Letter Written By MLK From Birmingham City Jail, Alabama :: essays research papers

My Dear Fellow Clergymen: While confined here in the Birmingham city jail, I came across your recent statement calling my present activities "unwise and untimely." Seldom do I pause to answer criticism of my work and ideas. If I sought to answer all the criticisms that cross my desk, my secretaries would have little time for anything other than such correspondence in the course of the day, and I would have no time for constructive work. But since I feel that you are men of genuine good will and that your criticisms are sincerely set forth, I want to try to answer your statements in what I hope will be patient and reasonable terms. I think I should indicate why I am here In Birmingham, since you have been influenced by the view which argues against "outsiders coming in." I have the honor of serving as president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, an organization operating in every southern state, with headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. We have some eighty-five affiliated organizations across the South, and one of them is the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights. Frequently we share staff, educational and financial resources with our affiliates. Several months ago the affiliate here in Birmingham asked us to be on call to engage in a nonviolent direct-action program if such were deemed necessary. We readily consented, and when the hour came we lived up to our promise. So I, along with several members of my staff, am here because I was invited here I am here because I have organizational ties here. But more basically, I am in Birmingham because injustice is here. Just as the prophets of the eighth century B.C. left their villages and carried their "thus saith the Lord" far beyond the boundaries of their home towns, and just as the Apostle Paul left his village of Tarsus and carried the gospel of Jesus Christ to the far corners of the Greco-Roman world, so am I compelled to carry the gospel of freedom beyond my own home town. Like Paul, I must constantly respond to the Macedonian call for aid. Moreover, I am cognizant of the interrelatedness of all communities and states. I cannot sit idly by in Atlanta and not be concerned about what happens in Birmingham. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny.

Comparative Economics: U.K. vs. Japan :: Economics Essays

The economy of a nation is a major indication of its success. One aspect of a nation's economic success or failure is the system of government. Whether a nation is socialistic, communistic, ruled by absolute sovereignty, or based on capitalistic principles can be a key factor in a country's economic success or failure. Government is the foundation of an economy but it is not what determines its success. Issues that determine a nation’s economic success include growth strategies, improved or increased resources, investment and savings, government policies, trade, foreign direct investment, income distribution, labor allocation, innovations in technology, and several other economic issues. I feel that economic growth is the main indicator of economic success. Additionally, innovations in technology, improving human capital, and improving foreign direct investment (FDI) are three issues that can lead to economic growth. In the following essay I will try to compare two highly developed economies, Japan and The United Kingdom. I will emphasize the success of their economies and how human capital, advancing technology (innovation), and FDI have contributed to their current success or failure. I will briefly discuss the contemporary history of each country, thoroughly cover their current conditions, and end with expectations for their future. Introduction: Comparison of Japan and the United Kingdom The U.K. and Japan seem natural subjects for comparison. British and Japanese observers alike have long been fascinated by the many parallels (and the even more numerous divergences) in the histories of these two island nations. Particularly interesting about these two was the "economic role reversal† which occurred between Japan and Britain over the course of the twentieth century. In 1900, the United Kingdom was the world's dominant colonial, financial and naval power, as well as a center of industrial production and technological innovation. Japan was a mere up-start, a precocious and aspiring, but still unthreatening, economic competitor in East Asia. The beginning of the twentieth century, and more accurately the 1950s, saw Japan and Great Britain’s economic â€Å"role† reverse. Although Britain has enjoyed healthy growth rates and rising standards of living over the past 100 years, it has been progressively eclipsed by Japan as an economic superpower an d an international model. Indeed, Britain's accomplishments have paled in comparison to Japan's meteoric rise: while Japan has emerged as the outstanding economic "success story" of the twentieth century, Great Britain's relatively modest performance has been both discouraging and confounding. Brief Contemporary History:

Treyvon Martin and Clarence Thomas Essay -- Political Spectacle, Polit

On February 26, 2012, an apparently innocent teenager was shot as he walked home through his neighborhood late at night. The Trayvon Martin killing and trial has recently been one of the primary topics covered by the media in America. The response to the news coverage of the case has been staggering. Students have organized hoodie marches and created Facebook groups to protest the unjustified murder of the young man. However, is the American public as well informed as it pretends to be? Americans have an unsettling susceptibility to manipulation from the media. In 1991, a similar event occurred in the case of the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings, where Supreme Court nominee, Clarence Thomas, had his personal affairs put on display for America. This event ignited unrest in women’s rights and civil rights groups across the country. Americans were surprised to discover that the nation had been blind to these supposed political injustices for years. The Clarence Thomas confir mation hearings cloaked a staggering message to the American people about media’s role in manipulating American sentiment by sensationalizing the news coverage relayed to the American public. The original purpose of the Clarence Thomas hearings were to determine if George Bush’s nominee for Supreme Court Justice, Clarence Thomas, was a legitimate nominee for the prestigious role of Supreme Court justice. However, the hearings quickly developed into little more than a â€Å"political spectacle.† A political spectacle â€Å"is public in the sense that it deals with a†¦ scandalous action that carries instant and wide appeal no matter who does it† . The spectacle was tailored so that it would reach and catch the attention of millions of viewers. In order to accomplish th... ...ide, â€Å"Deconstructing the Political Spectacle: Sex, Race, and Subjectivity in Public Response to the Clarence Thomas/ Anita Hill â€Å"Sexual Harassment† Hearings,† American Journal of Political Science 37 (1993): 701. Dianne Rucinski, â€Å"Rush to Judgment? Fast Reaction Polls in the Anita Hill-Clarence Thomas Controversy,† The Public Opinion Quarterly 57 (1993): 575. Frances Trix and Andrea Sankar, â€Å"Women's Voices and Experiences of the Hill-Thomas Hearings,† American Anthropologist 100 (1998): 32. Larry Hugick, "On Night before Vote, Support for Thomas Remains Strong," Gallup Poll News Service 56 ( 1991): 2. Murray Edelman, Constructing the Political Spectacle (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1988), 99. Thomas P. Kim, â€Å"Clarence Thomas and the Politicization of Candidate Gender in the 1992 Senate Elections,† Legislative Studies Quarterly 23 (1998): 399.

Disney: An organisational culture Essay

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to discuss the corporate culture of Disney. Within the discussion, a number of topics will be addressed that include: formal statements prevalent in the organization and their impact to the organization, a description of the environment and the statement it makes relative to the organization, the types of language or sayings used in the organization, the type of role modeling, training and teaching that is emphasized, rewards used to motivate employees, stories and legends that are familiar to employees and customers, outcome measures used by leaders within the organization, how leaders respond to critical incidents or crisis, workflow and organizational structure, an evaluation of organization systems and procedures and the types of organizational goals and associated criteria used for the selection of employees. Disney philosophy The mission of The Walt Disney Company is to be one of the world’s leading producers and providers of entertainment and information. Using their portfolio of brands to differentiate their content, services and consumer products, they seek to develop the most creative, innovative and profitable entertainment experiences and related products in the world (Disney.com). This mission statement originated from the original business philosophy of Walt Disney which was: (a) quality will out! (b) give the people everything you can give them; (c) keep the place as clean as you can keep it; (d) keep it friendly; (e) make it a fun place to be (Johnson, 1991). According to Rick Johnson in his article A Strategy for Service (1991), Walt Disney was committed to the single goal of creating happiness for customers whom Walt called guests. He knew that if guests were happy, they would return. Disney also understood that one bad guest experience or disappointment would conversely keep that guest from returning. The focus of Disney corporate culture is guest driven service. In order to ensure there is no deviation from the goal, Disney has created a corporate culture in which the employees or â€Å"cast members† live while at work. It is the Disney way of life which places service to guests above all else. Disney’s legendary customer service is so renowned that today, companies from all areas of business engage in Disney training to improve their customer service. Another key element of Disney culture is to foster creativity and to sustain innovation (Lynch 2001). Disney knew that when employees were encouraged to â€Å"think out of the box† and that their ideas were respected, they would consistently deliver. Disney was known for seeking input from all levels within the organization because he believed good ideas could come from anywhere. The Disney environment Disney opened his first theme park in 1955. His goal was to provide a good show through themed entertainment. Disney essentially transformed his legendary animated movies into reality. The entire park became a stage filled with props and actors. When guests entered Disneyland, they were no longer the audience; they became part of the show. In order for this to be successful, Disney understood he had to control the environment so to speak so that the experience was replicated. He believed that by controlling the environment, the reactions of the guests within the environment could be predicted (Johnson 1991). Disney also understood he had to control the response of his employees to the guests. Being a director and movie-maker, Disney’s view was that it would not be unlike controlling the action in a play or movie in which the cast members have a script and an expected set of actions. Disney took this philosophy a step further by making every employee a cast member. Cast members have a script and a set of standards that are acted out every time they go to work at a Disney location. It is easy to understand why Disney was so successful in consistently delivering the Disney experience. Disneyspeak corporate language Disney created an entire corporate culture by transforming his movie productions into real life experiences for people. One of the ways in which Disney was able to accomplish this feat was by expressing his expectations through the development of a unique corporate language referred to as â€Å"Disneyspeak† (Edginton, 1998) that set the stage and expectations for his vision. In the world of Disney, people were no longer customers, they became guests. Disney teams were charged with the study of â€Å"guestology† (Johnson 1991) which was to develop programs and actions that would consistently exceed guest expectations. Employees became cast members who are literally cast in a role for daily performance (Edginton, 1998) designed to create â€Å"magic moments† for the guests. All of this conveys the message that guests are at the center of all actions and interactions. Cast members understand that attention to detail is critical and that their role is to â€Å"sell the vision† to every guest. Disney empowers cast members with the service theme of â€Å"creating happiness† and provides extensive training, communication and support systems to ensure cast members can make the best decision with every guest encounter (Johnson 1991). Role modeling, training and teaching It seems that Walt Disney is established upon the training, teaching and role modeling among their employees to have good customer service. Everyone who has ever been to a Walt Disney theme park is often warmly welcomed by greetings from such role models handed down through the years to children and adults alike of characteristics like those of Mickey Mouse, Goofy and Donald Duck. These three characters are the main role models of how the rest of the staff should be trained and taught to handle their guests at the Disney Park it appears. This example is not to say that their reputable service is necessarily grounded in stone rather it is ever evolving based upon the premise of their well-known hospitality. The whole concept of their welcoming practices seem to revolve around what their guests would expect and is developed through this whole company as a result of the efforts pertaining to their Public Relations. Employee rewards and recognition Some of the incentives and rewards that the managers and staff receive are warm and generous letters from their visitors and guests as evidenced by the following statements. â€Å"Staff members at Disney receive plenty of training, support, and recognition from their leaders and they don’t stay around long if they don’t buy into the Disney culture† (Amusement Business, Vol. 115 Issue 49, p3, 2p). â€Å"A great deal of passion goes into training and that results in happier employees†, so it seems that the rewards and status symbols that are used to motivate the employees of Disney is a culture and tradition of understanding and compassion that are handed down from employee to employee based on the Disney model throughout the years. In addition to the compassion and understanding, there is much room for growth and promotion as an incentive for those who work hard and do well. Weiss, one of the head managers at Walt Disney walks through the park among the buying public guests to make sure that everything is going smoothly. Additionally, he strives to make himself as accessible to his employees at Disney as possible which helps to promote the communication among the employees that they are working in a compassionate and understanding environment. His style of management functions as incentives and rewards which motivate the Disney staff. Disney legends The Walt Disney collections, Walt’s masterworks, and Walt’s thought are among the stories, legends, and myths familiar to employees and customers. The story of Pinocchio was heartwarming of a unique friendship. The artwork picture of Pinocchio underlined Walt’s belief of designing his animated characters to look real as if they were made of flesh and blood. The animation of â€Å"Bambi† was an interesting picture which took over Pinocchio. Bambi, a deer, was an animated character with an anatomy. The animation of Bambi was an improvement in quality of artwork in all his pictures. Bambi’s mother who was killed off-screen is remembered as one of the most powerful moments of any Disney film. The Golden Age of Animation (1937 – 1942) also called the â€Å"creative explosion† marks the most creative periods in the history of Disney Studios on animation motion pictures. The release of â€Å"Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs† and â€Å"Bambi† films during this five year period remain the most memorable periods in history and a lasting tribute to the remarkable career of Walter Elias Disney. In a study by the Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, children who watch animated films produced by Disney Studios are exposed to a greater incidence of mental illness than they may have experienced if they had watched similar films on TV (Lawson, and Fonts. 2004). Organizational activities, processes and outcome measures In its efforts to uphold excellence, and integrity in all its professional relationships, Walt Disney undertakes the following business activities described below. The Disney Studio Entertainment is the foundation on which the Walt Disney Company was built. The Studio Entertainment is known for its rich legacy of quality creative content and exceptional storytelling. At the heart of the Studio Entertainment are the renowned animated features and live-action motion pictures. The Studio Entertainment distributes its pictures under Walt Disney Pictures, Touchstone Pictures, Miramax Films, and Buena Vista Home Entertainment. The Disney name has now become associated with quality entertainment for the whole family. The Disney Parks and Resorts has become one of the most popular amusement parks known to tourists in recent times. It is the home of the Disney’s beloved characters-Mickey Mouse, Pinocchio, Cinderella and the whole lot. Among the Parks and Resorts are Disneyland in Anaheim, California, Disneyland in Orlando, Florida, Tokyo Disney Resort, and Disneyland Resort in Paris. In all, there are 10 theme Parks on three continents with the 11th Park in Hong Kong to be opened in September 2005. In addition, 35 resort hotels and two luxury cruise ships is part of entertainment offerings in Hong Kong. The Disney theme parks and resorts celebrate Disneyland 50th Anniversary, an 18 month celebration which is scheduled to begin May 5, 2005. The Disney Consumer Products began merchandising in 1929 with the appearance of Mickey Mouse on the cover of a children’s writing tablet. Among its products are apparel, toys, home dà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½cor, and books to interactive games, foods and beverages, electronics and fine art. DisneyStore.com and Disney catalog are the direct marketing tools used by Walt Disney Company. Disney Media Networks include the television, radio, cable, and the internet landscape. ABC entertainment, ABC Daytime, ABC News, and ABC sports appear on the television media. For the cable network are Disney channel, ABC Family, and Toon Disney. And for the radio media are Radio Disney and ABC News Radio. A fund with the American Red Cross has been set up by the Walt Disney Company with an initial donation of one million dollars and having its employees as contributors. The first quarter of 2005 financial results for the Walt Disney Company will be announced live beginning Monday January 31, 2005 at 4:30pm (E ST) through February 7, 2005 at 4:00pm (PST). Disney leadership reaction to critical incidents and crisis The Business leaders at Walt Disney pay attention to the world around them almost as much as they mange their organization. In doing so, DisneyHand a worldwide outreach of The Walt Disney Company brings the magic of Disney to those affected by incidents beyond their control. Along with cast-members (called Disney VoluntEARS), outreach helps in the areas of compassion, partnering with organizations that serve children, families, or others facing crises. In fiscal year 2004, DisneyHand donated more than $165 million in cash. Disney VoluntEARS also contributed more than 450,000 hours to help that in need (Business Wire 2001). In September 2001, DisneyHand committed to contributing 5 Million Dollars to the DisneyHAND Survivor Relief Fund. (Business Wire 2001) These donations went to providing assistance to victims and their Families of the New York and Washington D.C. 9/11 attacks. In doing so, Disney and DisneyHand display a culture of empathy and solidifies its corporate culture of ethical practices, and giving to the community. DisneyHand also creates the perception of an organization interested in more then just making money. The Disney staff embraces a philosophy that when they react to the incidents that happens around them, they can help in the best way with their own contributions. Workflow and organizational structure Workflow can be defined as the process used by an organization to manage operational task. McShane and Von Glinow define â€Å"Organizational structure as the division of labor as well as the patterns of coordination, communication, work flow, and formal power that directs organizational activities† (McShane & VonGlinow, 2003, p. 506). The workflow and structure of an organization helps to define week or strong organizations. Disney’s main strength comes from its organizational structure and workflow of managing the process of creativity and innovation. In doing so, they foster a culture that ensure controlled risk taking. Walt Disney has a structured methodology in its workflow and organizational structure. To ensure all employees and the organization follow this physiology, Disney uses the following five phased model: 1. Define the Culture – For the Organization and In every venture taken a. If a new theme ride is proposed, does the attraction fit within the Disney Culture 2. Align the ideas – To the Organizational Mission Statement and Strategic Direction a. Does a new movie or show parallel Disney’s Vision, Mission, and or Strategic Plan 3. Design the Process – Where ideas flow easily from conception to deployment a. Disney has open lines of communication between all employees from the CEO to a part time worker 4. Refine the Product of Service – Continually improve the idea a. Disney is always asking their customer what they can do to enhance their products. Then they add these enhancements to meet customer expectations. 5. Create Fail Safes – Embrace the concept of successful failures a. At Disney there are no bad ideas, and ideas that are not successes in the market place are opportunities to learn what the customer wants Organizational systems and procedures The Walt Disney Company incorporates Business Standards and Ethics training into its system to provide education and training for domestic and international employees. Disney wants to insure that all of its employees act ethically and legally, and remain in compliance with the company’s Standards of Business Conduct. Disney works towards keeping its communication open among its staff. Disney believes that open communication creates better teamwork and a healthy environment. According to Risk Management Society Publishing Inc. (1993), â€Å"Walt Disney has one of the most sophisticated risk management programs in the US. Disney has a separate loss control, safety, environmental health and industrial hygiene departments. All Walt Disney facilities worldwide are equipped to handle these functions in one form or another.† Walt Disney still holds true to its core mission that it started with, and that is providing quality entertainment for everyone around the world. In a quote from the Vice President and Principal Creative Executive at Walt Disney Imagineering, Sklar (2003) states â€Å"From the beginning, starting with Walt Disney, we have had five things that make me proud to be part of this Company: high-quality products, optimism for the future, great storytelling, an emphasis on family entertainment and great talent, passion and dedication from our Cast Members.† Disney’s values are their driving force that makes them retain the trust of the public and their shareholders. Those values are innovation, quality, community, storytelling, optimism and decency. Employee selection and replacement Walt Disney is committed to treating their employees and cast members with fairness, dignity, and respect. Disney provides equal opportunity for everyone without regard to race, religion, color, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, marital status, or any of the other basis that are prohibited by state or federal law. Disney strives to help their employees develop and advance based on their abilities. They want to be able to attract and maintain an employee work force that is reflective of their guests, business partners, shareholders, and communities where they do business. They also want open opportunity so that everyone is advantaged based on their potential and never disadvantaged because they are part of a certain group or class. Disney strives to maintain an organization that is diverse and professional. Conclusion Walt Disney is a company that stands behind its name and its employees. Disney devoted his life to creating magic moments for his guests through the highest level of customer service. Walt Disney is devoted to environmental causes through conservation, action, and education. They are also committed to the highest standards of business excellence. The Disney Corporation is made up of six components, which help them remain consistent in the business standards that they have set for themselves. The six components of their business are their Business Standards and Ethics guidelines, corporate governance, community, environment, international labor standards, and safety.    References Business Wire Sept 18, 2001 p0018: BURBANK, California. Disney Online retrieved January 25, 2005 from http://corporate.disney.go.com. Edginton, D. (April 1998). The magic of management. Des Moines Business Record, 94,15, 10-12. Retrieved January 25, 2005 from EBSCO Database University of Phoenix Apollo Library. Lawson, A. & Fonts, G. (2004). Mental Illness in Disney Animated Films. Retrieved January 29, 2005, from EBSCO database University of Phoenix Apollo Library. Johnson, R. (September/October 1991). A strategy for service – Disney style. The Journal of Business Strategy, 13,5, 38-44. Retrieved January 26, 2005 from EBSCO database University of Phoenix Apollo Library. Lynch, L. (2001). Sustaining innovation Walt Disney instilled how. T &D, 55,6, 44-50. Retrieved January 26, 2005 from EBSCO database University of Phoenix Apollo Library. O’brien, T. (December 2003). Weiss sees employees as Disney’s Magic Makers. Amusement Business, 00032344, 12/8/2003, Vol. 115, Issue 49. Risk Management Society Publishing Inc. (1993). Risk Management, April (1993). 40, 31. Retrieved January 29, 2005, from InfoTrack One File University of Phoenix,Apollo Library. Sklar, M. (2003). Retrieved from The Walt Disney Company website on January 29, 2005, from http://corporate.disney.go.com.

Dwi case with multiple fatalities Essay

Driving while being intoxicated is a serious crime. This becomes more serious when the charge is juxtaposed with multiple fatalities including DWI charges. These charges include underage driving, underage drinking, resisting against arrest and public damage. (Kar, 145) Such an incident took place in Middletown in 1999. This is a perfect example of the multiple fatalities while driving. Henry Bitchel was 15 when he crashed his 1966 Ford on a public telephone booth. The officer in charge booked the offence and tried to measure his blood alcohol level suspecting him being drunk. To this Henry resisted and thus offence was created against the law. However with the help of force the officer registered the blood alcohol level was placed in a much higher than the permissible level. (King, 126) Thus four major charges were lodged against Henry. The first was of underage driving without a valid license, the second charge was underage drinking as he was 15 years of age. The third was resisting arrest and it should be stated that Henry could have well done without this one. The last one was damage of public property in form of a telephone booth. The fifth and the main issue that was charged against Henry was the case of drinking while driving. (Lamb, 243-245) It should be noted that the law is enforced for the betterment of civic society and the good of the civilians. Therefore it is evident that the citizen should follow these rules. Otherwise, as in the case of Henry, there could be multiple fatalities including DWI charges and that is a must avoidable scenario. Works Cited: Kar, P; History of US Automobile Market (Kolkata: Dasgupta & Chatterjee 2005) pp 145 King, H; Civic Fitness Today (Dunedin: HBT & Brooks Ltd. 2005) pp 126 Lamb, Davis; Cult to Culture: The Development of Civilization on the Strategic Strata. (Wellington: National Book Trust. 2004) pp 243-245

Twitter Swot Analysis

Twitter, a website provides online social network and microblog services, is gradually seeping through into every area of life. It was listed as the most important invention in 2009. The same with Facebook who also provide online social network service, more and more people are feeling rely on Twitter, and could not get rid of it. On twitter, we send a real-time mail which is also known as tweets to millions of people around the world within 140 characters.As users, we could share our latest news and ideas to the followers through website interface, SMS from cell phones and mobile device apps; meanwhile, we also can get the instant information about what is happening among the followings, the country and the world. On the technology aspect, Twitter has always based on open source software from the back-end to the front-end. Nowadays, Twitter has became the top ten most visited websites. Before it was known as â€Å"Twitter†, its founders named it â€Å"Twttr†.Twttr†™s idea came from Dorsey, one of the cofounders, who expressed to â€Å"enable users carrying standard cellular phones to update small groups of people on their current situation by pressing a few buttons and tapping out message. † At the spring of 2006, Dorsey sent the first  tweet, and then, launched â€Å"Twttr† through the turmoil of headcount trimming in the same year together with the cofounders, Williams and Stone. Twttr became Twitter in 2007. We could feel the name as the buzzing of the SMS message alters and chips from birds.In this year, Twitter began to hit the market and its users kept growing in the next several years contributed from its word-of-mouth promotion. During its growth, the company continued to get venture capital invents. A lot of large companies were interested in Twitter as they thought Twitter has audiences in hands which would be lucrative. However, by 2011, the company still had problems which may bring risks in the future. According to the paper, the company had four issues: 1. The company was still on the way to seek prots.It was clearly that the company would be eventually pressured by the inventors as they largely relay on venture invention to support the company. Meanwhile, their application was totally free for use, in this case, advertising was almost the only tool to gain revenues. 2. The business model and strategy remain opaque. As mentioned by Ray Valde, Twitter was in a dilemma that they need a â€Å"robust revenue model†, while had to diminish perceived value which has a lot of potential value. 3. Did not commercially exploit its large and rapidly growing user base.As a kind of social media company, who has the audience, who will make money. User was the key factor that will determine Twitter’s fate. 4. The ongoing change in the top management team. The turmoil began at the start-up phase and even had not terminated by 2011. This may become mines for the company. This case write-up wi ll state Twitter’s business problems in detail, and use SWOT analysis to make the company’s situation more clarified. Then, raise solutions and suggestions for the company.2. Strategic analysis of problem SWOT analysisWeaknessesVery popular and acceptable by a large  number of users Creatively changed the way of messaging Greater access to capitalInternal organizational turbulence Did not exploit the user base Unclear business strategy and no solid revenue modelOpportunitiesThreatsDominant position in social media industry Competitors started to emerge A ton of public Suffer from abandonment of users A more technologically savvy plantformStrengthsVery popular and acceptable by a large number of users Why people would like to use twitter? I will give some factors according to this case: †¢ easy use †¢ free use †¢ allow users to send and receive messages to a mailing list of recipients in real-time †¢ better than online chat †¢ strong brand loy alty †¢ could run on different devices, especially mobile devices Thanks to these advantages, Twitter got 200 million users by March 2011.Although it was far from Facebook’s users, the number was still amazing and at the leading position among social network websites. The more visitors, the more the site is worth. Just account for the amount of users, we could estimate that the website of Twitter will be extremely valuable.Creatively changed the policy of messagingIt is hard to say Twitter has a big invention on technology aspect, and to a large extent, it brought about by recon?guring existing technology. However, we cannot deny it is a big revolution and has changed the policy of messaging. Twitter was built on existing technologies like SMS (short message service), IM (instant messaging), and RSS (really simple syndication), then, combined them in a unique way. It is one-to-one association when we are using SMS and IM.Now, it is one-to-many association which facing to the public, when we are using Twitter. On Twitter, we send 140 characters instant micro-blog, use â€Å"@† to mention or replay other users, use â€Å"#† to post together the same topics. All these creations changed the way people communicate. Greater access to capital Twitter had attracted plenty of capital since its establishment. For a young company, suf?cient fund and patient inventors could allow them a more space to develop and complete their big idea.Weaknesses Internal organizational turbulenceTwitter’s internal contradiction emerged at the initial phase. When Odeo’s team launched Twttr Beta, six employees terminated contracts. Moreover, among the four cofounders (Dorsey, Glass, Williams, Stone), Dorsey and Williams had even acted as CEO; but both of them quitted. And the name of Glass was seldom raised in Twitter’s history. The establishment of Twitter extremely require collaboration, however, people in the founding team have different ex pectations. Inventors may lose con?dence in them.Did not exploit the user base In spite of the fact that Twitter’s success rides on the user base. However, according to the paper, Twitter did not commercially exploit it. Or we can say Twitter had no extra energy to do it. The top managers concentrated on how to make their product more advanced and how to attract inventions. They did not notice the user base was the valuable source for them. Actually, they owned the large amount of users and easier than other companies to conduct a survey on them.Unclear business strategy and no solid revenue modelTwitter has been trying to be different from other closest companies and exploiting which path was likely to take from the beginning. However, the path depended on how the ?rm perceived and de?ned itself. They just claim their blueprint for making the company â€Å"as large an impact as possible† instead of setting speci?c business strategy.What’s more, Twitter still ha d not built a solid revenue model even through their revenue kept increasing from 2009. As it stands, the company’s revenue was largely relay on advertising and the last was from data licensing. By comparison, Twitter had the similar ad model as Facebook, but facebook was trying to get rid of reliant on ad while Twitter was not able to do it at present.Opportunities Dominant position in social media industryAlthough the amount of users was lower than Facebook, Twitter still own the large amount of audiences. It was not the ?rst mover in this industry, but the ?rm acted quickly and was already far beyond other similar social media companies. Contributed by its dominant position, more and more people would like to choose Twitter based on the number of other users of this platform, and inventors would focus on the ?rm, then invent on it as they believe the one who owned the audiences would be valuable. A tongue of publicBecause of Twitter has the advantage of timeliness, it beca me a tool to publish news. In 2008, it played as a key tool in the U. S presidential campaign and the attacks in Mumbai, India. From then on, Twitter became an important role in politics. People became more and more believe the platform as they can use it to publish their opinion to the public. It was helpful to strong its social position and brand impact. A more technologically savvy platform As Stone said, Twitter was most likely a â€Å"information company.† In recent years, this platform value which was derived from information-sharing has reached the peak. Twitter has owned two advantages: a large user base and information-sharing platform. These resources could be used to improve revenue. There was no better savvy platform than Twitter to help companies promote services and products with limited budgets. This project was known as â€Å"promoted tweets†, launched in 2010. When followers log in Twitter, promoted tweets will appear at the top of the timeline, then a dvertisers will pay when a user engages.Threats Competitors started to emergeAs the industry was lucrative, some companies had started to emerge and attempted to share the cake. Now, it was not just Twitter provided free services, some large and competitive companies like Friendfeed, Identi. ca, Present. ly, and Google were looking at the market. These competitors were not just copy Twitter but offering some new functions that Twitter did not have. If Twitter stop improving their applications, it may be eliminated in the competition.Suffer from abandonment of usersOnce your friends left the social network platform, more and more connected users may leave it. Then, this website will face catastrophe. Now, Twitter was facing the trouble—although they had attracted a lot of users, the abandonment rate up to 40 per cent yet. On contrast, only 7 per cent Facebook users said they may never use Facebook. And Twitter’s active users were far below than Facebook. One data analys is showed that in Jun-10, only 12 millions U. S Twitter active users while the number was 137 millions for Facebook.3. Solutions and recommendationsConclusion about TwitterTwitter entered the market at a right time, and grabbed the larger resource in the industry. It was a big Internet Innovation and changed the way people communicate. However, it was true that Twitter did not do as good as other similar companies like Google, yahoo, and facebook. For example, in 2009, Google earned more than $18 from unique visitor, Facebook earned about $3, but Twitter only got lower than $1. They were still facing challenges and on the way to exploit the best path.The challenges which were brought by competitors’ expanding The denying and ongoing innovation of Internet will never stop in this age, and its sustainable innovation has brought about a new round of reform of the marketing mode. Twitter cannot just stay stuck in its old mode. In this industry, stagnate means decline. The first  challenge was from the companies who imitated Twitter while developed more functions. However, these competitors had precisely pushed forward Twitter and proved microblog had the bright prospects for development. To deal with them,Twitter had better to enhance its brand loyalty, and form its own core competitiveness. Users would like to choose the one who dominated the industry because they were easy to be impacted by conformity. Moreover, Twitter should be sure to avoid following others, developing the functions what others have. They should keep creating new ideas and act quicker than competitors. Even through competitors’ function was more advanced than Twitter, it did not mean it was an appropriate product for Twitter. Another challenge was from large companies like Facebook and Google.These companies also wanted to do everything and dominate the industry. They were similar as Twitter, owned a large amount of users, but did not do microblog. Twitter was not safe even th ough it did the best in microblog. These services were another form of social media that also may grab Twitter’s market. Twitter needs not only to improve its model to attract more users, but also continue digging potential value in other area to expand the ?rm. Exploit more sources of revenue Twitter cannot largely rely on venture capital invention and advertising any more.It needs to ?nd out another way to obtain fund. The ?rst option was to imitate Google and Apple, provide more services and develop more products to increase revenue. Another option was to imitate Facebook, launch IPO. Or it can do both. I think launch IPO will be better because Twitter did not have the technology support as strong as Google and Apple. And Twitter’s revenue model was already unclear now, if it provides more products, the model may become more confused. What’s more, IPO is a better choice for long term development.Increase the R&D activities It is not only the revenue model nee ds R&D, but also the new application innovation needs R&D. When going to Twitter. com, we will basically see the same thing that the company did years ago. They did not keep working on anything that cool. Meanwhile, they did not reveal any details about the R&D plan and result. Conducting R&D could help Twitter to improve their products and services, which was necessary for a technology company. Twitter website was built on open source software. It was helpful  to develop new applications. Furthermore, in order to keep an eagle eye on the competitors and customers, R&D should not be ignored by Twitter.Promote overseas marketIt was clear that Twitter owned a large number of overseas users, but had not ï ¬ gure out an effect proï ¬ t in other countries. â€Å"Promote the tweets† won a big market in the U.S, similarly, the foreign market had a large proï ¬ t that could be exploited. But it will be a big project that need marketing research and detailed plan before they d ecide to move in a foreign market.

Principles of Management: Total Quality Management

Total Quality Management (TQM) has been around for several years. The concept is being applied to business and industry processes for the purpose of quality improvement. Many businesses feel that TQM is only for large manufacturing type businesses or major industries. (Lee p1) TQM can be used for everyone with managers and employees. Certainly everyone involved with customer service. It is important to recognize the TQM and assessment are made up of identifiable, measurable components. Proper orientation to and understanding of the TQM philosophy, team development, problem solving techniques, and statistical process control must be the mission of everyone in any organization. (Lee p1) The wall street journal has twice reported on the struggling efforts of companies trying to improve overall quality and customer satisfaction. (Chaudron p2) Management must realize that to fully implement TQM, satisfy customers, and promote teamwork in the entire organization, often wrenching systemic changes must be made: profit sharing may be introduced; individual performance appraisals may be radically changed or eliminated; organizational structure may be realigned away from functions to a customer process or geographic – based structure, information may be given to employees formerly reserved for senior management; and significantly more authority may be given to line employees. (Chaudron p2) If management does not align these systems, the effect will result in much struggle and confusion. Organizations need to spend time on the design of their efforts. If they do not, they risk pouring time and dollars into and effort that will eventually collapse. Among the decisions that should be made up – front, before implementing a quality effort are: measures of success, the degree of employee involvement, the depth and breadth of immpleementation, and the techniques to be used. (Chaudron p2) As someone once said, â€Å"If you don†t like where are are going, you may not like getting there.† A manager of people needs to understand that all people are different. This is not ranking people. They need to understand that the performance of anyone is governed largely by the system that he works in, the responsibility of management. (Deming p1) A leader of transformation, and managers involved, need to learn the psychology of individuals, the psychology of a group, they psychology of society, and the psychology of change. (Deming p1) Changing behaviors is probably the most critical area in the process of change. People do not necessarily resist change. They resist being changed. It is important to give people time to understand the true needs and the process of change. Leaders promote open communication and clear visionss of the organizations future. The stronger culture values towards the market place, the less need for policy, instructions, organizational charts etc. Leaders empower and involve people to achieve the organization†s objectives. (Deming) TQM has been proven to work in many types of businesses such as Health Care facilities, Universities, multi million dollar corporations and small businesses. Can the concepts of TQM be applied to Hotel management operations? The Hotel industry is a very competitive business, based almost solely on customer satisfaction. Hotels have been feeling much more pressure in the past decade; they have been feeling a sense of crisis. Crisis that is caused due to th increasing number of new hotels being built up and down the interstates. An old hotel must use the concepts of TQM to keep themselves in the forefront of customer minds. To make the TQM philosophy work in the hotel industry, you must have continuos commitment from all levels of employees. Corporate owner, general managers, department managers, shift supervisors and hourly employees. The commitment must be to embrace and implement the philosophy of Deming and the principles of TQM on a daily basis. The focus must be on the processes of the organization and on providing leadership. Above all this commitment must be consistent. Owners and management must decide together and implement methods that can bring about change in the processes that produce product (room style and cleanliness) and service (customer satisfaction ) for the hotel. Management must review its mission and challenge suppervisors and employees to identify their respective departments philosophies, goals, objectives, and expected outcomes. If they don†t know the results they desire, assessment is meaningless. Once this is accomplished, techniques can be identified to measure quality improvement and to reduce the variation of outcomes. Commitment to quality is essential if companies are to succeed in a commercial environment. If you look at a 30 year old hotel and compare it to several new hotels, the older one better offer something of good quality and with excellent customer service. Competing with brand new is tough in this day and age. Customers want the best, they expect the best. TQM style will help bring out the best in any company. Comparing management styles of two hotels, brings about some interesting discoveries. One that used the TQM philosophy and the other that did not. The most obvious difference was the attitudes of the employees. The TQM hotel has employees that feel like they are the hotel. The same projection was received from the housekeeping staff as for the guest service agents. The general manager does not call them employees he calls them team members. They have team meetings, they all realize the importance of each job and each of them cross train for the other positions. The general manger has empowered the employees to make decisions on behalf of the business. They all have support from corporate managers and district managers. With this franchised hotel they all support each other. They try to keep their workplace fun with contest and monetary winnings. These employees enjoy coming to work and try to make each day better than the last. When the hotel succeeds so do the employees. The hotel without TQM present does not run the same at all. Employees come to work to fill their shifts. They make the same amount of money whether the hotel is full or empty. Empowerment is not a work that is recognized. All departments are separate and do not necessarily work together. The manager does much more managing and works harder because everything that happens is brought to them. When shown the difference between the hotels we are also forced to look at which one fares better in the community. With out a doubt the TQM hotel surpassed the other hotel. Suggestions to make TQM work for everyone.  · Make a personal self-examination regarding your willingness and discipline to alter day-to-day management behaviors in such a way that the organization is ever mindful of the strategic importance of TQM.  · Establish agreed upon quality measurements, followed by widespread search for the best performers to measure against.  · See out customer feedback and objectively measure their concerns.  · Work with employees to help them understand the strategic importance of new TQM activities and to buy into the process.  · Don†t go overboard. Focus on a few processes and their characteristics.  · Create an organization that is capable of learning from itself in the quest for continuos quality improvement in the strategic process Quality management principles are a comprehensive and fundamental rule of belief, for leading the operation and organization, aimed at continually improving performance over the long term by focusing on customers while addressing the needs of all stake holders. (Quality Management) These principles used in hotel management could take you to the competitive edge. Principle 1 – Customer Focused Organization: organizations depend on their customers and therefore should understand current and future customer needs, meet customer requirements, and strive to exceed customer expections. Principle 2 – Leadership: Leaders establish unity of purpose, direction, and the internal environment of organization. They create that environment in which people can become fully involved in achieving the organization†s objectives. Principle 3 – Involvement of People: People at all levels are the essence of an organization and their full involvement enables their abilities to be used for the organization†s benefit. Principle 4 – Process Approach: A desired result is achieved more efficiently when related resources and activities are managed as a process. Principle 5 – System Approach to Management: Identifying, understanding, and managing a system of interrelated processes for a given objective contributes to the effectiveness and efficiency of the organization. Principle 6 – Continual improvement: Continual improvement is a permanent objective of the organization. Principle 7 – Factual Approach to Decision Making: Effective decisions and actions are based on the logical and intuitive analysis of data and information. Principle 8 – Mutually Beneficial supplier Relationships: Mutually beneficial relationship between organizations and its supplier enhance the ability of both organizations to create value. (Quality Management) If all principles are applied with effective management, they will most certainly do a whole lot of good to create a better atmosphere for more effective people. Changing behaviors is probably the most critical area in the process of change. Leaders should empower and involve employees to achieve the organization†s objectives. Continuous improvement is a mindset, a way of doing business. We are never good enough; we can always be better. This is an ethic and an aspiration. (CIDR) On the other side of the coin, not everyone agrees with the whole TQM concept. In an article by Robert A Zawacki, Carol A. Norman, Paul A. Zawacki and Paul D Applegate, they say that total quality programs are a bust because TQM programs try to implement 9,000 new practices simultaneously. Their conclusions were (1) Involve everyone in the process, and (2) be willing to change everything, but concentrate on one thing at a time. They believe that most continuos improvement and partnering programs are failing because individual contributors are overworked, lack alignment and feel devalued by their leaders. In their opinion the error that many leaders made in the 1990†³s , in their rush to embrace the total quality movement, was that although they recognized the importance of quality they put more efforts into planning than they did into implementation and follow-up. (Zawacki p1) TQM can work with efforts of everyone. From the highest paid to the lowest paid. Everyone in the company is important. Jobs will be better, people will be happier and customers more satisfied. That spells better business and more business. Everyone wins. All it takes is commitment.