Stefan’s Diaries: The Craving Chapter 13

That night I lay in bed, gazing up at the ceiling. The moon shone through the gauzy white curtains, and the house hummed with activity, a melee of footsteps, heartbeats, and mice skittering inside the walls. It felt as though the entire house were alive, with the exception, of course, of myself and Damon. The Sutherlands had no idea, but when they'd opened their home to me, they had invited Death in. I was a cancer on their happy existence, and soon the darkness would spread, eating through their world until there was nothing left. Though I was no willing participant in Damon's twisted plan, it would be no different from how Katherine insinuated herself into my life and decimated the entire Salvatore family. Like it or not, this family's well-being rested squarely on my shoulders. If Damon killed them, their blood would be on my hands, too. But how could I stop him? I was so much weaker than my brother, and I had no plans to begin feeding on humans again for fear that I'd be unable to stop. I rose from bed and pushed the curtains aside with a violent flick. As I stared at the moon, that orb that had witnessed so much of my ill-doing, I replayed the conversation we'd had with Margaret over and over in my head. The firm set of her jaw. The clear tone of her eyes. The way her lucid blue eyes had sized up me and Damon, as though she could see straight through our skin to our unbeating hearts. Winfield was ready to sign his fortune over to Damon, yet his daughter remained immune to my brother's Power. But how? The only protection I knew against vampires was vervain, but I'd not inhaled its cloying scent since arriving in New York. When trying to draw out Katherine, my father had spiked my whiskey with vervain, sending Katherine into a miasmic fit when she drank my blood. If only my father had thought to protect me sooner, he and I might still be in Mystic Falls, poring over accounting books as I studied to take over Veritas. Sliding the window open, I stepped out onto the narrow balcony. The night was eerily still. No wind rustled the trees, and even the pigeons that roosted on the neighbor's roof were quiet. My balcony faced east, toward the muddy East River and the narrow spit of land they called Blackwell's Island, where the city had recently rebuilt the lunatic asylum. A wry smile twisted my lips. If only I could check Damon in there. But then I let out a groan and clutched the wrought-iron rail with my hands. I had to stop wishing and hoping and thinking of millions of if onlys. I could not wish Damon into oblivion and I could not rewrite the past. What was done was done. Even at my peak Power, I could not cause the world to spin backward, could not turn back time and undo what Katherine did to me and my family. But I was not powerless over the future. I had free will, I had experience, and I had the choice to fight. Hoisting myself up on the rail, I leaped to the roof, landing on the tar with a soft thud. New York was a large city, and someone, somewhere, had to grow vervain or at least have dried sprigs. I'd run up and down the streets until I caught the telltale scent of the herb. Spiking Lydia's drinks would be impossible – Damon was feeding from her – but if I could just sprinkle some in Winfield's whiskey†¦ I ran across the roof, preparing to jump to that of the neighbor, before scaling down their fire escape to the street below. â€Å"Where are you going, brother?† The cheery words sliced through the night like gunshot, and I froze on the ledge. Slowly, I turned around to face a smiling Damon. He looked ready for the second part of his evening jaunt, wearing a three-piece suit and twirling a gold cane in his hand. I recognized it immediately – it had belonged to Callie's father, the man who had imprisoned Damon, torturing him and starving him before forcing him to do battle with a mountain lion. Damon must have stolen it after he killed Callie. Unbidden, an image of Callie bloomed in my mind. Her kind green eyes smiling at me, the freckles that dusted every inch of her body, the way she had so bravely given herself to me on the shore of the lake, offering her blood even though she knew what I was and what I could do to her†¦. Her dead, twisted body lying in the grass behind Lexi's house. â€Å"You bastard,† I said in a low, fury-filled voice that I barely recognized as my own. Rage that had been building for weeks with no outlet tore through my veins, and I felt as though my muscles were on fire. With a growl, I threw myself at him. â€Å"Why won't you just let me be?† Our bodies collided, like stone on stone. Startled, Damon fell backward, but instantly he pushed me off and flipped to his feet. He wrapped his arms around my neck with a vise-like grip. â€Å"If you were so desperate to be free of me, you shouldn't have forced me to become a vampire with you,† he hissed, all traces of joviality gone from his demeanor. I struggled to free myself, but his knee pressed more forcefully into my spine, pinning me to the roof. â€Å"You were the one who urged me to become what I am – to see what Katherine gave us as a gift rather than a curse.† â€Å"Trust me,† I gasped, trying to twist from his grip. â€Å"I would take it back if I could.† â€Å"Tsk-tsk,† Damon chided. â€Å"Didn't Father teach you that part of being a man is living with your choices?† He pressed my cheek into the tar roof, scraping open the skin there. â€Å"Then again, you were such a disappointment to him at the end – not wanting to marry Rosalyn, taking up with a vampire, killing him†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"You were always a disappointment,† I spat. â€Å"I should have killed you when I had the chance.† Damon let out a dry laugh. â€Å"Well, that would have been a shame, because then I couldn't do this.† The pressure on my spine abated as Damon hoisted me up by the back of the shirt. â€Å"What are you – † I started. Before I could finish, Damon launched me forward with the force of a lit cannon. My body careened through the night air, and for a brief, weightless moment, I wondered if I was flying. Then the hard pavement of the alley between the Sutherlands' and their neighbor's home rushed up to greet me, and my bones cracked loudly on the impact. I groaned, pain radiating through my limbs as I rolled to my back, blood dripping down my face. I lay like that for hours, staring at the stars until my Power healed me, resetting my bones and stitching up the gash in my cheek more swiftly than the most skilled medic could. But when I stood, a new pain shot through my chest. Because there on the brick wall of the Sutherlands' home, written in red ink that could only be blood, were three terrifying words: I'm always watching.

Health Care Policy Issue- Stem Cell

Policy Topic: Stem Cell Research Health Care Policy: The Past and the Future: HCS/455 A very controversial subject in the United States has been Stem Cell research. The United States has a very complicated legal and political history when Stem Cell laws and policies come into play. Scientifically speaking, the practice of stem cell research and treatments consists of the use of cells found in all multi-cellular organisms. There are two different types of stem cells, adult stem cells and embryonic stem cells, each come from different places.The difference is that adult stem cells are derived from mature body tissue (bone, marrow, umbilical cord, etc. ) and embryonic stem cells are derived from human embryos. The argument or controversy comes mainly from the way embryonic stem cells are obtained. During vitro fertilization a pregnant woman may choose to have an abortion in which the embryo dies (NIH, 2010). Many religious groups and bioethicists are against this practice because they b elieve this constitutes killing a potential human being.Researchers have countered these people, saying that the embryo would have been destroyed anyway and the stem cells that live on may have the potential to save lives indirectly through research and directly through therapy (NIH, 2010). Before 2009 the Stem Cell policy in the United States was heavily regulated by a bill President Bush put into place that banned federal funding of research using new stem cell lines in 2001. To be clear, there has never been a law State or Federal that banned stem cell research in the United States, but only placed restrictions on funding and use under Congresses power to spend.In the United States, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has been tasked with creating and enforcing guidelines that pertain to stem cell research and treatments. These guidelines created by NIH are backed by federal law. The NIH has published these guidelines known as â€Å"National Institutes Guidelines for Human S tem Cell Research. † These guidelines can be summarized as a set of policies and procedures under which the NIH will fund such research, and help ensure that NIH-funded research in this area is ethically responsible, scientifically worthy, and conducted in accordance with applicable law. President Barack H.Obama issued Executive Order 13505: Removing Barriers to Responsible Scientific Research Involving Human Stem Cells on March 9, 2009 which succeeded over President Bush’s executive order that created barriers for the research of stem cells. President Obama addressed the public saying (The White House, 2011): â€Å"Today, with the Executive Order I am about to sign, we will bring the change that so many scientists and researchers; doctors and innovators; patients and loved ones have hoped for, and fought for, these past eight years: we will lift the ban on federal funding for promising embryonic stem cell research.We will vigorously support scientists who pursue this research. And we will aim for America to lead the world in the discoveries it one day may yield. † Instantly one should notice that the stakeholders involved in stem cell research is very broad, from patient to researchers anyone who is concerned with the advancement of stem cell research is be considered as a stakeholder in stem cell policies and research. Stakeholders are individuals or groups in a society who are directly involved with or indirectly affected by the development of stem cell research.President Obama did a great job addressing all the stakeholders in his speech. Specifically, one could say patients are the largest benefactor or stakeholder in stem cell research policies. These patient groups are in alignment with the medical community which makes for the most visible of all stakeholders in stem cell research. Motivation is driven by promises of cures and treatments for diseases made by medical professionals, scientists and researchers. Reference Lee, Jesse. (2 009). The White House: Signing of Stem Cell Executive Order.The White House. Retrieved from http://www. whitehouse. gov/blog/09/03/09/A-debt-of-gratitude-to-so-many-tireless-advocates/ NIH. (2011). Federal Policy. Retrieved from http://stemcells. nih. gov/policy NIH. (2011). National Institutes of Health Guidelines on Human Stem Cell Research. Retrieved from http://stemcells. nih. gov/StemCells/Templates/StemCellContentPage. aspx? NRMODE=Published&NRNODEGUID=%7bA604DCCE-2E5F-4395-8954-FCE1C05BECED%7d&NRORIGINALURL=%2finfo%2ffaqs%2easp&NRCACHEHINT=NoModifyGuest#guide

Bsh White Goods Industry

ISTANBUL TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL SCIENCE [pic] MARKETING MANAGEMENT Elif Karaosmanoglu Assignment 1 SEGMENTATION AND POSITIONING WHITE GOODS INDUSTRY Submitted by: OSMAN OZEN 401111024 Table of Contents 1White Goods Industry3 2Brands in White Goods Industry3 3Marketing Objectives3 4The Brands of BSH3 5Segmentation & Targeting & Positioning3 5. 1Segmentation3 5. 2Target Market3 5. 3Positioning3 5. 3. 1BOSCH3 5. 3. 2SIEMENS3 5. 3. 3GAGGENAU3 5. 3. 4PROFILO3 6References3 White Goods Industry The home appliances sector showed a strong recovery in 2010. Driven by increasing consumer confidence and the recovery of real estate construction, the market for large domestic appliances grew by 8% bringing the market to a total of 5. 4 million appliances. All major appliance categories with the exception of the solo cookers showed a significant growth. Refrigerator sales increased by 11%, dishwashers sales grew by 7% and washing machine sales increased by 8%. Oven sales was the only category which declined by 4%. Driers, which is a new growth area, increased by 19%. Large home appliances, produced in Turkey, managed to increase by 12% year-on-year reaching 18. million units. Roughly 75%, 13. 7 million units, were exported, which reflects an increase of 9% year-on year. With this volume Turkey became the biggest white goods appliances producing country in Europe. [1] Brands in White Goods Industry The leader of white goods industry in Turkey is Arcelik and its main competitor is BSH (Bosch and Siemens Home Appliances). BSH is the second comp any in Turkey’s white goods industry. The others are followers. Bosch and Siemens Home Appliances Group is the world's third largest producer of large domestic home appliances. The group owns 14 brands and operates 43 factories worldwide, with its largest production facility being in Cerkezkoy, Turkey. The group posted annual sales of 10. 8 billion Euros in 2010, establishing itself as the leading home appliances company in Europe. In Turkey, BSH is one of the leading companies in the Home Appliances industry, with its main brands Bosch and Siemens, its special brand Gaggenau and local brand Profilo. BSH is the second largest company in its industry with 25% market share. Due to its rapid sales and investment growth, BSH is ranked the 7th largest foreign company in Turkey. It operates 4 factories producing refrigerators, cookers, washers and dishwashers with a production capacity of more than 3. 5 million units. More than half of its annual production is exported to countries around the world, mainly in Europe, North America, and Australia. †¢ 7th largest foreign company †¢ 2nd largest producer of white goods, with 25% market share †¢ 23rd largest industrial company †¢ Offers the best After Sales Service in the Home Appliances Sector †¢ Leader in the â€Å"built-in† appliances category †¢ Biggest production location within the BSH Group †¢ Offers Europe's top selling premium brands I will investigate BSH’s four brands in this assignment. I will analyze STP of BSH’s brands. Marketing Objectives BSH envision to be â€Å"the first choice† of their customers, dealers, suppliers and employees—that is the basis of their strategy. They employ this philosophy to improve the lives of their customers, by creating new product values, sustaining uncompromised. The white goods industry in Turkey has been facing some tough times in the past few years. The housing developments in Turkey had been progressing quite reliably, however because of the global financial crisis the growth in construction sector stopped. In addition, energy and water savings are becoming major factors for consumers in deciding which appliance to buy. With lifestyle changes and the way homes are being designed, they are convinced that the built-in appliances will receive much more attention in the next years. Although it is expected that housing demand will decrease, as the second objective in the years ahead, they will continue to develop products that bring elegance, comfort and ease of use, while contributing towards the conservation of resources and protecting their environment. Their main objective is to look forward to growing stronger, moving towards achieving their vision to be â€Å"the first choice† together with their customers, dealers, suppliers and employees. The Brands of BSH For BSH, one of the principal factors for success is the presence of strong brands that are clearly focused on their target groups and presenting a coherently structured product portfolio. 1 BOSCH For them, their brands form the most important ingredient to win in the global arena. They represent a pivotal symbol of trust and sense of purpose for the consumer. Over 100 years later, Bosch continues to stand by its founder’s words. The Bosch name has always meant a guarantee of both quality and reliability. Bosch remains committed to uncompromising performance and great design to be built into every single appliance they produce. Every time Bosch designs a new product, its ideas are based on sound ecological principles, ensuring they make the most economic use of natural resources and minimize the pollution of air, land and water. They are constantly developing new ways to reduce energy and water usage while maintaining product performance and efficiency, helping to conserve their planet and save you money by lowering costs. Bosch stands for premium quality, perfect engineering and high longevity. The â€Å"achievement of a higher quality of life and enduring value through beneficial technological advancements† stands at the core of the brand philosophy. 2 SIEMENS Sold in more than 55 countries around the globe, Siemens stands for innovative thinking, precision engineering and pure style to millions of people worldwide. Siemens meets consumer needs with a wide range of products from washing machines to vacuum cleaners and from consumer products to television. Siemens is the â€Å"number one† appliance brand in Germany, and the leading built-in appliance brand in Turkey. For many years, consumers, dealers and architects have appreciated the technological superiority and stylish design of Siemens appliances. Siemens, the great name in technology, stands for intelligent innovations and consistent orientation toward the future, and a modern approach to the technical features and design of home appliances. Siemens has a visionary approach and use of cutting-edge technologies aimed at improved functionality, gives rise to pioneering products and solutions that allow user to perceive and experience progress in a fascinating manner. Home appliances from Siemens are characterized by clear, functional design and optimum precision. Siemens products set standards in the marketplace. They are the result of progressive ideas, a consistent system, a performance-based approach and perfection for production. 3 GAGGENAU Gaggenau is the brand of professional cooking technology for the modern home. It specializes in high-performance built-in kitchen appliances. Gaggenau’s appliances incorporate a specialist's knowledge, skill, and decades of experience. After all, the first built-in appliance manufactured and sold in Europe was a Gaggenau. Every Gaggenau appliance is perfectly made, easy to handle and extremely reliable. Each and every one is especially beautiful, and the brand regularly receives the design awards to prove this. Yet, beauty isn't the only benefit of Gaggenau. Customers love Gaggenau's versatility and professional functions as well. Gaggenau became an internationally known luxury brand after World War II. In 1951, Georg von Blanquet, a passionate amateur cook, took the reins of the company and developed the Gaggenau kitchen technology, resulting in the manufacture of top-quality built-in appliances. Gaggenau stands for innovative engineering, long lasting materials, clear form, good handling, sustainable workmanship, and sets recognizable standards in the fields of food, lifestyle and culture. 4 PROFILO Profilo has blended the international know how and experience with the local lifestyle preferences in Turkey. Profilo is one of the oldest leading traditional brands in Turkey. The brand is highly preferred by customers who place durability and quality above all else. Profilo branded appliances are designed according to the unique needs and habits of Turkish consumers. The brand's success in meeting expectations comes from its careful examination of local market needs and sensitivities. This thorough consideration of the consumer has ensured the brands' longevity. It is known as a provider of long-lasting, durable and user-friendly home appliances, with a wide range of products and functionalities. 1] Segmentation & Targeting & Positioning 1 Segmentation BSH pursues demographic segmentation ( economic), psychographic segmentation (lifestyle), and behavioral segmentation ( benefit sought ). 2 Target Market According to the segmentation of the market the target groups of BSH are as the following: Siemens: Young and energetic, modern people who are seeking for high quality and performance, from middle and upper socio economic classes. Gaggenau: Sophisticated and modern people from upper socio economic class who are seeking for premium and excellent products. Bosch: People who are seeking for uncompromising performance and great design, from middle and upper socio economic classes. Profilo: People prefer to have the best value for the money, from lower and middle socio economic classes. 3 Positioning The values and specialties that BSH wants to place with its brands in consumers’ minds are as follows: 1 BOSCH Quality: Bosch products fulfill the highest demands in performance and offer maximum operating convenience. The premium quality is tangible in the superiority of the materials and visible in the product finishing. Technical expertise: Bosch offers fully rounded solutions oriented towards people’s needs and maximum user benefits that create greater quality of life. Quality of life: Bosch products make daily family life and chores easier and more enjoyable. They free up more time for the finer things in life, creating the balance for harmonious togetherness. Responsibility: Bosch acts on the basis of clear principles. Responsibility for people, society and the environment are important guiding principles for Bosch and therefore these are the driving forces behind the continuous development of products and services. It has always been an unbearable thought to me that someone could inspect one of my products and find it inferior in some way. For that reason I have consistently tried to produce products which can withstand the closest scrutiny – products which prove to be superior in every respect. † Robert Bosch [2] 2 SIEMENS Fascination: Siemens constantly takes up technologic al challenges and is fascinated with developing futuristic products, solutions and services. Expressiveness: Siemens develops products for the modern and dynamic society. It stands for concise and pure design. The brand offers styling that is sure of itself, emphasizing the individual expression of confident personalities. Performance: Siemens products set the standards in the marketplace. They are the result of progressive ideas, intensive development and perfect execution. 3 GAGGENAU Professionalism: Gaggenau appliances are often particularly large and impressive. They are designed for performance with generous capacities. Leadership: Gaggenau is true to tradition, combining simplicity with utmost quality and reliability. Gaggenau solutions go beyond narrow, constraining standards, impressive in their dimensions and convincing in their daring simplicity. Passion: Gaggenau makes good sense, knowing the uses and limitations of technology, reducing systems to essentials with composed mastery. It shares the dream of the perfect kitchen, in preparation and culinary delights. Excellence in Design: The professional kitchen provides lots of space. Its design is elegantly restrained and completely functional. Gaggenau's typical design is outstanding, crystal clear, and beautiful; completely self evident and truly expressive. PROFILO Durability: Profilo products are durable against all odds. Accessibility: It is a brand that is accessible to all Turkish consumers financially, physically and emotionally. The balance between quality and terms of payment is reflected visibly. Empathy: Profilo produces user friendly products responding to the basic needs of women, who are the primary user of their appliances. [1] R EFERENCES [1]   2010 Annual Report   (2010). http://www. bsh-group. com. tr/page. aspx? id=22 [2] Bosch Communication Center http://www. boschcommunicationcenter. com 3] BSH Ev Aletleri Sanayi ve Ticaret A. S http://wrightreports. ecnext. com/coms2/reportdesc_PRICE_C79628190 ———————– 2. 6 Arcelik Haier Samsung Fagor-Brandt 1. 7 White Goods Companies (2007 – billion euro) World 2. 3 Miele 2. 3 3. 1 3. 8 Indesit 3. 8 Maytag 4. 8 General Electric 7. 1 LG 7. 3 BSH 10. 1 Electrolux 11. 5 Whirlpool Europe 1. 0 LG 1. 0 Candy 1. 9 Arcelik 2. 5 Miele 2. 5 Whirlpool 2. 9 Indesit 4. 7 Electrolux 6. 1 BSH 36 % Market Share, 2007 Leader in Germany 21 % Market Share, 2007 Leader in Europe 7 % Market Share, 2007 3rd in the World

Constitutional Conventions. Should Conventions Be Made Into Laws Essay

Constitutional Conventions. Should Conventions Be Made Into Laws - Essay Example These are the nations which follow the Westminster system of government, common in the Commonwealth Nations. The constitutional conventions often distribute the powers between the head of the state and the head of the government making the head of the state a ceremonial post. For example in the Indian subcontinent (Present India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh) the constitution is based on the Govt. of India Act 1935 which was formulated by the British legislators, the additions to the act are made in the form of constitutional conventions and the affairs of government in these states are being run by these constitutional conventions. There are other constitutional conventions which operate alongside written constitutions. In Britain there are many constitutional conventions which have been made into laws. Still there is a marked difference between Laws and Constitutional Conventions. According to Dicey [1883] laws are the set of rules which are enforced by the courts while const itutional conventions are those set of rules which are not actually enforced by the courts and are merely are the habits and practices of people in certain offices of the state. According to Hood Phillips â€Å"constitutional conventions are rules of practices which are regarded as binding by those to whom they apply but which are not laws because they are not enforced by the courts and parliament†. L.B. ... The traditions and practices which are followed by certain governmental procedurals over large periods of time are considered as informal rules and are made constitutional conventions. According to one perception the English constitution drifted from the monarchical system to parliamentary system by way of constitutional convention. The ultimate object of most of the conventions is that the affairs of public interest should be conducted in accordance with the wishes of the majority of the electorates. The origin of constitutional conventions also takes place when certain authorities try to exercise power which is actually not prohibited by law but a certain opposition is aroused against that exercise of power and the opposition is of such an extent that the same action cannot be taken in future and the opposition marks an end to that practice. In such a scenario the certain practices which are not actually forbidden by law becomes forbidden under the constitutional conventions. Const itutional conventions automatically assume the role of constitutional amendments as the legislators and the government starts following them. But the constitutional conventions are not enforced by the courts of law because sometimes these are in conflict with the legal rules and the courts are bound to enforce the legal rules and not the constitutional conventions. On an occasion the British Supreme court has ruled out the possibility of the constitutional conventions to be enforced as laws no matter how well-established and universally accepted they may be because there are instances when there is clash between the constitutional convention and a present law. The only way

Warehousing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Warehousing - Essay Example The need for operations managers to reduce manufacturing costs, optimize productivity and improve product quality in order to stay in the market has become imperative. Many organizations now recognize the importance of automation, optimization of scheduling and a proper inventory management system, and are incorporating total quality management and total quality in their operations. Every organization invests a considerable amount of capital on materials. In many cases, the cost of materials exceeds 50 percent of the total cost of goods produced ((ICMR), 2003). Such a large investment requires considerable planning and control so as to minimize wastage. Even before we talk about planning and control it is inevitable that the material is stored in a safe place and such place of storing materials is termed as a warehouse. Hence, Warehousing can be defined as the process of storing goods or merchandise safely (Answers.com, 2004). Inventory refers to a stock of goods, commodities, or other economic resources that are held by firms at a particular time for their future production requirements and for meeting future demands. Inventories can be direct or indirect. Direct inventories include goods that play an important role in manufacturing of a product and become a part of the finished product. Direct inventories include raw materials, work-in-progress goods, etc. Indirect inventories include goods that are necessary to run the production process but do not become part of the end product. For example, lubricants, grease, oils, stationery etc, are indirect inventories. 2. Brief History of Warehousing As defined above, a warehouse is a commercial building used for storage of goods. Warehouses are used by people like manufacturers, importers, exporters, people in the logistics industry etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial areas of cities and towns. They come equipped with loading docks to load and unload trucks; or sometimes are loaded directly from railways, airports, or seaports. They also often have cranes and forklifts for moving goods, which are usually placed on ISO standard pallets loaded into pallet racks (Answers.com, 2004). With advent of globalization and information technology, now-a-days, warehouses are being fully automated. In such automated warehouses, there are hardly any workers found working inside. The pallets and product are moved with a system of automated conveyors and automated storage and retrieval machines coordinated by programmable logic controllers and computers running logistics automation software (Answers.com, 2004). With the introduction of new and recent technologies like Just-in-time (JIT) and ABC classification systems,

Sentiment in financial markets Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Sentiment in financial markets - Essay Example But if you have no feel for what the expectational environment is, you're kind of flying blind. You might have a good feel for the fundamentals and the technicals, but very often it's the expectational backdrop that makes the difference. For example, many investors are frustrated because they own a stock and the stock's earnings meet or perhaps even exceed expectations. And lo and behold, the stock goes down and people are at a loss to explain why. But for other stocks, the earnings come in and exceed expectations, and the stock skyrockets. Why the difference The reason is sentiment. Very often, the sentiment had been excessively bullish before the positive earnings report. In the days before the announcement, there may have been a heavy accumulation of call options. So there is a lot of anticipatory buying of the stock, which then pretty much has run its course when the earnings come out. But with these and other measures, you must wait until they get to some kind of extreme level before they carry contrary implications. For example, when everybody who could potentially be bullish is already bullish, then essentially most of the buying power in that particular market has been dissipated. At that point, the market becomes very vulnerable to selling because there isn't enough buying to offset the selling. Similarly, if only a very, very smal... Perhaps they have even shorted the market. That means the market has become more primed to move upward because if buyers should come in they will not encounter much selling pressure because the selling has already occurred. So imagine a poll today that says 80 percent of futures traders are bullish. Remember that people, whether futures traders or individual investors or market-letter writers, tend to be trend followers. Their opinion tends to be a reflection of what's going on in the market. So if 80 percent are bullish that doesn't mean that the market is at its peak. No. 1, you would expect them to be bullish, and, No. 2, they can always get more bullish. I think this points out a trap that the bears have fallen into. They've noticed signs of bullishness, namely the amount of money that's flowing into mutual funds, the investment clubs, the Beardstown Ladies' books and so on. You get into trouble when a market is in a powerful technical trend and you analyze it without reference to the fact that you expect people to be bullish in a bull market. When a stock rises on positive earnings, which also occurs often, there may have been a lot of concern about the earnings report and investors may have bought a lot of put options, or shorted the stock. Without a measure of sentiment that is accurate, you can go down all kinds of blind alleys. Some of those who have been bearish on the stock market will tell you that there are many more investment clubs than there were 15 years ago, or that mutual funds now outnumber the stocks on the Big Board. These are all good cocktail-party things to talk about, but they're not really measures of sentiment that have parameters associated with them. They're just anecdotal. Academic

Responding to a Government Solicitation Assignment

Responding to a Government Solicitation - Assignment Example However, despite these efforts from the concerned stakeholders especially the federal government, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) states that the levels of funding are not adequate enough to improve or maintain the conditions of the national highways. Additionally, the revenues generated from motor fuel tax; which is the main source of federal surface transportation funding, is eroding. As of March 2012, according to the Congressional Budget office, to maintain current expense levels and account for inflation from the year 2013-2022, FHWA will need $125 billion more of what it is expected to take in during this period. Discussions with experts and stakeholders lead to the identification of 40 practices and materials that can result to improvement of the performance of pavements, reducing life-cycle costs and extending service life. These practices and materials cover a range of applications and uses across the stages of highway life cycle, starting from the design and const ruction stages through preservation and maintenance cycles to last stage of reconstruction. Numerous challenges limit the federal government in its quest to maintain the highways. ... Our company will certainly place its bids in the recently announced contracts by the government. 1. Opportunity name and project location AK DEN 2009(8), Manokotak Heights Road Reconstruction Location: Manokotak, Alaska. 2. Solicitation Number DTFH70-12-B-00008 3. Agency Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) 4. Office Office of Federal Lands Highway Western Federal Lands Highway Division 610 E 5th Street Vancouver, WA 98661 (360) 619-7700 5. Location Vancouver 6) URL http://www.wfl.fhwa.dot.gov/contracting/construction/upcoming.htm Steps that would determine if the company is awarded the contract 1. Completing important contract administration tasks My company will register with Vendor Support Center. This site will be vital in providing publications, training, and resources to help the company achieve success. Start with the new contractor orientation center and the success steps guide. This can be found in the publications tab from vendor support center. Refer to events for vendors with the government contracts The next vital step is to create, distribute and maintain my company pricelist. This will include submission of two copies of pricelist to the GSA procurement contracting officer within one month of award. Before the submission of the price lists, the company will upload its current approved pricelist to GSA Advantage! ®. 2) The next step is marketing to the government To ensure success of the schedules contact, then active promotion of the business to potential customers is a necessity. In this case, we are responding to government solicitation therefore our customer is the government. We plan to do this by looking and marketing the company to the government highway maintenance and repairs agency. We

Developing a conceptual framework is an impossible possibility Essay - 3

Developing a conceptual framework is an impossible possibility - Essay Example It works on the determining the basis of theoretical theories, measurement of transactions (e.g. historical value) and their reporting lines to their end users (SA, 2011). Historical View in Conceptual Framework: The sophistication and excessive increase in businesses and accounting disclosures gave birth to the rules and regulations in accounting standards. A generalised approach was established to process the consistency, standardisation and accuracy of accounts based on reporting framework (Archer, 1993). The establishment of accounting framework board was to standardise the accounting practices and provide theoretical basis for measuring the financial reports. It was the earliest basis for establishment of conceptual framework by FASB for accounting concepts, reporting standards and objectives of business operations. The rise of financial scandals such as WorldCom (UK) and BBCI (UK) resulted in establishment of IASC (International Accounting Standards Committee) in 1989, which is responsible for presenting a framework for demonstration and preparation of financial records. It was later succeeded by IASB (International Accounting Standard Board) that is based on the conceptual framework by FASB since 2001. ... IASB can redefine the existing standards, converge, complete the implementations of standards through conceptual framework, and act as a development tool for the new accounting standards (Solomon and Solomon, 2005). A principle-based approach is a significant factor in implying the standards. It should not be just a mere collection of theoretical conventions but a consistent applicable principle that is comprehensive to be applied globally. The existing problem in converging the FASB and IASB is the conflict between revised and converged framework and reporting standards. The reporting standards have hierarchal priority over the framework, as they cannot be easily reflected in preparation of financial statements due to conflicts in concept and mere framework (FRC, 2011). The main debate for enforcement of conceptual framework is due to the consistency of accounting principles, which facilitates effective communication of assumptions, measurements, and reporting frame. It also reduces the impact of implied misrepresentations and excessive assumptions in the standards (Zeff, 1999, pp. 89-131). The converged standards need to be developed effectively to harmonise the accounting practises and procedures. The framework can increase or decrease the potential accounting treatments for a more diversified application globally. Lastly, the published accounting standards should be consistent with the theoretical concepts of accounting practices worldwide (Solomon and Solomon, 2005). Shaping Accounting Theory Theoretical formation is based on concept, hypothesis, and systematic structure of accounting principles and objectives. It can either be formulated by deductive or inductive theoretical approach. The deductive approach generalise the rules formation and procedures of

Professional Portfolio Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Professional Portfolio - Assignment Example Correspondingly, I would provide a structured portfolio of mine, where I will include a brief description of my educational platform, learning theory along with curriculum map and the use of tools that I have initiated throughout the course of my learning as an educator. Professional Portfolio Educational Platform and Learning Theory Education is one of the most vital aspects of growth for any individual. Understanding the value of learning as the cornerstone of a successful life, individuals from various age groups and demographics have started taking participation in the educational sector. In this regard, the role of an educator has become quite prominent over the years owing to their significance in forming the educational career of an individual. As an educator, I feel esteemed to be rewarded with the opportunity to assist learners in developing their skills and abilities with regard to their competent areas. Correspondingly, in my professional experience, I was able to learn th at an ideal educator is of extreme need to develop the skills and capabilities that might be in need to provide a proper learning experience to the students. In consideration to all these facets, I desire myself to be in a professional career associated with education. ... Additionally, with reference to my desire of becoming an educator will always intend towards maintaining an atmosphere, which will encourage maximum concentration amid the learners and facilitate effective learning in-turn. It would also be vital to mention that I am quite appreciative towards adopting proper learning theories that would allow me to have proper control over the learning capabilities of the students. As per my experience, adoption of effective learning theory is quite important to facilitate learners’ effective performance. Out of the various principles of learning, I prefer Readiness, which depicts that a learner can be able to learn more when he/she is physically, mentally, as well as emotionally deciphers the yearning to learn. Correspondingly, adoption of such theory requires me to create interest among the students by presenting the value of a particular topic or a subject matter. In my professional career, I also emphasize posing continuous mental as well as physical challenges, with the intention to keep the learners’ interests intact for a longer period of time. Curriculum Map and Assessment Strategy Based on my personal and professional experiences, I was able to understand that setting efficient curriculum is among the major needs in the field of education. Educational institutions all over the world have well identified the needs to develop an effective curriculum where learners would be able to perform better. Correspondingly, the role of an educator is also vital in such cases. I, as an educator, understand this particular facet in my role and ensure best possible contribution towards the same. I was mainly engaged with the Master of Education

Communication ethics policy and law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Communication ethics policy and law - Essay Example Pornography is a controversial issue in many spheres, be it of law or morality. As the world became more globlized with the development of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), the reach of pornography too has increased. Pornographic materials, at present, are freely available in both developed and developing countries. Along with the world wide spread of pornography, the debate on the legal validity and social acceptability of pornography has intensified. The present study aims to assess the arguments and concerns on the phenomenon of pornography. It would examine the strengths, weaknesses and influences of liberalism, feminism and moral perspectives on the discourses on pornography. Many a theorist has come up with compelling arguments supporting the ban of pornography from varying and often antagonistic standpoints. The paper would examine the merits and demerits of the arguments in favor of banning pornography from the standpoint of its internal theoretical validity. The pornography debate itself is started with the invention of mass production, distribution and consumption of pornography. As the effects of pornography spread across the social sections, it was natural for such a debate on pornography to materialize. There were strange combinations and alliances on both side of the spectrum. Curiously, most of the feminists in 1960s even were ready to align with ultra conservatives for the cause of banning pornography. On the other hand, liberals aligned with the new leftists to support the spread of pornography in the name of freedom of expression. The pornography debate is enriched by various currents of liberalism, feminism and conservatism. However, neither liberalism nor feminism or conservatism has a single standpoint on the issue of banning pornography. The liberal and feminist positions concerning the legitimacy of pornography are essentially heterogeneous and articulated from multiple standpoints. The liberal idea of feminism is

Executives and Legislatures Structures and Processes Essay

Executives and Legislatures Structures and Processes - Essay Example The US is a federal republic type of government while the Britain is a constitutional monarchy, but both of them are classified as parliamentary. In a parliamentary system, the government power is vested to three separate branches namely the executive, legislative, and judicial bodies. Executive Branch of the Government: US vs. Britain Under Britain’s uncodified constitution, the Monarch has the ultimate executive authority, who also acted as the head of state. Hence, Queen Elizabeth II is vested with the executive power; however, the executive functions are carried out by Her Majesty’s government headed by the Prime Minister (PM). Mr. David Cameron is the current PM, and as the head of government, along with cabinet ministers, he will assume the Queen’s real executive power. The PM is from the lower house and is appointed by the Monarch, which in turn would appoint his own ministers that would act as Secretaries of State. However, in the US federal republic type of government, the executive power is vested in the President, and the real power is not separated because he or she stands as the head of state and head of government. ... Britain The legislative or the law-making power in the US and Britain are vested in a bicameral parliament. The US parliament, known as the Congress, is composed of 2 branches: â€Å"the House of Representatives (Lower house) and the Senate (Upper house)† (Moss, 2012). Members of Congress are directly elected by citizens from 50 US states. The House of Representatives has a fixed term of 2-years with fixed members of â€Å"no more than 435† based on the 50 states demographic (United States House of Representatives, n.d.). In addition, the Senators are elected every 6 years and each of the 50 states is represented by 2 senators (United States Senate, n.d.). On the contrary, Britain’s legislative power is vested to 2 parliamentary chambers: the House of Commons (lower house) and House of Lords (upper house) (â€Å"UK Parliament,† 2010). However, the institution has a third element called the Crown (hereditary monarch). Members of Parliament (MPs) are fully e lected through a district election across Scotland, Wales, England and Northern Ireland. Currently, there are 650 MPs and 765 Lords. The House of Lords is an appointed legislative body, which is divided into two: the Lords Spiritual and Lords Temporal. The Lords Temporal is composed of life, and hereditary peers and the Lords Spiritual are represented by archbishops and bishops from the Church of England (â€Å"UK Parliament,† 2010). Also, the MPs are publicly elected during the dissolution of the parliament, which is every 5 years (UK Parliament, n.d.). However, the MPs are given a provision to call for an early formation of a new administration provided that the total casted votes are two-thirds of the districts. In this regard, the agents of socialization such as peers, church,

The Best Way for Women to Survive Essay Example for Free

The Best Way for Women to Survive Essay â€Å"I hope that she’ll be a fool—that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool†, Daisy says in the book The Great Gatsby written by F.Scott Fitzerald (20). In her mind, to be foolish is the best way to survive in the 1920’s in America, an era when women are not treated as fairly as men. Based on Nick’s narration, Daisy is an extraordinarily charming, desirable, but careless and selfish character who is married to a wealthy and, powerful, young man named Tom Buchanan. Daisy breaks the promise with Gatsby, as a smart and subtle woman, who only concerns herself with her own benefits. However, she acts superficially as a poor fool since she always lives in her own illusion, and doesn’t know what is she really wants. When Daisy confronts a situation that she needs to make choices between things, she always runs away from them and prefers to keep everything unchanged and controlled, in order to get rid of the pressure, insecurity and conflicts in her deep inside. None but a fool would do such a thing since everyone knows that nothing lasts forever. To marry Tom is what Daisy has to do because she is tired of waiting, waiting for Gatsby to come back. She feels satisfied and secured when she decides to marry Tom. However, on the night before her wedding, Daisy pulls out â€Å"a string of pearls valued at three hundred and fifty thousand dollars†, and wants Jordan â€Å"tell’em all Daisy’s change her mine†, and she â€Å"cried and cried† (91, 92). Finally, â€Å"the pearls were around her neck and the incident was over† only â€Å"half an hour later† (92). After Daisy receives a letter from Gatsby, she does try to change her mind for Gatsby. However, this sudden letter breaks Daisy’s plan. Daisy can’t accept this change because she wants a steady life out of her illusion, which is in her control. As a result, she is married to Tom to finish what she plans to. After the marriage, even though Daisy suffers from the betrayal and abandonment from Tom, she still stays with him. She puts her real feelings away and walks into her â€Å"well-designed†Ã‚  illusory world. For instance, when Tom receives a call from his mistress, he goes inside to pick up the call without a world, Daisy then â€Å"suddenly threw her napkin on the table and excused herself and went into house† (17). In other words, Daisy clearly knows the affair of her husband. She just buries her miserable emotion inside and doesn’t complain. Moreover, on the day when Daisy’s daughter is born, Tom is â€Å"God knows where† (20). This implies one of the causes why Daisy feels â€Å"cynical† about everything and becomes more careless (19). It is torturing that her husband does not stay with her even on the day her daughter was born but what Daisy does is just turning away her head and weeping hopelessly. There is no doubt that Daisy understands her marriage is based on the money. She doesn’t gain happiness even though she gets her so called security and wealth from Tom. Ironically, she pretends that everything is going well and doesn’t face the problems in her life. Isn’t she a fool? Apparently, she just tries to obtain what would make her life easier, without realizing what she really wants. Daisy knows about her life as a certain way: calm and stable. Therefore, she would never choose Gatsby before she met Tom nor after her marriage. When Gatsby requires Daisy to tell Tom she never loves Tom, Daisy cried to Gatsby, â€Å"You want too much. I love you now—isn’t that enough?† (158). The word â€Å"cried† vividly exhibits how scared and nervous Daisy is at that time, which also reveals that she doesn’t even know how to deal with the problems that happens beyond her illusion. Additionally, she â€Å"sobs helplessly† and says to Gatsby, â€Å"I did love him once—but I loved you too† (159). To keep her marriage with Tom and affair with Gatsby at the same time definitely is a silly, bad idea, which foreshadows that Daisy would have chosen one of them eventually. What’s more, Daisy runs away with Tom after the car accident. After all Gatsby is the one who takes the blame of killing for Daisy, but she neither calls Gatsby nor goes to his funeral. Once again, from the beginning to the end, Daisy never thinks about to elope with Gatsby because she can’t accept the truth: the appearance of Gatsby is about to ruin her life which is supposed to be stable. Daisy realizes that she is living in her illusion, but she is still unwilling to face the truth. After struggling with the conflicts in her mind, she always chooses to escape from the reality. She gets what she wants from Tom, but at the expense of losing her morality and the ability and right of enjoying the true love and pursuing  what she wants. As a woman living in 1920s when women are tend to be ignored, Daisy’s destiny can be said as a misery, or tragedy. When Daisy is being lured to go away from husband and family by Gatsby, her marriage is put into the edge and, she is blamed for the affair. Being a product for which the men are fighting further emphasizes that, Daisy’s sadness and all her careless, foolish actions are resulted from the cruel society. From all of Daisy’s sufferings, it is not hard to understand that why she says she wants her daughter to be a little fool at the beginning of the book. Truly, only being a fool can she avoid herself from a ll the unnecessary problems. Work Cited Fitzgerald, F S. The Great Gatsby. 1st ed. Toronto, Ontario: HarperCollins Publishers Ltd, Print.

Customer satisfaction and loyalty in convenient stores

Customer satisfaction and loyalty in convenient stores Abstract: In this article we look at the customers expectation from the convenience stores and the factors which drive the customers in the selection of a convenience store. The article further looks into the types of products that drive customers into convenience stores in Sri Lanka and also analyses their billing patterns to identify the demographics of customers working into the outlet and the type of products purchased. Even though the study looks at customers who are regular at the convenience stores their basket value is relatively very low which means their purchases are carried out at various other stores also. The study further identifies that even customers who are satisfied with the levels of services delivered by the convenience stores, it does not drive loyalty as customers look at shopping at different stores as per their needs. Based on our findings, further research should focus on identifying how customer satisfaction should be used to convert satisfied customers int o loyal customers. INTRODUCTION Rhee and Bell (2002) states that even though shoppers often visit and purchase from many different stores, most of them have a primary association to a main store where most of the purchases are made. This main stores are where the shoppers visit often to purchase when a large shopping basket is necessary. It is important for a new chain of convenience stores to be the preferred main store as when shoppers are converted into loyal shoppers they tend to spend double the amount in their first choice store as per Knox and Denison (2000). This is because most shoppers perceive the primary store as a safe bet according to Roselius(1971) as the primary store is a trusted place with the lowest level of perceived risk of disappointment when shopping. Yet Taher et al. (1996) argues that being at ease with a store is not sufficient to ensure repeat patronage. They go on to state further that with more information being available to consumers about value/cost alternatives Taher et al. (1996) be lieves that the number of customers who are willing to take the perceived risks are growing. This is good news for a small chain of convenience stores, which is relatively new as it means that by providing more information it is possible to attract new customers but the challenge is raised in converting these customers into loyal customers. It is therefore important according to Taher et al. (1996) and Sirohi et al. (1998) that retailers continuously collect information of the consumers who frequent the stores in a structured manner in order to understand areas for development of augmented services to develop loyalty to the stores. The strength of loyalty of customers to a store is one of the most important indicators of the stores strength according to Rhee and Bell (2002). Reichheld and Sasser (1990) reassure that profitability can be increased by increasing the levels of loyalty. Knox and Denison (2000) in their study of the retail sector in UK goes on to state that it is important for a corporate retail strategy to maximize consumer loyalty and minimize consumers from opting for switching. According to Solgaard and Hansen (2003) assortment of products at the outlet is one of the most important factors that drive the choice between the different stores customers patronize in. MODERN RETAIL LANDSCAPE AND CONVENIENCE STORES Retail comprises of all activities which directly relate to the sale of goods and services to the consumer for personal, non business use. (Retail glossary, 2009) The retail sector in Sri Lanka can be categorized into two as modern trade retailers and traditional trade retailers (grocery shops). The modern retail trade in Sri Lanka is expected to grow rapidly with the post war economic development and increase in household income. The penetration levels are expected to increase from 15% currently to 30% over the next 5 years. Modern retail format can be categorized into five formats as BIRO (2001) defines; they are convenience store, mini market, super market, departmental store and hypermarket. Convenience store is small in nature, offer few products. Its concentrated in convenience goods with limited brands. Mini market is bigger than convenience store in size, but still limited in product brands. Same with convenience store, mini market product offers focus on convenience goods. Department store is bigger in nature than minimarket, with varied products. Departmental store is a large retail store offering a variety of merchandise and services and organized in separate departments. Consumer can find shopping goods along with convenience goods in a department store. Supermarket is a large self-service food store selling groceries, meats, household goods, and so on, usually on cash-and-carry basis. Hypermarket is a variation of a supermarket that offers a variety of non food items, such as appliances, clot hing, and services, along with food items, in a vast space much larger than a regular supermarket, sometimes in excess of 200,000 square feet; also called superstore. The grocery items are often priced below market to draw traffic into the store; however, the grocery selection is also more limited than in a regular supermarket. The Sri Lankan modern retail market is dominated by the Cargills chain of supermarkets which has over 50% of the market share. There is only one hyper market in Sri Lanka to fit into BIROs classification of hypermarkets, but it has relatively low floor size. The modern retail market consists of five large players who are subsidiary business units of large conglomerates in the country. With high focus on large volumes and low margins, the customers in the modern retail segment are benefited by having a wider range of products, including groceries and general merchandise under one roof at relatively low prices. Convenience stores are a relatively new concept to the Sri Lankan market, and many consumers are still associating the convenient shops with mini supermarkets. The understanding of the convenience concept with limited range of products is still not clear in the local market. In Sri Lanka one of the growing convenience stores is Go Getter which was launched two years ago and currently it has 25 outlets. For this dossier the customers who visit Go Getter are studied to have an understanding of what drives these customers to the Go Getter outlet and which of these factors can be used to drive loyalty amongst the customers. In most of the Asian region the convenience stores are plenty and available in almost all locations. The growth of the convenience stores is mainly attributed to increased car ownership, increase number of households with refrigerators and freezers, and the growth in the number of working wives. (Jeannet and Hennessey, 1988) In other words the increase in mobility, growing purchasing power and the time constrains bring customers from shopping at supermarkets to convenience stores as customers are on the run and need to purchase products on the go. The wider choice of products and more competition was expected to bring higher quality and safety as well as to counter balance to rising price levels (Lipman 2003). According to Calvin B. Lee (2002) higher customer service levels lead to greater revenue and net income. The above stated research finding elaborates the extent to which customer service can lead to the company development. In every business, the customer service is very important. Without the help of customer convenience stores will find it difficult to attract customers and retention for repeat purchase. LITERATURE RIVEW According to Magi, 1995 and Corstens and Corstens, 1995 most of the consumers shop at more than one outlet. Most consumers patronage two or more outlets regularly because they arrange their shopping trips from different geographical locations (Solgaard and Hansen 2003) (e.g.,on way home from work, or other non-domestic activities). Similarly different stores may be selected as the purchasing requirement may vary by the amount of goods required (e.g., monthly purchases, topping up when necessary) or it can vary by the range of goods required (e.g., vegetables, meat, frozen foods, discount, etc.). Some consumers may even be looking for the products they prefer most or different individuals of the household may have preferences for different outlets. Therefore, to create loyal consumers one needs to understand what driver the customers to the store, however Mitchell et al. (1998) in their number of studies on store image had not identified a link between store attributes and loyalty. Garton (1995) and Bloemer et al. (1998) states that the consumers experience of the stores quality and service had relatively low level of influence in converting the consumer into a loyal repeat customer. Available literature has recognized several factors which influence satisfaction of outlet whilst shopping: Store attributes such as location of store (Woodside and Trappey, 1992) Range and quality of assortment stocked (Claxton and Brent-Ritchie, 1979; Sirohi et al., 1998) The pricing strategy used (Williams et al., 1978) Promotions carried in-store (Urbany et al., 2000; Kumar and Leone, 1988) Assistance provided by floor staff (Macintosh and Lockshin, 1997; MÃ ¤gi, 2003) Atmospherics of store ( Crawley, 1993;Yalch and Spangenberg, 199; Babin and Darden, 1996) Volume of purchase (MÃ ¤gi 2003); Garton (1995) goes on to suggests that to gain store loyalty it is important that the consumers image of the store be in line with the consumers self image. Sivadas and Baker-Prewitt (2000) concluded that the attitudes of consumers which drive the similarity between self image and store image are linked to store satisfaction. Still there is no evidence to suggest that this satisfaction necessarily has a direct effect on store loyalty. According to (Solgaard and Hansen 2003) a consumers preferred store is based on the perceived utility that they derives from the store. Consumers perceive the utility according to what they get for what they give. What consumers get is the output from the store which include service, products, price and other attributes in the consumer experience (Bucklin, 1966; Bucklin et al., 1996). To receive this output from the store the consumer also has to spend his resources in terms of time and money (Blackwell et al., 2001). As resources are scarce, resource maximization will be the key concern of the consumer and he will opt for the store where he perceives he will get the best store output for the resources he spend according to his perception of the services he receive. The available literature has pointed down a few significant drivers which effect consumers perception of store output these include the range of products and its assortment, quality of products available, overall service levels, store assistance personnel, store lay-out, convenience, cleanliness and atmosphere (Blackwell et al., 2001; Levy and Weitz, 2001; Bucklin et al., 1996, Finn and Louviere, 1996). Whilst the cost to the customer goes beyond the monitory value associated with the product prices themselves, and include the resource values of the time and money spend on transportation to and from the outlet. Individual determinants such as shopping intension, attitude towards retail outlets and shopping habits plays an important role on consumer shopping decision. Attitude towards retail outlet and shopping habits tend to influence shopping intension. This implies that retailers should concentrate on strategies in building consumers positive attitude towards their retail so that consumers visit their retail in order to make their visits regular (Siringoringo 2009) DESIGNING OF THE RESEARCH The factors that drive customer satisfaction identified by literature review were used amongst convenience store customers to understand if these factors hold true in the Sri Lankan context. And if they hold true to what extend are the levels of satisfaction they get from the existing convenience stores and their level of loyalty with the existing convenience stores. Further regular customers of 15 convenience stores were identified and their purchase habits were recorded using specially designed software at the point of sale to understand the relationship between customer demographics and purchase patterns. The objective of the second phase was to identify the types of products purchased and the basket value as literature reveals that consumers spend more at the primary stores than at any other outlet. 4.1.1 Objectives Of The Potential Consumer Survey The first phase of the study is carried out amongst the potential/current customers of convenience stores to understand their if the satisfaction drivers of the consumers hold true as per literature review and to understand further if they are loyal to one outlet or if the customers regularly switch between outlets. 4.1.2 Convenience Store Customer Sample The convenience store users sample size depends on resources available as well as on methodological considerations. Based on these, the study objectives will initially entail a review of approximately 390 convenience store potential customers. For the selection of the sample, a number of options for selecting the sample will be considered, with identification of purposive sampling as the most appropriate approach of those considered. Purposive sampling will allow for information-rich cases to be selected, which will generate insights into key issues and into effectiveness of interventions, rather than generalization to a population (Patton 2002). Sampling would entail surveying convenience store consumers and well as potential consumers who will be future buyers of Go Getter. Of the total population of convenience store potential consumers are undefined therefore a sample size of 390 is identified in the following areas: Main City limits and suburban area where convenience stores are popular and consumers are more adaptable to the concept of convenience stores. These constitute 5 of the 10 main cities where the convenience stores are currently functioning will be selected as the survey centers. Data capturing will be based on a structured questionnaire. A purposive sampling procedure will be used and the respondents will be selected based on income, profession, family size, gender and place of dwelling. The questions cover information areas such as current purchasing power, goods and services requirement and assessment of assortments and opinion on the services provided by the convenience stores. The SPSS package with an adapted code-book was used to process and analyses the data. Mainly descriptive statistics mean, mode and percentages will be used. The reason is to select sample is number of population is bigger than the 1 million. According to the Anderson sample chart fewer than 5 % error rate 390 is the best sample size if population is bigger. Hence, they will be selected from the people who work for FMCG sector (suppliers of Go Getter, potential customers, who would like to purchase goods from convenience stores and who live in apartments, who are receiving a salary above 1000US$, who are earning less than 150 US$, which compel them not to stock up their basic needs as well as young executives in the age range of 20 to 40 years who are living mostly in rented apartments or boarding houses. 4.1.3 Information Captured In Phase 1 The questions will be formulated to reveal the information listed below to understand the level of satisfaction customers are currently getting from the outlets they currently shop at. Table 1: understanding the convenient store landscape Objectives Descriptions 1. Knowledge of convenience stores Since the concept of convenience stores is new for the Sri Lankan consumers, identifying the consumers knowledge levels is important if they are to comment on the satisfaction they get from the convenience stores. 2. Product categories In the CVS/retail industry products are categories into different groups such as groceries, personal care, tobacco, perishable, impulse purchase etc. Different retail formats such as supermarkets, CVS, meat shops carry only selected categories of products. The products are categories tested are as follows Snack and confectionary Bakery Colas Mobile Credit Tobacco Groceries Baby care products Dairy products Others 3. Convenience offered/Expected/needed Identifying factors that customers associate as factors that drive convenience at the outlets they currently shop at and the levels of satisfaction they are getting from these outlets. 4. Customer retention/loyalty How loyal are the customers to the outlets that they shop at the moment. Are they switching amongst the outlets or are they shopping only at one selected outlet. 5. Expected retail format What other factors do they look from the convenience stores. These include factors other than convenience such as price/quality/atmosphere/relationship as literature review suggest these factors also drive the customer satisfaction levels There is a dearth of literature on the use of an appropriate scale to specifically measure the level of store satisfaction and store loyalty. Knox and Walker (2001) in their study of measuring and managing (brand) loyalty, stated that there is limitations in practically measuring of customer satisfaction as well as customer loyalty. Since there is no assured measuring instrument, the Likert five-point itemized rating scale is used in this instance to measure the level of attributions which drive store attributes. 4.2.1 Objectives Of The Online Survey The main objective of the online survey is to identify if the products which are purchase by the customers who have been identified as regular customers to the convenience stores are similar to the products stated by the respondents in phase one. This will help understand gaps if any amongst the actual customers at the store and the respondents to the first phase of the survey. The second set of information concerns on the basket value to understand if these regular customers are actually loyal customers as the basket value of loyal customers should be higher than or in par with the basket value in phase one. 4.2.2 Online Sample This data collection is planned to be done from customers who visited the convenience stores using a Convenience card which was given to the shoppers who visited the outlet regularly. This study is planned to be done at 15 outlets of the Go Getter convenience stores. Computerised data is collected from January 2008. The sample comprise of 15 outlets in order of the highest number of customer visited from 1st January 2008. There are 200-300 convenience card holder who visit each outlet on a daily basis. Hence, an average of 250 customers per outlet for 15 outlets will result, 3750 customers per day for a month and the same could be taken as respondents. Therefore it can be considered as an adequate representation. Data will be collected monthly. A special modification was done to the point of sales software application where the specially trained cashiers enter profile data of customers prior to the billing process. 4.2.3 Information Captured In Phase 2 Data which will be collected at the time of checkout is age group, gender, and product availability (were the products that they wanted available or were they out of stock). This data will be automatically correlated with items that they have purchased which will result in the identification and analysis of patterns and trends. 5.0 DISCUSSION OF DATA ANALYSIS 5.1.1 Understanding The Product Range And Pricing Concern From the respondents selected for the data collection 77% of the respondents were in executive or managerial grades. Almost 63% of the respondents earn > $ 150 are in the executive grades whist 70.97 % of those who earn As expected more than half the population (57.63%) stated that they buy other products, followed by 35.59% stating CSD/colas whilst milk products were stated by 32.2%. This clearly reflects that customers visiting convenience stores look beyond the major product groups identified. Regarding the value for money received at competitors, 61.2% of those who earn >$ 150 agreed that that value for money is received whilst 48.4% of those Given what was discussed above regarding the range, it is important to assess whether consumers have any concerns about the range on offer. However, a more than two third of the sample >$150 and 5.1.2 Level of Satisfaction drivers Service is a key dimension that needs to evaluate in the retail industry is customer service, as the entire concept revolves around service delivery. Nearly half the sample 82.8% stated that the check out is quick whilst a majority (90.7%) stated that the sales staff can be identified most of the time. Furthermore, 92.6% of the overall sample stated that the outlets maintained cleanliness with 58.2% stated that outlets maintained cleanliness most of the time. Nearly equal number of persons surveyed commented on the price consistency with 164 persons stating that price consistency is maintained sometime while 181 persons out of 390 interviewees stating that price consistency is seen most of the time. The staff assistance was commented positively with near universally 93.1% stating that the staff provides assistance most of the time or sometimes. On receiving goods promptly, 55.9% of those earning above The respondents earning above $ 150 category felt that the service was good sometimes. Almost universally the respondents were satisfied with the overall level of service (92.6%). Furthermore, a cross analysis between those who shop at the outlets, the facilities they look for and the times of the day and the product range highlights the following findings: Given this levels of satisfaction, it is important to look deeper in to data and see what aspects are valued by the customers at convenience store outlets. In order, a cross analysis was carried out between those who shop at these outlets and what they value most. As the literature suggested almost half the population in both income levels stated that it is location followed by range and service at an overall level. These findings when analyzed by the respective income brackets come in the order of priority where 48.4% state location, 32.3% stating offering a range and fast service being stated by 25.8% of those below $ 150. The order of importance changes when looking at the data of those above $ 1000. To them it is the location that matters most, followed by fast service and the product range. 5.1.3 Tendency To Shop At Multiple Outlets (Low Loyalty) From the total base of 390 respondents, a little less than half the population (40.51%) visit competitor outlets at least once a week and the next frequency was irregular (21.79%) with a similar amount (21.54%) claiming to visit competitor outlets less than once a week. None of the respondents do their shopping at one selected outlet. 40% shift from outlet to outlet more often than not on a regular basis even though there is high level of satisfaction, whilst the balance on a irregular basis shops from different stores. This clearly shows that even though most of the customers are satisfied with the offerings of the convenience stores they still are not loyal to one outlet. Discussion On Data Collected At Selected Outlets The information which was captured through the POS data collection system was analysed to find similarities in the profile of customers visiting the outlets and the type of products mainly purchased. The literature review highlighted that it is important to identify the main products that are looked for by the consumers need to be merchandised properly to achieve customer satisfaction. When analyzing the Go Getter customer profile it is evident that customers of all ages have patronized the outlets. The regular repeat customers were divided into 4 main segments: teenagers, youth, the middle aged and the elderly. Table 1 illustrates the summary of the analysis of data collected from the survey of Go Getter customers for a period of two months. Table 4: Profile of customers at Go Getter outlets Profile information Response Average age segment Dependent upon each outlet. However, a notably high number of customers belong to the middle age seem to frequent. Gender More skewed towards the males, conforming the basic fact that top up is less frequent as a household level in Sri Lanka. Purchase tendency Except for a few variations that were dependent upon the outlet location, most demand was generated to beverages, snacks/confectionary and frozen food. Basket Value Purchases are very small in quantity, bought either on the go or for topping out at homes. Most people (25% 33%) of the customers spend less than Rs 50. Source: Author One of the most striking findings is the fact that seemingly lesser number of teens and youth has visited the outlets, especially teens. This is mainly owing to the fact that in Sri Lanka children are dependent on their parents till their secondary education is completed. Culturally, children leaving home takes place only after marriage and till such time parents and grown up children live under the same roof which is quite opposite to the Western countries. Within this backdrop, teens and youth often do not have an income for themselves and depend on their parents to give them cash for their education and other needs. A higher number of the visitors to the outlet were middle aged and elderly, dominated by the males. This coined with the main products purchased beverages/snacks and confectionary shows that most of the purchases were low value products bought on impulse rather than for household topping up. The outlets in residential areas were doing better than the outlets in commercial areas, still the product range commonly sold shows that beverages/snacks are bought more than household products, which shows that consumers still dont buy products for household topping up from Go Getter. What is very discouraging about the information gathered from the online research is the average basket value of the regular customers. From the data analysis is the basket value spent by the consumers per visit with almost a third of the customers spending less than Rs 50 (less than USD 0.5) on an average visit. This is in line with the first phase of the study that most customers prefer to buy from different outlets. Therefore the basket value of even the regular customers who visit the selected convenience stores remain low as they come into purchase products of low value as and when necessary. 5.3 Limitations of Results This study was done as a part of the doctorate thesis on understanding the consumers and the challenges in the retail trade for the entrance of a new chain of convenience stores in a market where the concept of convenience stores is limited. Therefore the data was collected on understanding the customer satisfaction drivers and to understand what need to be done to increase the revenue of the Go Getter outlets and not to understand how to grow loyalty as the business is currently at the beginning phase. Therefore further research needs to be done on the regular customers of the outlets to understand their levels of loyalty as the factors used in the research to identify the relationship between satisfaction and loyalty are limited. 6.0 CONCLUSION Previous studies carried out by Woodside and Trappeys (1992) states when specific attributes such as low overall prices or most convenient are suggested customers respond with a top of the mind association for each of the values. These associations are the strong drivers of satisfaction are what customers associate with the main store where they make most of their purchases. Bloemer et al. (1998) states the store satisfaction is the mediator of the perception of the store and store loyalty. Still even in reason studies though this connection is seen a solid link between store satisfaction and loyalty has not been established. In a recent study, it was identified that customers are loyal to outlets with an image which match their own self image. Through the levels of satisfaction customers get from the convenience stores, they look for a parallel with the self image and the store image, which according to Sivadas and Baker-Prewitt (2000) does not necessarily translate into store loyalty as there is no clear connection. This lack of clear connection between store satisfaction and loyalty, the relationship between these two attributes remain speculative according to Mitchell et al. (1998). When analyzing the information collected from the Sri Lankan chain of convenience stores and their potential stores it shows high level of customer satisfaction amongst customers who use convenience stores. The study further goes on to show that even though most customers are highly satisfied with the stores they patronize they still are not loyal to any of the outlets they shop at. The customers have a limited loyalty to outlets and prefer to shop at outlets as and when necessary to purchase products as and when necessary. The purchasing habits suggest that even the customers who visit the convenience stores regularly purchase products only for a small basket value suggesting that the main outlet of purchase is different to this outlet even though they regularly visit these selected outlets. This suggests that the customers who visit these outlets regularly are looking for top up products whenever the need occurs and the outlets need to work on cross selling to these customers and increase impulse purchases to increase basket value. The relationship between loyalty and satisfaction is still not clear but as customers are satisfied with selected attributes they continue to patronize the outlets. Therefore in creating loyalty satisfaction is a basic need. It is not clear how satisfaction can be converted into loyalty or if that transformation can be achieved. Therefore further studies need to be carried out to understand the drivers of loyalty in the local retail sphere to understand better on the development of loyalty amongst customers.

Performance Issues Of Private Security Guards

Performance Issues Of Private Security Guards There is an ever increasing reliance on private security companies to take on the role of protecting both public and private facilities around the world. There are 852 Security Companies operating in Pakistan employing over 350,000 people and representing a business of over half a billion US dollars (Tyab, 2012). Private security business is flourishing day by day due to law and order situation in the country. Private security personnel are asked to be on the front line for any emergent contingency such as natural disasters, medical emergency or terrorist attack. However, evidence from print media strongly suggests that hiring private security has not proved to be a seamless security system. News items of armed robberies and violent attacks on private individuals and businesses abound in the local print and electronic media in Pakistan. Many a times these instances are attributed to poor ability and willingness of the security guards. Some news items even report deliberate negligence , either because of malafide intentions or extreme job dissatisfaction, on part of the security guards. A Security Guard or Security Officer is a person who is employed and paid to protect property, assets, or people. Generally security guards are civilian personnel. Often, security guards are in uniform and act to protect property by maintaining a high visibility presence to deter illegal and wrong actions, observing either directly, through patrols, or observing from alarm systems or close circuit television (CCTV) cameras, for any indication of offense, fire or confusion; then taking action and reporting incident to the authorities and emergency services as suitable. Exploited Worker can be referred to as an underpaid, overworked, long hours at work and the worker is still unable to provide basic needs e.g. food, housing and other survival items. It is also appropriate to mention that where business markets are under the control of capitalists, they exploit the workers more than anything one can think of. Due to ever increasing unemployment problem, people are queuing up to be exploited just to keep themselves alive. This factor should be kept in mind that this is not a natural system. With the knowledge and awareness each and every person can have their dignity. In this regard, it is must that not only government legislature should pass such laws and lay such standards, which should compel the employers to look after the interests of their employees. (Figlan, 2010) Security personnel enforce their companys rules and can act to protect lives and property. Besides basic deterrence, security officers are often trained to perform specialized tasks such as arrest and control (including handcuffing), write reports, perform first aid or Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR), operate emergency equipments, take notes, and perform other tasks as required by the client they are serving. Many security guards are required to go through additional training mandated by the state for the carrying of weapons such as batons, firearms, and pepper spray. Some guards are required to complete police certification for special duties. For security and police, training standards are identical with regards to firearms but do not place any formal requirements for other items carried, however training be provided should be documented. A number of security companies have become certified in giving training for use of Survielance Radars and training their officers to use them on protected properties in conjunction with lights/sirens, permiting them to legally implement traffic laws on private assets. Security officers may also operate access control at entrances of buildings and vehicle gates; ensuring that employees and visitors display proper passes or identification before entering the facility. Officers are often called upon to tackle the emergencies like lost persons, lockouts, dead vehicle batteries, etc. and to aid in serious emergencies by guiding emergency responders to the scene of the incident, and by writing what happened on an incident report. Armed security officers are often engaged to respond as law enforcement until situation at a location is under control or public authorities arrive on the scene. Pakistan is the 6th most populated country in the world having a population of 167 million as estimated by the Population Census Organization. The estimated labor force is 51.78 million. Labor force comprises all persons from 10 years of age and above, who fulfil the requirements for including among employed and unemployed. With independence, country nearly adopted all the laws of British India. Even afterwards country has sufficiently legislatated, covering the interests of labor force eg., Employees Oldage Benefits 1976; Industrial Realtions Act 2008; Industrial Commercial Employment Ordinance 1968; The Factories Act 1934 and Workmen Compensation Act 1923 etc. As a matter of fact corruption is widespread in Pakistan , above all the government and lower levels of police force are deeply indulged in this infection. This country has a consistently poor ranking at the Transparency Internationals Corruption Perceptions Index with ratings of 2.5 in 2011, 2.3 in 2010, and 2.5 in 2009 out of 10. In 2011, Pakistan ranked 134 on the index with 42 countries ranking worse. According to Transparency International, Pakistan has lost an unbelievably high amount, more than Rs. 8.5 trillion (US $94 billion), in corruption, tax evasion and bad governance during the last four years of Ex Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gillanis tenure. An adviser of Transparency International acknowledged that Pakistan does not need even a single penny from others if it successfully checks the perils of corruption and ensures good governance. (Corruption_in_Pakistan) In Pakistan, Police authorities while investigateiing bank robberies expressed their doubt that some guards linkage to robberers and militants. Security guards were arrested on suspicion and interrogated, as a result government shut down 27 private security firms. Evidently such involvement of security gurdds show the rising trends in bank robberies. (Zia Ur Rehman, 2012); (Arshad Dogar, 2012); (Farooq, 2012); (Umar, 2012); (Author, 2012) 3. LITERATURE REVIEW Owing to the prevailing security conditions all over the world, there is a growing trend of hiring private security guards. Security industry is on boom. Due to the budgeting constraints the Governments are encouraging private sector to employee the security personnel of the private security companies for this vital need. This practice is asking increased requirement for regulating increased use of physical force. Private security industry is developing rapidly with the passage of time and distinction between detective and security agencies has become difficult. (Kontos, 2004) The history of the private industry is reviewed. The latest development in this profession is identified as the expansion by some agencies into the field of security services. This trend implies that the distinction between detective agencies and security companies is now mixing up, making it difficult to isolate the problems of the two functioning groups. Three main branches of the security industry are discussed: companies manufacturing locks and safes, secondly companies producing electronic alarm devices, and third type of companies providing guard services. Problems within the private security industry that are addressed include the possibility of criminals setting up their own firms, misuse of surveillance devices, the proliferation of weapons, and strained relationships between the public and private police. The interference of private security forces into society is a growing reality. The factual threat in the growth of such services lies in inadequate training and poor quali ty services of private security personnel. (Draper, 1978) Private Security Companies are flourishing since 1990s. It is currently one of the most important aspect of international relations. They provide necessary training to future security officers, assistance in installation of security gadgets, secured logistical support for business operations and threat compromising conditions etc. through education to combat. Their clients include governments, international organizations,corporations, humanitarian organizations, non profit organizations and private individuals. The contributions of the national and international experts analyze different types of private military and security company, its services and the circumstances that have promoted their boom. They discuss the advantages as well as disadvantages of their use and describe tools that could regulate the activities of these companies and strengthen controls. (Thomas Jager, 2007) In a quiet revolution the development of private security has set in motion in the worlds present business scenario and draws out some of the important changes for the legal system and its response to problems of order maintenance and social control. In a detailed analysis of the existing laws showing the powers of search and seizure of private security personnel and the legal status of these personnel is presented. The present policies and practices with respect to search and seizure are examined. The problems arising from these practices, and the relationship of the private and public criminal justice systems also received attention. Footnotes and a reference list are provided. Recommendations regarding peace officer status, relevant sections of the Criminal Code, regulations under Albertas Private Investigators and Security Guards Act, information on shoplifting detention statutes in the United States, and sample search provisions are contained in a collective agreement. (Stenning Shearing, 1979) Private Security Companies are a rapidly expanding industry. To examine the various aspects of private security, by taking into account the broad scope of their activities, and the necessity of examining the positive contributions as well as questions of minimal standards and need for adequate oversight and public control over these services. (Born Marina Cole, 19-3-2010) In general, privatization and public-private partnerships reflect market principles and together constitute a strategy for improving public management. Particular tools employed are contracts, franchises, public-private competition, vouchers, withdrawal, and voluntary action. Opposition to privatization is based on plentiful examples of poor management of the process as well as fundamental opposition to the idea on ideological grounds. (Schrecker, 1988) Historically, the concepts of self-help and self-protection are considered to the enforcement of law and strengthening of social order. Public safety and the policies behind it, whether it is private or public in design, are borne out of influence or environment. Like any other type of institution, an evolution over time occurs. These principles derived under English law and adapted to American jurisprudence, define what is socially justifiably acceptable in terms of private and communal protection of life and property. It was in the area of protection of ones property that English law first recognized the right of self-help. A mans home was indeed his castle, if he was fortunate enough to possess one, to protect his property and life, a person was entitled to use even deadly force. (Nemeth, 2005) Security officers legal powers can include being able to search people and property, forcibly eject people from private property, undertake intrusive surveillance and enforce rules which may involve the ability to apply sanctions (such as financial penalties for unauthorized parking). A few usually use their citizens right of arrest, which most members of the society do not. Despite popular misconceptions about their ineptitude and incompetence, in their own little ponds, security officers often have considerable power. (Button, 2007) To day, we live in an increasingly privatized world. Private companies offer services for every portion of life, including the security and military sector. Private security companies are also employed to secure the worlds oceans. In fact, in the last ten years an increasing number of private companies offering anti-piracy services have surfaced and expanded. Despite their growing numbers, there is a number of problems and controversies surrounding the services offered and the organization and characteristics of these companies. (Liss, 2009) Relations between security and development have been increasingly recognized, Security Sector Reform has become a central part of development policy. Following a traditional Weberian conception of the state, these programs are almost exclusively focused on the public security sector, neglecting the extent to which people in developing countries have come to rely on private security providers for their day-to-day security needs. However reforming of public security institutions is important, but a strict public/private distinction is a poor guide to security sector reform. Focusing on Sierra Leone and Kenya, bringing the private security in is crucial to a comprehensive understanding of the security situation in most countries and that any attempt to ensure better security for all must take account of private actors. Private security companies and their integration, not simply in terms of the maintenance of law and order, but also in terms of who has the access to security. It will ul timately bring legitimacy of social and political orders. (Williams, 2006) Interviews with employees and management staff reveal that property theft represents a minority share of the more common signs of employee defiance slow or sloppy workmanship, sick-leave abuse, alcohol and drug use at work, long coffee breaks, and coming late and leaving early. On the other hand in the literature, the authors establish that both property theft and counterproductive actions can best be explained by factors intrinsic, not extrinsic, to the work settings. Because dissatisfied employees are more often involved in property and production deviance, management should be sensitive to employees attitudes and perceptions and to the organizations manner of dealing with the behavioral values. Incorporating younger employees, who uttered more dissatisfaction and reported more deviance, into the company might be cost-effective in reducing theft and other forms of deviance. Since employees in general are more likely to steal if they do not perceive a chance of being checked, manag ement should apply a strict policy regarding theft to employees. Societal controls and not physical ones, are likely more useful in the long run the best deterrents. (Hollinger Clark, 1983) During the 1970s, occupational opportunities for women opened up for corrections were also a volatile one for prisons. Male guards, already threatened by changes imposed from without, were aggressive toward women coworkers. The attitudes of prison administrators, union leaders, male guards, and prisoners with regard to womens presence in mens prisons, the shapes that opposition to women takes and the ways in which this hostility figures the working lives of the feminine guards. Women usually resort to one of three strategies: perform a limited range of guard duties, avoiding inmate contact; work on all posts and obey all formal rules and procedures, but have no flexibility; and form alliances with the inmates. An assessment of female guards impact on prisons comments that, while no evidence exists that their presence has led to a decrease in security; most female guards are less willing and able to use physical force against inmates than males. (Zimmer, 1986) Post-communist processes through which fear of the state has been transformed into fear of crime and longing for a stronger state. The communist governing technology was buttressed by fear of the secret security complex and taboo-based management of the self. Risk had unequivocally negative connotations. The abrupt shift to a liberal-market ideology brought celebration of risk but also an escalating risk of crime. Two relevant developments are scrutinized: (1) the move from the state media (with their incessant good news propaganda), to the market-based bad news media; (2) The re-emergence of the former secret police as a new private security sector-the primary provider of risk definitions and risk management technologies. (Ã…Â OÃ…Å ¡, Post-communist fear of crime and the commercialization of security, 2002) Legislation was introduced in Spain during 1992 to regulate private security agencies. The private security sector played a key role in the development of this legislation. Second, some of the impacts that the legislation has had on the private security industry and further discuss how relationships between the state and the private security agencies evolved after the passing of the legislation. Finally, the process of exchanging information between the public and the private sector in the light of the framework developed. (Gimenez-salinas, New approaches regarding private / public Security, 2004) In a recent survey of 127 police officers and 109 security professionals in a Midwestern state in the USA, revealed interesting findings on the working relationship between public law enforcement and private security agencies. Overall, security professionals perceptions of their relationship with police departments were positive. However, most intriguingly, security professionals felt that police officers do not view working with private security positively, even though police officers indicate the contrary. Written comments from both sides provide insights on the issues that hamper an effective working relationship between them. Also, the findings reveal that both police officers and security professionals believe that they could probably do more to encourage a positive working relationship, thus leading us to conclude that mistaken perceptions and a lack of communication are hindrances as well. (Nalla Hummer, 1999) Now-a-days climate change is increasingly been called a security problem, and there has been speculation that climate change may increase the risk of violent conflict. It explains that climate change increasingly undermines human security in the present day, and will increasingly do so in the future, by reducing access to, and the quality of, natural resources that are important to sustain livelihoods. Climate change is also likely to undermine the capacity of states to provide the opportunities and services that help people to sustain their livelihoods. We argue that in certain circumstances these direct and indirect impacts of climate change on human security may in turn increase the risk of violent conflict. (Jon Barnett, 2007) The term gated communities assumes images of exclusive developments with fancy homes and fancy lifestyles. Much of the popular and academic literature on gated communities promotes this view. Yet the common perception of gated communities as privileged enclaves turns out to be only partly correct based on our analysis of the first ever census survey of these places. There are gated communities composed of mostly White homeowners with high incomes that have a secure main entry-the kind of classic gated community in the public mind. But there are also gated communities that are inhabited by minority renters with moderate incomes. Expectedly this dichotomy reflects a divide between gated communities, one based on status versus one motivated by concern for security. (Sanchez, Lang, Dhavale, 2012) World has become a global village, changing the circumstances, the structure, and the institutions of the states. The traditional core area of public security is being affected, and rationalities from business and the market are being introduced to the security field. The most recent security technologies build less on public authority and more on management and markets. The San Diego region of Southern California, a region thoroughly affected by globalization, illustrates this process through its introduction of management methods in police work and the growth of gated communities as a defensive technology. (Bislev, 2012) Policing is no longer, if it ever was the exclusive preserve of public law enforcement officials. Modern security and order maintenance is now undertaken not only by the people commonly referred to as the police, but also by a host of private personnel, security operatives, regulatory officials and community-based administrators. To discuss generally the frustrations researchers must confront in attempting to observe and define the phenomenon of private policing. It reviews the difficulties observers face in determining the nature, manifestations and size of private policing and security industries, and in predicting future trends. Despite these hurdles, this paper offers a new definition of private policing, and concludes by making a number of observations about preferred research agendas to further the quest for good data on, and a better understanding of, this most interesting modern social phenomenon. (Sarre, 2005) Incidents of verbal abuse and physical violence are being experienced by the staff employed to handle accidents and emergency events. To determine the frequency of verbal abuse and physical violence in accident and emergency departments and to discover the extent of provision of security measures and instructions for staff on how to deal with these problems. Staff within accident and emergency departments is regularly abused, both verbally and physically. Inner city departments appear to be most affected. Documentation is poor. Perpetrators are seldom convicted. There do appear to be actions which hospitals could undertake that might help to ameliorate these problems. (M G Jenkins,1988) With the development of private security, crime prevention, community safety, insurance, and, risk assessment, these call into question traditional modes of crime control and challenge existing criminal justice values. In an effort to control or minimize the crime, major changes are occurring within and outside the public sector. This asks what exactly is on offer when security stands as the justification for public and private action, to whom, and at what cost. It goes on to identify several significant paradoxes entailed in the pursuit of security, whose attendant costs need to be taken into account. Yet, whereas punishment provokes us to ask why, how, and in what measure the state may inflict pain upon its citizens, security has not been thought to require special justification because in many ways it seems preferable to punishment. The paper contends both that security is in need of special justification and that it is necessary to develop guiding principles in order to regulate its pursuit. This leads to the larger question of whether and in what manner it is possible to regulate the security society so as to ensure accountable, fair, and inclusive provision of protection. (Zedner, 2003) Many of the workers who work outside of Chinas state-owned industrial sector are victims of labor rights violations. Many of them are migrant workers from the countryside, who labor in the so-called township and village enterprises as well as the foreign-funded enterprises. They number not less than 144 million, forming a category as large as the urban state-enterprise workforce and the urban collective workers combined. They constitute Chinas peripheral flexible workforce in the new free labor market that has so often been hailed as the cornerstone of Chinas economic success. (Chan, 1998) Private Security Guards in Norway: Here security officers are called Vektere. There are two types of vektere firstly uniformed or civil-clothing officers who watch over private and semi-public properties and secondly government-hired vektere who work in public places like the Parliament. The law provides more enforcement powers to security officers in the Parliament than to private security officers. It is mandatory that security officers must undergo three weeks training and internship. However they are allowed to work for six months after one week of the introduction course. Its also possible to choose Security as a high school major, which requires two years of school and two years of trainee positions at private companies, resulting in a certificate from the government. This certificate makes it easier to get a job, with slightly higher pay. The certificate can also be obtained by private security officers who have had a minimum of 5 years working experience. In addition to normal vektere there is also a special branch for Ordensvakter who normally work as bouncers or security at concerts and similar types of events. Ordensvakter has to undergo an extra week of training to learn techniques on how to handle drunken people and people on various drugs. They also learn about the alcohol laws of Norway. The police in the local police district must approve each Ordensvakt. These special regulations arose after events in the 1990s when bouncers had a bad reputation, especially in Oslo for being brutal and rough with people. At that time, the police had no control over who worked as bouncers. After the government forced training and mandatory ID-cards for bouncers the problems have been reduced. The police of Oslo report that Ordensvakter are now helping the police to identify crimes that otherwise would not be reported. In 2007 several guards from the Securitas (Security Company) were arrested for brutality against a robber whom they apprehended on the main street of Oslo. The crime was captured with a mobile camera by pedestrians and created a public outcry, with many objecting to the way the security guards took the law in their own hands. Later, it came to light that the thief first attacked the security guards when they approached him, so the brutality charges were dropped. As a result of this episode, the police said that they would be more careful when conducting criminal background checks for security guards. Before 2007 security guards were checked when they applied for a job, but not while they were working. Security companies were also criticized for not checking criminal records sufficiently, in some cases but not at all. Now guards working in private security must be checked annually. The police have the authority to withdraw a companys license if the company does not submit lists of emp loyees to the police. The police in Norway were widely criticized for not checking guards properly, and even when they encounter an issue with a guard, the guard can still work for months before anything is done. The security company G4s, after being criticized by police for hiring criminals, stated that they cannot do anything about the problem, because only the police have the ability to check the guards criminal records. Today there are around 15,000 people working within private security in Norway. The police have around 10,000 employees in total. Notable companies operating in Norway are Securitas, G4S, NOKAS, Infratek, ISS A/S (formerly Personellsikring) and ProSec-Professional Security) While checking the exposure of high-risk individuals, it came up that In California, USA, work-related homicides widespread from 1979 through 1981. With the use of computer data, a search of the death certificates was made using three factors: injury at work, injury at a work location, and pertinent external-cause-of-death codes. Only 30 per cent of the 466 homicide deaths identified were also found in the logs of the state. The average annual rate of work-related homicides was 1.5 per 100,000 workers. The male-to-female-rate ratio was 4.2:1. Police and security guards and persons in occupations having frequent public contact involving exchange of money, particularly in late afternoon or evening hours, were at highest risk. Controlling exposure of high-risk individuals and developing strict standards for reducing such exposures might greatly reduce assaults and thus prevent senseless loss of life in the workplace. (Kraus, 1987) 4. RESEARCH QUESTION Owing to the prevailing security atmosphere in Pakistan a gap has been observed between the expected and actual performance of private security guards employed in corporate sector. There has been no formal research carried out in private security industry. However, a large body of evidence from print media supports this observation. This research intends to discover the reasons for failure of private security personnel in provision of on-site services to private individuals and businesses. This research purports to address the following: Task-specific factors that may lead to poor ability or inefficiency at work of the security personnel (Efficiency is the input-output ratio). Work-context factors that may lead to poor ability or inefficiency at work of the security personnel, e.g. pay, relationship with supervisors, supervisory quality. Work-context factors support the central task in the organization. 5. RESEARCH METHOD Primary data will be collected through personally administered questionnaires consisting of both semi-structured and open ended items. The questionnaire shall be administered to security guards, security company management and corporate clients employing security guards, in the district of Rawalpindi (Pakistan). Research will be focused in the district of Rawalpindi, Pakistan-a district in northern part of Punjab province with an area of 5,286 km2 and a population of 4,500,000 in 2010. Secondary data regarding instances of security lapses and its relationship to willingness and ability of security