Which character do you believe has changed the most, in Silas :: Free Essay Writer

Which character do you believe has changed the most, in Silas Marner, giving reasons why? Change can be natural or provoked manually, it is unavoidable, it is inevitable, it is imperative and it can be both welcome and greeted with apprehension. The Concise Oxford Dictionary says change is to, ‘Make or become different’, and the Oxford Thesaurus offers these alternatives, ‘adapt, adjust, alter, amend, convert, modify and transform’. Change and its effects is the underlying theme of Silas Marner. The novel is a fable because it has a strong moral message, which is change, and based on one fictitious individual and how they should and should not cope with both positive and negative change. It is a story ultimately about redemption within oneself due to catastrophic changes to a lifestyle. In this particular case, the life in question is that of Silas Marner’s. As the title suggests, the main character is Marner and it was customary of 19th century writers to name their novel on the main character and from there after, follow the change and development of that character within their environment. This would infer that Marner is the main character, and that he is to undertake the most change throughout the course of the story. A wise assumption perhaps, but under closer observation there may be more to consider than first anticipated. Other characters from whom we can extract good examples of various types of change from are Aaron Winthrop, Nancy Lammeter, and Eppie. Yet, the only character to experience change radical enough to rival Marner’s is Godfrey Cass. However, before I can describe in detail what changes these two characters have experienced we need to know what they were like before any change, at the beginning of the story. Obviously, in order to change, the subject needs to change from something to something else; and to gauge how much change has taken place, there needs to be a comparison between the past and present. So, what are the two characters like when we first meet them? The first mention of Marner is at the beginning of the second paragraph. At this time, Marner is in Raveloe having already left Lantern Yard: ‘In the early years of this century such a linen-weaver, named Silas Marner, worked at his vocation in a stone cottage that stood among the nutty hedgerows near the village of Raveloe, and not far from the edge of a deserted stone pit.’ This does not tell us much about Marner’s character but a change in character is not the only thing to attract interest. The text gives us an insight into his appearance by saying, ‘such a linen weaver,’. To me this is implying Marner is quite a stereotypical linen-weaver,

Martin Johnson Heade Essay

Martin Johnson Heade (originally Heed), the eldest son in a large family of Joseph Howell Heed was born on 11th August, 1819 in Lumberville, a small rural location near Doylestown in Bucks country of Pennsylvania (Hollis Taggart Galleries, Para. 1). His father owned a farm and a lumber mill. His life is said to have been influenced by the two cousins, Thomas Hicks and Edward Hicks who probably taught him his first art lessons locally. His passion for art grew considerably in the 1840s, and it is around this time that he took a study tour to England and stayed in Rome Italy for two years. By the year 1843, he was residing in New York and later moved to Brooklyn, where he changed his name to Heade, and later on moved to Philadelphia (Hollis Taggart Galleries, Para. 2). In 1848, he took his second academic European tour to return later in 1850. The second trip did not leave him settled either, as he continued to travel while settling down briefly in the towns of St. Louis, New Haven and Providence. It was in this decade that he deeply studied and explored the effects of light on the environment, a subject that was equally dear to American Luminists Sanford Gifford, John Kensett C as well as Fitz Lane Hugh. Consequently he fully got into landscape painting (Hollis Taggart Galleries, Para. 2). In 1859, he rented a studio in the famous tenth street studio building in New York and became a full time painter (Lurie and Mappen, Pp. 355. ) It is in relation to this that he is remembered for his flora, fauna and landscape paintings that do not only have a rich effect of color and light but could also portray some poetic sentiments. Its while operating from the same studio that he met Fredric Edwin Church from the Hudson River school who was later to become his close friend and associate. This period is seen as the turning point in his life as it signaled the onset of his unique lifestyle and a lasting interest in landscape and paintings. In 1863, he interpreted the chaste Latin American coastal landscape in a unique manner and later toured Rio de Janeiro in Brazil in the same year (Hollis Taggart Galleries Para 3). The goal of the tour was to illustrate a complete different version of South American Hummingbirds. He was so enthusiastic about the Hummingbirds that he hoped to prepare an outstanding and an elegant album about these creatures in Britain. Though he hoped to have this album published in Britain, it was never to happen. Hummingbirds however continued to be a dear subject to him as evidenced by the paintings that he did in the rest of life. He continued making trips to the Latin America notably in Nicaragua, Colombia, Jamaica and Panama. In the course of those visits, he studied the local flora and fauna, painting both large and small landscapes of hummingbirds and orchids, works that saw him get recognition at the gallery exhibition in New York and Boston. At the age of sixty four in 1883, Heade got married and moved to St Augustine in Florida. This is where he was to spend the rest of his life while he continued to exhibit his paintings in northern towns such as Boston and Springfield Massachusetts. He was almost forgotten in the New York City but was later rediscovered during the revival of the Hudson River painting school and has from then on been accorded the respect and major status that he commanded out of his outstanding work. In Florida, an oil tycoon and hotel magnate Henry Morris Flagger invited Heade to set up another studio, which was to be last studio, in a building behind Ponce De Leon, a hotel that was owed by Flagger in St Augustine. In his two decades stay at St Augustine prior to his death on September 4 1904, he continued to paint while fascinated by the flora and fauna located in Florida. His works were mainly Cherokee roses, orchids and magnolias (Hollis Taggart Galleries, Para. 4). The works could often depicted the same flower over and over again but in different blooming states thus bringing out the hidden beauty of the environment that is not obvious to many. During his stay in St Augustine Florida and prior to his death, Heade made more than one hundred and fifty pieces of work . Most of this work focused on the exuberant nature and landscape, flowers, sceneries and fruits of the American south , topics that were dear to him also. It is against this background that he is remembered, having not only taken a lot if interest in a rare subject but also having pursued it with vigor, passion and up to the old age. He did what he liked most and did it best. The outstanding feature of any artistic work done by Heade is their capture of their botanic and scientific accuracy. They note every line on the leaf, every mark on the facet, fruit or blossom. The figures below are example of the artistic work done by the 19th century artist and depict the mystery surrounding him and his interest in the natural world. Though the work was done more than a century ago, the beauty and elegance has surpassed the passage time. Fig. 1 Source: http://www. martin-johnson-heade. org/ Although little is documented in writing about Martin Johnson Heade as he left no identifiable body of writing, his contribution to the field of art and painting is immense. Such is evidenced by the Martin Johnson Heade, a function organized and premiering at the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) in Boson from the 29th day of September 1999 through the 17th of January 2000 which shed light on Martin Johnson Heade as one of the most original and all time artists in the history of mankind (Traditional Fine Art Online Inc, Para. 1). MFA owns an outstanding collection of work done by Heade including about 30 paintings, numerous drawings and other materials such as sketches and sketch books that he used. Although he was practically unknown during his own days, Heade is today also recognized in America as a great romantic painter and uniquely as a master landscape painter as far as floral still life is concerned. With a career that spanned over seventy years, a lot went to his name’s credit as noted during the function organized by MFA, having produced a varied body of work more than any other American artist of the 19th century. â€Å"Martin Johnson Heade is sure to give new insights into the work of one of the most intriguing of American artists, whose paintings have a strange and almost surreal intensity. Heade was one of America’s most productive and inventive artists, and his work reflects a wide range of talent and creativity. The exemplary work captures such a variety of moods, from his atmospheric effects, the glory of light, the sumptuous warmth of his orchids and tropical scenes, and the inexplicable sensuality of so many of his works in every genre. I hope recognition of his genius grows as more and more people are introduced to these superb paintings† (Traditional Fine Art Online Inc, Para. 6). During the popular Mesueum of Fine Arts event, Heade’s favourite hummingbirds painting was revisited. It was recounted that even if he never managed to secure the two hundred subscriptions needed to print his expensive book, which was never printed anyway, he produced four hummingbird chromolithographs for the book and could at the time be viewed in Boston as well as the sixteen paintings that were intended for the gems of Brazil from the Manoogian collection (Traditional Fine Art Online Inc, Para. 7). Earlier on in 1955, a historian and the then director of Macbeth gallery Robert Mclntyre had donated some work done by Heade to the Archives of American Art. Such included his sketch book, notebooks as well as letters and correspondeces between him and his close friend and associate Fredric Edwin Church between the year 1866 and 1899. In addition, they included a detailed notebook about hummingbirds that is handwritten as well as a circa dated in the range between 1853 to 1877. The scattred papers measure 0. 3 linear feet and date between 1853 and 1904. In the year 2007, the above were completely digitized to enhance archiving and are now avilable online as the Martin Johnson Heade Papers Online. They had first received a preliminary level of processing immediately after donation before being microfilmed in the same order that they were donated. The notebook and the sketchbook being the first ones to have been donated were therefore proffesionally conserved in the year 2004. Another area that is seen to have captured Heade’s passion is still lifes of southern flowers especially the magnolia blossoms laid on velevet. This was an advancement of an interest that he had since the 1860’s. In his earlier work in this genre, he had done flowers keenly arranged in an ormate flower vase and placed either on small or a large table, but covered with a mere cloth as opposed to velvet. At the time, he was the first and the only american artist who could create such an extensive body of work either in still lifes or in landscape and environment. In 2004, Heade was again recognized and honored with an outstanding stamp from the United States Postal Servive featuring a piece of his 1890 oil-on-canvas painting otherwise called Giant magnolias on a blue Velvet cloth. There were few artists who emulated head in the 20th century owing to the fact that he was unpopular at the time. However his work and art has been duplicated and forged by many especially in the 20th and 21st century. Such is attributed to the way his work has continued to turn up in garage sales as well as other unlikely places as opposed to works by other artists such as his friend Fredric Edward Church or ohn Kensett.. The popularity of his work can be attributed to the way he related with middle class buyers, his outstanding passion and effort put in as depicted in his various trips and his willigness to distribute his work all the country. Though unknown to him even at the end of his life, Martin johnson Heade was one of the most outstanding artist that ever existed on the face of earth. His passion in what was then an unpopular venture tells it all. His keen interpretation and approach towards the light and the environmet at large, his representation of the same on his paintings as well as his vigor and dedication to distribute his work, all leave no doubt that he did what he loved and in return loved what he did. His work does not only reveal what is unobvious to many but also unearths what is sincerely unknown and his spirit therefore continues to live moreso through his elegant work. Martin Johnson Heade is no doubt a legend whose life deserves recognition by and over generations while his work continues to demand respect over centuries. Works Cited: Hollis Taggart Galleries. â€Å"Hollis Taggart Gallaries. † 2007. 26 May 2010 . Mappen, Marc and Maxine N Lurie. Encyclopedia of New Jersey. New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 2004. Traditional Fine Art Online Inc. â€Å"Meseum of Fine Arts Boston. † 29 September 1999. www. mfa. org. 26 May 2010 .

Selective Reasoning

When the simulation was first assigned, I really had no idea what to expect. I assumed that my group members and I would be creating various written documents, which was clearly not the case. After selecting a group composed mainly of my close friends, we began to read through the various materials given to us to help us successfully complete the simulation. After watching a few of the videos from our customers and reading the given document about Minnesota Mircromotors, we began the simulation.Before the simulation started our group decided that we wanted to put customer atisfaction as our top priority, over market share and profit. After our first quarter, we began to panic because every satisfaction arrow was in the red. Immediately we made changes to everything we did before, restoring us back to equilibrium in the second quarter. From there on out, the simulation ran a lot more smoothly. In our first attempt at the simulation, we played around with the price of the product a lot , trying to keep it lower for Customer D, while also sometimes bringing it up to help increase profits.By the time I took the simulation individually, I realized that playing with the price was a waste of time. What I found best was to keep the price at $142 or $143, ignoring was Customer D wanted. I found over time the discounts to be much more important. We as well as l, always gave Customer D the largest discount, followed by Customer A, Customer B, and finally Customer C. This gave us the highest customer satisfaction while keeping the price relatively the same. For the distributor discount, we kept it relatively constant throughout, but increased it towards the end in order to keep the customers happy.For the sales force emphasis pie chart, we tried a lot of different methods to try nd get the best result. The first few times through the simulation we focused our attention on Customer A and C over B and D. This worked throughout fairly well, but wasn't ultimately the best solut ion. During my last individual attempt, I completely cut out customer D, while giving half of my attention to Customer. Roughly the remaining half was split between A and B, but it fluctuated a little throughout the simulation. This confguration of the pie chart ended with me getting a much larger score than previous attempts.During the group simulations, we put a lot of time into figuring out the best way to plit up spending on large/small customers, as well as retaining those same customers. We argued a lot about which should get more emphasis and which did not. I found that no matter what I did, that the small customers seemed to always be very satisfied. Because of this, what I found to work best was to keep both spending and retaining large customers Just slightly about the small. I kept this relatively simulation, and gave me the best score in the end.Sales force was another aspect of the simulation our group argued a lot about. Half the group thought the sales force was very important, while the other half hought it would be better to use that money in order to enhance our physical product. What I found that worked the best was to leave the sales force at 1 1, but if I really thought it was necessary to get rid of them then to Just do it for one quarter. I noticed that each time I dropped a few for a quarter that my total budget would sometimes increase by $100,000.For that reason alone I did this several times in order to have as large a budget as possible. During the group stages my budget only got up to $800,000, which we thought was very good. When I took the simulation individually I got the budget to increase to $1. million. I feel that managing my sales force correctly played a key role in obtaining more total budget. The first time we took the simulation, we tried getting rid of market research for the very last quarter. This ended terribly for us and caused us to lose a customer satisfaction star from every customer.From then on out I left mark et research at the required $50,000 Just to stay safe. One of the most important parts of the game I found was spending on IMC. After the first quarter as a group, when we did very poorly, we found that putting money into IMC was the best way to increase our profit nd market share. What I found that worked best regarding IMC, was to basically put all additional budget into it. Almost every quarter I did this, my profits would continue to rise. When I did the simulation individually, every time I gained more money in my total budget that money would address IMC first.IMC was definitely the key to the game for me. The single most argued part of the simulation for our group was the distribution of money in Power-To-Size Ratio, Manufacturing, and Thermal Resistance. At first it seemed that no matter what we did as a group some customer would complain about something. No customer complained more than Customer B complaining about wanting more thermal. Our group found ourselves always argu ing over how much money to put into which of the three categories. We never really did a great Job doing so because there was always an unhappy customer.What I found to be the best method was based on sure luck. I really wanted to take some relatively large risks in my last attempt at the individual simulation so I cut out Manufacturing Efficiency Improvement entirely. After two quarters of making a huge profit, I kept that up until the end. This gave me more money to put into important things like IMC, Power-To- Size Ratio, and Thermal Resistance. This kept the customers satisfied for the most part. After being the CEO of Minnesota Micromotors, I found that my ideals before I started the simulation were a lot different from how I feel now.Before the simulation started, our group really wanted to focus on customer satisfaction. For the most part we kept the customers very satisfied and satisfied. I now feel that market share and profit are what were the best ways of achieving a high score. With high profit and market share I was given more budget to work with. This trend kept accumulating ntil both profit and market share were higher than during the first couple simulations. The difference was that my customer satisfaction for my final simulation scores of 55, 60, and 60.My final score was a 75. Taking risks was something I wasn't too fond of at the beginning of the simulation. I thought being conservative was definitely the way to go. Because of this I was really conservative at the beginning with my group, as well as myself. I did the best when I took some risks. I am really glad I took a chance in my last simulation because then I really grasped the fact that sometimes you have to focus on the customers that help ou the most instead of focusing on pleasing all of the customers.Overall, I am really glad we got he opportunity to participate in the simulation. We really got a hands on experience of what we learned in class. I'm glad we got to apply our knowled ge, and I believe I learned a lot from doing the simulation. Although I did a lot better individually, it was very helpful to work in a group at first. We did fairly well compared to the rest of the class, and work as a team really helped with that. I would recommend this simulation to any marketing student because it is exactly how I picture the real world working.

Drug Prevention Program

Business Concept Proposal| Drug Prevention Program For| Executive summary This report is a business concept proposal that will help us develop a business plan for our organization which is NBK and that eventually will benefit them. The CSR project that we have chosen is a â€Å"Drug Prevention Program† that will benefit both NBK and society.In this proposal we first gave a small introduction about the company and what other CSRs the company is doing and then we included our aim and purpose of this project which is to increase the awareness level about this problem and provide some possible solutions and also to break all the cultural and society barriers about this specific issue. Then we went on our 4 SMART objectives which are what exactly we are aiming to achieve by the end of the project.In order for us to analysis the market for our proposal we did a Macro and Micro analysis that will help us determine what is our strength and weakness points and what could be the opportu nities and threats that we are facing. Another important part of this proposal is the financial projections. We did an estimated budget including profit and loss account and cash flow. After that we mentioned the requirements considered to ensure our project can be implemented like the logistical and operational requirements and how this may impact on the success of our project.In the viability part we showed our costs and benefit to the organization and its return on investment. Last but not least we talked about the competitive and economic viability on how the different activities that we do will mark us as a strong competitor in the business and on an economic perspective this project is going to benefit the economy as it will provide new jobs for Kuwaiti people and even give them the opportunity to work at NBK. Introduction National Bank of Kuwait is holding an event called â€Å"Drugs Prevention program†. This program is nonprofit event.This event is setup to spread awa reness and take an actual action to people on drugs; or people that doesn’t know about drugs. Many people don’t release how it’s dangerous, serious issue and can cause death. Drug prevention program is will be arrange to give advices and nonprofit rehabs that can be beneficial for drug addicts. Those rehabs will be very helpful to the addicts we as the drug prevention program organizers will provides brochures with full details and contact information. Why we chose NBK? NBK is the oldest bank in Kuwait and it has a very good reputation.Also it has been through a lot of CSR events in various sectors. The campaigns NBK did are Support of National Labor is our first priority, environmental initiative, health care initiative, sport initiative and contributions, education initiative, social care and philanthropic initiative, and conferences and seminars. The activities lies under the support of National Labor are NBK Academy, which intensive training for fresh gradua te that joined the bank and High flier’s leadership program; this program is to develop future leaders.As for environmental initiatives activities are hand-in-hand to preserve our beaches, this campaign launch to clean the beaches of Kuwait and Put your energy into saving energy NBK commenced its energy saving awareness campaign: ‘Put your energy into saving energy’, with staff and summer interns from NBK giving away more than 10,000 long life energy-saving light bulbs at the Avenues Mall. Health care initiative campaigns are breast cancer awareness give discounts for female employees to have a checkups and lectures and seminars for awareness and blood donation; many NBK employees donated blood for the blood hospital in Kuwait.Sport initiative and contribution NBK organized walkathon to encourage people to have a better health and lifestyle. Whereas for education initiative; NBK has hosted high schools and universities to learn day to day operations. Social and p hilanthropic initiative events done by NBK are Do Good Deeds in Ramdan this campaign offer free ftr banquets and Somalia famine relief campaign was launched to donate money. The last but not least the conferences and seminars which were set to increase awareness about currents issue in the society.One of the seminars was on the Global Financial Crisis and its Impact on the Region; which discussed the international outlook. Aim of the project The aim of this project â€Å"Drug Prevention Program† is to benefit the society and this fits in with NBK's mission statement, which is to serve the national needs as a priority. This program will be good for the society as it will increase the awareness level by defining the problem, which is drug usage and then it introduces society to the ways they or the people they know can prevent it and help them find possible solutions and lead them to the right places where they can find treatments.After we make sure people have enough knowledge to prevent this problem, we can expect drug usage to decrease, because they have been introduced to this problem and know all the negatives effects drugs have on the human body. There are a lot of controversial issues in our society and drugs is one of them, so it is very important to bring this topic up to the public and let them know that there is no shame for a drug abuser to admit that they have a problem and that they need to seek therapy.There are also a lot of cultural and traditional barriers that could affect the processing of this program, so our goal is to breach and break all these barriers and expose a problem that is considered as a â€Å"Taboo† topic. It is essential to make a step now, because as we all see, it is a growing issue and the accessibility for drugs is really easy nowadays, that is why our society needs to open up their minds to these kind of problems or else it will affect our future generations. Key ObjectivesSetting objectives is really importa nt for any organization or a project because it will let us know what we are trying to achieve and it will increase our chances of success. Our objectives will deliver major benefits to this program and the most important one that it will define the purpose of this project. We set for our project 4 different objectives for our program (Operational, Marketing, Financial and CSR) and they are all SMART objectives. * Operational Objective: Conduct a seminar every two week in a different location each time while having diverse guest speakers in each location. Marketing Objective: To increase awareness and publicity of the program through sponsored events and media notifications by 20% within the next 3 months. * Financial Objective: To increase customer base of the firm by 7% by the end of the program as a result of the program's positive effect on society. * CSR Objective: Increase community welfare by decreasing level of society's drug administration 15% by the end of program. Having these objectives is like a powerful tool that will help us succeed and it will keep our team motivated and seeks more accomplishments. Feasibility Analysis MacroBefore venturing into a new project, it is important to assess the external environment of a business and what possible impacts can affect the project. The threats and opportunities are external factors that guide a project towards taking certain decisions over others. Social factors: Kuwait, as compared to the rest of the world, receives a generally higher average income. This shows that the majority of the population in Kuwait is on the higher side of the income range. Within the lifestyle changes are the increasing popularity of social media and its different usages within societies.It is a powerful tool to reach as many people within society as possible. Social trends in Kuwait can affect the way people look at the Drug Prevention Program (DPP). Since drug abuse is a taboo topic, tackling it publicly would face some kind of hesitance by the public. Ensuring that local positive public figures as a part of our program would change the attitudes of people in Kuwait. It would garner more publicity and receive more entrants within the program. Technological factors: The increasing usage of technology in these times means more coverage for the DPP.People surfing the net, using social media and/or browsing through the various forms of technologies can find (or be exposed to) items and events that are happening around them and more information about each finding. In order to reach a bigger range of people, the program needs to be technologically updated in terms of websites, social media and pop-up ads if necessary. Technology must also be used to enhance the quality of whatever is being presented and also to improve the organization and efficiency of what is being accomplished.There is no firm, program or organization deemed to be successful without the usage of thorough technology. The marketplace for wh atever that needs to be launched today needs strict technological requirements that need to be met so that it can connect to a wider audience. Environmental factors: There are many factors that influence industries and the industries affected by environmental factors (weather and climate changes) include tourism, agriculture and economic industries. However, there should not be much stress on what environmental aspects can affect the DPP because its nature is not affected by climate changes.As long as there will not be any significant hazard, the environmental factors can be considered as off the radar for this type of DPP. Economic factors: An economy affects the way a society behave and it obviously alternate their decisions depending upon how high or low it is. If the local economy has resulted in higher interest rates, this will mean that firms will be less likely to invest in what might seem like an unpredictable gamble. This DPP needs sponsorship and is based on fund-raiser ev ents to continue the progress of the program, and not much participation will happen if the economic times are low.Another factor of economy is the strength of the currency. Kuwait has a very strong currency and its affects import/export activities, but that will not be an issue because the program does not need much of these activities. If inflation occurs, staff will need higher salaries and this will affect the planned budget. The salaries need to be raised so that the staff can be satisfied when being compared to other raised salaries within the fields and industries. Political factors: When political factors are mentioned, one automatically thinks of the laws and regulations that restrict an action or a project from fully taking shape.Since drug abuse is a taboo topic, there are bound to be limits to what can be done through the project. The law in Kuwait prohibits the live showcase of drugs and substances that can be abused. This can somewhat hinder our performance because it will limit what the group can show a live audience to enlighten them on what needs to be stayed away from. If guest speakers in the form of previous users need to be brought in to enlighten the participants, there will be restrictions due to the law not allowing prisoners to exit their cells and talk about experiences only once their period is over.This means that only ex-abusers who have finished their trials and prison time can enlighten the participants, the newly caught addicts will not be able to. It must be noted that the DPP will not focus much on current abusers who were caught abusing rather than those who willingly wanted to quit drug and substance abuse. Before continuing further with this project, legal framework needs to be conducted so that the project is validated and under the microscopic view of the government ensuring that no illegal limits are surpassed. Legal factors:Laws banning against age and race discrimination will not affect the DPP heavily as the participa tion has no kind of restriction whatsoever. A participant does not even have to be an abuser, or even in contact with one. Since the jobs offered to the staff will not be permanent, there will not be a minimum wage assigned to what the individual salary amount is. There is a law in Kuwait that states: any Kuwaiti national working in the private sector will receive a fixed amount each month as an addition to what a firm is handing over as a salary.This law will not be applied to the DPP because the vacant jobs offered are not permanent positions; it is only in the duration of the events that the assigned staff will be a part of the program. Permission needs to be granted from the governmental censors to give the program the green light to go ahead with the project. After permission has been granted, the banquet hall owners need to be aware of the purpose and activities of the DPP. Macro SWOT Analysis Strengths: * Controversial * Good Cause * Society’s Benefit Weaknesses: * No monetary ROI Costly * Taboo Opportunities: * Program Expansion * Rehab Formation * Brand Image Threats: * Public Decline * Influential Competition * Insufficient funding to continue This drug prevention program has strengths and weakness. The strengths are it controversial many people might disagree to expose the idea or issue; which is currently available and increasing radically. The good cause is that it spreading awareness and leading drug addicts to the right direction. This will benefit the society by having a better living and health.The weakness are that there aren’t monetary ROI; zero profit and it cost a lot there will be a loss in return because this campaign is setup to have better youth to have better society. Its taboo because people in the Arab region see it as shame and don’t attempt that it exists. There are many opportunities for the program; which are to expand the program and format a rehab and boost brand image. The threats are the public decline w hich is the society not accepting the idea. Influential competition is another threat which other companies or banks can launch a campaign similar to ours.The last threat is the insufficient funding; not having enough money or if NBK stops funding us. NBK's CSR programs are successful due to the reason that it encompasses as many fields as it can possibly be a positive addition to. The strengths are the variety of areas that NBK is participating in to achieve and maintain an improved society. It has a diverse selection of activities: social, educational, philanthropic, sports-related and more. NBK has built a positive reputation for itself as a pioneer in merging its daily activities along with CSR activities for the improvement of society.Currently, a weakness is that NBK is not a part of any project or program that supports the fight against drug and substance abuse. The DPP is the right step and opportunity to turn this weakness into strength. Another weakness for the CSR of NBK is that it does not necessarily include the entire society. Without this program, people into drug and substance abuse are sidelined and not given any help or guidance. The opportunities resulting from external factors are that NBK can further push its CSR boundaries and continue in pursuing other untapped fields that need to be brought to the general public's eye.NBK releases a CSR annual report that showcases their social responsibilities towards society. It lists what NBK has done the previous year in terms of initiatives and activities. This shows how the private sectors in Kuwait are competing to be the best CSR champions with the most good done to society. This benefits the society more than it benefits the firms competing to help and improve. An opportunity in the form of program continual rises due to the strong need for initiatives upping society's standards. The next phase of the project can be adopted by NBK's rival if the program proves to be a success.Drug and substance abuse is a taboo topic in Kuwait even today. Not wholeheartedly knowing what the general public's reaction is means that a threat is opposing the DPP. There are bound to be people who do not want to associate themselves with taboo topics such as drugs which mean that there will be some kind of a decline from a section of the public. It is vital to assess how the threats and weaknesses fare against the strengths and opportunities of this program. Financial Projections Cash flow| |   | Year 1| Year 2| Year 3| | | | | |   | Net profit| | | 105,050 | 105,050 | 105,050 |Depreciation| | | 105,050 | 105,050 | 105,050 | Office Rent| | | 2,100 | 2,100 | 2,100 | Media costs| | | 93,500 | 93,500 | 93,500 | Staff| | | 11,000 | 11,000 | 11,000 | Transportation| | | 200 | 200 | 200 | Cash profits| | | 0 | 0 | 0 | Increase in CA| | | n/a| n/a| n/a| Net cash from operating activities| | | 0 | 0 | 0 | Renovations| | | 0 | 0 | 0 | change in FA| | | (850,000)|   |   | Net cash after investing activities| | | (850,000)| 0 | 0 | Capital induction| | | 105,050 | 0 | 0 | change in advance rentals| | | 6,300 | (417,600)| (104,400)| Net increase in cash| | | (738,650)| (417,600)| (104,400)| | | | | |   |Opening cash balance| | | 0 | (738,650)| (1,156,250)| Closing cash balance| | | (738,650)| (1,156,250)| (1,260,650)| | | | | | | | | | (745,350)| (1,281,750)| (1,831,890)| | | | | | | Net Profit| |   | 26,933 | 479,733 | 493,473 | Inv Capital|   | | 0| 0| 0| ROI|   | | #DIV/0! | #DIV/0! | #DIV/0! | | | | | | | Net cashflow from operations| | | 26,933 | 479,733 | 493,473 |   | | | | | | | | | | | | Requirements In order for the project to be implemented, there are a few requirements that need to be taken in to consideration. To further promote this program, it has been decided that seminars will be held at different schools and universities.To proceed with this we will need knowledgeable staff or speakers, and/or former addicts to speak at these seminars. Another requ irement would be setting up booths and banners in Avenues, Marina Mall, and 360. Also for spreading the word about this program in less expensive way we will be designing different brochures and handing them out at the seminars and booths. Some of the other activities that will be done are fundraisers and getting different sponsorship’s to boost the program. For this to be done operationally speaking we will need sufficient staff to arry out the tasks and/or guest speakers, money for printing and equipment, vehicles, and having meetings and presentations. The staff will need to be able to design the brochures and banners, set up booths, and be knowledgeable about the program to deliver the message in meetings and presentations. Like most projects money is a key factor to get the job done. We will need money for gas, staff, printing, and other equipment. Technically the program is going to require computers for emailing and organizing with school officials and NBK members also to stay financially organized with sufficient data.For this program to run smoothly we must also focus on logistics. Organization and planning are a must for determining which schools or universities and which dates are the most appropriate and effective. As mentioned earlier the three malls were chosen for the banners and booths, because they are the most popular and seem to be the most effective for reaching the target audience. Some good locations for the seminars could be reception halls and popular locations that can be rented, for the presentations and meetings on the other the NBK meeting room seems to be most suitable for our program.Viability In terms of Return on Investment Viability, our project will not be gaining any monetary returns directly since it is a non-profit program. For the ROI formula we will calculate zero (no profit) divided by 105,050 (for one year) which will be equal to zero percent financial gain. The total investment required is 315,150 for the three years of the program. Our ROI for the first year will be zero. Competitive Viability Like any project, the Drug program will need to be viable and sustainable with regards to competition.This means that our program can survive long-term and eventually gain profit while competing with similar programs in Kuwait. In Kuwait however, there is already some competition. One major competitor is the National Anti-Drug Committee. This committee was founded in 1989, and their main goals are similar to our program’s goals, which are to focus on the youth and the protection of the health of society. Also similar to our goals is the fact that they are trying to introduce some awareness amongst the education fields. Although there is some competition already in the market, we believe that program can become more competitive nce introduced, because we will be working with NBK which is a very popular bank, especially among the youth. The National Anti-Drug Committee is not well known in Kuwa it, yet has been around for many years. Although this is true about the National Anti-Drug Committee, our program will still have a competitive advantage working with NBK. Also we are going to be introducing many guest speakers at different seminars through different schools. We will be bringing people who have abused drugs and overcame these issues, which will have a great impact on people in a society like Kuwait.Another thing that our program is going to offer is setting up different fundraisers throughout Kuwait to raise awareness about the serious nature of drug abuse. These different activities that our project will be conducting will give our company and program a more competitive edge in the market. Economic Viability In order for our drug program to be viable economically, it will need to create different job opportunities and possibly attract people to work at NBK. This program is an extremely controversial activity in a society like Kuwait where the issue of drugs and dru g abuse is a taboo subject.By confronting the matter and showing people how serious and spread out this problem is in Kuwait already, we can show people that NBK cares about this and is not afraid to be associated with fighting it. The project for NBK will require staff and/or volunteers. This will create job openings for anyone interested. It may even attract people to work for NBK, because it shows that they care about and are giving back to society. This further promotes NBK’s vision to benefit the society where they function. References * Fattahova, N. (2012). Awareness campaign to prevent drug abuse . ttp://news. kuwaittimes. net/2012/08/22/awareness-campaign-to-prevent-drug-abuse/. Last accessed 11th Nov 2012. * Kuwait. nbk. (2012). About NBK. http://www. kuwait. nbk. com/about/disclosures/default_en_gb. aspx. Last accessed 10th Nov 2012. * Murray, J. (2012). Viability (of a business). http://biztaxlaw. about. com/od/glossaryv/g/viability. htm. Last accessed 9th Nov 201 2. * Vyakarnam, S . Writing a business plan, clarification and preparation – the market approach. http://https://docs. google. com/viewer/. Last accessed 14th Nov 2012 AppendixCashflow| |   | Year 1| Year 2| Year 3| | | | | |   | Net profit| | | 105,050 | 105,050 | 105,050 | Depreciation| | | 105,050 | 105,050 | 105,050 | Office Rent| | | 2,100 | 2,100 | 2,100 | Media costs| | | 93,500 | 93,500 | 93,500 | Staff| | | 11,000 | 11,000 | 11,000 | Transportation| | | 200 | 200 | 200 | Cash profits| | | 0 | 0 | 0 | Increasein CA| | | n/a| n/a| n/a| Net cash from operating activities| | | 0 | 0 | 0 | Renovations| | | 0 | 0 | 0 | change in FA| | | (850,000)|   |   | Net cash after investing activities| | | (850,000)| 0 | 0 | Capital induction| | | 105,050 | 0 | 0 | hange in advance rentals| | | 6,300 | (417,600)| (104,400)| Net increase in cash| | | (738,650)| (417,600)| (104,400)| | | | | |   | Opening cash balance| | | 0 | (738,650)| (1,156,250)| Closing cash balance| | | (738,650)| (1,156,250)| (1,260,650)| | | | | | | | | | (745,350)| (1,281,750)| (1,831,890)| | | | | | | Net Profit| |   | 26,933 | 479,733 | 493,473 | Inv Capital|   | | 0| 0| 0| ROI|   | | #DIV/0! | #DIV/0! | #DIV/0! | | | | | | | Net cashflow from operations| | | 26,933 | 479,733 | 493,473 |   | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ROI Calculation Amount of Financial Gain Total Investment Amount 0 0 105. 050

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The HRM implications of new technology in organisations Dissertation

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