and luxury products performed the worst and were pushed toward the category of super premium or â€Å"masstige†skincare for a better performance and the growth in both anti-age and premium was accelerated by the high demand in Asia Pacific. Comparing to Skin Care, global Hand Care sales showed a sli ght yet stable growth and the reason was believed to be linked directly with consumers threaten perception of swine flu. In Western Europe, while recent data showed a gradual result of an average 4% Skin Care sales growth in UK, Netherlands and Germany during 2009 2010, key markets such as France, Italy and Spain reflected an average of -2% in term of sales growth, resulting an overall 2% growth drop in Skin Care segment in Western Europe (Fig. 11 and Table 1). While the Skin Care sales growth in western European slowed down in recent years, anti-age sub-category maintained an outstanding growth reflecting the desire for a younger looking appearance from the consumers. Table 1 Skin Care in Key Western European Countries (2005-2010) Crossing the overall BPC Western European market, in 2010, the top 10 Skin Care brands which share 26.2% of the market are belonging to 7 companies: Beiersdorf AG, LOrà ©al Group, Procter Gamble Co., Clarins SA, Yves Rocher SA, Està ©e Lauder Cos Inc, and Henkel AG Co., in which 4 brands are categorised into mass market class (Nivea, LOrà ©al Paris, Oolay and Garnier), 3 in premium/luxary (Clarins, Clinique and Lancà ´me), 2 in pharmacy/dermo-cosmetics (Vichy and Diadermine), and Yves Rocher is classified into natural/organic brands. On the other hand, in terms of company shares in Western European Skin Care market where up to nearly 58.6% market shares are held by the top 10 BPC companies, their products are crossing over all cosmetics classifications and sales distribution channels except the direct-selling category (Appendix 1 2). In relation to consumers behaviour toward BPC market in Western Europe, four fundamental trends characterized by Lee (2010)that impact global BPC market across all categories may sum up this market trend: the ageing population, agelessness pursuance, advances of technology and intensive awareness of health and wellness. The Ageing Population The global population is becoming older. Comparing to Japan who has the oldest population in the world with nearly 23% over the age of 65 in 2010, the median age in Western Europe today is just over 40. Japan has the differentiation of being the largest Skin Care consumer on a per capita basis. In 2010, it accounted for 22% of global skin care sales with USD 19.3 billion and this may referable to its huge older consumers, high disposable incomes and the great interest in combination of health and beauty. Agelessness Pursuance The pursuance of younger looking is highly associated with increased life-pan and the development of technologies. People take greater care of their appearances in order to reflect their interior youthfulness. In result, for example, the high demands for cosmetic minimally-invasive treatment (including Botox, laser skin resurfacing, soft tissue fillers, etc.) that intending for skin firming and elasticity made up 11.6 million procedures in 2010 with 110% growth during 2000 2010 in the US and was expecting to reach totally USD 17.6 billion in 2015. Advances of Technology Skin Care companies and manufactures today are able to sell their products with higher prices thanks to the aggressive introductions of technologically advanced formulations. Consumers in Western Europe may willing to pay up to EUR 20, EUR 40 or even EUR 300 on a product that claims benefits such as firming or wrinkle reduction and contains innovative whatsoever ingredients, while a product that only provides a single basic function may not be able to sold even it only charges EUR 10. High Awareness of Health and Wellness The concerns about health and product safety among consumers in Western Europe have massively increased during the past couple of years due to the aging population and the age-related illnesses. Consumers are becoming more and more careful about what they put on their skins and the detrimental effects of chemicals. In result, this will lead to a strong interest in finding cosmeceuticals with a balance of natural, organic ingredients and effective functions. 2.1.3 Skin Care Industry in China Table 2 BPC Market by categories in China (2009-2010) BPC market in emerging countries such the BRICs (Brazil, Russia, India and China) has shown enormous growth in the past couple of years. In China, BPC market showed strong resilience of 10% sales growth, reaching RMB 145.5 billion (proximately USD 22.4 billion) under the global recession impact in 2009 and continuously increased in 2010. While the growth rate in sectors such as deodorants, fragrances and mens grooming products were less well performed comparing to 2009, skin care, hair care and premium cosmetics were the most dynamic sectors in 2010 (Table 2 and Fig. 12). Comprising 6% of global BPC market value in 2010, Chinas BPC sales is expected to have a relative resilience to the global recession and reach as much as RMB 206 billion (proximately USD 31.7 billion) by 2014. Crossing the overall Skin Care market in China, interestingly, while 9 out of top 10 skin Care brands in Japan all belong to Japanese local BPC manufacturers, the top 10 brands who share 51.5% of Chinas Skin Care market in 2010 are from 4 foreign countries: Mary Kay (US), Artistry (US), Longligi (China) and Avon (US) are categorized into direct-selling channel; Olay (US), LOrà ©al Paris (France) and Nivea (Germany) belongs to mass market class; and Shiseido (Japan), Lancà ´me (France) and Chcà ©do (China) are classified into premium/luxary sector. There are no pharmacy/dermo-cosmetics brands in top 10 and the best performer Vichy (France) only shares 2.1% followed by La Roche-Posays (France) 0.4% in the market. 2.2 Cosmetics Market Regulation in China While China represents today one of the most important and attractive BPC markets in the world, however, its complex cosmetic regulatory system with rapid amendments make the BPC business full of difficulties. The Ministry of Health (MOH) of China has promulgated the â€Å"Regulations on Cosmetics Hygiene Supervision† on 13 November 1989 and the regulation was effective on 1 January 1990.According to it, a foreign cosmetic company (either a manufacturer or brand owner) with a valid business registration licenseis required to obtain two licenses under the cosmetic regulatory system in China the Hygiene License and the China Inspection Quarantine (CIQ) Labeling Certificate. i. Hygiene License Issued by the State Food and Drugs Administration (SFDA), the Hygiene License is concerning of cosmetic products and ingredients monitoring and supervision. Foreign companies holding Chinese business registration licenses with 3 classified cosmetic products listing below are requested to apply for an Import Hygiene License before their products are allowed to be distributed and placed on the China market (the pre-market approval): â€Å"Special-use cosmetics†, which 8 different sorts of products are included: hair dyeing, hair perm, hair-growth, deodorant, depilation, body shaping (including slimming and breast enlarging), sun cream and spot removing. Non special-use cosmetics† including ordinary BPC products such as skin care, hair, fragrance and manicure/pedicure products that are not belonged to special-use cosmetic category. â€Å"New ingredient†, meaning ingredients that are not listed on the â€Å"Inventory of Existing Cosmetic Ingredients in China (IECIC)†. There are several documents including the product ingredients list, product quality standard, product testing report and packaging are needed for Hygiene License application. A full list of application documents is attached in the appendix 4. ii. The China Inspection Quarantine (CIQ) Labeling Certificate Issued by the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ), the CIQ Labeling Certificate is concerning of imported products packaging supervision. A full list of application documents is attached in the appendix 4. Foreign BPC companies are required to a Chinese legal reporting representative throughout the SFDA Hygiene Licenses application process. Moreover, as the official language of China is simplified Chinese, all mandatory information should be in simplified Chinese including the full product ingredients list shown on cosmetic labeling. According to Pisacane (2009), the Managing Partner from Great Way Advisory, after submitting all requested documents to the SFDA, the whole application process will take 4 5 months for â€Å"non special-use cosmetics† and 8 9 months for â€Å"special-use cosmetics† to obtain the final certificate as the SFDA review and evaluate imported cosmetics only 6 times a year. In terms of cosmetics import tariffs, the current import tariff bound rate for imported BPC products is about 10% basically but it depends also on the country of origin and the product category which the import tariffs can reach as much as 150%, plus 17% VAT (value added tax) a nd 5% 30% CT (consume tax). 2.3 Chinese Consumers Behaviour Comprising 34% market share in Chinas BPC market in 2010, the skin care sector is worth USD 9.9 billion, growing at a rate above the GDPand will continue to dominate the BPC industry sales for future couple of years. While more and more people in China move from the lower class into the middle class, they are able and willing to spend more money on personal beauty care products. However, despite the fast rise in personal wealth, the development in Chinese BPC market sales growth which is greatly linked to better richness can be very fluctuating due to the countrys strong consumer saving level. Moreover, in terms of the growth of Chinas BPC sub-categories is rather unequal, for example, sector such as skin care (sales value USD 9.9 billions) is reaching mainstream status in 2010 while others such as fragrances (sales value USD 0.58 billions) and sun care (sales value USD 0.48 billions) remain niche segments. Despite these, there are still obvious areas where Chinese consumers are will ing to spend their money generously such as Premium Baby Care (21% sales growth 2009-10), Premium Skin Care (+19%) or Premium Colour Cosmetics (+15%). Chinese consumer behaviour and their knowledge, attitude, use and response to Skin Care products that reflects in their spending patterns are very much linked with Chinese Culture. Grubow(2008)characterises several beauty trends from the view points of Chinese consumers that intensively influence Skin Care market trends in China: desire for status-improving products, medicinal ingredients welcome, respect for skin care regimes, openness to professional advices and demand for luxury packaging.    Desire for Status-Improving Products Tracking back to ancient Chinese culture, giving a fair, even, pale and fragile quality skin look is quite associated with beauty as it implicated being in a aristocratic social stature. The standard of beauty does not actually change much. Today, Chinese women want a fair, flawless, radiance and translucent skin tone which is considered as wealthy and healthy, meanwhile, browner or darker skin is linked with rural and toiling for money. In result, Chinese women are interested in whitening-orientated products (but bleaching ones which do not give an appearance of evenness and a glow skin tone). Interestingly, a recent survey made by Asia Market Intelligence found that around two-thirds Chinese men also prefer fairer skin and are opened to male skin whiteners. This cultural ideal attracts to every class of people, from the mass to ultra luxury channels, and leading brands such as Olay, Shiseido, Nivea and Avon are offering whitening products not only for facial skin but body in Chinese Skin Care market. Another Chinese beauty trend in terms of status-improving is the skin concentration products which cover for examples facial masks, patches and eyes and chest treatment. Mask treatment is considered luxury as it used to be applied only in a spa treatment which required time and money. This â€Å"DIY approach† with masks containing rich textures or high-tech functions appeals to Chinese consumers and makes them feel unique and luxurious. Again, this pattern taps into the sense of status-enhancing.   Medicinal Ingredients Welcome Traditional Chinese herbal medicine impact strongly on many parts of Chinese day to day life and skin care products are no exception. Chinese consumers believe that some special ingredients provide a better benefit of healing and this is highly linked with the Chinese medicinal practices history. Taking examples of burdock, ginseng and green tea extract which contain antioxidants for skin nourishment; these natural ingredients are popular and famous among both younger and older generations because they are believed to be more inartificial and safer than other ingredients.   Respect for Skin Care Regimes Similar as Japanese skin care rituals that a full Japanese daily ritualistic process contains up to 9 separate steps, Chinese women also respect skin care order. They like to arrange their cosmetics on the dressing table and enjoy the skin care rituals consisting separate steps.While Western Consumers are appealed by products with two-in-one or multiple functions such as Neutrogenas 2-in-1 Cleansing Gel (cleansing and mask), Vichys Puretà © Thermale 3-in-1 One Step Cleanser (cleansing, toning and eye makeup remover) or Olays Total Effects, in China, women purchase Neutrogenas Deep Clean Makeup Remover, Cleanser, Blackhead Eliminating Patch and Soothing Mask or Olays Renewal Lightening Toner, Moisturizer, Lotion and Eye Cream.   Openness to professional advices Though the development of beauty and health care speciality drug stores such as Watsons, Mannings and Sasa in China is far behind the pharmacies in France or Japan or the drug stores in Germany, in principal cities of China, the specialty drug stores has witnessed an enormous sales growth during the past decade. Watsons, for instance, had only 80 outlets back in 2005. But last year, it has opened its 700th outlet in China, making it as the leading beauty and health care speciality drug store in Chinas BPC market.This is not just about the locations or its competitive prices policy that attract lots of consumers; the evidence that each Watsons outlet is equipped with counsellors and pharmacists who provide products advices and recommendations is also one of the key reasons that drive consumers into shops. Consumers in China trust and appreciate the advices of skin care from these shop assistances. It is therefore not difficult to interpret that with this advices-welcoming concept, direct-selling brands such as Mary Kay, Artistry and Avon who always come with sales counsellors and host frequently cosmetics seminars and makeup workshops appeal intensively Chinese consumers attention. (In 2010, 4 out of top 10 Skin care brands are categorized as direct-selling channel.) Demand for Luxury Packaging As consumers from emerging countries tend to search for higher cost-effectiveness products, in China, a cosmeceutical product with a luxury packaging is very much appreciated by Chinese consumers as it gives again the sense of status-enhancing. Packaging like heavy glass container appears more attraction for consumers than a plastic container even if it contains better ingredients or product volume. In addition, Trout (2011)suggests that when developing a new product range at different pricing and customer targeting, the design of packaging helps companies to define a â€Å"new† brand image and extend the attraction to wider potential consumers. 2.4 International Operation Strategy 2.4.1 Operation Strategy Strategy, originally derived from Greek word â€Å"strategos†, was firstly used in the military term and then in the management of business. Drucker(1954)proposed that strategy is â€Å"to analyse the current situation, including the inquiring of companys existing or should-be resources, and if necessary, change the situation.† Strategy was was also suggested by Chandler(1962) that â€Å"determines the base of corporations long-term objectives and taken actions, resources and configuration standards to achieve these targets.† In Andrew(1971)s The Concept of Corporate Strategy book, proposed that strategy is â€Å"the scheme of targets development and major policies and plans for the purpose of achieving specific objectives to describe the companys current and future business.† Glueck(1976)considered strategy â€Å"is a unified, coordinated, broad and integrated plan to reach the basic objectives of the organization†. The definition of strategy was a lso given by Porter (1985), â€Å"strategy is the response to external opportunities and threats, and internal strengths and weaknesses, in order to achieve competitive advantages†. In 1990, Ansoffdefined strategy as â€Å"a set of criteria to lead the organizational behaviour for the decision-making.† Kaplan and Norton(1990) described strategy is â€Å"a set of assumptions of cause and effect†. Porter(1996) again explained that strategy is â€Å"to conduct a selection among activities, enabling the organizational competitiveness while creating the sustainability and differences of the market†. There are various ways and results in strategic planning according to organizational goals and objectives that classify strategic management into different frameworks. Scholars attempt to conclude strategies in practice that are partly summarized underneath. However, there is so far no better or the most appropriate classifications or concepts. It is though agreed that a model which can be applicable to organizations would be capable to recognise and assess their chosen strategy content. Ansoff (1965)s Product-Market Growth Matrix (Table 3). Based on two basic aspects (product and market), a four-product-market portfolio is created that corresponds with corporations marketing strategy: Market penetration strategy is based on the present products portfolio, attempting to increase the market share. Market development strategy is to find and develop a new potential market basing on present products. Product development strategy is to create or bring new products in order to replace companys existing products Diversification strategy is to develop new products for new potential market. Porter (1980) characterized three general types of strategies into a category scheme that can be used to achieve and continue business competitive advantages: cost leadership strategy, differentiation strategy and segmentation strategy (Table 4). David (1986, 1995, 2010), has formed a modern Strategy-Formulation Analytical Framework that assisted strategies generate and evaluate feasible alternatives for the purpose of choosing a specific course of action. Strategies can be recognized, assessed and chosen by this framework which contains three stages including: the input, matching and decision (Table 5). 2.4.2 SWOT Analysis Originally developed by Albert Humphrey in his research project based upon the US Fortune 500 companies during 1960s to 1970s, SWOT analysis is a strategic planning method that specifies the corporate objective and identifies the favourable or unfavourable internal and external factors to accomplish this objective. It defines, analyses and evaluates corporate internal Strengths and Weaknesses and its external Opportunities and Threats that helps the organisation to determine the operational problem and the strategic decision making. A SWOT analysis result matrix was presented by Weihrich(1982) using strategies matching approach to develop relevant future coping strategies (Table 6). The procedures of SWOT analysis are often associated with corporate strategic planning process that can be combined into following steps: Conducting the description of business environment; Identifying and validating all affecting external factors; Predicting and assessing the future changes of external factors; Reviewing the internal strengths and weaknesses; Framing a feasible strategic planning by using SWOT analysis; and Conducting strategic choices and decision making. According to Weihrichs SWOT Analysis Result Matrix (in step five), a result of 22 strategies is hereby described as follows: SO Strategy: in accordance with the Maxi-Maxi principle, to consolidate strengths and improve opportunities. The direction of business development can be for example, (1) focusing on the growth of one single product, technique or market; (2) discovering new market for alternative selling channels; (3) developing new product using organizational resources; or (4) creating a new product life circle for customers to identify with aiming at winning the competitive market. It is the best operational strategy for business development and profits making with a closed coordination of corporate internal resources and external environment. WO Strategy: in accordance with the Mini-Maxi principle, to improve organizational weaknesses and manage opportunities. The result of Mini-Maxi strategic planning can be (1) unrelated diversification; (2) joint venture; (3) strategic alliance; or (4) consortium. ST Strategy: in accordance with the Maxi-Mini principle, to reinforce corporate self-strengths and cope with threats. Examples for strategic decision making can be (1) horizontal integration: integrating business of the same level to reduce competitors; (2) vertical integration: integrating upstream/downstream firms to avoid external threats; or (3) using related diversification improve business synergy.