MPH599 - Culminating Project Mod 4Case Assignment Essay

MPH599 - Culminating Project Mod 4Case Assignment - Essay Example In doing so, they have data on what is being done and what is working. Involving a representative can only improve the work to be done. The Centers for Partnerships and Strategic Alliance also would be a helpful group to involve as they are involved in some of the granting that is being done for this problem and may be of great help to this group in determining funding that might be available. The NIHCM is a non-profit organization whose mission it is to promote improvement in health care access, management and quality and to foster dialogue and find creative workable solutions to American Health System Problems (nihcm.org). Further ASTHO which is a national nonprofit organization representing the state and territorial public health agencies of the US, US Territories, and District of Columbia (ASTHO.org). There is of course a need for involvement of the children themselves and their parents as anything that comes out of this affect them in some way. Physicians, School nurses and the health care community need to be involved as they are the primary people to carry out any of the plans or principles that come from this. They will also be the data collectors. The local community, schools, and Universities will need to determine how they can help with playgrounds and safe walking and biking trails. Finding tax money to make these improvements may be necessary and involving this group ahead of time will make that process easier. Last but not least are the schools and their contract with the vending machine industry. It makes no sense at all for a child to eat healthy food in the cafeteria and then be able to go out in the hall to get M&Ms. Of course, we know that this is a livelihood for many of these people but what will be needed is for them to change the kind of snacks that are available here. This includes things like Coke and Pepsi machines. This will not be an easy task, however, involving them early in the process will help the process become more

Take Home Exam For The Class Economics of Race & Gender Essay - 1

Take Home Exam For The Class Economics of Race & Gender - Essay Example This class, Economics of Race and Gender has helped me understand how important diversity is to a country and the businesses that operate in that country. Diversity does not only impact the social structure within an economy but it also impacts the educational structure, economic structure and the legal structure. Race and Gender have evolved over the years, previously women and people from ethnic minorities did not interact with the general population, they did minor jobs and the women stayed at home. Times have changed now, women get out of their homes more often and ethnic minorities have more legal rights than the general population. The advantages of group presentations are that they are an easier method to help the students understand what is being taught. It allows the students to conduct research on the topic before hand. These presentations encourage discussions in class and students can question their fellow students more easily then they can question the professor. The disadvantages are that it is usually only that group which needs to present that goes over the topic and conducts research. Other students may become complacent and not take an interest in the class. The three movies presented in class were: Freedom Writers, Rossie the Riveter and Crash. Freedom Writers is a movie about a teacher who inspires her class to write about their daily lives. The students come from poor backgrounds and have experienced much pain in life, they are discouraged and violent, and the teacher asks them to write about their daily lives and things which have happened to them in the past, events which altered their lives. She compiles these diaries into a book and gets them published into a book. These children with the help of their teacher learn some lesson of life such as to be tolerant. Rossie the Riveter revolves around a woman who worked in the factories at a time when women would hardly leave the house. This

Development of Strategic and Comparative bases over time

Development of Strategic and Comparative bases over time Thinking big and applying scale is where we focus, we cant think about just one package or one brand, we have to think about this large portfolio and this large system that we work with Butler, D. (2009), the Vice President Global design, the Coca cola Company Introduction This report involves a brief description of strategic and comparative advantage. It also involves different kinds of strategies under taken by Coca Cola Company that have led it to be one of worlds market leaders compared to other multi-national companies. The strategic and comparative bases of advantage discussed based. The item that shall be looked is coca cola marketing strategy that has been developed for years and based on situations. The marketing strategy shall involve advertising, market segmentation, Equity investment and Branding. Though these strategies seem to be common in other companies either local or international, Coca-Cola Company implements them in a special way. Keywords: Strategy, comparative advantage, market segment, Branding Definitions Strategy Strategy refers to the creation of a unique and valuable position involving a different set of activities (Porter, 1996) whereas comparative advantage sometimes refers to a location of specific advantage that influences the decision of where to source and market (Kogut, 1985). A well-defined definition and a brief description are defined later after strategic advantage. Strategic advantage Strategic advantage occurs when there is equilibrium between three elements, when the brand, the consumer and the market fit together in the best way possible (Xavier,M.J. 2003) Brand-consumer fit is the extent that the brand values coincide with the consumers psychographic make-up. The psychographic elements are measured by the overall scoring and weighting of brand performance in terms of matching consumer needs, motivations, values, self-concept, and lifestyle. Brand -market fit is measured by the extent that price falls into the consumers acceptable price range, the to which the brand is cushioned against budget/trade/distribution influence, the rank-order of importance of the product in the budget/shopping list and finally the ease of access of the product. Consumer market fit: There is a third fit relationship that occurs, fit between consumer and market. This involves the needs and behaviors of consumers under certain market conditions such as specific price points. This relationship between consumer drives and market forces often has direct effect on brand choice. For example a brand might be considered as a good choice to fulfill a particular need or behavior at a particular price that the consumer is prepared to pay, while another brand might not be considered as a good choice for specific combination of need, behavior and price point. The company sets strategies so that it can outperform rivals and it can only do that by establishing a difference in delivering great value to customers or by creating comparable values at a lower cost or do both. Delivering greater value allows a company to charge a high average unit prices and efficiency results into lower average unit costs. All differences between companies in cost or price is derived from hundreds sets of activities required to create, produce, sell and deliver their products or services such as calling on customers, assembling final products and training employees (Porter, 1996) Comparative basis of advantage Deardorff, A. (2003, p. 6) defined Comparative Advantage as the relative cheapness of a good or service in a country that enables that country to export it. More precisely, a country has a comparative advantage in the good whose price in the absence of trade (autarky), relative to other goods in the same country, is lower than the relative price of that same good on world markets. Ricardian Model states that countries have comparative advantage in goods whose labor cost, relative to other goods in the same country, is lower than the relative labor cost of that good abroad. Therefore countries are said to have comparative advantage in a good if its labor requirements are relative to the labor requirement abroad. Ricardian model outlines two theoretical implications of Comparative Advantage and these are: firstly if countries are permitted to trade freely then they are undistorted markets and competitive, they will export the good or goods in which they have comparative advantage and import those in which they have comparative disadvantage, secondly under the same conditions, all countries will gain from trade, in the sense that those individuals who gain from trade within each country will gain enough that they could potentially fully compensate those individuals who lose, within the same country, and still remain better off than in autarky(Deardolff,2003). Business overview Coca-Cola is the largest manufacturer, distributor and marketer of concentrated syrup which is used for the production of non-alcoholic beverages. The company has a span of operations covering over 200 countries since its inception in 1886. It has an annual net income of 6.8 billion and employs the services of around 92,400 associates throughout its operations worldwide (Coca-Cola annual report, 2009). Advertising Advertising can be defined as as any paid form of non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods or services through mass media such as newspapers, magazines, television or radio by an identified sponsor (Kotler et al, 2008 p.737). Advertising is a practical way of informing and persuasion as well as a means of stimulating response from a target audience. The response could be perceptual where the consumer develops, believes or views about the product or it could be behavioural where the consumer purchases the product or increases his purchases of the product in question (Kotler et al, 2008). Advertising is a process which gives information to the public about the product. It is persuasive, controlled, and identifiable as well as influences the target audience. The basic objective of advertising is to increase sales volume and profit. We shall look at several types of advertising which runs hand in hand with the advertising objectives. Informative advertising appears at the early stages of a particular product and is meant to develop the primary demand of the customers. Persuasive advertising is applicable at the competitive stage where a selective demand is built for a particular category of product (Kummer and Mittar, 2008). Comparison advertising is used to establish the superiority of a particular brand through the use of evaluation with one or more other brands in the product line. Reminder advertising is used to refresh the memory of the consumer regarding messages, ideas etc of a particular product. Reinforcement advertising is used to assure the current buyers that they made the right choice regarding their decision to buy the product. The advertising objective should not be arbitrary but should be developed after a thorough evaluation of the current market situation (Kummer and Mittar, 2008). Coca Cola advertising Advertising is a major element of the promotion mix. Personal selling, sales promotion, publicity and advertising are the four elements of the promotion mix. Advertising has been thought of as the best method of promotion because it stimulates sales, creates demand and reaches customer quickly and effectively (Kummer and Mittar, 2008). Coca-Cola has over the years consolidated its leadership position as the worlds most famous and largest beverage company with huge investments in advertising targeted at its existing and potential consumers worldwide. Coca-Cola works in partnership with leading advertising agencies and market research institutes the world over to develop effective advertising campaigns that conforms to current trends in information technology like the use of internet based mediums like face book and twitter to connect with technology loving target audience (Coca-Cola annual report, 2009). The successful advertising strategies used by Coca-Cola over the years in their operations shall be analysed.( Wieden and Kennedy,1996 ) an advertising agency that worked in partnership with Coca-Cola for the 1996 summer Olympics in Atlanta Georgia came up with four main advertising strategies designed for Coca-Cola for the summer games namely: a home based strategy, a fan based strategy, a global growth strategy and the Olympic torch relay. The home based strategy used by coke was primarily as a result of the fact that Atlanta is the main headquarters of Coca-Cola and so people in Atlanta would readily identify with the brand since they are well familiar with it. Coca-Cola launched several advertisements for the games which include installing 70 new billboards, several street-pole banners and signs in 9 Marta stations (the citys public transportation system). Coca-Cola created a theme park known as the Coca-Cola Olympic city with countless different coke advertisements including a 165 feet coke bottle in the canter of the park (Wieden and Kennedy, 1996). The companys signature colour red was the main colour seen throughout the Coca-Cola Olympic city. Coca-Cola deviated from the traditional practice of using athletes for advertising for the games to focus instead on a fan-based strategy where commercials, print advertisements and posters where used to demonstrate the difference made to the outcome of the games by the enthusiasm of the fans. Coca-Cola used the games as a global growth strategy used to target the worldwide audience tuned in for the games. Coca-Cola also used one of the most efficient strategies for gaining exposure in advertising history which is the sponsoring of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic torch relay (Wieden and Kennedy, 1996). The impact of Coca-colas advertisements during the Olympics was so immense that people dubbed the event the Coca-Cola Olympics. The event served as a means for the company to effectively advertise its brand to a worldwide audience. In 2003, Coca-Cola used the marketing platform tagged real to enhance the image of the brand through the use of television advertisements. This particular advertising strategy was specifically targeted for the teenagers and young adults with resounding success. In the same year, the tropical sprite remix television advertisements which was intended to increase and reconnect the sprite trademark was also targeted at the young, urban consumer base (Coca-Cola annual report, 2003). In 2006, the make every drop count advertising in the United States was purposely designed to create awareness among consumers on the health benefits of Coca-colas beverage portfolio in a response to growing concerns by consumers regardless of age on health concerns like calorie intake and obesity. The coke side of life campaign which was the first ever integrated marketing campaign for trademark Coca-Cola was intended to signify the unifying role of Coca-Cola in daily life and has performed better than previous Coca-Cola advertisements and was launched in almost 100 markets in 2006 with great success. The happiness factory television commercial is part of this global campaign (Coca-Cola annual report, 2006). In 2009, Coca-Cola commenced the design for advertisement strategies to be used for the 2010 Fifa world cup campaign which included colourful television advertisements for the soccer fiesta in South Africa in 2010 as a means of uniting Coca-colas exuberance with the worldwide love of soccer thereby utilizing the soccer fiesta as a veritable means of connecting with consumers worldwide who have immense passion for the love of football (Coca-Cola annual report, 2009). Coca-Cola develops its advertising campaigns based on a communications strategy that uses means to end research to gain greater insight of current and potential customers and other factors like product attributes, keeping specific marketing goals in mind, taking into account competitive advertising and positioning as well gaining attention and interest by connecting with real needs(Reynolds and Olsen,2008) Market segmentation Market segmentation has been described as essential to marketing(Sheth 1967).Market segmentation implies the division of large heterogeneous markets into smaller segments that can be reached more efficiently and effectively with products and services that match their unique needs(Kotler et al, 2008 .p.410) There is no single way to segment a market. A marketer apparently has to try different segmentation variables alone or in combination in order to come up with how best to view the market. Markets could be segmented into either business markets or consumer markets. Consumer markets entail those markets that deal on products and services that are used directly by the consumers whereas business markets have to do with transfer of products and services from one point to the other. Market segmentation could be based on the following major variables: demographic, psychographic, behavioural, geographic etc. Demographic segmentation entails segmenting the market based on age, gender, income and education. Psychographic segmentation is based on personality, lifestyle and motives of the population involved. Geographic entails segmenting the market on the basis of regions, city or country. Behavioural involves segmenting the market on benefits sought, product usage, price sensibility or situations (Kotler et al, 2008). Coca cola market segmentation Coca Cola Company has been conquering markets worldwide overtime, through its network of Bottlers, distributers and whole sellers, and later joint ventures. The market network has grown to include most of the world territories and this market has been divided into market segments. Coca-Cola the worlds most famous and leading beverage company has been shown in their operations to vary the sweetness level of their product, its size as well as effervescence on local conditions and preferences which implies that the company employs the use of behavioural and geographical variables in their market segmentation strategies the world over (Hart et al,2008). Coca-Cola Company has operating segments on continental basis involving Eurasia and Africa, Europe, Latin America, North America and the pacific areas. This strategy is clearly a geographical approach in terms of market segmentation by Coca-Cola which is influenced by the fact that these different geographical areas will have diverse preferences and wants (Coca-Cola annual report 2009). Coca-Cola market segmentation strategies regarding diverse consumers base starts with a process of understanding consumer trends within the multicultural marketplace and then developing depth and breath communications which is based on that knowledge. The Coca-Cola Company has a diversity business development team which serves the purpose of providing diverse consumers with the right beverage portfolio. In 2009, the diversity business development team worked closely with the multicultural marketing team to develop marketing strategies as well as integrating multicultural elements into general market programmes for greater reach (Coca-Cola annual report 2009). The diversity business development team during this period also identified significant opportunities in emerging markets including Asian and disabled consumers. The Asian consumers were subsequently integrated into the existing framework of communications. Coca- colas multicultural consumer marketing team develops and carries out relevant marketing plans targeted at multicultural consumers while working closely with brand and customer teams as well as the bottling system. Coca-Cola North America had their multicultural consumer marketing team refocused on African-American marketing as well as expanded its reach to Hispanic consumers (Coca-Cola annual report 2009). The company is now in the process of implementing a long term strategy targeted at consumer markets on the basis of ethnicity in the United States. Coca-Cola in North Americas operating segment reported in 2009 positive results in its works with its bottling partners to create price and package strategies that will ultimately strengthen their financial results, provide value for customers and provide consumers with choices that meet their needs. This strategy is apparently based on behavioural variables which puts price and preferences of the consumers into consideration Coca-Cola Company introduced the coke zero brand in response to consumer health concerns regarding excess calorie intake (Coca-Cola annual report 2009). The product did well in the market and in 2009, the company made sales on the product on an excess of 600 million cases globally. Currently there are over 800 low and no- calorie beverages in the Coca-Cola portfolio (Coca-Cola annual report 2009). In 2008, the company and foundation spent around 9million dollars to support active, healthy lifestyle programmes. These strategies by Coca-Cola are geared towards effective market segmentation of the target population on behavioural and psychographic basis putting into account the health choices and lifestyle of the consumers. In order for Coca-Cola to meet the diverse and ever changing beverage needs of its consumers worldwide, the company has intensified efforts to add more value for customers in its portfolio of beverages ranging from added benefits of vitamins and minerals to calorie reductions, new ingredients, sweeteners and taste depending on the preferences and wants of the consumers concerned (Coca-Cola annual report 2009). Coca-Cola also has another segmentation strategy which entails different strategies for developing and developed markets. The companys main strategy for the developed markets like the United States is to maximize value and profit which can be achieved by delivering more value to consumers so that they will continue their patronage of the companys products at a premium price. In this regard, Coca-Cola are growing the core beverages-trademark namely: coke, sprite, fanta, powerade and improving their benefits and value to the customers through adding vitamins and nutrients to reduced or no calorie options(Coca-Cola annual report 2009). In developing markets Coca-Cola devised a strategy of making the products affordable to the consumers; in Brazil the company offers consumers 26 package options for brand Coca-Cola at different brand points to meet the needs of an economically diverse consumer base (Coca-Cola annual report 2009). In 1963, the product tab was launched and was specifically targeted at the female consumers but subsequently the company in order to broaden its customer base by appealing to the men folk as well as the entire family had to introduce diet coke to achieve the above mentioned objectives. In 1983, Coca-Cola introduced the caffeine- free versions of Coca-Cola, diet coke and tab which were specifically targeted at health conscious consumers. Coca-Cola also introduced the minute maid soda which was positioned to attract a market segment that prefers fruit juice as well as health and nutrition conscious consumers (Mochmen and Maze,1998). The Coca-Cola Company today through its market segmentation strategies offers a diverse portfolio of products to identified market segments based on different consumer preferences for flavours, calories and caffeine content effectively which continues to add to their success story globally (Lamb et al, 2008). Equity investment Coca Cola Company has over time been making equity investment in selected bottling companies with the intention of maximising companys strength and efficiency in its systems, production, distribution, and marketing capabilities around the world. The level of investment generally depends on the bottlers capital structure and its available resources at the time of investment. Coca cola Company in some instances finds it necessary to acquire a controlling interest. Such controlling interest allows coca cola Company to compensate for limited local resources and enables it to focus on bottlers sales and marketing programs. Equity investment also assists in the development of bottlers business and information systems and the establishment of appropriate capital structures. One of examples of coca cola equity investment is that of Coca Cola Enterprise Inc. (C.C.E) In 2009, Coca Cola Companys ownership in Coca Cola Enterprise Inc.-bottling company, was 34%. Coca cola Enterprise Inc. is the worlds bottler company of trade mark beverages. The sales of concentrates, syrups, mineral waters, juices, sweeteners and finished products by coca cola Company to C.C.E were approximately 6.6 billion by the year end 2009. The Coca Cola Enterprise Inc. estimates its market beverage products to retailers which include a portion of 46 states of USA, Columbia district of USA, Virgin Islands, Caribbean islands, Canada, Great Britain, Continental France, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Belgium and Monaco. Therefore Coca Companys investment strategy in CCE was to take advantage of this vast market for it to sell concentrates, syrups and different coca cola product brands through C.C.E (Coca cola annual report,2009). Branding Coca cola has many kinds brands sold worldwide. In developing a company brand, coca cola conducts product and packaging research to establish brand positioning, develop precise consumer communication and solicit consumer feedback. The Coca-Cola brand development strategy emphasizes on price, preference, and persuasive penetration (Annual report, 2009) The Coca Cola Company main brand products are Coca cola classic, diet coke and coca cola zero whereas the main branding strategies at Coca Cola Company include but not limited to Joint brand strategy, brand diversification strategy, personal branding strategy, and packaging/redesigning strategy (Annual report, 2009) Joint brand strategy involves a situation in which two different brands are linked to form joint promotion, as a consequence one product may sell the other examples in early 1990s Bacardirum and Coke cola brand were jointly marketed together. Coca cola, the common known brand was used to market Barcadirum, the new product on the market. The benefits of this strategy is that if the first brand name gives a certain quality signal, then the second brand quality signal is believed to be as powerful as the first one, hence attracting more buyers. (Akshadf and Ruekert, 1994) Brand portfolio/diversification strategy: Coca Cola Company continues to diversify its portfolio and growing sales with new and acquired brands. The some of the diversified brands are vitamin-enhanced water energy brand, and its star water brand Glaceau. The powerade and Nestiea iced tea brand products, a joint venture of Coca Cola Company with Nestle. The importance of this strategy is that multiple brands allow the company to offset cokes gradual decline with newer, more appropriate brands while removing future potential rivals through acquisition. The strategy also allows coca cola to maintain relatively large market share irrespective of how market changes (VanAnken and Derick Daye, 2007) Personal branding strategy refers to a set of human characteristics as associated with a brand. Users view it as a key way to differentiate a brand in a product category as a central driver of consumer preference and usage that can be used to market a brand across cultures. In coca cola company personal traits associated with coca cola are Cooling, all-American, and real. These three personal traits differentiate coca cola from its competitors. Besides these traits, Coca Cola Company uses slogans, graphic designs, color schemes and trademarks. As a result of personal branding, different categories of people from different denomination find themselves attracted to the brand hence increasing its demand (Aaker, 1997). Packaging/redesigning strategy: Coca Cola Company keeps on redesigning its packaging and visual identity systems. One of examples is its newly identity visual system for its flagship brand introduced in 2008 and contour aluminum bottle initially commercialized in 2005. The nonalcoholic beverage in this new aluminum bottle attracted many buyers especially in 2005 Olympic Games in Beijing-China. (Butler, 2009) Packaging redesigning also continues making coca cola brand a new product in the face of consumers. Comparative advantage The most crucial comparative advantage is that the company has over time built a network bottling partners, wholesalers and distributers spread over in many parts of world. These act as marketing agents of coca cola company products worldwide. Bottling partners pray two major roles, Firstly they act as consumers of the concentrates and syrup which they use in manufacture of coca cola products and later sell these products locally or in foreign market, secondary they act as marketer of company brands. (Annual report,2009) Through a network of bottling companies, Coca Cola Company has been able to access cheap raw materials, for example the high fructose corn syrup, a sweetener, one of the component used in manufacture of concentrates and syrups is available at a cheaper price in all countries where coca cola factories are.(Annual report 2009) The company is the owner and marketer of more than 500 nonalcoholic brands sold over the world, giving the company a wide range of customers. With these brands, consumers are provided with a wide variety of choices to meet their desires, needs and their life styles. As the sole manufacturer of coca cola concentrates and syrups, the company enjoys world monopoly Conclusion The Coca Cola Company has a unique network of bottling partners, distributers, wholesalers and joint ventures spread all over the world which act as channels through which the company promotes and markets its brands. Coca Cola as a result of operating in partnership or in cooperation with foreign companies, it enjoys economies of scale such as cheap labor, land and transport costs. Transport costs are reduced due to the fact its brands are brought closer to customers through a network of bottling partners, wholesalers and distributers. The coca cola companys leading brands with high level of acceptance, a worldwide network of bottlers and distributers of companys products, sophisticated marketing capabilities and talented group of dedicated associates are unique companys achievements overtime compared to other multi-national organizations. (3970 Words)

Free Hamlet Essays: Hamlets Inability to Take Action :: The Tragedy of Hamlet Essays

Hamlet's Inability to Take Action "To be, or not to be, that is the question."(Hamlet) This is the question that plagues Hamlet through the entire play. Should I live or should I die, should I take revenge for my father's death? These are all issues that Hamlet battles within himself. Hamlet's indecision is followed by inaction. The reason for this struggle with indecision can be based on many factors or on a combination of a few. As illustrated through his speeches and soliloquies Hamlet has the mind of a true thinker. Reinacting the death of his father in front of Claudius was in itself a wonderful idea. Although he may have conceived shcemes such as this, his mind was holding him back at the same time. His need to analyze and prove everythin certain drew his time of action farther and farther away. Hamlet continuously doubted himself and whether or not the action that he wanted to take was justifiable. The visit that Hamlet recieves from his dead father makes the reader think that it is Hamlet's time to go and seek revenge. This is notthe case. Hamlet does seem eager to try and take the life of Claudius in the name of his father, but before he can do so he has a notion, what if that was not my father, but an evil apparition sending me on the wrong path? This shows that even with substantial evidence of Claudius' deeds, Hamlet's mind is not content. With his thinking mind Hamlet does not become a typical vengeful character. Unlike most erratic behavior of individuals seeking revenge out of rage, Hamlet considers the consequences of his actions. What would the people think of their prince if he were to murder the king? What kind of effect would it have on his beloved mother? Hamlet considers questions of this type which in effect hasten his descision. After all, once his mother is dead and her feelings out of the picture , Hamlet is quick and aggressive in forcing poison into Claudius' mouth. Once Hamlet is certain that Claudius is the killer it is only after he himself is and and his empire falling that he can finally act. On top of Hamlet's over analyzation of the situation an his constant reviewing of all the reasons why he should not act, there is another force which he cannot control.

How Can Public Diplomacy Complement “Hard Power” Tactics in International Affairs?

Hard power is a term used to describe power that is acquired from the use of military and/or economic force to influence the behaviour or interests of other political entities. As the name might imply, this type of political power is often aggressive, and is most effective when imposed by one political body upon another of lesser military and/or economic power. What it boils down to is: Do what we want. If you don't, we will inflict undesirable damage on your person, citizenry, economy, security forces, crops, well water, et cetera. Hard power is mostly placed in the International Relations field of Realism, where military power is seen as the expression of a state’s strength in the international community. While the existence of hard power has a long history, the term arose when Joseph Nye coined ‘soft power' as a fresh and different form of power in a State's foreign policy. Nye defined soft power as â€Å"the ability to get what you want through attraction rather than through coercion. † He also said that soft power â€Å"could be developed through relations with allies, economic assistance, and cultural exchanges. He argued that this would result in â€Å"a more favourable public opinion and credibility abroad. † By engaging both forms of power, hard and soft, one is then employing ‘smart power’. Another term defined by Joseph Nye, it was endorsed by Hilary Clinton: â€Å"We must use what has been called smart power — the full range of tools at our disposal â €” diplomatic, economic, military, political, legal, and cultural — picking the right tool, or combination of tools, for each situation. With smart power, diplomacy will be the vanguard of foreign policy. Ideas matter, and a country’s ability to promote ideals to citizens of other nations and societies, known as public diplomacy (PD), can work wonders to advance the national interest. By taking a look at case studies, we will examine whether PD can complement hard power tactics and thus we will see if ‘smart power’ is really viable in practice. The U. S strategy of hard power and public diplomacy in the Cold War During the Cold War, the world was divided in two, as the two super-powers attempted to gain support from neutral parties while offsetting the actions of their opponent. The United States and Russia were more or less equally matched in military and political strength and this resulted in a stalemate. With hard power abilities alone proving ineffective at turning the tide in any direction it meant that another means of demonstrating global dominance would be required. The basic strategy of the US during the Cold War was containment using military, economic, and diplomatic strategies to stop the spread of Communism, boost America’s security and influence abroad, and avert a â€Å"domino effect†. The concept of containment was proposed by diplomat George Kennan in the notorious Long Telegram . Kennan argued that the only way to defeat the spread of Communism was to suffocate it. Containment had two major policies associated with it, the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan and was a reaction to a string of moves by the Soviet Union to expand Communist influence in Eastern Europe, China, and Korea. It represented a middle-ground position between appeasement and rollback. The Truman Doctrine was a robust plan that that pledged military support to the nations struggling against communist pressures. It was announced By President Truman in his 1947 address to congress after the United Kingdom informed the United States that it no longer had the capabilities to aid Greece and Turkey in their struggle against Soviet tensions. In the address he declared that the United States would â€Å"support free peoples who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures. † The Truman Doctrine displayed the U. S objective to respond to any further expansion with military force—the hard power element of containment. The Truman Doctrine was the justification for considerable injections of American money into European economic recovery to counteract the development of social and political unrest. This ambitious aid plan was called the Marshall Plan after the secretary of state at the time. General Marshall proposed the plan with two intentions: to assist in the rebuilding of Europe and to win the â€Å"hearts and minds† of the citizens most vulnerable to the reach of communism. The act of benevolence was accepted by the United States’ European allies after a phase of negotiations, but was discarded by the Soviets and other members of the Eastern Bloc. The Marshall Plan represented a significant early application of U. S. soft power and the vital non-military aspect of US policies of containment. Containment is an excellent example of a successful balance of hard and soft power. The policies they implemented in this process served to strengthen relations with â€Å"at-risk† countries in Europe while at the same time sending a strong message to the Soviet Union th at the United States would react strongly to any further Soviet expansion. In fact, containment was so successful, that many experts consider it the leading cause of the Soviet collapse. Another prime example of this PD was the cultural exchanges which saw tens of thousands of Soviet students go to America to study. These exchanges enabled many Soviet citizens, especially in the upper and middle reaches of society, to see the United States with their own eyes. The students would then go back to the USSR and some even occupied roles of influence and played important roles in the peaceful demise of the Soviet Union As I mentioned earlier, Public Diplomacy serves to make one’s country and ideals more attractive to citizens of other countries. One way that the U. S achieved this during the Cold War was by setting up organizations such as Radio Free Europe/Radio Lib ¬erty (RFE/RL), the Voice of America (VOA), and the United States Information Agency (USIA) which communi ¬cated the ideals of democracy, individual rights, and the free market. U. S. officials distin ¬guished America's truthful approach from the lies and deceptions of classic Nazi and Soviet propa ¬ganda and therefore the term â€Å"public diplomacy† came into general use by the 1970s to reflect this critical dif ¬ference. In fact it was noted by Edward R. Murrow, then director of the USIA, that â€Å"truth is the best propaganda and lies are the worst. † Nye remarks that Pop culture also featured largely in the U. S arsenal as it transmits widely â€Å"American values that are open, mobile, individualistic, anti-establishment, pluralistic, populist, and free. † â€Å"Long before the Berlin Wall fell in 1989; it had been pierced by television and movies. The hammers and bulldozers would not have worked without the years-long transmission of images of the popular culture of the West before it fell. In the end, the promotion of these values contributed mightily to the nearly bloodless dissolution of the Soviet Empire. China’s public diplomacy in Africa In recent years, China has looked to complement its long-established employment of hard power with soft power, and as a consequence, the Chinese government has devoted a lot of consideration to public diplomacy. In the past, Chinese g overnments have demonstrated a limited understanding of public diplomacy, viewing it either as external propaganda or a form of internal public affairs, but this has not prevented China from becoming a killed public diplomacy player. Public diplomacy and hard power are not only used in situations of war or tension between countries. One can look at Chinese relationship with Africa for a prime example of public diplomacy employed to strengthen economic relations. Africa has resources that China needs and so China views other countries, mainly this in the West, as a direct competitor for African resources. That is why they needed to establish such strong relationship with Africa. A strategy to block out competitors would require a deep partnership of trust (gained with PD), or coercion (Hard Power). The Chinese opted for the trust route as they believed it would be more cost-effective in the long run to establish a trust and understanding. Relationships begin with dialogues. The goal is to build trust. Trust cannot be manufactured, it has to be earned. China-African relations have steadily deepened and strengthened since the founding of â€Å"new China† in 1949. Developing from the ideologically-driven interactions during the Cold War, today’s China-Africa relations combine pragmatic economic and political means to achieve China’s objective of establishing a world order that is peaceful and favourable to continued economic growth and stability at home. In the 1960s and 1970s, China supported liberation movements in several African countries, gave aid to socialist nations to build stadiums, hospitals, railroads and other infrastructure, and cemented relations through a steady stream of expert engineers, teachers, and doctors. Today, Chinese officials travel to Africa accompanied by bankers and businesspeople, promoting political and economic commerce that develops China-Africa ties in a sustainable fashion. While trade and diplomacy are driven by China’s newfound economic strength and subsequent demand for raw materials, China continues to support longstanding programs that deliver aid to impoverished African citizens, such as sending teams of doctors and providing medicines. There are a number of reasons why China makes for such an appealing partner to many African countries. China’s attitude towards bilateral relations and economic development offers a different alternative to the political and economic reforms pushed forward by the â€Å"West†. China has adopted a firm stance of respect for other nations’ sovereignty and persistently refuses to condemn or involve itself in the internal affairs of African nations. This attitude has earned it the respect of those leaders and elite individuals and groups that profited from poor governance and crooked political systems and so they are not so keen on applying tedious and costly economic reforms insisted on by the West. In order to demonstrate to Africa how sincere and beneficial their friendship with China is, Beijing drafted a policy on Africa. China reportedly gets over a quarter of its oil from Africa , so it is not surprising it's interested in building up and maintaining relations on the continent. At the start of the millennium, Beijing established the China-Africa Cooperation Forum (CACF) to encourage trade and investment with 44 African countries. In 2003, Prime Minister Wen visited several oil-producing African states accompanied by Chinese oil executives, and President Hu toured Algeria, Egypt, and Gabon. China has been collaborating with governments in the Gulf of Guinea, from Angola to Nigeria, as well as with the Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Libya, Niger, and Sudan. In mid-January 2006, China issued an African foreign policy paper. China has laid out the strategy for all to see and it is divided into six parts: 1. Africa's Position and Role 2. China's Relations with Africa 3. China's African Policy 4. Enhancing All-round Cooperation between China and Africa 5. Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and Its Follow-up Actions 6. China's Relations with African Regional Organizations The document is made as accessible as possible on the internet. It is written in simple English which means that it is easy to read even for those who do not have an exceptionally strong command of the language. This document is a perfect demonstration of public diplomacy. The Chinese are doing a superb job in the region. China's relationship with the public goes further than building prestige buildings for the public and the public themselves get to choose whether they want a sports stadium or a government building. In addition, television in the area is becoming more and more English language transitions from China. By backing up its economic interests with so much soft power, China has been put on a moral high-ground when compared to other global players. EU integration and public diplomacy One of the most successful initiatives to embody the principles of effective public diplomacy was the establishment of the European Coal and Steel Community in the 1950’s which has now evolved into the European Union. European integration is the process of mainly political, legal, social and economic integration of European states, which these days is primarily achieved through the European Union and the Council of Europe. Attempts at European integration emerged originally after the devastation of the Second World War and the desire of European countries to integrate so much so as to eliminate the possibility of another European war. The main intention behind integrating economically and politically is that the smaller European countries have more influence in international matters such as trade and world politics. A ‘kind of United States of Europe’ was called for by Winston Churchill and in 1950 the German and French politicians, Robert Schuman and Jean Monnet, proposed a common market for coal and steel for those countries willing to delegate control of these sectors of their economies to an independent authority. In 1951 the Treaty of Paris was signed by the leaders of six European countries; Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France and West Germany. This treaty founded the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) creating a common market in which the industries that were crucial for war were controlled thus preventing the unilateral rearmament of any of its member states, particularly Germany. The ECSC enjoyed economic and political success which spurred the six member states to sign the Treaty of Rome in 1957 and establish the European Economic Community (EEC), which was transformed into the European Community from 1967 in the Merger Treaty. In 1993 the Maastricht Treaty transformed the ECSC into the European Union and European integration became less and less about the ‘negative’ removal of barriers, and more and more about ‘positive’, active harmonization. The EU has steadily been evolving as a diplomatic power in its own right. To demonstrate this, we need to look at the broad sweep of the development of an EU diplomatic corps over time; where it came from, how few of them there originally were, how little they did, and how these details compare with trends today. The European Union practices public diplomacy through a multilayered framework of policies and programs, relying both on its Representations in member-states, as well as its Delegations abroad – it now has diplomatic delegations in over 150 countries, employing over 5,000 members of staff. With its internal communication strategy the Union aims to engage EU-citizens more closely in its political life and to create a sense of common identity. Its communication strategy for enlargement, on the other hand, is designed to explain the goals and responsibilities of the European project to countries that aspire to become member states as well as to promote the benefits of enlargement to Euro-sceptics inside the EU. The European Neighbourhood Policy provides another layer of regional integration and governance and is directed towards the EU's immediate neighbours by land and sea, primarily developing countries, who seek one day to become either member states of the European Union itself, or more closely integrated with the economy of the European Union. Finally, through its network of Delegations abroad, the EU aims to assert itself on the international stage and regulates its relations with â€Å"third† countries. Although basically aimed at developing a public diplomacy capability, most of the outreach activities of the EU are not officially referred to as â€Å"public diplomacy†, but are described as information and communication campaigns, or education and cultural exchange programs. These efforts are intended not only to inform and explain the workings of EU institutions but also to socialize into the norms and values of the Union. The European Commission is the institution responsible for conducting the Union's diplomacy and public diplomacy efforts. While other EU bodies have also initiated public diplomacy programs, the Commission is the one providing the executive action. Since the creation of the ECSC in 1950 member states have achieved great success in integrating socially, economically and politically between themselves however there are still many difficulties to be overcome and the process of integration will never be complete. Much progress has been made to create an integrated EU diplomatic service and this will continue to be utilized alongside hard power economic and political policies to develop the EU as strong and coherent body of states. Conclusion As we have seen in these case studies, when hard power is coupled with soft power, especially public diplomacy, it creates a most effective product – more effective than the sum of its parts. The European Union for example has been seen as a civilian power. It has no army even though this is one of the areas where unity would bring an obvious increase in efficiency and influence. It relies on law, on negotiation, on multilateral organisation. Its relationships are often in the form of â€Å"contractual agreements†, itself a revealing phrase. It seems a model of soft power, as America is of hard power. Even China, a country based on hard power, has realised the effectiveness of adding a strong public diplomacy to its repertoire. Realists have a preference for hard power. Otto von Bismarck is famous for the remark that â€Å"this policy cannot succeed through speeches †¦and songs; it can be carried out only through blood and iron†. In a twist of irony however Bismarck’s blood and iron was not the solution to the German question. By 1945 Germany had had enough of both: they had undermined Bismarck’s achievement of unification and had led to the ruin of Germany. In today’s world it is more important than ever to be able to effectively combine hard and soft power to form smart power. Even one of the greatest military men of all time, realised the importance complementing hard power with soft when he famously stated that: â€Å"There are but two powers in the world, the sword and the mind. In the long run the sword is always beaten by the mind. † – Napoleon Bonaparte Bibliography Bonaparte, Napoleon (1769-1821), ‘Napoleon Bonaparte Quotes’, http://www. military-quotes. com/Napoleon. htm Carnes Lord – Helle C. Dale, Public Diplomacy and the Cold War: Lessons Learned, in the Heritage Foundation (online) 18 September 2007 http://www. heritage. rg/Research/nationalSecurity/bg2070. cfm [accessed 28 January 2010] Drew Thompson, China’s Soft Power in Africa: from the â€Å"Beijing consensus† to health diplomacy, China Brief: Volume 5, Issue 21 (October 13, 2005) Joseph S. Nye Jr, Soft Power: A Means to Success in World Politics. Public Affairs, New York. 2004. Joseph S. Nye Jr, Soft Power, Hard Power and Leadership. Seminar , 27 October 06. http://www. hks. harvard. edu/netgov/files/talks/docs/11_06_06_seminar_Nye_HP_SP_Leadership. pdf Lee Rotherham, EU Diplomats, (online) in TaxpayersAlliance. com http://www. taxpayersalliance. om/EUDiplomats. pdf Matt Armstrong, Practicing Effective Public Diplomacy in Africa (or elsewhere). Blog – MountainRunner. US (online). February 8 2006 http://mountainrunner. us/2006/02/practicing_effe. html [accessed 28 January 2010] Robert Cooper, Hard power, Soft power and the Goals of Diplomacy, in David Held/Mathias Koenig-Archibugi, American Power in the 21st Century, 2004, pp. 167-180 Rory D Huff Jr, U. S. Applications of Hard and Soft Power (online) http://www. personal. psu. edu/cpl2/blogs/powerforce/Huff%20on%20Hard%20and%20Soft%20Power. pdf [accessed 28 January 2010]

Operations Decision Essay

This file of ECO 550 Assignment 2 Operations Decision consists of: 1. Briefly describe the details of the fictitious business that you created for this assignment. 2. Assess the current environmental scan factor. Determine the factors that will have the greatest impact on plant operations and management’s decision to continue or discontinue operations. 3. Evaluate the financial performance of the company using the information provided in the scenario. Consider all the drivers of performance, such as company profit or loss for both the short term and long term. Be sure to show the calculations that helped you reach your conclusions. 4. Recommend how the company can improve its profitability. Then develop a brief plan to implement the recommendations. 5. Assess the circumstances in which the company should discontinue operations. Provide a rationale with your response. Economics – General Economics Assignment 2 â€Å"Operations Decision† Assume you have been hired as a managing consultant by a company to offer some advice that will help it make a decision as to whether it should shut down completely or continue its operations. It currently uses 100 workers to produce 6,000 units of output per month (working 20 days / month). The daily wage (per worker) is $70, and the price of the firm’s output is $32. The cost of other variable inputs is $2,000 per day. You are told that the firm’s fixed cost is â€Å"high enough† so that the firm’s total costs exceed its total revenue. The marginal cost of the last unit is $30. (Ch 7 8 to solve)  This assignment allows you to determine the specific details about this fictitious company in order to conduct an environmental scan of this company.   Write a three to four (4-5) page paper in which you: Briefly describe the details of the fictitious business that you created for this assig†¦ Follow the link to get tutorial – https://bitly.com/12AXeqz When your classes begin, you have to get acquainted with your instructors. Make sure that you are aware of their office locations, hours of availability and how else to contact them. You must develop good relationships with your professors so that you will feel comfortable talking with them if you need help or an exception on a due date. Economics – General Economics Assignment 2 â€Å"Operations Decision† Assume you have been hired as a managing consultant by a company to offer some advice that will help it make a decision as to whether it should shut down completely or continue its operations. It currently uses 100 workers to produce 6,000 units of output per month (working 20 days / month). The daily wage (per worker) is $70, and the price of the firm’s output is $32. The cost of other variable inputs is $2,000 per day. You are told that the firm’s fixed cost is â€Å"high enough† so that the firm’s total costs exceed its total revenue. The marginal cost of the last unit is $30. (Ch 7 8 to solve)  This assignment allows you to determine the specific details about this fictitious company in order to conduct an environmental scan of this company.   Write a three to four (4-5) page paper in which you: Briefly describe the details of the fictitious business that you created for this assignment. Assess the current environmental scan factors that are relevant to the decision making process. Determine the factors that will have the greatest impact on plant operations and management’s decision to continue or discontinue operations. Provide a rationale for your  determination. Evaluate the financial performance of the company using the information provided in the scenario. Consider all the key drivers of performance, such as company profit or loss for both the short term and long term and how each factor influences managerial decisions. Be sure to show the calculations that helped you reach your conclusions. Recommend how the company can improve its profitability to deliver more value to its stakeholders. Then, develop a brief plan to implement the recommendations. Assess the circumstances in which the company should discontinue operations and how management should react when c onfronted with these circumstances. Provide a rationale with your response.