Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Research Proposal Example Thus, while consumers may have desired to buy new electronics, especially high-tech equipment, most could not do so because they had limited ways of generating capital that they could use to allow the purchases (Hartman, 2010: p38). This can be seen in the losses suffered by such electronics companies as Motorola Mobility and Blackberry, which emphasized the profound effects of economic recession. The research will seek to evaluate the effects of the recession on behaviour of the consumer in the UK electronics industry, particularly with regards to the smartphone industry. Understanding the response of consumers to the economic downturn with regards to their buying behaviour is imperative for companies seeking to ensure future success (Chakrabarti, 2011: p56). While signs show that the UK economy is stabilizing, leading to questions about this research’s relevance, the changes to consumer behaviour by recessions tend to last for a long time. Therefore, even as economists signa l the end of the recession and beginning of recovery, this is unlikely to be reflected immediately by consumers in their buying behaviour. The UK economy’s current state has heavily burdened many companies across the country. The declining spending and tendency to save among consumers led to profit losses for many organizations, which have been predicted by experts to have long lasting effects (Ver Eecke, 2013: p82). Today, consumers are more aware of the pitfalls bedevilling spending above one’s means with improved financial education. This trend will portend challenges for marketers because the consumers now tend to do need evaluation, while also showing more selective behaviour in buying decisions. Thus, companies will be required to conduct a re-evaluation of marketing strategies with the aim of identifying effective was of product marketing, focusing on delivering value and meeting needs of the consumer (Chaston, 2009: p40). If the marketing

Management Information and Communication Systems (MICS Essay

Management Information and Communication Systems (MICS - Essay Example This report presents a detailed analysis of the idea â€Å"outsourcing†. This report will discuss the outsourcing working paradigm and its use for the information systems. This research provides discussion on the impacts of the outsourcing the information systems on the organization’s performance. This research will also discuss various advantages and disadvantages of information systems outsourcing. This report also discusses potential issues that can cause failure of IT outsourcing. The corporations can develop and maintain information systems internally or in-house by utilizing their own resources (technology and staff) or outsource it, which means they hire an outside firm for developing and maintaining their information systems for them. Additionally, outsourcing allows corporations to pay more attention on their inside business activities alongside allowing other firm having additional expertise and resources to carry out some portion of their business information system management activities. However, several companies outsource only the information system development component of their IT activities. On the other hand, others outsource more or every part of their IT activities. The reason of doing this is to survive and remain competitive in this age of constantly transforming information technology (Shelly, et al., 2005, p. 638; Dibbern, et al., 2004; Goles & Chin, 2005). However, all this depends on a corporation’s requirements, as well as outsid e firms can fulfill as much or as little of the IT requirements as indispensable or desired. In addition, external firms offer a variety of services including information system development and maintenance, web design and development, customer service, web hosting, billing, sales, marketing, and officially allowed support, for instance, an internet solutions provider is a firm, which offers web hosting services such as

Employee Relations Assignments One Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Employee Relations Assignments One - Case Study Example I identified UK Leasline as the most appropriate organization that could help the small business to accomplish its goal. The company offers capital to businesses in the UK at affordable terms, and I needed to purchase the office equipment at hire purchase to pay through installments as the business expanded. However, it was difficult to acquire the credit facilities since my business was a start up and therefore there was no collateral. I had to negotiate with the credit appraisal team for to prove that my business had the potential of growing to a substantial size to repay the borrowed capital. I knew that after launching the business, there were high chances for it to grow gain the capacity to negotiate better for loans. However, to get to that point, I had to use negotiation techniques so that I could not loose the opportunity. Since I had no tangible property but ideas, there was no need to negotiate with the credit appraisers. The appropriate person was the credit manager, who on the other hand was not directly concerned with issues regarding credit appraisals. But I had to proof my case to him and negotiate a deal because when I contacted the junior officers, they asserted their principles of collateral as well as offering credit to continuing businesses. With such principles, I could not excel in business. I consideredI considered myself successful even before I engaged in the negotiation process since I had the conviction that my idea was prudent and that anyone else who would give it a critical thought would find it an inventive decision. I remembered what a teacher who was my mentor once commented that I was a critical thinker. I had developed a close relationship with him because of the way I approached issues with sophistication. These memories gave me confidence and motivation to go ahead with my aspiration. On the other hand, I had witnessed start up businesses becoming successful, especially the ones that dealt with the same field as my intended undertaking. This meant that the business could attain sustainable profitability while on the other hand continuing to repay the equipments acquired on credit. I intended to show the senior credit officer my business plan and explain my vision to him so that he too could visualize my idea. I always though of how I would be happy after accomplishing my mission. However, I knew that there were drawbacks that could become a hindrance to my efforts of acquiring the loan. In the first place, I had no track record of previous loans that I had successfully repaid. This lowered my chances of proofing my credibility. Nevertheless, my age was an indicator of insufficient experience in handling large sums of money or managing a business on my own. I remembered how one of my friends took over the management of his father's business after he was taken ill, which led to its collapse. The business had been established through a loan for the purchase of equipment. To make the matter worse, the head of the credit appraisal team in UK Leasline worked in the company that issued the loan as a credit appraiser at the time. Only three years had passed from the time the business collapsed, which led to the demotion and eventual termination of all the credit appraisers that were involved in the appraisal of my friend's father to qualify for a loan. The dilemma in this situation was the fact that the head of the team who was to appraise my

Duties and Responsibilities Essay Example for Free

Duties and Responsibilities Essay As everybody know, to be responsible and accomplish with your duties, is one of the most important things around the world in the labor area. Without being responsible and do whatever you are supposed to do, practically, you are out of your job. As and future officer of the United States Army, we must know which ones are our duties and responsibilities in order to accomplish them and make our team look sharp and right. Due to constants changes in the army, we never know which position we or our fellow soldier are going to occupy. Thus, here you will see the duties and responsibilities of leadership positions from company commander to squad leader in order to make the reader understand why is so important to know what, when, where and why is your position so important. The company commander or CO is one of the most important positions in a company. The CO is responsible for everything the company does or fails to do, as an all. The CO is responsible for the training, discipline, administration and welfare of the soldier/ cadets in the company. He or she is the one who will receive the warning order (WARNO), formulates operation order (OPORD), creates plan and time line for every activity to do, supervise all trainings and coordinates with the cadre for detailed instructions. The CO leads by personal example and influence others to accomplish their duties and responsibilities. The executive office or XO is the second in command in a company. He or she primary role is to assist the commander in mission planning and accomplishment. The XO frees the company commander from routine details and passes pertinent data, information and insight to the commander and ensures suspenses are met by the platoon leaders. In addition to that the XO is responsible for the safety and risk assessment of all company events, thus, prepare OPORDs safety paragraph. The XO performs all other duties as assigned by the company commander. The first Sargent or 1SG, just like the company commander is the responsible for everything the company does or fails to do. Usually is the most experienced soldier/ cadet in the company. The 1SG is the commanders primary tactical advisor and expert on individual and NCO skills. The 1SG helps the commander plan, coordinate and supervise all activities that support the company or unit mission. He or she writes and presents paragraph IV (Service and Support) of the company OPORD, makes necessary announcements at PT and at lab, responsible for gathering all accountability and sending it up the chain of command, keeps company training running according to the time line, makes sure all information is disseminated to the PSGs and has accountability at all times and supervises PSGs and SLs. The platoon leader or PL is the responsible for the entire platoon does or fails to do. In the conduct of duties, consults platoon Sargent in all matters related to the platoon. The PL leads platoon in supporting higher headquarters missions, looks ahead to the next move for the platoon, requests and controls supporting assets and issues accurate and timely reports. In addition to that the PL places self where most needed to accomplish the mission and understands the mission and commanders intent two levels up. The platoon sergeant or PSG is usually a senior NCO in the platoon and second in command. The PSG sets the example in everything and is the responsible for the care of personnel, weapons and equipment in platoon. As second in command, the PSG assumes duties as assigned by the PL. In addition to that, ensures platoon is prepared to accomplish mission, prepares to assume the role and responsibilities of PL, acts where best needed to help mission command the engagement, organize platoon formations and control movement of the platoon. The squad leader or SL is the responsible for all the squad does or fails to do, directs team leaders and leads by personal example. The SL has authority over subordinates and overall responsibility for those subordinates actions and is responsible for the care of personnel. In addition to that, the SL ensure the squad is in proper uniform with proper equipment for training,  lead a supervise the squad, personally prepare and inspect the squad for all missions, keep squad accountability and report to the PSG, control movement of the squad, prepare and submit reports and prepare and issue the squad OPORD. In conclusion, it does not matter what position we are going to occupy, we need to make that our fellow soldiers are doing what they have to do. The duties and responsibilities of every single leadership position is based on take into consideration that a leader is supposed to know and understand their people. He or she knows their strengths and weaknesses as well as what motivates and frustrates them. So, in order to be successful and accomplish all our obligations, first, we need assume our position, always seeking for the welfare of our team.

Supply Chain Management in Tourism

Supply Chain Management in Tourism The integration of key business processes from end users through original suppliers that provides products, services and information that add value for customers and other stake holders. Supply chain management (SCM) is the process of planning, implementing, and controlling the operations of the supply chain as efficiently as possible. Supply Chain Management spans all movement and storage of raw materials, work-in-process inventory, and finished goods from point-of-origin to point-of-consumption. (wikipedia.com) SCM in tourism will start from planning of a product, identifying the different sectors to be included in the complete tourism product and also, in each sector of the product, The management of the raw material , inventory of raw material and delivery of the services. Tourism: An industry Tourism denotes the temporary, short term movement of people to destination outside the place where they normally live and work and their activities during their stay at these destinations. Tourism is a multi segment industry. It is an industry where the products are consumed on the spot forming invisible exports. It is also a fragmented industry with high complexity due to the price sensitive nature of demand and the intangibility, perish ability and inseparability. Tourism, like all other supply chains, operates through business-to-business relationships, and supply chain management can be applied to deliver sustainability performance improvements alongside financial performance, by working to improve the business operations of each supplier in the supply chain. The main differences between tourism supply chains and those of other sectors are that tourists travel to the product, and the product that they buy has a particularly high service component in other words, it involves a higher proportion of people in the immediate production of the holiday experience. Supply Chain Management in tourism The aim of supply chain management is to eliminate waste in the chain and to improve the customer service. The elimination of waste for example waiting time, inventory and production of non-requested products leads to lower costs. The improved customer service by means of, interlinked processes, lead to preferred suppliers and to a bigger turnover. All this leads to higher productivity (more income/ less costs). In tourism it plays a very important role to deliver the quality service with minimum gaps or reduced gaps. Shortened product life cycles, increased competition, and heightened expectations of customers have forced many leading edge companies to move from physical logistic management towards more advanced supply chain management. Therefore, in many cases, the only possible way to further reduce costs and lead times is with effective supply chain management. In addition to cost reduction, the supply chain management approach also facilitates customer service improvements. It enables the management of inventories, transportation systems and whole distribution networks so that organizations are able meet or even exceed their customers expectations. Tourism supply chains involve many components not just accommodation, transport and excursions, but also bars and restaurants, handicrafts, food production, waste disposal, and the infrastructure that supports tourism in destinations. These all form a part of the holiday product that is expected by tourists when they purchase holidays, quality, depends on performance at all the links in the tourism supply chain. A further aspect of the tourism supply chain is the activities of customers while on holiday, particularly in relation to their behavior, and what they source for themselves in particular situations. The main strategies in any supply chain are sourcing strategy, distribution strategy, inventory strategy, manufacturing strategy, customer service strategy and the strategy of integration. Tourism comprises of different industries product and service like of Hotels, accommodation, transport, destination etc. SCM strategies can be modified to suit the nature of the product. Sourcing Strategy -Sourcing mainly constitutes Make or buy decision Manufacturing management Capacity Management Make or buy decision: Services can be delivered directly or can be outsourced/Co-Sourced as done by Thomas Cook a reputed name in providing tourism services. Thomas Cook implemented strategic sourcing arrangement with Accenture by outsourcing its Back-Office activities. Through this model they were able to improve operations and reduce its cost, by US $ 243.72 million in just 16 months. Manufacturing management: In tourism, manufacturing component is limited only to certain sectors like food and craft, memento, gifts etc. Services are processed at each stage in the tourism. For example, in transport sector at airport different services like visa and immigration processing, waiting time etc are processed to deliver the maximum satisfaction to the travellers. At the destination the service is processed by providing safe environment and security to the tourists. Capacity Management: The tourism products are subject to instability of demand. Example during Muscat festival in Oman, the demand exceeds the supply in many of the sectors of tourism like in hotels and airlines. Airlines meet this excessive demand by increasing the capacity by introducing additional special flights at special rates. Distribution strategy In tourism industry, the distribution strategy has far reaching impact on the development of the industry. This makes it essential that the channel decisions are sound so that the beginning and end process of marketing are managed efficiently and effectively. A basic understanding of the structure and working of the distribution system in travel industry, including the middlemen who form the part of the system, is found essential to understand the Economics of the tourism industry. The current practices insist on four types of sales distribution of tourism as a product. One stage system: This system provides direct sales from primary suppliers of the services to consumers through its own reservation departments. E.g. airlines directly selling tickets to travellers through its reservation office. Two- stage system: This system involves single middlemen i.e travel agent. Three-stage system: This system involves two middlemen, retail travel agent and wholesaler or a tour operator. Four-stage system: This system involves a retail travel agent, wholesaler and additional middlemen known as Speciality Chancellor, who is instrumental in the development of tour packages. Inventory Strategy: An inventory of tourism products identifies the opportunities and constraints that a local authority has in attracting visitors to their town/ city/region. The number and range of attractions and activities, things visitors can see and do, are particularly important. Gaps in the product range and/or poor quality facilities will make places less attractive to visitors. In the same way lack of transport and accommodation will deter visitors from travelling to and stopping at the destination. Until an inventory of attractions, activities, accommodation and transport has been completed and this is matched with an understanding of visitor demand and Visitor satisfaction, destinations will be unsure whether they are meeting visitor expectations. In terms of prioritising tourism requirements, the attraction and activity sectors are the key areas. For Example, Tourist visit Switzerland for fun and excitement and it is the service provider that provides this opportunity to the tourists. Local government is often also, a key provider of visitor (and residents) theses attractions and amenities. Customer Service Strategy: The aim of the tour operator should be that he consistently makes the customers happy 100% of the time .Inconsistent service leads to customers not knowing what to expect. Customer service includes providing accommodation, flight details, and attractive tourist points. Employees are vital in this attempt to achieve consistently high customer service. Organisations must have the right systems in place in order to achieve their goals. If staff cannot take the right action when dealing with customers, the business will suffer. It is about five times as expensive to win over a new customer as it is to work with an existing one. Integration Strategy: Supply Chain integration Strategy links all the business entities in the supply chain. In tourism the tour operators act as producers as well as distributors. In an efficient supply chain, manufactures, suppliers, distribution channels and customers are linked in the form of a chain to develop and deliver products as a single organization of pooled skills and resources. Higher the integration process, greater is the success of supply chain system. Tour operator or service provider has to integrate all the services together effectively to design the preferred output to gain the competitive advantage. For effective supply chain management of tourism services, it is essential that different segments of product (tourism) are managed in tune with changing habits and desires of users. SCM in few of the important aspects of the tourism like accommodation, transport, food and crafts and destination are discussed briefly in this paper. Accommodation Accommodation facilities are found to be important aspect of Tourism product. For managing hotel services, at the very outset, the locational factors are found important. It is essential those hotels are easily accessible to the tourists sites or beaches or shop. The staff of the hotel should be trustworthy, well trained, and well versed with technology. Hilton Properties California manages their procurement and inventory using software application called Birch Street. There is need for development of Hotels of different Grades and categories to accommodate the tourists of all segments. The restaurants and cafeterias are also found to be image creators. The accessibility and comfort of user is important factor in satisfying experience. The place should be free from all industrial Hazards. The guests staying in hotel should be able to avail the facilities like Quality Bedrooms, conference halls, bars, shopping arcade, swimming pool, transportation arrangement, first aid facilities etc. While developing the product, the quality of services comprising of efficiency, personal attention become significant. According to Carla Gold GM Radisson hotel, Cleveland A good supply chain management starts with Hotel operator knowing the upcoming business demand. Optimum inventory management is required to minimize the cost. The tourist organizations cant think in favour of an optimal product strategy, if classified and unclassified hotels of different grades or stars are not easily available to the tourists. Unplanned development of accommodation sector can hamper the quality holiday experience of the tourist. Transport All ingredients of tourism product fail in getting positive response, if the tourists do not experience comforts while travelling or while coming to the destination. It is not possible that all the tourist sites are directly linked to the airports. Hence other transportation facilities like railways and road transport facilities become significant. The tourist organization may also offer services but most of the guest prefers to avail private transportation services. This makes it essential that the transport facilities are well integrated. The tourist should be offered safe, fast, convenient and economic transport services. Since all the tourists cannot avail air services, the railways and roadways are required to develop planned way. The schedule and speed should be maintained. The number of visitors to a country also depends on the ease with which tourists are able to obtain Visas and sail through immigration procedures. At Muscat international airport immigration procedures are b eing modernised to cut the wait for travellers. To speed up the processing of registration and to take care of security of the travellers electronic gates are installed. Hong Kong International Airport has been named best airport in the world by Skytrax. Travellers look for speed and maximum time utilization in the airport, clean washrooms, seating availability, and prices charged at food and beverage outlets, and how helpful the airport staffs are. The transport operators should behave properly, so that the tourists are motivated. The seating arrangements should be comfortable. The drivers and the conductors and other window staff should behave properly. At any cost, there should not be any compromise with the safety principles. It is important to mention that the inadequate airline capacity is critical bottle neck in are travel to and fro India, particularly during peak season. Charters not only augment air capacity but also help in promoting new destinations. This necessitates adequate attention for upgrading transporting facilities, in important tourist centres. Rail transportation needs to develop special fascination for foreign tourists. It is appreciated palace on wheels scheme. The coast line and back water areas need an intensive care. The possibility of having ship cruises along with coast line and the potential offered by the back waters of Kerela and sunderbans (West Bengal) for river cruises are required to be fully tapped. Food and crafts In many cases tour operators use local food and crafts as one of the tourist attractions of their packages Food and crafts can generate considerable profits for the local population, when volume production and delivery at set quality standards can be met by local producers. Key issues for local sourcing of food supplies in the tourism sector are quality, reliability and quantity of supply. Promotion of local sourcing therefore requires training and technical support and investment for example in storage and distribution facilities to meet quality and reliability standards, as well as the development of production and distribution networks to gather supplies from different local producers into the quantities required by hotels. Few tour operators have supply chain initiatives on the production and distribution of local, sustainable food and crafts, but some work with their local suppliers to promote local sourcing of food and other local products. Small hotels are more likely to buy from local suppliers, while some large hotels have developed programmes to encourage local production at the standards they require. This generally requires constant supervision and commitment, and success is often linked to championing of local sourcing by hotel chefs. Local sourcing and production will usually improve the contribution of tourism to the local economy, both financially and in terms of employment, and may also help to preserve local skills in craft production. For example Surajkund Crafts Mela, is the prominent tourist destination of Haryana, India. The Mela attracts lakhs of visitors, both for the amazing range of interesting crafts it showcases as well as the relaxing rural ambience of the Mela grounds. Besides shopping to your hearts content, you can also witness beautiful, colourful folk dances and also savour delicacies of various states of India. Destinations In relation to the tourism supply chain and direct inputs to tourism, destinations provide infrastructure and services. Destination initiatives for sustainable tourism seek to improve the quality of infrastructure for example, through improvements to waste management infrastructure for solid wastes and awareness raising programmes on waste management practices , to transport systems and to reduce vehicle impacts and to increase the ability of the destination to gain from tourism. Other initiatives include the promotion of linkages between tourism sites, and promotion of a wider range of tourism activities to encourage tourists to sample different aspects of the country and thereby diversify and spread the economic benefits of tourism. A number of initiatives in destinations in many developing countries are designed to enhance local employment in tourism, such as by supporting the substitution of locally-grown and locally-manufactured products in place of imports in the tourism sector, the establishment of investment and loan funds to assist local tourism businesses to start and expand, or the setting up of employment bureaux to match employees with tourism jobs. Some destinations have set up local quality of life and sustainability programmes using sustainability indicators to monitor environmental quality, and in some cases, biodiversity, as well as monitoring visitor satisfaction and changes in tourism markets. Marketing, products and operations can then be adapted according to the monitoring information obtained. The Taj Mahal one of the Seven Wonders of the World in India attracts 2 to 4 million visitors every year with more than 200,000 from overseas. Polluting traffic is not allowed near the complex and tourist must either walk from the car parks or catch an electric bus. For security reasons only five items water in transparent bottles, small video cameras, still cameras, mobile phones and small ladies-purse are not allowed inside the Taj Mahal. Conclusions Based on various discussions in the above paper, it can be concluded that rules/ trends/models of supply chain management of manufacturing technology holds good for service sector also with reference to tourism Various aspects of services with reference to tourism are discussed separately. This paper discusses that there are many components in tourism. In each component like Accommodation, transport, food and Crafts Destination etc. there is need for Supply Chain Management to deliver quality service resulting in satisfying experience or tourist satisfaction. From the discussions in the paper it can be concluded, higher the integration of services within a particular sector (intra relationship) and also amongst the different sectors (inter relationship) of tourism, greater is the competitive advantage. Services in tourism like security of tourists, minimum waiting time at different locations, Environment friendly operations etc forms the important constituents in strategies of SCM. Supply Chain Management is a strategic tool which leads in cost reduction, optimum utilization of resource, sustainability resulting in leadership in todays global competitive market. References Jha, S.M.: Services marketing; H.P.H., Bombay, 1994. Predictions that will make you rethink your supply Chain; Supply chain management review; September/October 2002; Anderson Supplier OEM Sahay, B. S. (2000). Supply Chain Management for global competitiveness, Macmillan India Berry and Parsuraman, Marketing Services: Competing through quality (New York: The Free Press), 1991 Web sites visited: http://tourism.gov.in/statistics/statistics.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supply_chain_management www.http:// ITT9603 Tourism and Information Technology.htm http://www.fincorp.net/reports/tourism sector report-09-04.pdf http://www.tourism.govt.nz/tourism-toolkit/toolkit-word-docs/planning-checklist-TOUR-IND-INVEN.doc

Inflation Essays -- Economics

Inflation INFLATION CAN OUR ECONOMY GROW WITHOUT IT? INFLATION CAN OUR ECONOMY GROW WITHOUT IT? What is inflation? The definition of inflation, according to Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, is â€Å"an undue expansion or increase, from overissue.† Although, Webster’s is considered by most to be the overall best dictionary, WordNet states the meaning of inflation a lot clearer by saying, â€Å"it’s a general and progressive increase in prices.† It occurs when the value of goods rises faster than the value of money. The usual approximate measure of this is the Consumer Price Index, which weigh the prices of different goods according to importance in a typical budget and then shows how much the prices of these goods have increased. This immediately raises some problems; for example, the weight of the goods must change over time. The importance of computers was not measured in the price index 100 years ago. Another problem is the failure of the price index to capture changes in quality. The qualit y of a good may have improved by 20%, while the price has only risen by 10%. The consumer price index doesn’t feel this should be a factor, but many would disagree. Hence, inflation is not easy to define in practice. This should be kept in mind when discussing how to defeat inflation. There have been numerous theories on how to defeat inflation and even some theories on whether, or not, it should be defeated at all. Some say that inflation is not only expected, but often, needed. Economists believe that in order for the economy to expand and grow, there has to be some level of inflation. Therefore, the opposite holds true as well. If you want to lower inflation, you have to accept a semi-standard economy. They call this tradeoff the Phillips Curve. The Phillips Curve is thought to be the â€Å"proper† way of balancing economic growth and inflation. For this reason the Federal Reserve is always looking for the perfect equilibrium at which we can maximize our economic growth while keeping inflation as minimal as possible. They do this by increasing and decreasing interest rates. Although, Economists and the Federal Reserve abide by the Phillips Curve as a general rule for not letting inflation get out of hand, it has been proven many times in the past that it is possible to have a very healthy and prosperous economy without raising inflation at all. There are even exa... ...creased. This would show a truer relation of the prices of goods to the inflation of the economy. I can see the Federal Reserves reasoning behind raising interest rates to slow down the economy and lower inflation, but they need to realize that the rate of inflation is not completely dependant upon the rise and fall of the economies well-being. The past has proven to us numerous times that the economy is quite capable of being stable and prosperous without effecting the inflation rate in a negative way. That’s why I feel that it would be in the nations best interest to continue letting the economy expand into bigger and better things without raising interest rates to unneeded proportions. WORKS CITED Forbes, Steve. â€Å"Bad Idea Begets Bad Economy.† Forbes. Oct. 9, 1995: p23. Dentzer, Susan. â€Å"Honey, I Shrunk the Price Tag.† U.S. News & World Report. Sept. 23, 1996: p72. Forbes, Steve. â€Å"Stop Stunting Our Prosperity.† Forbes. Oct. 16, 1995: p27. â€Å"Inflation.† Hypertext Webster Gateway. Jan. 20, 1999: internet. http://work.ucsd.edu:5141/cgi-bin/http_webster?inflation Bootle, Roger. â€Å"Chapter 2-Prices.† The Death of Inflation. Nicholas Brealey Publishing. 1996: p488-489.

Cross Cultural Differences- China and Usa

| THE 101: Cross Cultural Issues in Tourism & Hospitality | Assessment No. 2| | Ariana Janjua| 201111790| Culture, as defined by Geert Hofstede, is the â€Å"the collective programming of the mind distinguishing the members of one group or category of people from another†. (Hofstede, 2011) It is due to the research carried out by scholars such as Hofstede and Fons Trompenaars that we are able to understand cultural values, and the difference in cultures more thoroughly. This information gives us the ability to understand, and interact people for other cultures that may be drastically different from our own. Such research also gives a basis by which social and business dealings can be held. (itim International, n. d) Knowledge of other cultures is imperative when dealing with business relations; it has been helpful in the age of globalization where cross-cultural business is at a dramatic rise, and even aids in such things as the training and communications. It is also crucial in the face of tourism and social life, as it gives us the understanding of how people from other cultures function as a result of their particular set of cultural values. The aim of this essay is to provide a deeper understanding between the cultural differences between two very different cultures: those of China and the USA. The essay is divided into two parts: the first will explore the different cultural dimensions present in a social and business context according to the research by Hofstede and Trompenaars. The second part will give an example of a practical application of this information in the hospitality industry, and will provide recommendations upon which American hotels can better accommodate Chinese guests. As mentioned above, Hofstede was a Dutch scholar who performed intensive research in order to fully understand his five cultural dimensions, of which this essay looks more deeply into three: Power Distance, Individuality and Long Term Orientation. From his results, we can compare the differences in these dimensions between China and the USA. (itim International, n. d) As can be seen, there is a remarkable difference in all the indexes, especially in PDI (China 80, USA 40), IDV (China 20, USA 91) and LTO (118, USA 29) (China, 2011). These figures give us a starting point to understand these differences more thoroughly. Power Distance is the extent to which people respond to inequalities in different organizations and institutions. (Hofstede, 2011) The PDI of China is considerably high, meaning there is â€Å" high level of inequality of power and wealth within the society† (Patent, 2009). In social terms, this means that authority figures such as the father of a family are given utmost respect to. Furthermore, in all situations, one must address a person by their title is order to give them the respect of their status. This is also reflected in a business atmosphere, where hierarchies are clearly defined. Those on top of the hierarchy are respected, and unquestionably obeyed by those lower in the hierarchy, who are given clear instructions of what is to be expected of them. (Patent, 2009) There is a limited level of communications between these different levels. This is a fact that is prevalent and accepted all throughout Chinese society. On the other hand, the PDI of the United States is very low, and almost leans toward egalitarianism. This is indicative of a greater equality between societal levels, including government, organizations, and even within families. â€Å" (Hofstede, 2011) Socially, Americans are more comfortable around one another, regardless of their ranking. This is reflected in social life, where this is much lower emphasis on titles and qualifications. It is apparent in day-to-day dealings in which Americans greet each other by shaking hands and often call each other by first n ames, regardless of the person’s title. In a business context, leaders may be respected, but more so for their abilities and success rather than their positioning in the hierarchy. (Patent, 2009) They often take on the role of mentors with whom employees are unintimidated and motivated to work with. â€Å"Individualism on the one side versus its opposite, collectivism is the degree to which individuals are integrated into groups. â€Å" (Hofstede, 2011) China is a highly collectivist culture, where all individuals are part of the unit, with the most fundamental unit being that of family. The prosperity of these units is ultimately more important than that of individual persons. Collectivism is apparent in all parts of life, from the attention given to group behavior more than individual behavior, to small everyday activities such as crowding on to a bus with numerous other passengers, such as seen in bustling Chinese cities such as Shanghai. (Gallo, 2009) These beliefs stem from the Confucian values of â€Å" harmony, strong interpersonal relationships and group loyalties. † (Fitzgerald, 2002) Loyalty to relationships is emphasized, even in a business context. For this reason, employees are dedicated to the company they work with, and in turn they are treated with the same loyalty, transforming the business environment into a somewhat family environment. (Gallo, 2009) Also in business, every employee regards himself as part of team, and all his efforts are solely to work towards the success of that team. Collectivism in Chinese culture can be summed up in one term ‘ guan xi’, which can be loosely translated to mean â€Å"to concern, to relate, to make connections, to make relationships’. Fitzgerald, 2002) The United States, on the other hand, is a highly individualistic society. Every individual is looking for ‘the American dream’, a better state than they presently are in (Cultural, n. d. ). Individuals believe in working hard and performing well for one’s own benefits, and relationships and group culture is one of less importance than the concept of â€Å"I† (Kwintessential, 2011). This is prevalent from childhood, when children are taught the worth of being independent and self-reliant. Fitzgerald, 2002) This is a common element of American society: it is accepted and rewarded. The same goes for the attitudes seen in a business environment. There is a lesser concept of teams, and a higher concept of individuals working hard for their own success rather than for that of a larger unit’s. Likewise, individual high performers in a company are rewarded for their efforts. (Gallo, 2009) â€Å"Long- term oriented societies foster pragmatic virtues oriented towards future rewards, in particular saving, persistence, and adapting to changing circumstances. (Hofstede, 2011) According to Hofstede’s analysis, China is a country that is very long term oriented, with a high factor of 118. This is one of the most commonly seen values in Chinese society, and is founded upon the teaching of Confucian, which are engrained in the Chinese culture. They are seen in everyday behavior: the Chinese are always looking to a better future and working towards this through the saving of money, perseverance, and the ability to adapt to changes surrounding them. (itim International, n. d) For example, Chinese sellers are infamous for their bargaining abilities. Another value of this long-term orientation society is to have a sense of shame, which is why Chinese people always remain highly composed and respectful no matter the situation. (nwlink, 1997) This composure is further complimented by their hard work and determination in business-matters. They believe that the future matters more than the present or past, and therefore put all their potential into working for better things to come. â€Å"Short-term oriented societies foster virtues related to the past and present such as national pride, respect for tradition, preservation of â€Å"face†,  and fulfilling social obligations. (Hofstede, 2011) The USA comes in with a relatively low LTO factor at only 29. Short term oriented societies are concerned with the Truth of matters, which Americans view as science, religion and management. Following the same values, they believe that the truth may be manipulated in order to obtain the desired results. (nwlink, 1997) As Americans are ex tremely concerned about personal solidity, these values about truth tie in well with both their social and business lives. In social lives, Americans are very protective of themselves and their ‘face’ or reputation as they are in business life. Having looked at Hofstede’s differences in the cultural dimensions between China and America, we can now take a look at these differences from a different perspective. Trompenaars, who was also Dutch, was a professional in cross-cultural communication and drew up a model of culture with seven dimensions. This essay will pay particular focus to the dimension of universalism and particularism in USA and China. Particularist societies such as that in China are those societies in which people believe that a clear and right decision can be made on the grounds of the relationships and the situation it in based on. It may be said, â€Å"Particularism is based on logic of the heart and human friendship. † (Cultures, 2011) For this reason, Chinese people believe in the value of all relationships and they make the required effort to base these relationships on a strong foundation for a long lasting outcome. The Chinese are known for being good hosts, and often participate in small gestures, such as giving gifts. In businesses as well, the Chinese try to build a relationship with the person they are doing dealings with. They like to take their time in business dealings and negotiations, rely on a mutual trust and respect to get the process finished, and believe in the simplicity of such dealings. (Cultures, 2011) In Universalist societies â€Å"There is a belief that what is good or true can be discovered, defined, and applied to every situation† (cyborlink, 2011) . These societies, such as that of the USA take a universal point of view and believe that all matters are relative. Socially, they are okay with having weak relationships with friends or family members. But this universalism can really be see in a business aspect, as Americans are very concerned with terms and conditions and contracts; basically, the little details entailed in a business dealing. They are usually even lawyers involved in seeing to a smooth running of the matter, and this is reflected in the fact that there are more lawyers per person in the USA than anywhere else in the world. (Cultures, 2011) After looking at these four cultural dimensions and the differences they show between China and America, a great deal of understanding may be acquired in why these countries work in the way they do. The next part of this essay will apply this understand in a Tourism and Hospitality context: it will provide recommendations for the Industry in America on how it could welcome and deal with Chinese guests. As well have already seen, the Chinese are loyal, hardworking people who give great importance to status, relationships, and the future. In order to give them a satisfying and pleasurable experience in the USA, American hotel and tourism managers must reciprocate these values. Because China is not, per se, a religiously founded country, there are not many strict dietary restrictions or other practices that the Chinese people follow. This makes it easier for the American hosts to welcome their guests, as the only alterations they really need to make is that in their behavior and attitude in order to fit with the personal value system of the Chinese. During their stay at a hotel, Chinese guests must be treated in the same way that they would treat guests in their country. They should be welcomed graciously, and perhaps given a small gift as a token of appreciation for their arrival and as a gesture that implies the beginning of a beautiful relationship. Too much eye contact should be avoided as the Chinese may misconstrue this as being rude. What’s more, Chinese guests should always be addressed by their title, and although friendliness is appreciated, an overly boisterous or excited manner may be considered as not being genuine. To make their stay more comfortable, Chinese guests should be given their privacy in room that have all the amenities required, but they should have the knowledge that they are always being accommodated and that if they need anything, it would be at their doorstep in a moment’s time. For families, there should be a range of activities so that the guests know that their hosts, too, understand the importance of family and relationships. On departure, the guests should be given personal attention by hotel staff members and should be asked about their trip and their stay in the hotel. They should be aware that they will be welcomed back at any point of time with the same hospitality and that in staying with the American hotel, not only has a business dealing been made but a long lasting relationship has been established. It is important that the guests feel like their stay has been a worthwhile investment of their money and time. For the tourism industry to be more adaptable to Chinese guests, there are numerous things they could do. As with the hotel industry, they must approach the guests in a respectful manner and be able to make them feel comfortable, content and confident in the investment of their money and time. Due to the collectivist nature of the Chinese people and because their Confucian values urge them to seek constant knowledge and education, informational group activities would be perfect for Chinese guests. For example, if in New York, a group tour that takes the tourists to all the important landmarks and locations, such as the Statue of Liberty, whilst providing an interesting and educational background will be very pleasing for the guests. As will events that provide an opportunity for Chinese tourists to meet with others, communicate and enjoy what may be the start of a great relationship. Such events may be organized dinners, cruise trips, exhibitions and so on. There should also be a large range of family activities, such as trips to theme parks. As long as the Chinese are given an entertaining and informational environment to enjoy their trip, they should be very satisfied and looking forward to come back for more. In conclusion, the work and findings of Geert Hofstede and Fons Trompenaars has given us a thoroughly insightful look into the vastly different cultures of China and America: in both a social context and in a business context. It is incredible and inspiring to see how much this information can help individuals and professionals to act and interact with people from other societies, and how it can be applied in a range of different areas, such as in the Tourism and Hospitality Industry. Truly, such information provides us with an â€Å"edge of understanding† (itim International, n. ) by which only more and more successful cross-cultural interactions can be expected in the future. REFERENCES: Bing, J. W. (2004, February). 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