Internal and External Analysis of Apple Inc. Essays - Steve Jobs

Internal and External Analysis of Apple Inc. Essays - Steve Jobs Internal and External Analysis of Apple Inc. Introduction Apple Inc., is a multinational company that is known for its expertise in consumer electronics industry. Over the years, Apple has immensely grown to provide its customers with personal computers, cell phones, and computer software. Ever since Apple Inc., was established, it has operated in many different industries. From Personal Computing to Desktop publishing industry and to current consumer electronics industry, Apple has established itself has one of the most diversified companies. "Apple's 15 product lines were slashed to just four categories - desktop and portable Macintoshes, for consumers and professionals" (pg. 3). As a result, the attractiveness of the overall industry will be determined by industry analysis, generic strategy and internal analysis. Industry Analysis Threat of New Entrants Although in the past, there were many competitors (such as IBM and Dell) in the industry, the threat of new entrant was possibly medium to low. This is because, in compa rison to other industries, the electronic indus try required extremely hig h capital investments mostly to support R . Over the years, companies like Apple has improved its supp ly chain, which has led to difficulty for new entrants to compete in the market . Bargaining Power of Suppliers According to the past market conditions of electronics industry, the bargai ning power of suppliers was low . Suppliers of electronic industry are once that supply components for phones, and Intel's chips for Apple laptops. As most of the electronics consist of similar hardware, this enables switching cost to be low; as a result bargaining power of suppliers is low as well. As the case specifies "Apple uses vertical integration where as other suppliers uses open system" (p. 2). This implies that in Apple could use its other long term contracts to produce needed components. Bargaining Power of Buyers Based on the electronics industry, it can be said that bargaining power of buyers is high. This is because, the price of the products had been extremely sensitive due to which buyers would switch to a different company with similar product. The buyers in this industries are retailers such as Wal-Mart, and Best Buy. For a company like Apple (who has maintained consistency in their pricing of each product), mid income consumers would not want to spend extra on something that is already being offered by another company with lower price. Threat of Substitutes Threat of substitutes in the e lectronic industry is medium to low. As technology started to advance, customers feel more attracted towards new inventions of technology. There are very few who woul d prefer books, and newspapers. In other words, people would rather prefer to use their phones to read a book rather than buying an actual book from the book store. When Apple was established there were certain items already available in the market (such as VCR's, DVD's, and regular telephones). As threat of substitutes starts to increase (which is the present situation), Apple's profit starts to decrease Rivalry among Competitors The intensity of rivalry among competitors is extremely high in the consumer electronics industry. Major competition comes from companies like Apple, IBM, Dell, HP and Samsung. Not only that "Online music stores such as Amazon.com, Napster, and Walmart.com offered individual song downloads at competitive or discounted prices to iTunes. Most competitors offered songs to play on various devices including iPod" (p.9). As competitors were coming up with identical products at lower cost, demands for iPods was decreasing. As a result, Apple did not have a competitive advantage anymore. Generic Strategy Over the past years, Apple Inc., has focused on many different generic strategies. These include: premium-price differentiation strategy by Gilbert Amelio, and low cost strategy of John Sculley. Overall, Apple Inc. followed a focused differentiation strategy. "Focused differentiation strategies are keyed to offering carefully designed products or services to appeal to the unique preferences and needs of a narrow well-defined group of buyers" ( Mortez, Ak bari, Hossein-Nejad, p. 108). Apple Inc., is a company that does not sell its products for lower price that its competitors. As a result, its innovative products have been targeted towards customers with high earnings. When Apple launched iPod, many

Frankenstein Coursework Help

Frankenstein Coursework Help Frankenstein Coursework Help Frankenstein is a well-known novel which requires careful reading and critical analysis. Writing a Frankenstein coursework you need to pay attention to avoid creating a summary of the novel instead of critical analysis. If you struggle with Frankenstein coursework writing or do not have enough time to devote to coursework writing, you should not hesitate to order professional Frankenstein coursework help on our site. Custom written Frankenstein coursework is original, interesting to read, meets academic requirements, and is never posted online as a free sample! Please read the following excerpt of Frankenstein coursework written by one of our professional coursework writers! Frankenstein Coursework Excerpt In the story Frankenstein, the main genre is gothic horror. Horror is usually recognized on fear, terror, fright and suffering. Its mainstay is to frighten readers and make them realize terror is occurring so, therefore, contains frightening scenes. One of the distinctive features of many horror stories is the setting and nature and in Frankenstein the depressing glacial fields of the Alps and the dreary mist of the Arctic shows remoteness of the two central characters; Victor and his creation. Another part of horror in Frankenstein is the element of the dark side of human nature, when a monstrous creation is unleashed which leads to the idea of horror because monsters are usually associated with committing acts of killing on innocent people. The structure of Frankenstein can be slightly complicated because it has several narrators and they both share their own views on the events which have occurred. The novel begins in typical novel fashion by starting the story in the middle of things and then launch into a series of flashbacks which make it difficult to foretell coming events. Captain Robert Walton writes to his sister Margaret Saville about his adventures, which the reader looks in upon in a distinctive epistolary novel style. Then Victor recounts his story to Walton, who takes notes and sends them to his sister. Then the monster tells Victor about his or its quest, which Victor recounts to Walton. Starting with Walton when he writes to his sister, his letters are like a diary and become somewhat quite personal. When he begins writing his letters, his point of view begins neutral. But after he meets Frankenstein he becomes prejudiced and begins to understand Frankenstein's feelings and sympathises towards him. But when he meets the monster, Walton's views change again because he sympathises with the monster. The novel is then told from Frankenstein's point of view until the closing pages when we hear from the monster. This will affect the reader as they would automatically feel the most sympathy for whoever tells the story, as the speaker would naturally tell things from their perspective, and they would open up about their feelings. Also, our expert writers have prepared the post onhow to make a reaction paper:. Related posts: Jane Eyre Essay Example of Argumentative Essay Cause Effect Papers Term Paper Editing Critical Essay Editing

Zidane's Last Red Card Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Zidane's Last Red Card - Case Study Example The paper also explores the advantages and disadvantages of an institution ignoring its regulations. It does not make sense for FIFA to have an offensive behavior regulation that they effectively ignore. This is because rules and regulations are sets of guidelines that regulate conducts in an organization or association. It is one of the sources of law, applicable under trade and customs, if the regulations are consistent with written law and natural justice. The rules therefore serve the same purpose as the law, at least within the organization’s jurisdiction. FIFA’s regulations are therefore aimed at achieving such objectives as maintaining order in football matches, molding behavior, and ensuring that its subjects are treated equally. A move to compromise these purposes of the regulations therefore renders them meaningless and their creation unnecessary (Jennings, 2010, p. 6, 7). One of the advantages of an organization having regulations that it can ignore is the ability to preserve its ‘self-interest’. The regulations, especially in cases of internal conflicts where the parties submit to resolutions, can solve a dispute without interference from legal systems. Such rules therefore facilitate reconciliatory processes for organization’s stability. The ability to ignore a regulation also helps an organization to protect its image before the public. This is because even though the regulation may have good intentions, the public may not understand its implementation. Another advantage of the avoidable regulations is that their compromise leads to solutions that cannot be achieved through strict implementation of rules. Such types of problems include disputes with political significance (Bercovitch, Dean and Jackson, 2009, p. 57). One of the disadvantages of having rules that can be ignored is that it can highly compromise justice. This is because it leads to partiality. Parties to the organization may also lose confidence in the

A Bear Workshop Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

A Bear Workshop - Essay Example The management structure has knowledgeable and dedicated staff that provide ample knowledge exchanges in an interactive environment with customers. This is a fundamental strength of a business to be able to provide better customer relationship management and provide them with exactly what customers are looking for. Clearly, the owner understands the importance of cost monitoring when it comes to purchasing and production and will likely continue these trends over the next five to ten years. Having a strategic-focused management system is the key to ensuring a proper expansion. If the business conducts regular market research using focus groups or interviews with target customers, it will likely find more success in identifying social and buying trends early in order to gain market share in the toy market. Further, growth in Internet usage in developing countries such as India, China and Pakistan will provide even more customers in an environment that is convenient. Through agreements with different distribution agencies, Build A Bear will probably be able to find low-cost distribution to ensure that many international customers are able to buy the products and have them delivered in a timely fashion. If the business remains focused on product rather than pricing, higher resource (financial) consumers will likely recognize the brand and have a loyalty that can be built up over the next five years.

Food Security Bill Essay Example for Free

Food Security Bill Essay The bill was truncated from the NAC version at the first stage when the government finalized it and then the parliamentary standing committee went along similar lines and recommended further paring down of the benefits. Sources said concerns were raised by the Congress leadership about reducing existing benefits under the Antodaya Anna Yojana to the 2. 5 crore poorest families as well as the recommendation of the standing committee to remove the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) from the mandate of the bill, which was advised by the women and child development ministry. Sources said the party leadership was unhappy with the move to reduce existing entitlements under UPAs flagship scheme instead of providing larger benefits. The government is likely to revise the bill keeping these views in mind and look at a much higher coverage in at least the 250 poorest districts of the country. The standing committee had recommended providing 5 kg of rations per person to 75% of rural population and 50% of urban India a formula the government was happy with till the party leadership intervened. The standing committee had recommended doing away with two categories of beneficiaries with differential benefits a move the government had contemplated anyway after having sent the bill to Parliament. But curtailing the total number of beneficiaries and reducing the benefits to the poorest has not found acceptance with the party leadership, sources said. The government could now consider restoring the monthly allocation to the poorest back to 35 kg of rations per family. Under an apex court order, the poorest and most disadvantaged are provided 35 kg rations at present. With the party keen to see the bill in Parliament during the budget session, a revised version could see the ICDS scheme coming back under the purview of the bill as a legally guaranteed right along with other food delivery mechanisms such as community kitchens. The UPA has already been caught on the back foot with opposition-ruled states providing cheaper rations to greater numbers under their own schemes following the lead of Chhattisgarh. The delay in pushing the bill through, coupled with the constant and often publicly expressed differences between different arms of the government and the UPA on the shape of the legislation have taken the sheen off UPA-2s big ticket scheme Food Security Bill is affordable The subsidies meant for the poor are always under attack, while the rest are able to retain their privileges. The additional allocation in grain and money terms will neither distort the grain market nor place a burden on the fisc. Many recent commentators have portrayed the National Food Security Bill (NFSB) as an â€Å"unbearable burden† on the exchequer. The facts, however, do no substantiate the claim. The NFSB has been trashed from time to time in the English dailies. For instance, Business Line (March 21, 2013) published an article titled â€Å"Food Security Bill will torpedo Budget†. Another national daily claims that the Bill has a â€Å"fundamental flaw† that places â€Å"an unbearable burden† and â€Å"distorts agriculture† (Indian Express, March 19, 2013). Quite often, the claims are partly due to a misconception that the government is making new financial and grain commitments under the NFSB. In fact, the NFSB does little more than turning into legal entitlements pre-existing food security schemes such as the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Scheme, Mid-Day Meal (MDM) Scheme, Public Distribution System (PDS) and maternity entitlements. Some commentators have said that it is precisely the legal commitment that will lead to problems in the future — for example, the fear of the emergence of a government monopoly in the grain market. This fear is not borne out by the facts. Under the PDS, ICDS and MDM, the government currently allocates about 58 million tonnes of grain. To meet this commitment, the government currently procures about 30 per cent of grain. The NFSB commits 62 million tonnes, i. e. , an additional 4 million tonnes. The Budget of 2013-14 allocates Rs. 31,000 crore for two childrens food schemes — school meals and the ICDS which reaches children under six. The Budget allocation for the food subsidy in 2013-14 is Rs 90,000 crore. According to our estimates, the food subsidy will increase from Rs 80,000 crore (in 2012-13) to Rs 1,11,221 crore, under the NFSB. Thus, the NFSB implies an increase of just over Rs 30,000 crores in financial terms and 4 million tonnes in real (grain) terms. Can India afford this? Speaking at a panel discussion at IIT Delhi in February, Deputy Chairperson of the Planning Commission, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, said â€Å"it would be dishonest† to say that we cannot afford the Food Bill, and that the subsidies that we need to target are those enjoyed by the middle classes (e. g. , fuel). Speaking at the same discussion, Amartya Sen made a pertinent point — that the reason why it is more difficult to reduce subsidies enjoyed by the middle classes (fuels such as LPG, petrol and diesel) is that the beneficiaries of those are more vocal than the rural poor or children under six who benefit from the food subsidies. This point is well illustrated by the events following last years Budget. The Budget 2012-13 announced a 1 per cent excise duty on unbranded jewellery and doubled custom duty on gold to 4 per cent. Gold is the countrys second biggest import, after crude oil. This burden on the current account deficit was an important reason for doubling the customs duty. Following this, the All India Gems and Jewellery Trade Federation and others initiated a strike which went on for 21 days. They argued that the industry, including the â€Å"large† number of people it employs, and buyers of gold, would suffer. A massive media campaign was launched, following which the Finance Minister withdrew the excise duty. According to the revenue foregone statement presented along with the Budget 2013-14, the revenue foregone from the gold and diamond industry for the previous financial year was Rs. 5,000 crore. Such tax breaks are often justified on the grounds of the employment potential of the gems and jewellery industry. According to Invest India, a website of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, â€Å"The sector provides employment to around 1. 8 million people. In the next five years, the sector is expected to create additional employment for around 1. 1 million people. † According to the National Sample Survey Organisation, 2009-10, the size of the Indian workforce is between 430-471 million persons. If the gems and jewellery industry employs 3 million people as per the Ministrys target, this would be 0. per cent of the workforce. An industry that employs less than one per cent of the Indian workforce is currently enjoying tax benefits amounting to Rs 65,000 crore (nearly 20 per cent of all revenue foregone). The Food Bill will benefit 67 per cent of the population at an additional cost of Rs 30,000 crore, yet it is said that it will â€Å"torpedo† the Budget. If anything, the NFSB does not go far enough. The NFSB tabled in Parliament in December 2011 included special provisions for the destitute and other vulnerable groups (e. g. , community kitchens and social security pensions). These have been discarded in the version cleared by Cabinet on March 19, 2013. In many rural areas, the Block is already too far to go to complain, yet for violations of rights under the NFSB, grievance redressal only begins at the District level. Viewed in this comparative perspective (for example, it is approximately 1 per cent of the GDP), few can question the affordability or desirability of the NFSB. In absolute terms it is not a small amount. One might argue whether such expenditure is worth it, given the â€Å"fact† that the programmes in its ambit, for example, the PDS, are â€Å"dysfunctional† (Indian Express, March 19, 2013). However, recent data from the National Sample Survey of 2004-05 and 2009-10 suggest that while the functioning of the PDS is far from perfect, we do need to update our â€Å"facts†. In joint research with Jean Dreze, we show that the implicit subsidy from the PDS eliminates 18 per cent (14 per cent) of the â€Å"poverty gap† — or the difference between the poverty line level of income and the median income (or monthly per capita consumption expenditure) of poor households — among poor rural (urban) households. Again, there are marked inter-State contrasts — in Tamil Nadu the corresponding figure is 60 per cent and in Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh it is nearly 40 per cent. The real question then is not whether India can afford to have a right to food but as the Food Minister said in a recent interview, â€Å"Can we afford not to? † Food as a right In its latest form, the National Food Security Bill, 2013 promises to address the extreme irony of an ambitious nation holding mountains of food in storage, while masses of its people are undernourished or even starving. The right to food is finally on the threshold of being legislated. Every step taken to widen the coverage of food security schemes is an advance. Yet, the empirical truth is that incremental measures at targeting the needy are a poor substitute for a cohesive, rights-based universal system of food entitlements. There are, no doubt, many positives to the new legislation, such as coverage of up to 75 per cent of eligible priority households in rural areas, the importance given to women as the head of the household for issue of ration cards, inclusion of pregnant and lactating women for free meals (some in government wanted to take away this entitlement from women ho bear more than two children but the idea was sensibly dropped), and setting up of State Food Commissions to investigate violations of entitlements. Under the proposed law, it will be up to the States to frame criteria and choose the priority households for food entitlements, an exercise that will inevitably be accompanied by the well-documented troubles associated with targeting any welfare scheme. Exclusion of any deserving household is unfair and divisive. It poses a challenge to States that wish to provide universal access, an issue that is bound to be felt acutely in urban areas attracting tens of thousands of migrant labourers. The Centre is unwilling to countenance a Universal Public Distribution System on the ground that too much money is involved. Even under the latest Bill, it is argued, the exchequer would have to bear a heavy expenditure of Rs. 1. 24 lakh crore. Yet, the government has not hesitated to build up expensive food stocks over the years, some of which is left to rot, mainly to pay the high support prices demanded by influential sections of the farm lobby. Moreover, the policy orientation is disproportionately favourable towards some sectors such as infrastructure, compared to food and health care. Evidently, the Food Bill can and should do a lot more, to become near-universal and win over sceptics such as Tamil Nadu, which has opposed it on the ground that it is inferior to the universal PDS in the State. Also noteworthy is the fact that the Chhattisgarh Food Security Act has done better than the Centre’s proposed law in some respects — by supplying subsidised pulses and covering 90 per cent of households, for example.

The Raw Power of A Streetcar Named Desire Essay -- Streetcar Named Des

The Raw Power of A Streetcar Named Desire      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Tennessee Williams's play A Streetcar Named Desire contains more within it's characters, situations, and story than appears on its surface. As in many of Williams's plays, there is much use of symbolism and interesting characters in order to draw in and involve the audience.   The plot of A Streetcar Named Desire alone does not captivate the audience.   It is Williams's brilliant and intriguing characters that make the reader truly understand the play's meaning.   He also presents a continuous flow of raw, realistic moods and events in the play which keeps the reader fascinated in the realistic fantasy Williams has created in A Streetcar Named Desire.   The symbolism, characters, mood, and events of this play collectively form a captivating, thought-provoking piece of literature.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   A Streetcar Named Desire produces a very strong reaction.   Even at the beginning of the play, the reader is confronted with extremely obvious symbolism in order to express the idea of the play.   Blanche states that she was told "to take a streetcar named Desire, and then to transfer to one called Cemeteries".   One can not simply read over this statement without assuming Williams is trying to say more than is written.   Later in the play, the reader realizes that statement most likely refers to Blanche's arriving at the place and situation she is now in because of her servitude to her own desires and urges.   What really makes A Streetcar Named Desire such an exceptional literary work is the development of interesting, involving characters.   As the play develops, the audience sees that Blanche is less proper and refined than she ... ...st into a reality which is not his own, yet somehow seems familiar. This realistic fantasy Williams creates with his brilliant use of symbolism, intriguing characters, and involving action in the play causes the reader to connect fully with the setting, characters, conflicts, and emotions within.    BIBLIOGRAPHY    Adler, Thomas P.   A Streetcar Named Desire: The Moth and the Lantern. Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1990    Kernan, Alvin B.   "Truth and Dramatic Mode in A Streetcar Named Desire, In Modern Critical Views: Tennessee Williams."   Ed. Harold Bloom.   New York: Chealsea House Publishers, 1987    Quirino, Leonard.   "The Cards Indicate a Voyage on A Streetcar Named Desire, In Modern Critical Interpretations: Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire."   Ed. Harold Bloom.   New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1988   

Computer and Information System Essay

The single information technology system that holds the most potential for my organization is Electronic Health Records (EHR). The organization I am associated with is a small orthopedic surgery practice that houses five physicians. Each physician operates as an independent private corporation and maintains an individual chart for each patient. If a patient visits multiple physicians within the clinic, the patient will have multiple charts. The medical records area houses all the charts for all the physicians. An EHR system would reduce storage space, allow physicians to have better information access when treating patients already seen by other physicians within the clinic, and reduce costs in supplies for paper charts and medical records personnel. EHR systems are supposed to increase the quality of patient care and revitalize practices by saving the health care system by 77. 8 billion annually (Baron, 2005). Approximately 78% of physicians in the United States operate in practices with fewer than eight physicians (Baron, 2005). Therefore, overcoming and understanding the obstacles these small practices face will be essential in successful EHR systems. EHR systems work to help reduce repetitive processes such as prescription refills and documenting, real-time, conversations with patients for better continuity of care. The major barriers of EHR systems are initial costs, training, and long-term support. In all, an EHR system would allow physicians in our small practice to communicate more clearly with patients on the telephone, transmit important information efficiently to other specialists, spend less time paging through charts for obscure lab values, and allow physician’s access to current health information without having to leave the room and interrupt a patient encounter. By far, an EHR system would have the single most impact in my organization.

Reliance Communications Essay

Reliance Communications is capable of delivering services covering entire gamut of information and communication value chain. Their products and services include infrastructure setting, applications and consultancy. Its corporate clientele includes 600 Indian, 250 multinational corporations and over 200 global carriers and owns and operates the world’s largest next generation, IP enabled connectivity infrastructure, comprising over 150,000 kilometres of fibre optic cable systems in India, Europe, Middle East and the Asia Pacific region. Our project is on gaining market share in the field of Postpaid Division & Data Services (GPRS & 3G) and the strategic decisions involved in it. The division that we will be working on is the Direct & DST-Postpaid division. We have Mr. Anil Das (Head-postpaid and 3G services for Rcom Odisha) mentoring us on this project. The initial idea is to explore the scope of this project from various angles and evaluate the decisions taken by RCom to achieve their desired market share. We found out that globalisation has made telecommunication an integral part of the infrastructure of the Indian economy. The telecom sector in India has developed as a result of this. The telecom sector experienced a rapid growth over the past decade on account of regulatory liberalisation, structural reforms and competition, making telecom one of the major catalysts in India’s growth story. Much of this growth can be attributed to the growth in mobile telephony (number of mobile subscribers grew from 10 million in 2002 to 392 million in 2009) and the growth in the service and IT and ITeS sector. Telecom has emerged as a key factor for economic and consumer growth. The contribution of the sector to GDP is growing (more than doubled). Telecom is one of the fastest-growing industries in India (on an average 8 million wireless subscribers are added every month)

The Influence of the Renaissance in Shakespeares Work

The Influence of the Renaissance in Shakespeares Work It’s very easy to think of Shakespeare as a unique genius with a singular perspective on the world around him. However, Shakespeare was very much a product of the radical cultural shifts that were occurring in Elizabethan England during his lifetime. When Shakespeare was working in the  theater, the Renaissance movement in the arts was peaking in England. The new openness and humanism are reflected in Shakespeare’s plays. The Renaissance in Shakespeares Time Broadly speaking, the Renaissance period is used to describe the era when Europeans moved away from the restrictive ideas of the Middle Ages. The ideology that dominated the Middle Ages was heavily focused on the absolute power of God and was enforced by the formidable Roman Catholic Church. From the 14th century onward, people started to break away from this idea. The artists and thinkers of the Renaissance did not necessarily reject the idea of God. In fact, Shakespeare himself may have been Catholic. The Renaissance cultural creators did, however, question humankind’s relationship to God. This questioning produced enormous upheaval in the accepted social hierarchy. And the new focus on humanity created new-found freedom for artists, writers, and philosophers to be inquisitive about the world around them. They often drew on the more human-centered classical writing and art of ancient Greece and Rome for inspiration. Shakespeare,  the Renaissance Man The Renaissance arrived in England rather late. Shakespeare was born toward  the end of the broader Europe-wide Renaissance period, just as it was peaking in England. He was one of the first playwrights to bring the Renaissance’s core values to the theater. Shakespeare embraced the Renaissance in the following ways: Shakespeare updated the simplistic, two-dimensional writing style of pre-Renaissance drama. He focused on creating human characters with psychological complexity. Hamlet is perhaps the most famous example of this.The upheaval in social hierarchy allowed Shakespeare to explore the complexity and humanity of every character, regardless of their social position. Even monarchs were portrayed as having human emotions and were capable of making terrible mistakes. Consider King Lear or Macbeth.Shakespeare utilized his knowledge of Greek and Roman classics when writing his plays. Before the Renaissance, these texts had been suppressed by the Catholic Church. Religion in Shakespeares Time Elizabethan England endured a different form of religious oppression than that which had dominated the Middle Ages. When she took the throne, Queen Elizabeth I forced conversions and drove practicing Catholics underground with her imposition of the Recusancy Acts. These laws required citizens to attend worship in Anglican churches. If discovered, Catholics faced stiff penalties or even death. Despite these laws, Shakespeare did not appear to be afraid to write about Catholicism nor to present Catholic characters in a favorable light. His inclusion of Catholicism in his works has led historians to hypothesize that the Bard was secretly Catholic. Catholic characters included Friar Francis ( Much Ado About Nothing),  Friar Laurence (Romeo and Juliet), and even  Hamlet. At the very least, Shakespeare’s writing indicates a thorough knowledge of Catholic rituals. Regardless of what he may have been doing secretly, he maintained a public persona as an Anglican. He was baptized in and buried at  Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-upon-Avon, a Protestant church.

Definition of a Private University

Definition of a Private University A private university is  simply a university whose funding comes from tuition, investments, and private donors, not from taxpayers. That said, only a small handful of universities in the country are truly independent of governmental support, for many higher education programs such as Pell Grants are supported by the government, and universities tend to get significant tax breaks because of their non-profit status. On the flip side, many public universities receive only a small percentage of their operating budgets from state tax payer dollars, but public universities, unlike private institutions, are administered by public officials and can sometimes fall victim to the politics behind state budgets. Examples of Private Universities Many of the countrys most prestigious and selective institutions are private universities including all of the Ivy League schools (such as  Harvard University  and Princeton University), Stanford University,  Emory University, Northwestern University, University of Chicago, and Vanderbilt University. Because of separation of church and state laws, all universities with a distinct religious affiliation are private including  University of Notre Dame, Southern Methodist University, and Brigham Young University. Features of a Private University A private university has several features that distinguish it from a liberal arts college or community college: Undergraduate and graduate student focus:  Unlike liberal arts colleges, universities often have significant masters and doctoral programs. MIT, for example, has nearly 3,000 more graduate students than undergraduate students.Graduate degrees:  Most degrees awarded from a liberal arts college are four-year bachelors degrees; at a private university, advanced degrees such as an M.A., M.F.A., M.B.A., J.D., Ph.D., and M.D. are also common.Medium size:  No private universities are as large as some of the huge public universities, but they tend to be larger than liberal arts colleges. Total undergraduate enrollments between 5,000 and 15,000 are typical although there are certainly some that are smaller and some that are larger. Some private (as well as public) universities have significant online programs, but in this article well consider only the residential student population.Broad academic offerings:  Universities are typically made up of several colleges, and students can oft en choose courses in the liberal arts and sciences or more specialized fields such as engineering, business, health, and fine arts. Youll often see a school called a comprehensive university because it covers a full spectrum of academic areas. Faculty focus on research:  At big-name private universities, professors are often evaluated for their research and publishing first, and teaching second. At most liberal arts colleges, teaching has the top priority. That said, a majority of private universities actually do value teaching over research, but these schools rarely have the name recognition of the research powerhouses. Faculty members at regional public universities tend to have much higher teaching loads than the faculty at prestigious flagship state campuses.Residential:  The majority of students at private universities live at college and attend full time. In general, youll find far more commuter students and part-time students at public universities and community colleges.Name recognition: The most prestigious and well-known schools in the world are largely private universities. Every member of the Ivy League is a private university, as are Stanford, Duke, Georgetown,  Johns Hopkins  and MIT. Are Private Universities More Expensive than Public Universities? At first glance, yes, private universities typically have a higher sticker price than public universities. This is not always true. For example, out-of-state tuition for the University of California system is higher than many private universities. However, the top 50 most expensive institutions in the country are all private. That said, sticker price and what students actually pay are two very different things. If you come from a family that earns $50,000 a year, for example, Harvard University (one of the most expensive universities in the country) will be free for you. Yes, Harvard will actually cost you less money than your local community college. This is because the countrys most expensive and elite universities are also the ones that have the largest endowments and the best financial aid resources. Harvard pays all costs for students from families with modest income. So if you qualify for financial aid, you should definitely not favor public universities over private ones based solely on price. You may very well find that with financial aid the private institution is competitive with if not cheaper than the public institution. If you are from a high income family and wont qualify for financial aid, the equation will be quite different. Public universities are likely to cost you less. Merit aid, of course, can change the equation. The very best private universities (such as Stanford, MIT, and the Ivies) do not offer merit aid. Aid is based entirely on need. Beyond these few top schools, however, strong students will find a range of opportunities for winning substantial merit-based scholarships from both private and public universities. Finally, when calculating the cost of a university, you should also look at the graduation rate. The countrys better private universities do a better job graduating students in four years than the majority of public universities. This is largely because strong private universities have more financial resources for staffing required courses and providing quality one-on-one academic advising. A Final Word About Private Universities As you work to create your college wish list, dont rule out private universities because you think they will be too expensive. Instead, search for schools that are a good match for your educational, professional, and personal goals. Be sure to visit small colleges, public universities, and private universities so that you get a feel for the pros and cons of each.

Management- Strategies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Management- Strategies - Essay Example The growth of the specialty discount industry is attributed to the wide selection of merchandise that the stores carried and their everyday low pricing strategy. Full line chains perceived this segment as â€Å"category killers† since their merchandise line-up could not offer the same amount of shelf space and square footage to any one product category. Research shows that consumers are likely to find what they are looking for in specialty stores than they would in full line discount stores. Buying preferences and buying patterns of consumers also change more often (Gamble, p.957). The full-line discount segment is also growing faster than the U.S. economy. The entire retail discount industry was both rapidly going into consolidation through mergers and acquisitions, liquidation, and bankruptcy. Rivalry in this sector revolves around store location, pricing, and promotion. The advent of consolidation will make it easier for Wal-Mart to merge with or acquire smaller retail stores in the U.S and abroad. Considering that Wal-Mart is one of the leading stores in the industry, they have the bargaining power over their suppliers which in effect would give them pricing advantages over other retailers. If a Wal-Mart moves into a community, chances are the other retailers in that community, especially if they are privately owned are going to lose money and may even be forced to close down. SinceWal-Mart is the largest retailer in the United States and number 1 on the Fortune 500 list, they have the ability to lower their prices and therefore can force other retailers out of business because they can not match Wal-Marts low prices (Pereira et al, 2002). Business level strategies describes how firms outperform each other and enjoy such competitive advantage over time. Michael Porter identifies three generic strategies: cost leadership,differentiation, and focus (Dess & Lumpkin, 2002). From the 1940s to the 1970s, the cola industry was dominated by