Fourth Grade Reading Comprehension Books

The United States Is The Only Industrialized Country...

Currently, the United States is the only industrialized country without a statute requiring all employers to provide some kind of paid time off for its employees to care for a newborn or a sick loved one. Data gathered from 38 member countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) support this claim. Figure 1 shows the member countries and the length of maternity leave provided to all employees. The graph details only the averages. Maternity leave provisions can include 2 to 30 weeks paid at 100% of the employee’s salary and an additional leave that can be as long as 52 weeks at 90% of the salary, or less in other countries. The OECD calculated the average paid maternity leave in the member countries to be 17 weeks, with an average payment rate of about 78%. There are 17 countries providing above-average paid maternity leave benefits, including industrialized economies like the United Kingdom, Denmark, Finland, and Italy. On top of maternity leave, most OECD members also have an additional paid parental and home care leave available only to mothers. The organization summarizes this benefit in Figure 2 which shows that its average for the 38 member countries is about 37 weeks, with an average payout of 45% of the employee’s original earnings. The United States, with only FMLA for a legislation, falls way below the average for all categories with 0 weeks of guaranteed paid leave. In addition to the maternity and other paid leave for mothers,Show MoreRelatedThe Effects Of Climate Change On The United States1583 Words   |  7 PagesChange Policy Climate change looms large over our rapidly growing and continually changing world. No longer are the adverse effects of this menacing global issue a mere ominous projections, they are starting to become a very concrete reality. Countries are today experiencing rising sea levels, which compromises coastal infrastructure, prolonged drought, squeezing food supply and agricultural productivity, as well as extreme storms. Rising temperatures have already led to vast reductions in theRead MoreThe Right Of Refugees From The Syrian Civil War1590 Words   |  7 PagesThe right of refugees to be granted refuge in another country has been a major human rights issue of our time. A refugee, according to international refugee law, is â€Å"all of those who flee persecution on the basis of religion, race, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group† (Goldenziel 2). In this particular case I will examine how Syrian refugees have faced persecution as a resu lt of generalized violence from the Syrian Civil War. This is the worst humanitarianRead MoreImperialism : The Age Of New Imperialism1048 Words   |  5 Pagesand metals to expand their investments. Without these raw materials, their factories to would not have the ability expand economically. It was also important for businesses to try to sell more product around the world to foreign nations. More product to sell to more nations meant a growing economy. Due to industrialization, colonies were forced to obtain certain materials from different areas of the world, and send the materials back to their mother country. The increase of industry required moreRead MoreThe American Dream1624 Words   |  7 PagesFrom top education from universities like Yale and Harvard, to minority rights and diversity, the United States has always been known as the â€Å"land of opportunities† for people around the globe. Many aspire to possess the American Dream, a chance to have equal rights a nd opportunities to achieve their goals along with a safe and comfortable lifestyle through grit and hard work. The concept of the American Dream developed long ago when people from the Old World began to conceive hopes and dreams forRead MoreModern Society : Democracy And The Modernization Theory1414 Words   |  6 Pagesdemocracy is a number one goal for many states. They like to reach it for plenty of reasons, civil and economic. First of all democracy is associated with wealth, a good material situation, and economic growth. We can clearly see it on example of The United States or large European democracies such as Germany or France. It is also believed that democratization brings high living standards, peaceful environment and overall happiness to the state; and The United States and European democracies are also aRead MoreFueled By The National Momentum For Social Reform During1361 Words   |  6 Pages Fueled by the national momentum for social reform during the post-World War II era, the United Kingdom restructured their health care system in 1946 to a socialized form where the federal government both regulates and administers universal health care to its residents through the National Health Service program. General income taxes fund the entirety of this health care program and the single-payer nature of this system has eliminated the need for insurance companies since the federal governmentRead MoreTrade Blocks And Its Effects On Business And People Of Mexico1648 Words   |  7 PagesTrade blocks (for example, EU) also help countries in importing from other member countries freely or cheaply while restricting imports from non-member countries. European Economic Community developed custom union (1957-1992) and common market (1992) for allowing freedom of factor flows and developing a common set of external barriers. Additionally, NAFTA (North American Free Trade Association) including US, Canada and Mexico was founded to remove trade barriers that had significant impact on businessRead MoreEconomic Theory : The Great Depression1734 Words   |  7 Pagesdeepest and longest-lasting economic downturn in the history of the Western industrialized world† (History.com Staff, 2009). Declines in consumer demand, financial panics caused economic output to fall in the United States. National output is essential in the field of macroeconomics and America’s decline was felt globally. The economic gold standard was a fundamental component in transmitting America’s downturn across countries (Britannica, 2015). The Great Depression, felt globally, is understood toRead MoreThe Us Policy On Maternity Leave Falls Short1665 Words   |  7 Pagesshort when compared to the rest of the world’s industrialized countries. This country is the last industrialized one left to not have mandated paid maternity leave for new mothers. American mothers are plagued with the pressure of having to take care of their newborn(s) and economic situation for at least twelve weeks. They’re at a greater risk of having an unstable income, family life, and health. This is despicable. It is imperative that the United States rectifies this situation and introduces paidRead MoreSafety Net of the Us Health System1523 Words   |  7 PagesThe existing arrangement of the U.S. health care system leaves large numbers of the American population without access to adequate health care. Currently, about 45 million Americans do not have any health insurance, resulting in inability to receive the necessary care requi red for a healthy and productive life (NCHC). Further, government run programs such as Medicaid and SCHIP, the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, are not sufficient and effective means of providing care for those eligible

Lights On, Lights Off free essay sample

The door stood slightly ajar. Inside, two hearts were beating rapidly in rhythmic unison as if a snare drum was being repeatedly tapped. The rest of the house remained silent, except for some sobs coming from the corner. She heard the words being yelled back and forth as loneliness consumed her and darkness shadowed her thoughts. When she opened her eyes, her mother was in her face calling for attention. She muttered five words that would live with her daughter forever, â€Å"Your dad’s leaving, say goodbye.† All went quiet, except for the screaming inside her. **** â€Å"Happiness can be found in the darkest of times, when one only remembers to turn on the light.† A profound quote spoken by one of the characters in the all-too famous Harry Potter series captures the essence of happiness like a child captures fireflies in a jar on a summer night. Happiness can be found in the simplest of places: late night conversations with a sister, encouraging pats on the back from friends, and the loving embrace of both mother and father. We will write a custom essay sample on Lights On, Lights Off or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page But what happens when happiness cannot be found in these dark and difficult times and family becomes a burden all its own? Happiness has always been my nature, and optimism, my best attribute. When you grow up with a loving family, great friends, and a willingness to learn, life doesn’t seem so scary, but this past summer life became difficult and happiness grew dim. I remember growing up thinking I had the perfect family, that WE were the exception. Most of my friends came from broken homes which wasn’t a big deal to them because they were used to it, but I had never experienced it before and so, I fell apart. Little did I know we were not the exception; we were the same as any other family, just a bit delayed. My parents, a loving couple, had been together for 27 years, but two kids and almost three decades later, the foundation began to crumble. Whilst my parents fought, I was usually an emotional wreck, while my sister sulked and built up a facade: stoic and uncaring. But the fights subsided and became my last memory of my parents together when my mother decided to kick him out for goo d. He didn’t seem to care anymore and she cared just a little too much. As the weeks wore on, I was â€Å"caught between enemy lines.† I was my mother’s make-shift therapist, someone she could unload all her troubles on for nothing in return. And for my dad, I was the messenger, someone to poke and prod in order to unravel the secrets. It was an unhealthy back-and-forth game between the two of them and I was the pawn they both used in their tactic to win. With loneliness constantly crawling up my spine, I began to shut myself away from the world as my sister had done. Since she was the only mature adult in this situation, I looked to her for guidance, but deep down, I knew she felt the same. We kept each other sane by watching movies and talking together, but it still was no easy situation to get through. And when my father finally packed his stuff, the separation between my parents finally hit me like a ton of bricks. Deep down I was desperate; I begged him to stay and I begged my mother to let him, but it wasn’t good enough. My once happy family was now falling apart and the pieces would be left untouched. The loving relationship between my parents became a heap of severed ties and broken promises. And the relationship I had with each parent became a little sour because of the separation, but my sister and I bonded over this difficult experience. With no happiness left in my house, I had to make the best of it. I did my daily tasks, acted happy around my family, and told everyone I was okay. In reality, I was suffering from the worst pain ever experienced, surpassing any physical pain I had ever felt in my seventeen years of living. More weeks passed and the initial shock wore off; I slowly began to understand what had gone wrong and what I had to do in order to fix myself, and not worry about anyone else. I realized that I was unhappy, alone, and in the dark throughout this whole process, but with the love and advice from my sister, the encouraging pats on the back from friends and the loving embrace of both mother and father separately, I began to heal. As time passed by quietly and undetected, I began to become accustomed to the arrangement my parents had set up, but I would still cry here and there. I focused on excelling in school; I joined more clubs – my favorite being The 2010 School Yearbook –and completely engrossed myself in books, movies, and friends†¦ too busy to focus on the things that had transpired the previous summer. As weeks turned to months, I felt better about myself and felt the pangs in my heart hurt a little less; I realized that it was their problem to work out or gi ve up on, and that they both still loved me equally in the end. Also, I realized that I should just keep doing what I’m doing and hope for a better future. And so, with a flick of a switch, I turned on the light that had grown dim when my parents separated. Happiness was partially restored and my balance was regained for a little while. With a surge of power and a jolt of electricity, the light was coming back on in my life, slowly but surely.

Current Situation of Sony Entertainment free essay sample

Facts and Starting points for Sony Music Entertainment Chapter 1: Mission, Vision Core Competences Mission Sony BMW does not have a publicized mission statement. However, the mother company Sony has changed its mission statements several times in history, whereas it is the following: To become a leading global provider of networked consumer electronics, entertainment and services. (Sony 2010) Vision Equal to the mission, SONY BMW does not have a publicized vision. The general vision of Sony Is: ;We Help Dreamers Dream, Sony is a company dedicated to the love of life. We develop things for any kind of imagination. We develop Products that stimulate the senses and refresh the spirit and create Ideas that always surprise and never disappoint. (Sony 2010) Core Competencies: One of the worldwide leaders in information technology products ; broadband entertainment company designing successful new products and brands one of the most popular Innovative consumer brand successful convergent revenue streams own entertainment network From a hardware perspective, Sony strategy Is focused on four gateways to the networked world: 1) Digital televisions and set-top boxes; 2) VIII personal amputees; 3) Mobile devices, such as the CLICHE handheld devices and digital phones; and 4) Palpitation game consoles. Sony has the vision, technology and content to forge a direction In consumer entertainment that no other company can match. Chapter 2: Analysis model of Sony BMW . To have the most up to date marketing model, results from the last 3 years will be used. 2009, 2010, 2011) * Analysts of 2009,10 and 11 * SOOT Analysts Sony Analysis Sony BMW 2009 Sony music entertainment business consists primarily of Sony Music Entertainment ISMS), which operates worldwide outside of Japan, and Sony Music Entertainment pan Inc. (SEEM), which operates in the Japanese market. Sony has changed its business segment classification from 2010, whereas in 2009 SEEM was part of all other income.Increase in Sales * Due to consolidation of Sony BMW However, when the consolidation is excluded, the sales would have decreased * Due to lower sales of Sony Music Entertainment * Settlement payment to copyright infringement Decline in Operating Income * Due to copyright infringement costs * Sony sold ; The Sony center am Potsdam Plant in Berlin, for 10 million yen less than the actual value Strategy 2009 Focus on generating hits for both well-known and emerging recording artists * Create new and Innovative business models for a music market in transaction * Licensing deals with Sony Ericson, Apple, Monika, Avoidance, Namespace and Amazon. He goal is to expand number of service providers who are offering music from Sony Artists and offer a diversified way of how the consumer acquires music. * Sony United Initiative; Integrating its music into wide range of Sony products and related services Sony Music Entertainment 2010 Sony has changed its business segment classification from 2010, whereas music is one segment. Increase in Sales * Sales included the full year result of SEEM which was consolidated on the 1st of Cot. 008 * Without the consolidation, sales in music segment would have declined with a percentage of 5 * Releases of Susan Bayle, Michael Jackson and Kimono-Karri Operating Income Increased * Declining expenses of the previous year * Improved results of Sony Music Entertainment Sony Music Entertainment lapin Inc. (releases of the albums from artists above) * Focus on both well-known and emerging recording artists * Increased number of digital retailers offering music from Sony Artists The goal is to expand number of revive providers who are offering music from Sony Artists and offer a diversified way of how the consumer acquires music. Launch of VIVO * 8 of top 20 global albums in 2009 * Increased market share through psychical sales strong demand of new releases and catalogue albums * Susan Bayle I dreamed a dream * Michael Jackson This is it * kimono- Karri Highchair no ATA Sony Music Entertainment 2011 Decrease in Sale * Due to negative impact of the appreciation of the yen against the U. S. Dollar, especially strong performance of Michael Jackson product in the previous fiscal year ND a continued contraction of the physical music market.Increase in Operating Income * Due to decreases in marketing, restructuring and overhead costs SOOT Analysts Strengths ;Very popular artist base. ;More than 750,000 copyrights on songs. ;Strong online service. -Ability to cross sell with other Sony products. -Many 360 deals with artists including management rights. ;Are able to fully utilize the fox tail effect with their many labels Meanness ;Try and make money by selling to consumers. -Bad reputation for suing people who ODL illegally. -Depend on third parties to be vendors for them.Slow to adopt new policies to increase public image. ;Lack of innovation Opportunities ;Sony Entertainment Network streaming. -More sponsorships for tours. -Higher distribution through SEEN. Digital Market -More intimate interaction with customers. ;Full acceptance of social media and 360 deals that would allow them to reach out to the public Threats -The Internet ;Piracy ;Lack of attention from consumers ;No need for physical distribution channel. -Home recording programs. -Lack of regulation to stop piracy around the world.Digital TV Recorders. -Too many viewing options of television without commercials. Says much less that real radio for rights. Chapter 3 Marketing -Internet radio which Marketing is the social process by which individuals and groups obtain what they need and want through creating and exchanging products and value with others. tier, 2010) Marketing Mix According to Kettle the marketing mix is the set of controllable tactical marketing tools (product,price place and promotion) that the firm blends to produce the response it wants in the target market.Product CD: A tangible good that is mass produced or manufactured on a large scale with a specific volume of unit Brand name I SONY I Functionality I Music carrier I Quality I good I Packaging I Single/album/ double album I Digital Track A tangible good Brand name I SONY I Functionality I Music I Packaging I none I Price Physical Sales Cads, 14,99 (Euro) per album Several products are combined in the same package. (Double album etc. ) Premium Pricing Use a high price where there is uniqueness about the product or servic e. This approach is used where a a substantial competitive advantage exists. Digital Sales tracks J, 99 (Euro cents) per track Price Skimming Charge a high price because there is a substantial competitive advantage. However, he advantage is not sustainable. The high price tends to attract new competitors into the market, and the price inevitably falls due to increased supply.. Place See chapter distribution Promotion Promotion is focusing on how the product is going to be communicated to the public. There are different means for promotion, think here of: Personal Selling, Sales Promotion, Public Relations, Direct Mail, Trade Fairs and Exhibitions, Advertising and Sponsorship.Sony Music Entertainment has advertising as main promotion. There has been a shift from the traditional advertisement tools as newspapers, magazines, elevation and radio towards the internet. As mentioned before, Sony increased licensing deals with other companies (Apple, Monika, Amazon) to expand the number of service providers who are offering music from Sony Artists and offer a diversified Nay of how the consumer acquires music. Another promotion tool is the Sony United Initiative whereas Sony is integrating its music into wide range of Sony products and related services.Chapter 4: Current Distribution Model Nat is the current distribution model of Sony Music Entertainment? Now, lets take a look at the current distribution model. SEEM uses a lot of different striation channels, but doesnt really stand out from its competitors. Or should we say didnt? Because for the largest part of its history Sony has been using the traditional channels, as did their competition. But this is going to change. Well start off with the more traditional limbs of this incredibly varied distribution octopus Nothing the company.Labels Sony Music Entertainment is the second-largest global music company (behind Universal Music Group). In order to make this function, SEEM has divided its recording catalogue among a large number of labels -ranking Columbia Records, Epic Records, RCA Records among them-, most of which owning the rights to several smaller labels Music Entertainment. Retail Lets start off with the oldest way of making money out of music: physical sales. Neither its sheet music, Lips, cassettes, Cads, or DVDs, selling physical music has been a huge part of the distribution model since we Sony Music Entertainment started out in 1923.And weve been buying them in bulk. But since the invention of the internet, physical sales have been dropping and are being replaced by digital downloads. But well focus on these later on in this chapter. Next to these sales is a age market for merchandise and memorabilia that focuses on a specific artist instead of the music performed. Consumers want to express themselves more than ever and what better way is there to do this than through music? Clothing, utensils, toys and items even as inconceivable as coffins can be ordered with the logo or mage of your favorite band or artist.Radio One of the oldest forms of music distribution is through radio. Ever since its Invention in the late 19th century, the radio has been a huge success. And even today, this is still a huge market. Estimates varying from 87% to 98% of households round the world owning one or more radios tells us that we shouldnt underrate its alee. Even though traditional FM- and AM-distributors arent producing huge amounts of positive numbers anymore today, the market for radio-distribution is still growing.Digital forms of radio are taking over from the traditional ways and more radios are being sold with an internet-connection every day. Internet-radio tends to sound cleaner (depending on the connection, obviously) and are transmitting on a global network enabling one to listen to his/her local radio station all over the world. Sony and its labels are pushing songs and artists on the radio, so they can be heard by a large audience. And we can see by the numbers stated above that these audiences can be huge. Television ere same transitions are visible in todays world of television as well.The internet is becoming a more powerful player in the way we consume entertainment (in this particular case music) every day and TV-producers have clearly acknowledged this, by adding internet connections to their latest models. Worldwide household penetration Isnt as large as its auditory counterpart (estimations ranging from 81% to 89%) it is till a mayor contribution factor in global distribution. Every film, TV-show or -series is provided with supporting music and a soundtrack. And lets not forget the power of MAT.Although they arent broadcasting as much music videos as they used to do in the late 20th century, it functions as one of the biggest influences on an entire generation, which is known as the MAT-generation today. Everyone remembers Sonnys ideas to enrich their songs. SEEM uses television and radio mainly for marketing purposes today, but digitization of both media might be a step towards a new way of consuming music. On Demand- features are growing in popularity and digital streams can be very easily monitored, since it is no longer a one-way connection. Live performance As soon as record labels, including SEEM, noticed the decline in physical record sales, they went looking for other business concepts where a larger margin of profits could be made. Which was found in live performances. Concerts are growing in numbers, size, value and in some cases exclusivity to attract more visitors. When at the same time, the ticket prices have skyrocketed as well, arguably adding more value to the concert. Internet he internet has offered a lot of difficulties for the music industry. It has introduced a new way of sharing/copying music on a huge and incredibly fast scale.Digital files can be copied very easily and uploaded for everyone else to enjoy. For free. In theory only one person needs to purchase an album to serve a potential demand of 6. 8 billion people. But we mustnt forget that the world wide web offers a huge variety of opportunities as well. Most important of all: global distribution. Legal downloads are exceeding the amount of physical sales by a huge factor when shipping and reduction costs are nigh on zero (we have to take contributing factors like server space rental and internet access into account).The internet can also be used as a incredibly cheap and multifunctional distribution-, marketing- and commercial tool. Audio and video files can be streamed on websites of the artist in question, tracks and bedposts can be downloaded, subscriptions can be acquired for services and social networks can function as a marketing tool as well as a platform for the fans to stay in touch with each other and the artist. And weve only covered a tiny layer of the numerous possibilities that are available today.Sony Music collaborated with Universal Music and the ABA Dhabi Media Company by creating Vivo, a Youth channel where all the content of each music label can be found. These clips are preceded by commercials, making it a new revenue stream for the company. Sony Entertainment Network (Curiosity) out there is one distribution channel that sets Sony Music Entertainment apart from all the other music companies today. In 2011 Sony introduced Curiosity, a subscription based music network that we know today as Sony Entertainment Network or SEEN. Is network offers an On Demand-service for Sony Corporations (paren t company of SEEM) music, films, e-books and videotapes. It can be accessed via all of Sonnys Ericson smartness, Home Theatre Systems and VIII computers, turning themselves into a huge competitor to Apples soft- and hardware I-series. This is a big step into future forms of music consumption and distribution. Sony has opted to endorse the subscription business model, but this could be enhanced to a pay-per- feature model or a one-time all-access acquisition version in the future.But so far, Sony is a step further forwards in comparison to its competitors. Distribution Version 2 Arises Sony Music Entertainment has many big and emerging artists signed to its record label. Its artists include such hit artists as AC/DC, Bribery Spears and Beyond, while also having up and coming artists as Kings of Leon. By signing such high profile artists and keying in on developing newer artists, Sony Music Entertainment is able to exploit this to their advantage. Music Sales Sony has come to embrace the digital age of music.They have signed deals with many companies including Namespace, Apple and Amazon in order to have many outlets for their digital catalogue. This has helped them keep their second place market share ahead of such companies as MME and Warner Brothers. They have also started their own music subscription service called Curiosity which has begun the evolution towards Sony Entertainment Network, which will collaborate with Sonnys other ventures to offer all of Sonnys media in one source. By having their strong artist selection they have been able to see an increasing market share.Concerts Sony Music Entertainment highly promotes its artists and with the big names that they have signed it has been able to exploit their ability to sell concert tickets. Over the last three years Sony Music Entertainment has seen over one billion dollars US in concert revenue for the artists that it currently has signed. Being lead by AC/DC who from 2008 to 2010 on their Black Ice World Tour grossed $441 , 121,000 and sold over four million tickets. Tours such as Bribery Spears Circus Tour also grossed well over one hundred million dollars to help add to the total.Music Publishing Sony owns or administers over 750,000 music copyrights. They own or administer copyrights to songs from such artists as the Battles, Bob Dylan, as well as newer artists including the Jonas Brothers and Taylor Swift. By having these rights, every time the song is publicly broadcast or used in film or television Sony is able to claim a Ninth one of their songs included in it, be it a DVD or a CD or a digital copy. With their current catalogue, Sony is able to create much revenue for a long period of time since unless it becomes public domain, Sony has the right for the life of the song.Other Sony Music Entertainment is also involved in many other ventures in order to promote higher revenue. They manage some of their artists and therefore gain an extra income from their artists. They are also a great consolidator, purchasing many smaller record labels, some they bring under the Sony Music Entertainment name, Nile others they leave in order to avoid alienating customers who like to support smaller labels. Some labels which are included but not limited to are Epic Records, Columbia Records, and RCA Records.Chapter 5: Competitor Analysis Nat competitors are existing and how are they doing (revenue, user, profit. ? ) Due to the fact that there are no platforms yet, which are based on creating new experiences of music for consumers, the research is mainly based on existing littorals that offer content and allow users to share, recommend, customize experiences or integrate different services. The main problem though is the fact that these are all relatively new concepts, is the lack of information available.

Logistics costs free essay sample

Logistics cost form an important part of the overall cost structure in any organization. Focus needs to be on renegotiating freight and shipping rates, reduction in overall freight costs and streamlining operations. The following are the measures (ways) that can be used to reduce cost in logistics New carriers: The use of Constant market rate check is a best practice. Usually, logistics managers get into a comfort zone with the existing carriers. The organization should look on other carriers which offers lowest cost of transportation. Market rate check will bring to light other more economical operations. New carriers may be more flexible in their price. Freight costs: There are several options to optimize freight costs. Renegotiation of minimum billing to a minimum for a zone needs to be explored. Product delivery coordination is another useful tool to streamline freight costs. Arrangements with a number of smaller carriers also provide the best rate/best service combination. We will write a custom essay sample on Logistics costs or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Internet offers excellent tools for comparing and optimizing freight costs. Improve shipping and receiving: Streamlining shipping and receiving practices will offer savings. This can happen through reduction of long time for receiving. Starting point should be mandating delivery appointments. A flow chart needs to be made of all the operations to determine wasteful processes and combining existing processes. Technology: Internet tools enable substantial reduction in paperwork. Documents are scanned and emailed to customs, ports etc. In case of cross border trade, documents needs to reach at least twenty four hours in advance to avoid delays at the border. Technology also allows coordination of all shipments to optimize loading. This minimize delays in delivery. Managing returns: Reverse logistics is an important element of freight costs. Most companies offer a liberal returns policy. If the customer is not satisfied with the product, it can be returned in a certain period depending on the seller. At times, the seller also arranges to pick it up. There should be streamlined processes so as to minimize costs associated with reverse logistics. Audit of freight costs: Use specialized agencies that provide post payment audit of freight bills. These agencies are usually paid on a profit sharing basis. These audits also provide valuable insight into patterns and other cost reduction opportunities. Deborah Catalano Ruriani explained other ways (measures) of Cost reduction as: 1. Eliminate supply chain bottlenecks. By periodically reviewing and analyzing their supply chain networks, companies can be able to pinpoint issues and proactively address them. Strategies to reduce or eliminate bottlenecks include addressing vessel schedule planning, ensuring proper documentation and regulatory compliance for imports and exports, and revamping network design. 2. Reduce inventory at the port, manufacturing sites, and warehouses. Companies often stock excess inventory because they lack supply chain visibility. To effectively reduce excess inventory, you have to gain reliable information on future orders. Visibility software can help. 3. Cut demurrage and detention fines. While an occasional fine may not seem like much, these costs can add up. Auditing carrier bills and tracking where issues occur in the supply chain can substantially cut fine payments. 4. Identify opportunities to shift modes. Without adequate visibility into logistics operations, a company may not realize that an air shipment could move by sea at a much lower cost. Companies that use technology to evaluate modal options typically see a five- to eight-percent cost reduction. 5. Use postponement strategies to divert inventory at an international gateway. A successful postponement strategy can dramatically lower forecasting errors as well as improve customer service by reducing out-of-stocks. Companies also can cut transport costs by reducing inventory misallocations and shipping more items in bulk. 6. Use preferential trade agreements. Companies that take advantage of preferential status can save millions in duties and taxes. A software system that automates the qualification process can save time and effort, as well as improve compliance and data accuracy. 7. Rebalance supply and fulfillment networks by determining tax-efficient sourcing and distribution strategies. Companies must periodically review their supply chain networks to assess duties and logistics costs, labor costs, regulatory controls, and global political climates. By comparing geographic options, taking into account the costs and regulations of each option, companies can optimize their supply chain. 8. Become a self-filer. Using technology to connect electronically with brokers lowers entry filing costs and reduces manual entry errors. It also can enable pre-clearance of goods at borders and reduce the number of staff needed internally to manage logistics operations while boosting productivity hence reduce cost. 9. Contro l your procurement process. By implementing a process-based workflow that includes tracking and managing order acceptance, consolidating invoices, creating shipments and generating documents— and by extending that process to trading partners— companies can reduce cycle times, cut supply chain execution costs, and better support compliance initiatives. 10. Implement performance management metrics and tools. Companies need a system, data, and tools to benchmark actions and make informed decisions. Developing a performance management process allows companies to manage service providers and critical cycle times to lower costs and continually improve performance 11. Understand the true costs of sourcing overseas. Calculate freight, duty, brokerage, and inventory carrying costs to support these lengthened supply chains. Also factor in such items as the costs of engineers flying overseas. Once you understand the true total landed cost and total impact to the business 12. Focus on eliminating the variability out of transit times. The more variable the transit times are, the more likely it is that the receiving party is using more premium freight, building buffers of inventory, or ordering more often and more quantity than necessary to compensate for the uncertainty. Understanding these dynamics can lead to the conclusion that paying higher freight costs to insure higher variability actually saves your company in total costs. 13. Control your express shipping costs. Typically when a company runs into a supply chain issue, it will have an entire shipment sent on an express/expedited (highest cost) service level basis. Panicking often results in higher costs. If the company would just do a little bit of calculating it can determine the amount of goods that are needed immediately and have that amount sent using express/expedited service level, while the balance of the shipment can be sent using a standard (lower cost) service level. 14. Informed decision-making. Provide to the decision-makers/customers of your logistics network the cost of freight for each service level, the reliability of each lane for each service level, and the true cost of carrying inventory so they can make informed decisions. People generally want to be good corporate citizens and will select the less expensive option that still meets their needs CHARACTERISTICS OF COST REDUCTION (HARD COST SAVINGS) The following are the characteristics of â€Å"Hard† cost savings, which is understood as tangible bottom line reductions are: year-on-year saving over the constant volume of purchased product/service, actions that can be traced directly to the Profit and Loss Account, direct reduction of expense or a change in process/technology/policy that directly reduces expenses, process improvements that result in real and measurable cost or asset reductions, examination of existing products or services, contractual agreements, or processes to determine potential changes that reduce cost, and net reductions in prices paid for items procured when compared to prices in place for the prior 12 months or a change to lower cost alternatives. COST AVOIDANCE (SOFT COST SAVINGS) â€Å"Soft† cost avoidance is much more difficult to define. The following are Suggested definitions, which includes: Cost avoidance is a cost reduction that does not lower the cost of products/services when compared against historical results, but rather minimizes or avoids entirely the negative impact to the bottom line that a price increase would have caused, when there is an increase in output or capacity without increasing resource expenditure, in general, the cost avoidance savings are the amount that would have been spent to handle the increased volume or output, and Cost avoidances include process improvements that do not immediately reduce cost or assets but provide benefits through improved process efficiency, employee productivity, improved customer satisfaction, improved competitiveness, over time to mention the few, cost avoidance often becomes cost savings. N. B: Cost avoidance is a cost reduction that results from a spend that is lower than the spend that would have otherwise been required if the cost avoidance exercise had not been undertaken. This accounts for the situations where spend is higher due to higher demand but overall cost per unit is lower, where up-front investments reduce overall spend in one or more categories over a multi-year initiative, and where a process improvement or product replacement resulted in a lower operating cost or cost per unit compared to what the company would have spent had the company not improved the process or replaced the product. To Sum up, if the organization adopts this open definition of cost avoidance, and maintains a document of common examples and their associated metrics, which is updated each time a new type of project is encountered that could result in a cost avoidance, the organization can fully quantify the â€Å"hard† and â€Å"soft† savings delivered by the sourcing team to the management team. Measures of Cost Avoidance: Resisting or delaying a supplier’s price increase, this is one of the ways of cost avoidance whereby the organization use techniques to resist or delay supplier price increase in avoiding cost. Use of purchase price that is lower than the original quoted price, The organization purchases its requirements at a lower price than what was initially quoted by the supplier so as to avoid cost. Value of additional services at no cost, the firm makes sure it avoid or prevent cost by making sure after sale services are obtained for free for instance installation, free training. Long-term contracts with price-protection provisions,the firm enters into long term contracts with the aim of cost sharing with the supplier. Introduction of a new product or part number requiring a new material purchases and spend is lower. COST REDUCTION CHALLENGES Some of the challenges faced by a company as they seek to assess cost reduction include: Cancellation of net savings due to an increase in the business unit’s cost structure, Supply management’s role in the cost savings allocation decision, Chronology of supply management’s involvement and the need for budget cuts, Visibility, in terms of systems, people, and metrics, Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) concept for purchases items/services, Multi-year issues in cost savings, and Creating a proper incentive structure for supply management personnel. TYPES OF COST REDUCTION AND AVOIDANCE The following are types of cost reduction and avoidance that need to be recognized as valid cost savings. This section presents some types of cost reduction and cost avoidance that can contribute significantly to the organization’s bottom line. Negotiated Discounts against Material Cost Increases If the products being sourced are primarily made from a commodity whose average market price or index has increased significantly since the last sourcing cycle, and a buyer manages to negotiate a price that increases less than the increase in underlying material costs since the last sourcing event, this is a valid cost avoidance. Substitution If a buyer manages to find another product that performs the same function, or is able to collaborate with a supplier to produce a functionally equivalent specification that is more economical to produce, then the buyer has obtained a cost reduction on behalf of the organization.. Waived Fees This form of cost avoidance is quite self-explanatory. For example, if a supplier normally charges an installation fee for a new piece of equipment, but the buyer is able to negotiate free installation, than this would be an example of cost avoidance of the waived fee variety. Another example would be free training or services. However, this is one example where the cost avoidance is not equal to what the vendor quotes, but what the market average for the service is.. Inventory Reduction This occurs when the buyer comes up with a strategy to reduce the inventory that the organization needs to hold at any given time. Since all inventories is associated with a carrying cost, inventory reduction often represents significant cost savings to an organization over time. Inventory can be reduced when a buyer finds a supplier who can handle a shorter lead time or when inventory is turned over to a vendor who specializes in inventory management (Vendor Managed Inventory). Process Improvement Processes consume overhead, and overhead costs money. Thus, any significant process improvement could represent a significant cost avoidance to an organization. However, unlike the other types of cost avoidance, process improvement cost reductions can be a bit tricky to evaluate. The key is to look at the average number of units of product or work produced per day, week, or month prior to the improvement and the number of units of product or work produced per day, week, or month after the improvement and calculate a percentage improvement N. B: By doing this, the organization will have clearly defined cost reduction efforts, tied them to savings, defined their relative importance, and defined the share of the credit that will go to supply management in a cross-functional initiative. The organization will also have avoided the problem where the team over concentrates on finding â€Å"hard† dollar savings, which is a serious problem if raw material and energy costs keep rising significantly and the largest savings potential is in the â€Å"soft† savings realized by long-term process and product improvements. Transloading to Maximize Cost Savings By Deborah Catalano Ruriani Tags: Transportation Management Transloading offers a cost-effective way to bring ocean containers inland to distribution centers. By transferring cargo without sorting the contents for shipment to a single destination, transloading services can reduce total landed costs, and—when combined with value-added services such as palletizing and shrink-wrapping—reduce handling at the destination. Jeff McCorstin, senior vice president of air and ocean products for UPS Global Freight Forwarding, offers these tips for maximizing savings with transloading services. 1. Understand general transloading rules. Transloading offers the greatest cost savings when ocean containers can be consolidated into fewer, larger domestic trailers. The cargo in three 40-foot ocean containers typically fits into two 53-foot domestic trailers. 2. Ensure overall transportation savings outweigh additional handling costs. Sometimes the savings are negated for destinations located farther east from the U. S. West Coast discharge port. 3. Consider palletizing cargo during transloading. To best use space in ocean containers, cargo is rarely palletized at the point of origin. Palletize during the transloading process to improve distribution center (DC) handling efficiency. 4. Factor transloading into transit time estimates. Unloading, handling, and reloading ocean container cargo near the port of discharge takes time. Allow up to three days to ensure customer delivery commitments are met. 5. Ensure your cargo fits the bill. Transload operators charge additional fees for containers with more than a certain number of cartons. The additional costs for containers with several thousand small cartons could offset any transportation savings. 6. Ensure handling flexibility by making Customs entry at the port. While it is a common practice to clear ocean containers at their final inland destinations, it is better to make entry at the port of discharge. This ensures maximum flexibility in handling cargo, and eliminates the need to move the shipment in-bond, saving additional costs. 7. Increase supply chain efficiency with merge-in-transit offerings. This type of deconsolidation allows importers to combine products arriving in containers from different origins/shippers by transloading near the port of arrival into domestic trailers. And if importers source from domestic suppliers—who may also have product arriving via container—this cargo can be merged in transit to arrive together at the designated DC. 8. Use transloading to expedite delivery to final destination. Transloading near the port of discharge provides the flexibility to bypass DCs and speed delivery to the end customer. The reduced DC handling charges and improved time in transit can help trim supply chain costs. 9. Avoid costly containers. Instead of shipping less-than-containerload, 20-foot, or light-loaded 40-foot containers from multiple overseas vendors to your inland DC, ship fully loaded/optimized containers to a single container freight station near the port of discharge. From there, they can be transloaded, merged in transit with other inbound cargo, and shipped to the final destination using the transport mode that best fits the importers needs. 10. Set up transloading programs in advance. Having your service provider involved in coordinating with the origin forwarder translates into better service levels and reliability. Flexible Structure Flexible operations are preplanned contingency strategies to prevent logistical failures. A typical emergency occurs when an assigned shipping facility is out of stock or for some other reason cannot complete a customer’s order. For example, a warehouse may be out of an item with no replenishment inventory scheduled to arrive until after the customer’s specified order delivery date. To prevent back-ordering or delivery cancellation, a contingency operating policy may assign the total order, or at least those items not available, for shipment from an alternative warehouse. The use of flexible operations is typically based on the importance of meeting the needs of a specific customer or the critical nature of the product being ordered. A flexible logistics capability that has gained popularity as a result of improved communications involves procedures for serving predetermined situations as part of the basic logistical strategy. The flexible logistics rule and decision scenarios specify alternative ways to meet specific service requirements, such as assignment of the order to different shipping facilities or changing methods of delivery. A strategy that utilizes flexible operations is common practice in four different situations. First, the customer designated delivery facility might be near a point of equal logistics cost or equal delivery time from two different logistics facilities. Customers located at such points offer the supplying firm an opportunity to fully utilize available inventory and logistical capacity. Orders can be serviced from the facility having the best inventory position or the available transportation capacity to achieve timely delivery. This form of flexible logistics offers a way to fully utilize system capacity by balancing workloads between facilities while protecting customer service commitments. The benefit is operating efficiency, which is transparent to the customer, who experiences no service deterioration. A second situation justifying flexible distribution is when the size of a customer’s order creates an opportunity to improve logistical efficiency if serviced through an alternative channel arrangement. For example, the lowest-total-cost method to provide small shipment delivery may be through a distributor. In contrast, larger shipments may have the lowest total logistical cost when shipped factory direct to customers. Provided that alternative methods of shipment meet customer delivery expectations, total logistical cost may be reduced by implementing flexible policies. A third type of flexible operation may result from a selective inventory stocking strategy. The cost and risk associated with stocking inventory require careful analysis to determine which items and how much to place in each warehouse. With replacement parts, a common strategy mentioned earlier is to stock selected items in specific warehouses with the total line being stocked only at a central facility. In general-merchandise retailing, a store or distribution center located in a small community may stock only a limited or restricted version of a firm’s total line. When customers desire nonstocked items, orders must be satisfied from an alternative facility. The term master facilities is often used to describe inventory strategies that designate larger facilities for backup support of smaller restricted facilities. Selective inventory stocking by echelon level is a common strategy used to reduce overall inventory risk. The reasons for selective stocking range from low product profit contribution to high per-unit cost of inventory maintenance. One way to operationalize a fine-line inventory classification strategy is to differentiate stocking policy by system echelons. In situations following such classified stocking strategies, it may be necessary to obtain advanced customer approval for split-order delivery. However, in some situations firms that use differentiated inventory stocking strategies are able to consolidate customer orders while intransit for same-time delivery, thereby making the arrangement customer transparent. The fourth type of flexible operations results from agreements between firms to move selected shipments outside the established echeloned or direct logistics arrangements. Two special arrangements gaining popularity are flow through cross-docks and service supplier arrangements. A cross-dock operation involves shipments from multiple suppliers arriving at a designated time at the handling facility. Inventory receipts are sorted by destination across the dock and consolidated into outbound trailers for direct delivery. Cross-dock operations are growing in popularity in the retail industry for building store-specific assortments and are common methods of continuous inventory replenishment for mass merchants. Cross-docking of merchandise direct from manufacture to a customer’s retail store eliminates the work and cost associated with utilizing distribution warehouses. Another form of flexible operations is to use integrated service providers to consolidate products for delivery. This is similar to consolidation for transportation purposes discussed in the previous section of this chapter. However, as a form of flexible logistics, specialists are used to avoid storage and handling of slow-moving products through the mainstream of the echeloned logistics structure. Such service providers can also provide important value-added services. For example, Starbucks Coffee Company has a long standing relationship with OHL, a logistics service provider. Starbucks has approximately 17,000 company-owned and licensed retail outlets. OHL provides logistical support to Starbucks by offering the typical range of 3PL services plus technology support. This operating relationship has existed for over a decade. Figure 2. 5 introduces flexibility to the logistical operating structures previously illustrated. A prerequisite to effective flexible operations is the use of information technology to monitor inventory status throughout the logistical network and provide the capability to rapidly switch methods for servicing customer orders. The use of flexible operations in emergency situations has a well-established track record. The overall improvement in information technology is resulting in flexible operations becoming an increasingly important part of basic logistics strategy. Cutting Costs From Your Logistics Budget By Tags: Supply Chain Management If you want to reduce logistics costs, you have to take the time to review your processes. Nathan Pieri, senior vice president of marketing and product management for Rutherford, N. J. -based Management Dynamics, offers these tips for trimming your logistics budget. 10 tips for reducing supply chain logistics costs Aug. 9, 2005 Bernie Hart EMAIL Tweet Comments 0 As companies continue to manufacture and source materials from overseas, controlling costs remains a top priority for those involved in international trade. One key factor that should be monitored more closely is logistics management, which covers all activities relating to the procurement, transport, transshipment and storage of goods. Depending on the industry sector, supply chain logistics costs account from 5% to 50% of a product’s total landed cost. Some issues effecting logistics costs: Fuel prices remain high and ports continue to experience delays, resulting in higher transportation fees. Increasingly complex international trade laws and security measurements threaten to lengthen delivery times and increase warehousing costs. According to a recent report by TechnologyEvaluation. com, a typical air-freight shipment takes eight to twelve days. Of this, the cargo is en route only 5% of the time. The rest is spent sitting in warehouses waiting for the required documents and compliance checks. Following are 10 Tips on Reducing Supply Chain Logistics Costs: 1. , that domestic buy may look a lot better. Sourcing from Ohio to your U. S. plant, distribution center or customer may, in the long run, be more cost effective than sourcing from China. 23. Tariff engineering. Strategically source and manufacture products to take advantage of classification duty rates and eligibility for special trade programs such as NAFTA. 4. Consolidate. If you have multiple suppliers in one country, consolidate their goods into one shipment. In addition, if you always have LCL (less than container load) shipments out of one country, try to find another LCL importer of goods from that country. You may be able to partner and consolidate to a more cost-effective FCL (full container load) shipment. 5.. 6. Sometimes insurance doesn’t pay. Often when a company has a shipment of premium goods they tend to use the Carrier’s Insurance. Carriers Insurance is very expensive. If the company is self insured, which most companies are, they should check their insurance policy to see if it covers shipment of goods. If it does, then they do not need to add the extra cost of Carrier’s Insurance. 7. Automate compliance processes. Companies that implement software solutions to automate trade compliance are able to speed the cycle times associated with tasks being performed manually, such as document preparation, and eliminate the associated errors. Automated compliance procedures also bring fewer delays at border crossings, resulting in on-time delivery, adequate inventory levels, increased customer satisfaction, and the avoidance of fines. 8.. 9. Planes, trains and automobiles. Which is cheapest? In general, rail is more cost-effective than trucking or air. Water is cheaper than air shipment. No matter the mode of delivery, always try to get three quotes for movements. 10. Be aware of non-tariff trade barriers. Companies need to be more aware of the increasing level of non-tariff trade barriers that are in force to reduce sweat shop labor and support human rights and animal welfare issues. These restrictions can bring importers increased liability and compliance costs.

How to Study If You Only Have Minutes to Cram

How to Study If You Only Have Minutes to Cram Weve all been there: you either procrastinate or forget about a test until the last minute, at which point you realize that you have less than an hour to cram in as much knowledge as possible. Heres how to make the most of your cram session and study for your test in an hour or less. Find a Quiet Study Space If youre at school, head to the library or a quiet classroom. If youre studying at home, turn off the TV, shut off your phone, power down the computer, and head to your room. Politely request that your friends and/or family give you time to study quietly. If you have only a short period of time  to cram, youll need 100% of your focus. Review Your Study Guide If youve been lucky enough to receive a study guide from your teacher, use it! Study guides are a crammers best friend. Read through the study guide as many times as you can. Memorize as much of the content as possible, using mnemonic devices like acronyms or songs. You can also try reading out loud and discussing the content with a friend or family member. Dont worry about making flashcards or taking notes- an in-depth review of the study guide itself will be more effective. Crack Open the Textbook If you do not have a study guide, grab a pen and a notebook and open up your textbook. After youve confirmed which chapter(s) the test will cover, read the first two pages of each relevant chapter. Look for major ideas, vocabulary, and concepts, and as you read, summarize any words or phrase that are bold or highlighted in the text. (You can do this summary process in writing if you have time, or simply state your summary out loud). After youve read the first two pages of every chapter, read the last page of every chapter and answer the review questions in your head. If you cant figure out an answer to a review question, look it up in the textbook before moving on. These review questions are often good previews of the type of content to expect on your test. Review Notes, Quizzes and Assignments Dont have access to your textbook? Gather as many notes, quizzes, and assignments relevant to your upcoming test as you can. Your personal notes will hold plenty of useful information, and your teachers quizzes and assignments are often one of the main sources of test questions. Read every page as you would a study guide or textbook chapter, focusing on key terms and concepts. Try to memorize as much of the content as you can with mnemonic devices. Quiz Yourself Using your study guide, textbook, and/or previous assignments, hold a quick quiz session. Look for key terms, then cover up the answers with your hand and try to define them. Next, look for big concepts, then flip over the pages and explain the concepts in your head. Circle or write down any topics you have trouble with and review them several times. If you have time and access to a study buddy, he or she can help out by guiding you through one last quiz session, but self-studying is just as productive. Write Down Your Mnemonic Devices As soon as the teacher hands out the test and says begin, write your newly-created mnemonic devices (acronyms, phrases, etc.) down on your test paper. Seeing these mnemonic devices will jog your memory as you go through the test. Ask the Teacher for Help If you get confused or stuck during the test, dont be afraid to raise your hand and politely ask for help. Many teachers are willing to guide you in the right direction, particularly if they know you to be a hard-working student.

Personal Philosophy For Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Personal Philosophy For Education - Essay Example It is in view of the above discussed needs in their totality that it is observed, discipline has to be married with dignity (Curvin, Mendler and Mendler, 2008, p.14-20). The students are found to learn best when the teacher possesses a consistent personal philosophy of education so that â€Å"an acceptable theory of discipline (for all occasions and events) can be evolved to provide needed direction and help reduce teaching complexities and and increase effectiveness (Edwards, 2008, p.23). The major benefit of having a philosophy of education is that it â€Å"serves as a guide and helps eliminate problems that stem from having to make decisions without the benefit of a firm set of principles† (Edwards, 2008, p.25). Personal philosophy of education can be defined as â€Å"a consistent well-understood system of beliefs and associated theories† that a teacher depends upon for guidance in his/her professional acts (Edwards, 2008, p.25). ... 31 - 32). But once the teacher has evolved a concrete philosophy of education, there is always an option for the teacher of comparing one’s bahaviour and actions with that philosophy and correcting deviant behaviour and actions. The students learn best when the teacher defines all the professional practices, leadership and management skills and behaviours related to personal effectiveness based on his/her personal philosophy of education (National Institute of Education Singapore, n.d.). The professional practices are related to various aspects like, supporting the growth of the child, ensuring quality in the learning exercise of the child, providing quality learning of the child in CCA, and cultivating knowledge through perfect command over the subjects taught, encouraging reflective and analytic thinking, promoting initiative, rendering knowledge with a creative edge and with a focus on the short term and long term future requirements (National Institute of Education Singapo re, n.d.). Similarly, leadership and management skills to be exercised by the teacher have to include winning hearts and minds of the students through empathising rather than mere systemising and also through understanding the classroom environment and developing the children (Baron-Cohen, 2004, p.2-6; National Institute of Education Singapore, n.d.). Leadership and management is also about working with others, which in this particular context is related to working with the parents and in teams that include students, teachers and the school administration (National Institute of Education Singapore, n.d.). Finally, the third aspect of ensuring that