Comparative paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Comparative paper - Essay Example This paper aims to particularly focus on how the vivid depictions of the Nazi and Soviet crisis in both books have been instrumental in providing global readers a wide-eyed awakening to a path to peace and to a future hope of minimizing global and political violence. To achieve this would mean understanding the rationale and causal effects of the perpetrations of the inhumanity in the genocidal murders and the grueling experiences in the Soviet prison camps, and eventually rethinking whether the same would have been possible were it not for the modern methods that were adopted to further brutalize the population. Arendt and Solzhenitsyn not only witnessed the tragic events of the mid-twentieth century, both of them had first hand experiences of the horrendous fates of the era. These particular events in both their lives have led them to write on Eichmann and The Holocaust and One Day In The Life of Ivan Denisovich, respectively. Several researches have probed on the questions of how and why the holocaust happened and why of all places did it occur in Germany. The book on the Holocaust provided several excerpts from Arendt's previous commentaries on the trial of this Nazi named Adolf Eichmann, a Gestapo chief, who later history would place as the man responsible for the mass extermination of all the Jews who were held in concentration camps. While many writings have ascribed the root cause of the holocaust to that of the anti-Semitic views of Adolph Hitler, Arendt in her book pinned the guilt to Eichmann, after the arrogant Eichmann himself openly boasted that he would die laughing with the feeling of great satisfaction in having brought millions of Jews to their death. There were a number of cultural and historical issues that evolved from the trial of Eichmann and most were considered either as pernicious to or are erosions of the justice system. Amongst the European countries, it is easily noticeable that in the twentieth century, Germany had the most radical form of capitalism that would in effect, exclude all other socialist labor movements. This fascism has been characterized by anti-Semitism and extreme racism. Due to this inherently murderous ideology for an elect race, the Jews eventually were scorned upon to be an inferior race. Arendt concludes in her book that the hanging of Eichmann was justified for the reason that he had supported and executed the policy of the Reich to be a superior race, ultimately having the effect of being the only ones who can inhabit the earth. The book of Solzhenitsyn sets the story on the Soviet labor camp and describes an entire one day in the life of the prisoner Ivan Denisovich Shukhov. This literary masterpiece was the first ever to openly give an account of Stalin's repressive governance. This book made known that the prisoners in the Gulag system were never allowed to leave the camps despite the end of their prison terms. The theme created in this book focused on authoritarian oppression and the many difficult ways of surviving labor camps, especially from the cruelty of the prison officials. Through Ivan Denisovich Shukhov, Solzhenitsyn has provided the world with the many tragic and traumatic experiences that a prisoner suffered in the

Peace between Israel and Palestine Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Peace between Israel and Palestine - Essay Example This is no easy task but acceptance that this will never come into fruition is resulting to a defeatist stance that humanity cannot afford. The peace process is an arduous task that must be tackled with commitment and with realistic goals. The first step towards coming to an agreement and bringing the leaders of the two states back to the peace tables is to ensure that there will be a cease fire among all forces especially stealth attacks and those that would inflict casualties among civilians. This would necessarily entail a neutralization of the extremist groups which must be held accountable for without partiality or impunity. The most important disposition in both sides is the ardent belief that peace can be achieved. This must be built on an internal understanding and desire toward that purpose, otherwise, as had been persistently observed from Israel negotiators it will all for naught. The One Voice Movement offers an encouraging model that peace is not centrally for the benefi t of groups, their interests and their spite. It is fundamentally about the people who themselves have understood that peace is the only way to stop all the fighting and cut the losses while there is still something left. The organization is made up of Palestinians and Israelis in their own land and those abroad through an international unit. This is a grassroots initiative aimed to remind and enlighten the two sides and the international community that â€Å"The majority of people on both sides realize that they have everything to gain by ensuring the independence and security of ‘the other’ and thus are prepared to compromise in order to do so† (One Voice Movement, n.p.). This conflict is rooted among the most fundamental issues that had defined many wars throughout world history. The recognition of religious differences cannot be disregarded in this political and cultural conflict. The Palestinian Arabs and the Jewish Israelis had been battling not only for la nd but also for identity. The 1967 War was a pivotal moment in this conflict. I agree with experts that the occupation of Palestinian lands by the Israeli forces was a definitive moment that aggravated the dispute into epic proportions. The destabilization by Israel over the Gaza Strip and its current notoriety must come to an end. The demand by Palestine over the return of this piece of the earth and more importantly of their refugees had been on-going for decades (Heise, n.d., pp.2-3). In this regard, a major change came almost too close, â€Å"The 2002 Arab Peace Initiative would have provided Israel recognition throughout the Arab world in exchange for a pullout from territory conquered in 1967† (The Associated Press, 2013, n.p.) These kinds of initiatives are what the time calls for. We cannot undermine the reality that external forces are necessary to move closer to that elusive peace. The land over which blood has been spilt has been claimed by both Israel and Palestin e not only on territorial basis but more inherently by religious basis that transcend people and groups. This is why no matter how many changes have occurred through leadership and membership, their idealism remains. If there is something more moving than sheer idealism, it is religious idealism. The emphatic understanding of the call of the people who suffer and who live with the consequences of their leaders’ actions must prevail. In the international realm,

Coca Cola In Egypts Market Marketing Essay

Coca Cola In Egypts Market Marketing Essay The Coca-Cola Company is established in 1886 by the pharmacist Dr. John Pemberton in Atlanta, in the beginning it was sold as a medicine. The Company registered its trade mark in March 27, 1944. Nowadays it is spread in more than 200 countries with over 500 brands and 3,300 beverage products. These products include sparkling beverages and still beverages, such as waters, juice drinks, teas, coffees, sports drinks and energy drinks. The top five NARTD (non alcoholic ready to drink) are: Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Sprite and Fanta. The number of employees worldwide is 92,400 and headquarter is in Atlanta. The Coca-Cola Company is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol KO. The Coca-Cola system operates on a local scale in every country where they do business. It does not own or control most of its bottling partners, its compromises the company and the bottling partners. The Company has more than 300 bottlers worldwide. Coca-Cola manufactures and sells concentrates, bev erage bases and syrups through its concentrate plant to bottlers; it does own the brands and is responsible for brand marketing initiatives. The bottling Companies manufacture, package, merchandise and distribute the finished branded beverages to Coca-Cola customers and vending partners, who then sell the products to the consumers.1 This was an overview on the Global Coca-Cola Company. Lets look to Coca-Cola Egypt as the paper is studying the company in Egypt. Coca-Cola exists since 1942 and has two bottlers TCCBCE and El Nile Beverage Company. The bottling operation ownership for The Coca-Cola Bottling Company (TCCBCE) is: 51% TCCBCE and 49% Coca-Cola Company as for El Nile its 100% owned by El Nile. The entire system has 11,494 full time employees. 1-coca-cola annual report The Strategic business units that the company operates in Egypt are carbonated soft drinks, energy drinks and mineral water. The company recorded revenues of $78,526 million during the financial year ended December 2009 with an increase of 15% compared to 2008. The increase of 12% in revenues was coming from CSD (carbonated soft drinks) segment and 3% from the Mineral water segment. However there is a decrease in the CSD growth rate by 3% in 2009 which was 15.6% (FY 07-08) versus 12% (FY 08-09) the decrease is due to change in the consumer life style became healthier conscious. Egypt juice Industry analysis The non carbonated soft drinks are considerate to have a huge potential within the juice sector. Egypt juice industry is a lucrative market with a value of $/$216mm, it is growing from 11-22% over the last eight years. The industry sales are 44 mm unit cases in 2009. The juice segment expected to grow at 11% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) in 2012 while the Carbonated Soft Drinks (CSD) segment is expected to grow at 4.7% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) in 2012. Based on retail audits done by the AC Nielsen and Protrac studying the Egyptian beverage market the result shows that the consumer life style is changing and became healthier conscious and they are shifting to the drinks that are healthier. The CSD market is shrinking and other markets are developing. Juice is a lucrative product category that has been growing consistently over the past 8 years. The juice industry depends on farms that cultivate fruits. The different juice type: Fruit-Flavored Drink is a 100% concentrate, Juice Drinks it contain up to 24% Juice, Nectar contains 25% up to 99% juice and product called 100% juice is a product of 100% juice. PESTEL Analysis for Juice in Egyptian market PESTEL analysis is a business measurement tool that helps to understand the external surroundings and market as such the position, potential and direction for a business. PESTEL stands for Political factors e.g. changes in government policies, Economic factors relate to changes in the wider economy such as rises in living standards or the general level of demand, Social factors explain the buying patterns and buying attitude, Technologic factors is the changes in innovation potential, Environmental factors include the weather and climate change and Legal factors major legal changes that have affected firms where they operate. All these factors are used to assess the market. Political factor Egypts political condition is secure and a completely democratic republic is projected within the near future. Egypt was ruled by many countries before establishing freedom and today it is run by a multi-party semi-presidential system where the supervisory power is separated between the president and the prime minister, although in practice the president tends to hold a larger share of the power. Egypts political system presently receives much needed financial support from the US which is helping to develop the country into a new era of optimism. Egypt increased inward investment, creating a rich investment atmosphere. Economic factor The economic environment in Egypt is ready for investment. Egypts economic freedom score is 59.0, making its economy the 94th freest in the 2010 Index. 3.2% increase in gross domestic product (GDP) Per capita to reach $2,161. Per capita consumption of non alcoholic ready to drink (NARTD) will increase by 30% reaching in 2020. Growth is highly driven by stills (juices and water). Juice is the fastest growing category with Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) increase of 11 % driving growth of non alcoholic ready to drink NARTD. Social factor Key factors behind the forecast increase of juice market in Egypt is the new consumer lifestyle preferences for healthier drinks and scare of obesity which resulted a slowing growth rates for sales of carbonated soft drinks (CSD) market. Despite the fact the carbonated soft drinks (CSD) market has remained profitable. One of the main characteristic of Egyptian life style is the importance of family and friendships. Egyptians are enormously socials and one of the importances of their life style is the relaxation time which they spend with friends or families at home, cafà © or restaurants. An important part of Egyptian residents is the eating behavior. The last five years the coffee shops spread very fast in daily life especially in young adults and teen generation. The consumption of juice is correlated to person age. Population is 81 Million out of which 50% are under 20 years. 50% of the population is the prospective juice target (kids and teenagers) because 64% of ready to drink juice volumes comes from 8-29 yr olds skewed towards 8-11 yrs old. Technology factor The juice industry benefits of a huge technology. Its for the sake of both business and the consumer when new technologies guide to better quality products. The industry depends on the quality of fruits that are growing in the country. Juice makers divided their production into two different forms pasteurized and raw juice. Technology helps to retain the properties of fruit the same as its original taste. Juice shelf life is small due to defect that can happen based on environmental climate. To extend the shelf life, juice is pasteurized on the same method as milk which for decades can be considered a middle ground between raw and ultra-pasteurized. The flavor of milk is affected by pasteurization much more strongly than fruit juices tend to be. Ecological factors Juice Industry is depending on agriculture and fruit growth wherever it spread. It is necessary to realize that fruit growing relies on agricultural land, water and suitable climate. Fertilizers used in agriculture can be a source of environmental pollution. Major change in climate occurring due to global warming can impact the farming industry. This leads to a need of integration of farmers into an agro environmental program that needs a support and keeping production procedures in accordance with environmental protection and sustainability of natural process. Legal factors Legal issues involve laws in juice production regulated by Egyptian government which prohibits use of returnable glass bottles. Such regulation negatively affects juice industry as returnable glass bottles are more profitable. Porter five forces model for juice sector Porters Five Forces Model was developed by Michael E. Porter in his book Competitive Strategy: Techniques for Analyzing Industries and Competitors in 1980. The famous book he wrote in his thirties became an international best seller, published in nineteen languages and re-printed approaching sixty times. Since that time Porters Model became an important tool help for analyzing an organizations industry structure in strategic processes. Porter has identified five competitive forces that shape every industry and every market. These forces determine the intensity of competition and hence the profitability and attractiveness of an industry and answer the question of What are the key factors that can determine a business success? The five forces are described as follows: Threat of new entrants Bargaining power of customers Competitive rivalry within the industry Bargaining power of suppliers Threat of substitutes Recklies Management Project GmbH www.themanager.org (figure 1) Bargaining Power of Customers Threat of New Entrants Threat of Substitutes Competitive Rivalry between Existing firms In combination with a PESTEL-Analysis, which reveals drivers for change in an industry, Five Forces Analysis can reveal insights about the potential future attractiveness of the industry. Porters Model is useful tools to determine potential changes of competitive forces. Bargaining power of suppliers Bargaining power of suppliers is described by how much power suppliers have on you in a specific industry or market. A business or a producing industry requires inputs to give a final product such as raw materials, labor, component and other supplies. This lead to a relationship between buyer and supplier provide raw materials used in the production. Supplier is called powerful when he has influence on the producing industry. Lets focus on suppliers in Egyptian juice industry and how much they have power influencing the production of the final juice product. Juice industry depends on many suppliers; sugar, material required in packaging, preservative, flavor and a key player in juice industry is the juice concentrate supplier. Juice supply chain starts form farm that depend on fruit seasonality. The crop of any fruit varies from time to time in quantity and quality based on climate changes and natural crises. This is the main reasons that change in juice concentrate availability pric e and quality. Juice concentrate suppliers are divided in three categories. Suppliers that produce concentrate and use them in the production of final juice product, others that produce concentrate and use part of their production to make a final juice product and sell the rest and suppliers that sell all their production of juice concentrate. Its worth to mention that a big part of the juice concentrate is exported outside Egypt to other countries and one of the main countries who import from Egypt are the Gulf countries. Therefore the supplier power is considerate high because the market is dominated by a few large suppliers rather than fragmented source of supply, supplier customer are fragmented, there is a possibility for supplier to increase concentrate juice prices and there is no substitute to the juice concentrate. To reduce supplier power in juice industry it is important to know what is the influence of outside factors to be taken in consideration to find a place in the m arket. Juice producers make a partnership with suppliers that produce juice concentrate to reduce the power of suppliers. Bargaining power of customers Bargaining power of customers is how much negotiation power the customers have and how much power he has over you in a specific industry or market, meaning how much customer can impose pressure in margin and volume. When buyer has a strong economic power the relationship to the producing industry is near to what economist call monopsony, a market where there is many suppliers and one buyer. In such case your ability to capture a high proportion of the value created will decrease, and you will earn lower profit. Having a few large buyers will have a significant leverage to negotiate price and others terms because you will be afraid losing an important buyer and volume which puts you in a weak position. Buyers have also power on you if they can produce the product themselves and they can play suppliers against each others. However there is a few large buyers and they buy in a large quantities. Meanwhile there are many small buyers that you have greater control over them because they buy a small portion of your sales. Bargaining power of consumer in the juice industry, there are three type of buyer which is the direct consumer, the retail outlets and the wholesalers. 75% of direct consumers for juice freshly prepare juice at home or they buy it from a plain juice shops. In this situation the main competition of those buyers is any plain juice shops or fresh fruit that can substitute the juice product. The juice producer can reduce this bargaining by offering a differentiated product and create loyalty to the brand that offers higher value as the juice freshly prepared its shelf life is limited. The Wholesalers are few in number therefore their bargaining power of consumer is significant due to the number of juice product that they do have on the retails shelf and how do they present the product to the consumer. The retails outlets are many in numbers and they do have a big number of products however the bargaining power of wholesalers and retail outlets are not significant if the consumers are loyal to the brand. Generally the juice industry in Egypt, buyers has more power than the entrepreneurs due to the fact that consumer have different option to entertainment, number of retail outlets that have a several product on self. Therefore the differentiation, creating value to the product and loyalty to the brand is very important. Threat of a new entrant Threat of a new entrant is how easy a competitor can enter into your industry or market? New competitors determents changes in the market environment in terms of gain market shares, pressure to reduce the prices which have an impact on profit and impact on customer loyalty at any time. In term of reaction and adjustment the existing players have a pressure on them. Threat of new entrant depends on barrier to enter industry or market and how the existing player will react with a new competitor. New entrant barrier is economies of scale, the experience that the existing players have which lead to cost advantage, high fixed assets cost and strong distribution channel of existing players. The existing of these barriers protects the existing player from the threat of new entrant. In addition the existent players can react by reducing price or forming a partnership to reduce the threat of a new entrant. Threat of new entrant is considerate in Egyptian juice industry due to high capital cost and knowledge required. Based on this usually the threat of new entrant is higher for the companies that are involved in manufacturing then service. Its not always negative that you do have a competition close to you. Some industry encourage a new entrant specially if they do have already experience in a similar field and they do have a big part of their capital already established such as the factory which just need the production line and having their own distribution channel. Threat of a substitutes products Threat of substitutes products, we give term substitutes to a product that a buyer can replace a business product with another one. What products your buyer can replace your product with? It exists when a buyer can replace your product with another product for the same purpose with a lower price. In such case they can attract a significant proportion of the market and have impact on sales and volume of the existing players. The substitutes product also applies on complementary product. The main factors that can affect substitutes product are customer shift to another similar product based on lower price because your product doesnt give different value from the competitors one and customer have a little loyalty to your product therefore, the threat of substitute is considerable. A substitute threat can be reduced by differentiating your product than the other existing in market and create loyalty to the brand through marketing initiative (TV, radio, outdoors advertisingetc). Following the new live styles trend, consumers became healthier conscious make the threat of substitutes products low in juice industry. The consumption of carbonated soft drinks decreased. The substitute product in this industry can be a healthy product such as fruit juice drink, fruit flavored drink, powdered fruit drinks can substitute the juice concentrate drink and it can also be substituted by milk , fruit base yogurt and mineral or bottled water. Variety of substitutes products are available at the market consumer have an open choices which they can choose whatever suits their needs. However they are not real substitutes products because juice is drunk in different time and occasions. Rivalry between existing firms Rivalry is the competition between existing firms in an industry. In certain industry the rivalry is high and has an impact on profit as you cannot set your own price and it can make the profit to zero. This force might be the most important in Poters five forces as it describe the intensity between existing players. The rivalry is called high when the competitors on a same industry have similar products with no differentiation and they compete in term of price. The market players are same in mass with comparable strategies. Having high barrier to exit the market and when the market is increasing slowly or shrinking this makes the rivalry a considerable force. To decrease the rivalry between existing players you should avoid price competition, differentiate your product and strategies, focus on a different sector and avoid high capacity production. The Egyptian juice market is a fragmented market with many players. Four companies have 50% of the market the rest are less than 5% each. The market is not only splited between the players in terms of market share but also shrinked by products. This means that there is a good chance to enter the market. However, PepsiCo the major competitive to Coca-Cola is preparing new juice launch during the current year. PepsiCo made a joint venture with Almarai Company (extremely successful dairy foods company in the Middle East) and have acquired Beyti well known brand name in Egypt. It produces a variety of high-quality dairy and juice. They are big in size with a very strong distribution channel however the consumer has a law loyalty to specific brand. This situation will make rivalry in the near future. Egypt juice market analysis Lets go more deep and look into the market analysis to be able to determine the juice market sucess . The goal is to be able to find out the market attractivness and understand more about the opportunity and threats of the sector. Key success factors Key success factors depend on two questions which need to be analyzed What does the consumer want? (Here we need to analyze the market) How to face the competition? (Competition analysis) In Egypt juice sector to make a success from the consumer point: Egyptians doesnt make a great difference between artificial distilled fruit beverage and fruit juice they are comparing products in terms of price. Therefore you need to have a competitive price or to build a differentiation strategy to enable you to set your price. Innovation is one of key success factors that need to be present to gain consumer. The consumer has a law loyalty to brands this makes the product availability in market very important. The availability plus the innovation in packages and product range that suits the new consumer life styles will help to build loyalty to the brand. For the competition, you need to be different in product image, have a strong distribution channel to be able to position yourself in the market and to start to compete. Demand Analysis Demand characteristic Following the new consumer life style, the juice market has a high demand based on questionnaire done by MEMRB agency to the Coca-Cola Egypt company here is the outcome. Those that consume juice product on monthly bases dont think it is as strong on Thirst quenching, Good for you, Great tasting and refreshing. However, an improvement on all measures for juice, frequent consumption coming from weekly consumers. Consumer that thinks that they are always doing new thinks shows growth from0% to 7% in 2008-2009 while the carbonated soft drinks shows 3% increase in 2009 and the one that things that uice gives energy shows an improvement from 5% to 9% for year 2008-2009 while the carbonated soft drinks shows a decrease from -6% to -11% for year 2008-2009. The market study also shows that the Egyptian consume 60% of juice drink out of home in cafà ©, shops or kiosks this is the opposite of the carbonated soft drinks percentage. 25% are consumed in morning occasions from 9-12am other than breakfast. Snacking the biggest occasion came with 36% it stats from 3-4pm. Bibliographies http://www.wikinvest.com/stock/Coca-Cola_Company_(KO) http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/ Internal resources from the Coca-cola Egypt http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juice http://www.propertyshowrooms.com/egypt/property/investment/egypt-property-investment-strategies.asp http://www.globalpropertyguide.com/Middle-East/Egypt/gdp-per-capita http://www.dairyengineering.com/applejuice.asp http://www.quickmba.com/strategy/porter.shtml http://www.themanager.org/pdf/p5f.pdf http://www.ces.purdue.edu/extmedia/ec/ec-722.pdf

Romeo And Juliets Fate :: essays research papers

William Shakespeare wrote many great plays in his day. His tale of Romeo and Juliet portrays a tragic love. This play ends with the deaths of the key characters Romeo and Juliet, because of their forbidden love. Many factors contribute to their demise. The scene of when they first meet, the fight between Tybalt and Mercutio, and the final death scene all reveal why the two of them cannot be together in the end. Romeo and Juliet are ultimately killed because of their decisions and fate. The effects of Romeo and Juliet’s decisions and fate are first apparent in the scene when they first come together. When Romeo says to Juliet in the Capulet party, "Thus from my lips, by thine my sin is purged" (I,v,108), and then he kisses her, it obviously exhibitions how they exercise their choice to love each other. After discovering each other’s identities, Romeo proclaims, "My life is my foe’s debt" (I,v,119), and Juliet states, "My only love sprung from my only hate" (I,v,140). These lines foreshadow that there will be many impediments keeping them apart and eventually killing them both. It might be thought that the tragic ending is caused by them choosing to love each other. However, if fate does not bring them together in the first place, they will never have the opportunity to establish their love. Romeo and Juliet are affected by their choices and fate right from the beginning. Romeo’s actions and chance also cause the chaos in Romeo and Mercutio’s fight scene with Tybalt. When Romeo replies to Tybalt when he is first insulted and threatened on the street, "I do protest I never injure thee, but love thee better than thou canst devise" (III,I,67-8), it means he does not mean Tybalt any harm and is walking away from the fight. Then, Mercutio steps in for Romeo and starts fighting with Tybalt. Romeo gets between them, which allows Tybalt to kill Mercutio, and later results in Romeo killing Tybalt. It is very easy to point the finger at Romeo and accuse him of allowing Mercutio to be killed. His decision directly allows Tybalt to stab Mercutio, but he is trying work it out so no one will be injured, like peer mediation. Although he has no clue that he will do more harm, Romeo is actually trying to help. That’s where fate affects him. Also, it can be said that Romeo is entirely responsible for killing Tybalt.

Discipleship

Discipleship is always connected with Christ and his call to follow him. In the Bible, numerous references pointed out to how Jesus asked his disciples to follow him. One such example is his experience with Simon and his brother Andrew when Jesus told them: â€Å"Come, follow me†¦ and I will make you fishers of men. † (Matthew 4:19, NIV). At first the disciples did not know what they would do as they follow Jesus. But they saw him preach, heal the sick and even proclaim the forgiveness of sins.After the resurrection of Jesus, he gave them a new command â€Å"to go and make disciples of all nation†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Matthew 28:19, NIV). This meant that the disciples were to proclaim the good news of salvation as Jesus preached and lead people into the life that Jesus lived. The Great Commission was not about making converts by the scores and thousands. It was about enabling people to follow Christ—to love one another and love one’s enemies.Discipleship is about the transformation of a person and drawing closer to the perfection that God designed in the first place (Sanders, 2007). Yet, such a process takes time. Discipleship occurs in the confines of a community and the Church. A number of contemporary churches, however, have mistaken program for discipleship. If the model for discipleship of the early church could be captured, then discipleship could be more vibrant in this time and age (Hull, 2006).While the community is important, the individual Christian also has to display the ardent desire to pursue discipleship and become more Christ-like in the process. Such an attitude will certainly help an individual in pursuing holiness and discipleship. Through the help of pastors, church workers and other lay persons, the discipleship process could be fun and believers could be mentored to become spiritually mature and in turn, they will lead others in the discipleship journey (McCallum & Lowery, 2006). Reference Hull, B. (2006). The Complete Book of Discipleship: On Being and Making Followers of Christ. New Jersey: NavPress. McCallum, D. & Lowery, J. (2006). Organic Disciplemaking: Mentoring Others Into Spiritual Maturity And Leadership. New Jersey: Touch Publications. Sanders, J. O. (2007). Spiritual Discipleship: Principles of Following Christ for Every Believer. New York: Moody Publishers.

Corporate Social Responsibility as Business Strategy Essay

There is a visible attention being paid towards social and environmental consequences of business and yet performance in this front is far from satisfactory. Common trait seen across companies is that social concern and business are seen as two independent responsibilities and often at loggerhead. As a consequence, companies lose focus of how social responsibility could have been integrated with the long term business outcomes. Businesses across the world are so obsessed with the immediacy of results that they cannot sight the vast opportunity that discharging of social responsibility holds for the long term sustainability of the organizations. As a result, based on the maturity of strategic thinking in the company, CSR is being implemented in one or more of the following ways as shown here: CSR as Reactive strategy CSR has in general been a reactive strategy for reviving drooping fortunes of the company by gaining the confidence of the communities in which they operate. The case of Shell in Nigeria and that of Nike in Asian countries are just two examples to quote. With such instances on the rise companies have started adopting a â€Å"proactive approach† analyzing the cost of not discharging the social responsibility and as a result do the bare minimum to pull on and thus minimizing their spending on this account. CSR is viewed by these companies as a cost and compulsion. This approach only obscures a business from identifying the real potential CSR holds with respect to their core business. Any complacence by such companies may result in the kind of corporate scandals that we are comming across today. Corporate misdeeds are indeed costly, if caught. CSR as Image building exercise Efforts of companies to recover from the effects of not discharging social responsibility can broadly be classified as damage control exercise as far as their image is concerned. Here the businesses have their back against the wall. However, CSR today is seen by companies as an opportunity for building corporate image. Keen on drawing attention of media and general public, companies announce their plans for various kinds of philatropic activities. There is nothing wrong with this kind of approach, except for the fact that such initiatives are not emphasized in the maze of important and urgent business calls. If a company can develop a systematic and delibrate approach for maintaining the focus on social welfare activities, this will not only enhance its image in the immediate future but consistency on this front will help the company in building a positive reputaion of societal concern. Such image will definitely help the company in its future business forays in the region. On the other hand, the image building campaign includes CSR reporting where a series of disjointed anecdotes of companies’ contribution to society are highlighted, which are in no way related to implementation of the business strategy of the company. This underlines the fact that potential of CSR as a tool for image building is more easily comprehended by corporate offices rather than as a means of creating a sustainable business. CSR for improved operating efficiency There are other set of companies that take care of environment because not only does it help in operating with in the environmental norms set by statutory authorities but also reducing their costs by improving operating efficiency. Operating barely with in the norms set by statutory authorities is being in the compliance mode. As companies deliberately plan and move beyond the compliance mode, find the case for integration of CSR and business goals, where improved productivity or operational efficiency in current time frame also results in better environmental conditions that fosters better living conditions for future generations. This in fact is a business necessity today for improved profitability for industry and cleverly used by companies for projecting a business case for CSR and showcasing the integration of CSR and business outcomes. CSR as Source of competitive advantage Business must have clear understanding of the communities that they impact and must give a serious thought to the question – How the strategy helps these communities grow qualitatively along with the business in the short and long term? The answer to this question may not be obviously forthcoming but an open debate among the executives and strategic managers may open up options, that may help improve the quality of life indicators for the communities around in a way that enhances business opportunity for tomorrow if not the current profitability. The challenge for industry today is to identify social issues that drive its competitiveness both now and in the future. For this to happen managers must first believe that social concern or CSR as it is popularly known is a source of business opportunity and competitive advantage. This integration then would pave way for all round sustainability and growth. Sooner than most of the experts suspect, the issues relating to climate change and social responsibility in the area of operations will be decisive factors for survival of businesses. CSR has the potential to change the way business is conducted the world over.

How Many Recommendation Letters For College Do I Need

How Many Recommendation Letters For College Do I Need SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Colleges ask for all different numbers of recommendation letters. Each college sets its own policy, so it's always a good idea to double check each school on your list to make sure you understand exactly what it wants. Typically, colleges want you to send a recommendation letter from your counselor. Additionally, they may ask for one, two, or, in rare cases, three letters from your teachers. This guide will go over the different guidelinesso you know how many recommendationsto collectwhen applying to colleges. First, let’s go overthe different options. How Many Recommendation Letters Do Schools Require? You might need anywhere from zero to four letters of recommendations. As mentioned above, the majority of colleges want to see at least an evaluation from your school counselor. On top of this, many colleges, especially those selecting on the basis of academic merit, seek one or two teacher recommendations. Few colleges want to see three; usually, you’ll only need three recs if you’re applying to military school. To find information on your specific colleges of interest, you can look on their admissions websites. If you’re using the Common Application, then your app should also be customized to each school and its expectations. While this guide doesn’t cover every single college in the US (there are thousands!), it will go over some popular schools and their recommendation letter requirements. Let’s start with schools that have minimum requirements and work our way up to the schools with the most. You're off the hook for recommendation letters at these schools. Popular Schools with No Recommendation Requirement There are some schools, including competitive ones, that don’t require any recommendation letters at all. Some of these may have a general â€Å"no rec letter† policy, but still advise you to check with your particular department or program. Others may ask you to send a recommendation letter later in the year. Some of you reading this might breathe a sigh of relief, while others may want to send a rec letter and be disappointed. If you fall into the latter group, should you send your letter(s) anyway? Again, it’s always a good idea to check your school’s website for information or call its admissions office directly for its advice. Some schools will read your letters if you want to send them, while others arerather adamant about not sending any. Here are a few schools that, generally speaking, don’t require recommendation letters: Penn State University (unless specified by a program) University of California schools University of Minnesota University of Texas University of Washington Now for the schools that require one letter of recommendation - but only from your counselor. If you're applying to any of the schools below, then a trip to your guidance department is in order. Popular Schools that Require One Counselor Recommendationand No TeacherRecommendations These schools just want to see an evaluationfrom your school counselor. As you can see, most of these schools are open to you sending a teacher evaluation if you think it will be helpful to your application. College of William and Mary (teacher recommendationis optional) Georgia Institute of Technology (teacher evaluation is recommended, but not required) James Madison University (teacher recommendation is optional) University of Richmond If you do decide to send a teacher rec when it’s not required, make sure it’s a strong, substantial letter that you feel will truly help your candidacy. A common requirement of many four year colleges is one counselor recommendation and one teacher recommendation. These next schools want you to send two letters of recommendation, as indicated by the diesmbodied floating hand. Popular Schools that Require One Counselor and One Teacher Recommendation These schools want to seeoneletter each from your school counselor and a teacher. University of Delaware (one required, suggests that most applicants submit more than one letter) Georgia Tech Mills College NYU University of Maryland University of Massachusetts University of Virginia Wake Forest University More selectivecolleges tend to require a counselor letter of rec and two teacher letters of recommendation. Check out of some popular schools with this requirement below. If you're applying to any of the schools below, hopefully you have three smiling educators ready to write amazing things about you! Popular Schools that Require One Counselor and Two Teacher Recommendations Since these schools are particularly selective for academic ability, it makes sense that they want to hear about you and your work as a student from two different teachers. Amherst College Duke University Sarah Lawrence College Barnard College Emory University Scripps College Bates College Harvard University Skidmore College Boston College Harvey Mudd College Smith College Bowdoin College Haverford College Stanford University Brown University Johns Hopkins University Swarthmore College Bryn Mawr College Juilliard School Syracuse University California Institute of Technology Massachusetts Institute of Technology Trinity College Case Western Reserve University Middlebury College United State Coast Guard Academy Colby College Mount Holyoke College University of Chicago Colgate University New England Conservatory of Music University of Pennsylvania Colorado College Oberlin College Vanderbilt University Columbia University Occidental College Washington and Lee University Connecticut College Pitzer College Wellesley College Cornell University Pomona College Wheaton College** Dartmouth College* Princeton University Williams College Davidson College* Reed College Yale University *Dartmouth and Davidson additionally require a peer recommendation with the two teacher recommendations.**Wheaton requires one teacher rec and one pastoral rec Up until this point, you either had no choice in your recommender (as with your counselor) or could just choose one teacher. But as for the schools that require two letters, do they have any requirements about who exactly you ask to recommend you? Guidelines for Your TwoTeacher Recommendations In terms of who you ask, colleges typically ask you to provide a range of perspectives, like one letter from a science or math teacher and one from a humanities or social studies teacher (this includes technical schools like MIT and CalTech). The other common policy is that the school leaves the choice up to you. In pretty much any case, you should ask two teachers from core courses. If you’re applying to an art or performance school, like Juilliard or the New England Conservatory of Music, then one of your letters should be an artistic recommendation from a private studio teacher, conductor, coach, or artistic mentor. As you saw above, a select few schools, like Dartmouth, Davidson, and Wheaton, get specific about additional peer or pastoral recommendations, but these are definitely exceptions. Now that you have a sense of the colleges that want two teacher recommendations, take a look at the few that want three (FYI,they’re all military schools). Military Schools that Require One Counselor and Three Teacher Recommendations These schools also require a nomination from a Congressperson, which essentially counts as another recommendation, bringing the number required up to five! US Air Force Academy US Navy Academy (math, English teachers and Blue Gold officer) US Merchant Marine Academy US Military Academy (West Point) Above, we briefly touched on whether or not you should send a letter even if your school doesn’t require it. On a similar note, should you ever send an extra letter? Extra! Extra! Read all about me! Can You Send Extra Recommendation Letters? Logistically, you should be able to send an extra recommendation letter via mail or assigning an additional recommender on your school application or Common Application. Many schools allow this option, but you should be cautious and make sure you understand your school's opinion about sending extra material. Each school has its own stance on supplemental letters. If your school allows it, you want to make sure an extra letter adds something substantial to your application and comes from an authoritative source, like a community supervisoror spiritual leader with whom you've worked closely. Another circumstance in which an extra letter could be a good idea is if you attend a huge high school and haven't gotten to know your teachers or counselor very well. Again, make sure to learn about your school's policy. You don't want to play into the old admissions saying, "The thicker the file, the thicker the kid." Admissions officers usually don't look fondly on too much extra material. Rather than helping your application, excessive supplemental could just end up raising red flags about the strength of your candidacy. While researching your colleges' requirements is a critical first step in planning your recommendation letters, there are several other factors that require your attention. Read on for more on gathering recommendation letters, along withthe resources that canhelp you through the process. Tell me more. What Else Do You Need to Know About Recommendation Letters? Before you invite your recommenders to submit their letters online, you should be thoughtful about who you ask and howyou make your requests. Make sure to ask teachers of core subjects who know you well and give them all the necessary information at least a month in advance, if not in the spring of junior year. To get your best letter, part of this information should be a detailed resume and "brag sheet." Plus you can make appointments with your teachers and counselor to talk about your goals and what you'd like them to include in your letter. Finally, make sure you understand your rights surrounding your rec letters and how to approach the FERPA question on your application. Then you can invite your recommenders and know that you did everything you could to get the best letters for your college application. The rest is up to them, except for that final step in the process - sending thank you cards for all their help! What's Next? Now that you have access to guides on everything you need to know about rec letters, check out this complete guide that takes you through the steps of applying to college. This guide includes everything you need to know about the appplication process. If you're just starting to research colleges, check out this article on how to choose a college and all the questions to ask yourself when planning for your future! 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