Business Plan Financial Plan for Locker Laundry

Executive Summary Business Identification The name of the business to be created is Locker Laundry, which is a drop-and-go dry cleaning service venture. The concept of the business is drop off and pick up laundry storefront. However, all cleaning is sub-contracted to established dry cleaners. The company will set aside a special place where customers can drop their dirty laundry and only pick it up when clean.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on Business Plan Financial Plan for Locker Laundry specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The main operating system will be similar to the one used in post offices. Clients will not have a direct contact with the management. In the building that the business enterprise will be located, lockers will be located at the front where clients will drop off the laundry. The store will initially be leased while the locker rooms will be located on the front where the public can access the m quickly and easily. However, due to the relative openness of the enterprise, security for the clients’ items will be guaranteed by the use of pin-code entry. Customers who will have signed up for credit/debit payments will be registered in the computer POS, which is a personal six-digit code, which will ensure the security of the transactions since the system will only be open to the customers and the handler. Once the customers have dropped off the dirty laundry in their respective lockers, they will then be taken for cleaning to another laundry that will be sub-contracted. After the cleaning, customers will then get the laundry in the lockers after a stated period depending on the time of delivery to the company. Mission, Goals and Objectives For any business to reach a point of boasting of having achieved, it must have a mission, goal, and objectives. These three requirements act as a guide to the business. The mission defines what the business is established to do not o nly to the benefit of the owner, but also to the employees and the public at large. Goals are like indicators of the far the business wishes to be after a specified period in terms of achieving its set objectives. Objectives on the other hand define the key deliverables that measure the business’ achievement. All objectives need to narrow down to the business’ vision and mission statement. The mission of the company is to provide convenient and efficient laundry services for the general population. The first goal of the company is to be the leading laundry shop in the country in a period of ten years. The company is relatively new with the idea being conceived recently.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The capital is not large enough to provide the necessary means of achieving the objective. However, with the projected opportunity and growth, the business w ill most likely achieve it. Another goal is to provide efficient and reliable services to the working class people at their own convenience. Since this group of people is often too busy, the company realizes the need to create a personalized laundry system where they can do it at their own convenient time. The third goal of the company is to provide employment opportunities to the young entrepreneurs in the area. With the large number of unemployed people around, the company hopes to employ a sizeable number when more branches are opened. The fourth goal of the company is to be a profit making institution with exponential growth over the next five years. Keys to Success The business incorporates a new mode of doing laundry that has not been largely exploited in the area. This presents as one of the factors that is likely to see the business succeed due to the relative absence of competition. The business will also rely on the cleaning culture in the area, as a large number of indivi duals prefer commercial laundry operations. The business will also be located on a largely populous area. The market will therefore be available meaning that people can easily access it. As such, competition from other already established cleaners will be insignificant. Company Summary This section describes the history of the origins of the business with the industry being described. It will also define the ownership framework of the business by describing whether it will be a sole proprietorship, a partnership, an organization with public ownership, or other forms of ownership. Industry History The business will operate in the service industry with the aim of providing cleaning services at an affordable and reliable rate. The dry cleaning industry in the area is dedicated towards delivery of services to the local people. It has been doing so over the last decades. The industry is driven by the reason that the people around the area are hardworking and do not let the cleaning get i n their way.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on Business Plan Financial Plan for Locker Laundry specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The industry is also based on the original idea of cleaning clothing by utilizing non-aqueous organic solvents with the three main steps being cleaning of the fabric in the solvent, spinning of the extract excess solvent, and drying by tumbling in a hot air stream (Drucker, Maciariello, 2008, p.19). Though the industry is old and established both in the area and in the world, the ingenious idea of operating a post-office-like system is relatively new and practiced in few countries thus giving it an edge over the conventional dry-cleaning processes though it greatly borrows from it. The dry-cleaning service industry is also respected among the service industries. It is estimated to contribute about 2% of the revenue generated in the service industry worldwide. The dry cleaning indus try has evolved over the centuries with the Romans being the pioneers of the trade. Among the first chemicals that they used was ammonia, which they derived from urine. Water was also the main solvent that was used though the solvent has changed over the centuries to non-water-based solvents. Kerosene was used in France to clean clothing items in the mid 19th century with the business extending all over Europe (Baxter, 2011, p. 3). Chlorinated solvents were only used after World War I. Its preference was the relative safety in use. The use of tetrachloroethylene in the dry cleaning industry has gained popularity over the last century. Modern dry cleaning services utilize this chemical for their cleaning needs. According to statistical findings and reports, the dry cleaning industry is a significant part of economies all over the world with an estimated 7.5 billion dollars being generated from the trade between the year 2006 and 2011 (Baxter, 2011, p. 24). Now, the industry is a sign ificant source of daily living for thousands of people. The number employed is also large. It was with this consideration that the industry provided a good option for a personal enterprise. Legal Form of Ownership The ownership of the company is that of a sole proprietorship. This ownership method means that all liabilities and costs will be directly applicable to the entrepreneur. The profits, losses, and any liabilities that the company will incur will be directly applied to me.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The legal implications of the company include that any legal issues will also have to be directly applied based on the legal framework established meaning that I shall be directly responsible. In a sole proprietorship way, the owner is involved directly in running the business. The law states that there is no difference between the business and the owner (Drucker, Maciariello, 2008, p.7). This argument implies that all the profits will be personally received with any losses or debts being payable in this manner still. Based on this form of ownership, the business will enjoy all the advantages that come with it including reduced government interference. Control will also fall purely on me with the decision-making being faster and easier. As compared to other forms of ownership such as partnerships, this business will have a reduced personal liability. Fund raising will therefore be easier. However, this form of business ownership has a number of challenges and disadvantages, which a re encountered even as the business is in the planning stage. The main limitation for the ownership is the ability to raise enough capital to start the operations and the money to propagate the business and its operations. For the loans to be borrowed, the securities to be used will also be personal thus posing the risk of personal loss in the case that the business defaults in payment. Since the business is also dependent on my physical presence. There is also a risk of inefficiency and virtual collapse in the case of personal illness or inability to perform the required tasks. These challenges will however be addressed with as the business establishes itself with more workers being planned for. Location and Facilities The business will be located in a newer multi-use building. In the building, businesses are bottom level and hence convenient for the free flow of customers with the upper levels being living quarters (189 loft apartments). Near the building and the business in gener al, there are a number of social amenities and public service centers. They include an elementary school, the city library, city rec center, and community college- all of which are within a 2-mile radius. A shopping center is also within the same location housing a number of business enterprises. Some of the enterprises located here include a number of restaurants, a grocery store, and an office supply store with various commercial offerings near the businesses. Additionally, a 287-acre master planned housing development is in the immediate location and within the major thoroughfare boundaries thus providing a future opportunity for growth of the business since many clients are likely to come from the project. The area also boasts of couple of larger employer within the immediate vicinity. The area is known for good returns in most of the businesses operating here. As for the competition, the closest dry cleaning facility is within a few miles. Getting to it from the location of the proposed business, however, will require crossing a major thoroughfare implying that there is a considerable distance between them. Major thoroughfares are considered a subliminal boundary for many consumers. They appear to be a prime location unchartered within major roads (Paley, 2005, p. 25). Another factor about the location is that the intersection is busy with many people passing there each day. The traffic count at the intersection of storefront is 28,224 vehicles per day. At the nearest major intersection, it is 65,890 vehicles per day. Population in the immediate area is 258,000 with the average household income being over $83,000. Management Structure The staffing will be minimal and limited to me until operations are flowing well and or if secondary assistance will be necessary. Some of the roles that I will have in the company include being the sole proprietor, the manager, the sales and marketing officer, and the person responsible for the processing of the laundry tha t will be dropped off. With improvement of sales and strengthening of the client base, some of the positions that I will recruit employees for include the marketing and sales department, a manager to oversee the operations of the business, a handyman to collect and deliver the laundry to and from the lockers, and a secretary to operate the security locks and any office work. As the proprietor and the owner of the business, my role would then be to delegate duties to the managerial staff, to ensure that the company is running optimally, and to seek other methods of expanding the business as well as other opportunities. The role of the manager would be administrative, to oversee the performance of the company and the other employees, and to delegate duties to them. The third employee would be involved in picking up the laundry from the lockers, delivering into the contracted drycleaners, and picking it up from them when it is done. With increases workload and number of clients, the em ployees will then be increased in this area. The employees here will also be involved in the delivery of the dry cleaned laundry into the respective lockers. However, since the company is new with no established client base, the staff will only be me until the company realized growth or increased workload. Products and Service Products and services will be crafted to suit the convenience of the working class in the area and the country in general. With the busy schedules of the workers in the country and the area earmarked for the business, most of the people find dry-cleaning services an added task, which they claim interferes with their daily chores and professional work. The company establishes a gap in the industry, as there are no companies offering a locker laundry technology in the area. With the few dry-cleaning services available, people are often frustrated, as they have to be in a queue for their dry-cleaning needs to be met. With the main services that the company will o ffer being the dry cleaning service, and locker laundry services, the clients can access the lockers at any time in their busy day without having to queue. The laundry will be dry-cleaned for them after delivery after which they can pick it up after a determined period of time or by notification through telephone call or text messaging. The company will also guarantee security of the items to be cleaned through an innovative technological locking system where the clients will manage their own security for the goods delivered. Another important service that the clients will enjoy is the efficiency of the cleaning services. Traditionally, the dry cleaning services have always involved an interaction between the cleaner and the client. The company will eliminate this interaction between them, and enable the clients to decide on the different tariffs of payment. The client will also enjoy discounts through accumulation of points based on the participation in the business, and this they can trade for the services. Market Analysis In this section, an effective analysis of the dry cleaning industry in the country will be done with special attention being made on the area. It will also demonstrate the knowledge of the customers and the market competitors. Target Market The market for the services that the company will offer is large with a significant proportion of the people in the area opting to have their dry cleaning needs met commercially. The business will compete for this market with the already established dry cleaning services in the area with the main advantage being the introduction of convenience in the system. An average individual will have dry cleaning done twice in a week. The company will target to earn the favor of the clients to create a better option for them. Currently, the closest dry cleaning shop is located close to the proposed post office-like services. It will serve to entice the clients in that company to consider doing business with the co mpany. About a thousand clients are served weekly in the area with the bulk of them being female clients. The market also constitutes people in their middle ages and in the elderly who comprise one of the population age brackets that the company will target. On average, over half of the clients in the dry cleaning industries are employed. The reason that is cited for the large number is the unavailability of time for the people to do the laundry at home. Since a large proportion of the clients are employed or work far from home, there is evident need to create a dry cleaning service that is convenient for them, meaning that they can deliver their clothing and pick them up at any time that they prefer. The major challenge in the industry, however, is the number of service providers. In the town, for example, there are over five dry cleaning services within a radius of a mile. They also have the same market. However, the main competition will come from the dry cleaners that offer roun d the clock services, as these will provide similar convenience to the company. The quality of services to be offered will determine the competition that these companies will offer. Therefore, the company plans to have interactive services. Industry Analysis As discussed above, the dry cleaning industry is a very productive of the economy employing thousands of people. The industry is stated to have generated over seven billion dollars in the last six years. This amount has been steadily on the rise since it gained popularity in the mid 1960s (Baxter, 2011, p.3). The number of dry cleaning firms has also increased with the US recording over 22,000 of them in the same period (Baxter, 2011, p.3). Some of the explanations that have been forwarded for the rise in the number of dry cleaning firms in the world include the ease of availability of the resources utilized in the dry cleaning process (Baxter, 2011, p.3). It is relatively easier to start a dry cleaning firm now than it was a fe w years ago meaning that the industry has experienced a remarkable growth over the last decade with the same being reflected on the proportion of revenue contribution in the economies of various countries. In terms of employment, the industry employs thousands of workers worldwide with some of the researchers and financial analysts putting the figure at 150,000 workers in the year 2009 (Baxter, 2011, p.3). On average, every dry cleaning shop is known to employ a minimum of seven people who are mainly in the main cleaning process meaning that the industry has progressed to be a significant source of employment for the youth and other groups of people. The number of people employed has also been on the rise with the increase of the dry cleaning operations. With mechanization, however, the average number of people employed in a single company has been reducing. The personal business plan intends to have a single employee. However, it will indirectly employ other people since the main c leaning will be done in the dry cleaning companies that will be contracted. With the estimated annual contribution of over 300,000 dollars in the US alone, the industry continues to generate capital and revenue for many individuals (Baxter, 2011, p.3). This capital will then be exploited by the creation of an alternative mode of delivery of dry cleaning service needs at the convenience of the clients. With the economic crisis that was seen in the years following 2007, the industry is slowly recovering from the losses that were experienced, and is now on a stable rise again. The number of employees is also reported to be on the increase. The industry is becoming an important one in the society. Since an effective analysis of an industry cannot be made without the documentation of units sold, t is important to consider the output in this industry. However, there are no records showing the output of the industry in terms of the clothing that is handled, and this can only be inferred fr om the financial output. As indicated above, financial contribution of the industry has been in the range of billions, with an estimated one billion dollars being generated in a year. This case therefore means that the industry is an important one that cannot be underestimated. Competitive Analysis The company is relatively new in the market. It faces competition from some of the already established companies offering similar and related services. Some of these companies, as indicated above, are close to the proposed business premises, and will be the cause of direct competition. However, the business will be collaborating in a way with these companies to achieve the shared goals. The main competition is the laundry services that are located on the other side of the road. These other services are likely to grab some of the potential clients. These other laundry services are also established. In fact, the owners have established a strong marketing strategy to ensure they retain their customers. The main difficulty will therefore be to win some of the clients to my company in an attempt ensure that they are faithful to it. Another challenge that the companies will offer includes the possibility of offering related services. With the start of the Locker Laundry Business, the already established competitors may also decide to start their own drop and go dry cleaning services to challenge the business. A number of companies in the region offer personalized dry cleaning services in the region. They collect the clothing at the household level and hence a feasible competition. The company will deal with this challenge by ensuring the delivery of services that are reliable to the clients. Another weakness that has been established in the competitors is the pricing at which they offer for the clients. Once established, the company will aim at offering affordable dry cleaning services to the common workers and this will assure continued profitability and reliability. The other form of competition that the business hopes to overcome is the indirect competition that will be offered by the dry cleaning companies that will be sub-contracted to do the actual cleaning of the client linen. Since the pricing of the pieces will be based on the price that the sub-contracted dry cleaning services will offer, they could contribute to high pricing if they decide to raise their service charges. This could make the total value of the service to be raised, making the company to be less competitive and miss its competitors. All these forms of competition will be effectively eliminated or dealt with as the business establishes itself and or gains more of the market share. In the long-term goals, the business will put in place its own dry cleaning facility, and this will ensure that the cost of the final items will be relatively lower compared to when other companies are contracted. The company also aims to build a strong customer relation strategy to ensure that the clients are satisfied with the services. Some of the other method that the company will utilize to win the competitive battle will be using a strong marketing formula that will ensure that the clients are aware of all the services to be provided. Market Strategy In this section, it is important to consider the factors that will go into the determination of the price of the services. The four Ps that are important in any business strategies are also considered here, with these being the product, price, place and promotion related to the products/services offered by the business. 4Ps The pricing of the services to be offered in the company will be determined by a number of factors. Some of the factors that are important in the final price of the dry cleaning services include the prices charged by the company to do the actual cleaning for the business enterprise. The market trends will also be important in determining the prices of the services, as charging a price higher than the pre vailing market price could result in poor returns. The pricing will also be determined by the amount of laundry that is cleaned, and the cost incurred in the actual cleaning process. The targeted price should be adequate to provide a good return and still provide some money for the propagation of the business. Another important factor that will determine the final price of the dry cleaning services is the fabrics to be dry-cleaned. Since different fabrics have different methods of dry cleaning, the sub-contracted company will have different rates for each fabric. The extra charges, therefore, will be added to the final price of the cry cleaning work. The company will not have a particular product produced, but will be a service-dedicated company. It will therefore not have product descriptions but service descriptions. The company will also be listed as a service organization. The charges made for the production of many products will therefore not apply. As for the promotion of the business, there are a number of suggestions as to how it will happen. Since most of the promotions have to be done through marketing, effective marketing will be carried out in local advertisements, local mailing cards and the local marketing businesses. Additionally, coupons indicating when the business will have percentage offs will be distributed at the local businesses so that the clients can be enlightened on the offers, with the best example being the local Coffee Shop. With the average cost of website design and hosting being at $49.99 per month, the company will also target to have one for promotional services. About the place or the location of the business, the busy street and intersection provides an opportunity for a large customer base. A number of large dry cleaning services that are located around the place are recognized above as being the main source of competition to the business, which is on the other hand an added advantage since the same companies will be easily approached for the sub-contracting of the services. Price List The services to be offered at the business premise include general washing, delicate cycle washing, and dry cleaning. The prices of the services will depend on the items to be cleaned, the cost of having the items cleaned, and a host of other factors described above. The most significant factor, however, will be the type of laundry that is delivered and the kind of washing to be done. The following, therefore, is a price list for the services. For general washing, the charges will be $2.00 per pound with this depending on the charges to be instituted by the sub-contracted dry cleaning services. Delicate Cycle Washing will be charged at $3.00 per pound. The prices for Dry cleaning prices will be as follows: a two piece suit will be charged at $10.00, a Skirt at $5.00, a dress at $10.00, a sweater with specials (such as a fringe) at $5.75, a regular sweater at $5.00, pants at $5.00, shirts at $3.00 each and a jacket at $7 .00. Selling Strategy For any business to be successful, there should be an appropriate plan on how the sales will be made. The plan should be captured in the goals and objectives of the organization. The goals and objectives of the organization have been stated above and so have the mission and the vision of the company. Some of the objectives that will see the main mission and goal of the company being reached have also been provided: they are focused and specific. This section, therefore, highlights some of the selling strategies to be employed in the company, the goals to be achieved, milestones, and the deliverables. The goals of the organization include being the leader in the dry cleaning market in the region, to provide efficient and reliable dry cleaning solutions to the market, and to generate profit that will be injected back to the business for sustainability. The main method of achieving the set goals and objectives will be by ensuring that the needs of the clients are met without any consideration of the expenses to be incurred during the process. The business will recognize the client as being the single most important individual. It will therefore aim at providing quality services. Another way of achieving the goals will be by the use of a strong marketing strategy, where the business will employ a variety of marketing and promotion methods. Some of the milestones that the business will target to achieve include attaining an award for the best company in the area or the region and using the innovative idea of Locker laundry to propel it to one of the biggest dry cleaning company in the area. Since the company will only enlist me as the sole employee, the other milestone to be achieved is the efficiency. Most of the dry cleaning services around utilize a number of staff to carry out their services with most of them averaging seven employees. This number is sometimes inefficient, as some times there are fewer clients. Working alone will ensure th at only the available services will be provided. Some of the deliverables in the starting of the company include the setting up of a dry cleaning service at the premise that will save the company money. As indicated above, the company will sub-contract other dry cleaning firms to do the cleaning for it, and this will be costly for the operation. The short-term goal of the business is therefore to ensure that a dry cleaning machine is available as soon as possible. This goal will only be achieved if the business becomes profitable. The business also targets to add the number of employees after some time, and this will compensate for any added services. The area that the new employee will be stationed will depend on the workload, and the terms of employment will depend on the profitability and sustainability of the business. Another deliverable thing in the business is the increase in the number of lockers with time. The business will start with few lockers, and then proceed on to add more as will be desired. Sales Forecast Based on the expected market conditions, it is possible to develop a sales forecast for the business. Now, the number of clients for the other established dry cleaning companies is high with each day having more than a hundred clients in any of the outlets. If this consumer consideration is made, it is possible to predict the expected sales. Most of the clients are busy during the day, and the opportunities are therefore, mostly in the late hours after their work. Considering that the business will only have one employee, the size of the transaction that can be made s also limited. Competition is also an important aspect of the sales that should be factored. For this particular business, competition is key. Some of the other factors that are important when doing the sales forecasting include the cash that will be immediately available as the capital and the number of clients that the business will enlist in the first few months of its operati ons. Marketing will be a significant determinant of the sales volume, and the strength of marketing teams will determine the output. With all these considerations being put into place, a sales forecast is then possible. Within the first year, the forecast indicates that the company will make little profit, as most of the money will go towards operational costs. In the first month of services, the projected sales are in the range of fifty thousand dollars, and this will mainly depend on the marketing strategies employed. The business is also projected to improve over the next couple of months meaning that more of the profits could be obtained. In the first year, it is possible to make about a hundred thousand dollars, and this is dependent on the workload. Most of this money will go to the operations of the business and in the repayment of any loans that will have been used in the running of the business. Because of these considerations, the actual amount of money that will be genera ted from the business is in the range of fifty thousands. The amount of laundry to be cleaned every day will therefore need to generate at least twenty dollars in profit. These projections are, as indicated above, heavily reliant on the prevailing market trends. In the sales forecast, an assumption is made that the business will be handling about ten shirts, ten jackets, and about ten clients in each category in a day using the assumption that the business enterprise will be open during the weekends and the holidays. One of the major weaknesses of this assumption is that since the sole employee is I, the time that is required to perform all the chores and ensure that the services are carried out in time may not be enough. The other factor that may prove to be unpredictable is the extra charges that the other dry cleaners may charge for the services. The profits or costs that will be incurred will depend on the market trends, and the prediction will therefore have to factor in this f act. Implementation Strategy This section outlines the means of launching the business that will be used and the means of evaluating the business’s success or failures. Overall Strategy The implementation strategy for the business enterprise is important in determining the performance over the next few months. It is especially important to have a well thought-out strategy at the beginning of the business, and the success is pegged on this strategy. The source of the capital will mainly be from the personal savings, and a loan from a local bank. The next step will be to set up the lockers in the building that has been preselected. In this building, the anticipated lease space is about 1,330 square foot at $25.00 per square foot. The lockers will take an area about 35 feet wide by 35 feet deep. The number of lockers that will be placed in this space will be around 350 lockers with 35 in a row, 3 feet between rows, and 4 sets of lockers back to back. These lockers will be 1 foot wide by 5 feet tall with a depth of 2 feet. They will then involve an initial investment of $100 per locker. The initial lock investment for the locker will be an average of $50.00 per lock. This case shows that the initial investment will be great, and there is therefore a need to ensure that this is managed appropriately. After the lockers are in place, the next thing will be to make an arrangement with the drycleaner of choice to clean the laundry on a contract basis. The company that is selected for the dry cleaning work will have to be reasonably cheap, and should charge for bulk laundry, which will in the end make the price of the Locker Laundry to be relatively affordable for the clients while at the same time allowing profitability. When the appropriate contractor is found, the next thing will be to carry out a vigorous marketing campaign to market the business enterprise. This task will be done through local advertisements, local mailing, and cards at the local businesses. In addition, coupons will be distributed at some of the local businesses for their customers. As suggested above, a website will also be designed for this purpose with hosting being paid for monthly at an estimated $49.99. Security cameras and alarm system will also be installed in building to ensure security of the laundry and the premises. With the marketing strategies in place, the next thing will be to ensure that the first laundry that is delivered in the premise is done in a perfect manner and delivered on time. The clients will also be notified via short text messages when their laundry is ready, and this will be to ensure that they come again in the outlet. A phone call will also be made to those who do not pick their laundry on time to ensure that they are able to do so. The payment modalities for the services will be at the convenience of the clients. The business will allow payment via cheques, cash, PayPal, and credit cards all of which will also be aimed at ensuring th at the clients have efficient services. The next thing will be to ensure that the clients come back for the same services, and the business will do this by giving them business cards and after sale services. Competitions will also be created where the winners will get their laundry done free of charge for the next visit that they have. These strategies will see the business grow with time and especially to record profit in the first year and months. Implementation The targets that the company hopes to meet have been outlined above, and these are either short-term or long-term. The short-term goals will be realized in the first few months especially in the first year. The long-term goals will be realized over a period of years with some spanning more than five years. The immediate goals for the business include the profitability where the business will have to start making profit in the first month. By the first month, the client base is targeted to be in the range of a hundred clien ts to ensure profitability. The objective of repaying the debts and loans associated with the start of the business is timed for the first year. The business should be free of any debts in the first year of inception. This goal therefore will be achieved after the short-term goals of profitability and sustenance are realized. The other long-term goal that should be achieved within a period of five years is the one of having the company being the most profitable of its kind in the region. This goal is to be achieved with achievement of the other short-term goals. Over the same period, the company is scheduled to increase the number of employees to assist with the daily operations, and this will help in making the business efficient. However, this goal may still be achieved in a short period depending on the profitability and workload. It can therefore serve as both a long-term and short-term goal. Some of the other short-term goals that are stated above include the target of expandin g the size of the floor that is available for the business premise. With the increase in the number of clients, the lockers that are planned for may not be enough to cater for the needs of these additional clients. It is therefore necessary that the goal of expanding the space be realized before the total capacity of the lockers is occupied. Another option that will be explored is that of opening a branch in the area to cater for the additional clients, which is, however, a long term goal whose implementation may be costly to the business. The targeted period for opening another branch in the region is two years, and this is dependent on the customer base and the amount of work that the business will handle. Once the objective of opening another branch in the area is realized, the business will target to open other branches around the country. The target should be realized within five years of opening the local branch. However, this is also dependent on the performance of the origin al business enterprise, the market available in the areas, and the staff that will be available at the time. The company has also targeted to increase its capital base from the original starting value to at least a million dollars. This target is not an easy one to achieve. The business, therefore, has planned to achieve it over the next seven years. However, it may also be realized sooner depending on the performance of the business enterprise. Control Plan For the business to meet the milestones that I have set for it, a control plan is important. The main areas that are important include the quality of services that are delivered to the clients, the ability to effectively deal with the competition, the formulation of employee working ethics and proper interaction with the sub-contracted businesses. As indicated above, the main competitors are the dry cleaning services that have established themselves in the area for a longer time than my enterprise. The plans of dealing with the competitors have been laid down above with the pricing and quality of services being the main areas of enabling the business to compete. To achieve the milestones, the business will also need to ensure that the clients are satisfied with the services that the business will be offering. To ensure that the clients are effectively served, the business will use a number of methods to establish the client satisfaction. One of the methods that I plan to use is the development of a feedback system where the clients can contribute towards improving the services offered to them. I will therefore place feedback forms in the lobby. These forms will have various ways and areas that the clients can comment about the services offered. A box will be provided in the lobby. The clients can then drop their filled forms here for my review. The services will then be evaluated with any complaints made by the clients being investigates and improvements being made. Another feedback method that the busines s will utilize is the conducting of surveys to establish the client satisfaction in the services that will be offered. Questionnaires will then be printed with the questions about the quality of services that the business offers. The clients will then get them in the lockers. After filling these forms, the clients will then drop the m in the box, after which I will use the feedback to review the quality of services. Another method that will be used to evaluate the success of the business is the scrutiny of the financial records. Since the business is aimed at making profit, the success will also be established by analyzing the financial performance in retrospect. I will carry out a monthly and yearly analysis of the business with the use of this to improve the business performance. The other avenue that will be used to obtain feedback from the clients is the website that will be developed for the company. Once the company has put in place a working site, a link will be provided wher e the clients can give feedback on where and how the services may be improved. The company will also perform a strong marketing campaign for its services to ensure that the clients are aware of the services available and the expectations that they can have on the business after delivering their laundry. As a way of solidifying the client base, the business will also brand items such as mugs and cups. Tags with the business logo will be used to identify the clothes during and after the dry cleaning. Clients will carry them with the clothes therefore serving as a marketing strategy. A measure that will be used to establish the success of the business is the number of clients that will be served every month by the business. With all the lockers being fully paid for, the business will then focus on client satisfaction, where after-sale services will be offered alongside the dry cleaning service. Financial Statements and Projections This section deals with the projected financial stateme nts for the first year of business. As indicated above, the first year of business will be important in determining the overall success of the business, and this will then determine the future financial decisions. In this section, I will make a statement of the loss and profits that are expected within the first years of operations and this will then be broken down into the monthly component. Revenue and Cost Estimate Within the first 12 months of the business, the bulk of the cost will go towards setting up the business and putting in place all the necessary policies. With the anticipated lease space being 1,330 square foot retailing at $25.00 per square foot, the cost incurred here will be 33,250 dollars. This space will be used for the lockers, and will be 35 feet wide by 35 feet deep. Since we could place 350 lockers with 35 in a row, 3 feet between rows, and 4 sets of lockers back to back, the cost of setting up the lockers will also be important to consider. Assuming an initia l investment of $100 per locker, the cost of the lockers will be 350 dollars. I will however seek custom fabrication for the lockers, but in presenting case for approval and funding, $100 per locker should be sufficient. Initial lock investment for the locker will be an average of $50.00 per lock. This amount then averages to 2,500 dollars, which will be added to the asset costs. The cost of these assets will come from personal savings, a loan from the local bank and contribution from family and friends where they are willing to help in refundable amounts. A significant amount of money will also be set aside for the initial marketing costs of the business, and this will roughly be 2,000 dollars. This amount will be used in the printing of banners, flyers and brochures for the business organization. The business will also incur an estimated 1,000 dollars in the first year in the online marketing campaigns. This amount will mainly go to the development and maintenance of a website ded icated towards marketing the business. Other marketing costs will be in incurred in the consultation of marketing services from the marketing firms and the media, which will be covered by the suggested cost of 2,000 dollars. The first year will be a tough one since the business will still be in the initial stages, and the profits expected are not great. The revenue expected from the transactions is estimated to be in the range of 20,000 dollars in the first year, with this being a working value. The projected monthly returns for the first year average at 100 dollars and this may be lower depending on the client base, the service charge of the subcontracted dry cleaners, and the load of laundry that is handled. The revenue could also be on the higher side monthly depending on the listed factors. Some of the costs that will be incurred while running the business include the security charges, the transport charges, rent that will be charges by the property owner depending on the terms of the lease and the overhead charges such as the heating and lighting. However, the main cost that the business will incur is in the charges by the secondary companies that will be doing the actual dry cleaning. The business could end up making losses in the first few months as it establishes the client base and the prices stabilize. Forecasted Profit and Loss Statement In this section, I will consider the sales forecast, the operating expenses, and the profits month by month for first 12 months. According to the financial analysts, one should take the month-by-month revenue estimates of sales and expenses from the revenue and cost estimate (F1) and include interest expense to obtain a profit projection for the first year of operations (Sant, 2004, p. 25). This will reveal net profit (obtained from subtracting the interest expense from the profit before interest) while the profit before interest is calculated by subtracting total expenses from total revenue (Sant, 2004, p. 28). Som e of the expenses that businesses incur include the salaries of the employees, the payroll expenses and the general administrative costs. However, since the business is dependent on me as the sole employee, the salary expenses will not be very significant. With time, the addition of an employee to assist with the operations of the business will mean added salary expenses. For the first month, sales forecast is estimated at about a thousand dollars, and this may be significantly reduced due to the time needed to implement the business plans. The most appropriate figure to work with is therefore five hundred dollars for that month. As for the operating expenses, the business will not pay any salaries but the main cost will be that required to pay the subcontracted companies. This cost is estimated to be around three hundred dollars. The other expenses to be paid include the overhead costs and the running cost of the business, estimated to be about a hundred dollars. The business it th erefore not expected to have any profits in the first month. For the next month, the business will target to make a profit of about a hundred dollars. Since the running costs will remain constant, the business targets to have the number of clients increased to bring about a thousand dollars in sales. Having covered the standing charges in the subcontracted firms, the business will then proceed to pay some of the debts that it owes to the bank and other firms meaning that it may be possible to attain the targeted profit of a hundred dollars in this month. During the next months, the sales forecast is expected to be similar to the second month though this may also change depending on the performance of the business and the client base that will have been established. The main operating expenses that the business will incur over these months include the overhead costs, the running costs of the services and the marketing charges. These costs will be significantly lower than for the init ial months and the profits are expected to be on the increase. The forecasted profits for the months following the first one are one hundred dollars a month, and this amounts to approximately 20,000 dollars in the first 12 months. This amount will then be injected back into the business with the bulk of it being used as loan payment and or to offset any charges that the business will have incurred in the process. The other expense that the business will incur in the first month is the insurance and the taxes that will be levied by the government and the local authorities. The table below shows some of the expenses based on the above information. Salary expenses Nil Payroll expenses Nil General and administrative 1000 dollars Repairs and maintenance 100 dollars Marketing and Advertising 2,000 dollars Accounting and legal 350 dollars Utilities 500 dollars Insurance 120 dollars Taxes (real estate etc.) 1000 dollars Selling Expenses 2000 dollars Examples of expen ses include Forecasted Balance Sheet This section deals with cash, income, assets, liabilities, and capital (Sant, 2004, p. 28). For a business to be successful, it is important for the management to employ tactics aimed at ensuring financial viability, which is only possible if an analysis of the financial situation is done followed by suggestions and recommendations provided on how to improve the case. In a well workout balance sheet, the balance should result in the debit and credit balances ending up equal (Sant, 2004, p. 28). This business is not different, and the forecasted balance sheet is provided here. As indicated above in different sections, the business is in its starting stages. Therefore, the main asset that will have is locker room and the lobby in which the lockers are located. As previously indicated, these materials will be obtained as a lease from the earmarked building in the strategic location. The estimated cost of the lease is $ 32,500, which is the main curr ent asset. The next current asset that is of significance is the lockers themselves, which are valued at $350. For there the enterprise to guarantee the security of the laundry and other assets that will be located in the enterprise, some measures put in place for security will also be regarded as asset. They are mainly represented by the locking system that will be employed in the lockers. The whole security system is valued at $2,500 and hence the third asset. The last asset that the business will acquire is the collection bags that will be used to deliver the laundry to the cleaners subcontracted by the business. The other assets that the business will have over the next years include the establishment of subsidiary dry-cleaning firms in the area and in the region. The company will then build an office block to cater for these needs. The estimated cost of these long-term assets is valued at 50,000 dollars, which will be leased where possible. A delivery van will also be acquired for the delivery of the laundry to the cleaning outlets, and the value of this asset is around 100,000 dollars. Multiple vans will then be purchased for this job. With the establishment of a larger building and expansion of the business, the third long-term asset that the business will acquire is the dry-cleaning machines, and these will be bought at the prevailing market price at the time. The projected cost is at 20,000 dollars for each of the machines. The main liability that the business will incur is the bank loan that is to be used in the starting of the operations. The amount of money available from the bank loan will be used to also offset the bills in the initial months, purchase the floor space at the building and to buy the current assets to be utilized in the first and subsequent months. The loan amount is $200,000, which will be from the bank that offers the most attractive payment rates and interest. The play is to repay the loan by using the money that will be gotten from the business as return. Personal savings will also be used to repay the loan, and a target of the first two operational years is made. The capital will be raised from mainly the loan with the deficit coming from my personal savings. The required amount is around $210,000, with the loan covering the $200,000 and the rest being from my personal account. This capital will be used to but the materials to start the business. Lockers and security systems will also be among the first priorities of the business spending. Financial Projections In this section, an effective summary of the financial projections and the assumption used in estimating the projections in section F is indicated. Breakeven Point In this section, inclusion of an estimate of income and expenses is made (Frey, 2005, p. 12). The use of this section is to determine whether the business will bring in enough money to meet its costs (Frey, 2005, p. 14). This method is used to determine the exact point at which the busi ness makes neither takes a loss nor makes a profit, and this is referred to as the breakeven point. It is calculated at a point where sales have grown at a greater rate than costs and the two lines cross, with the formula commonly used being; Source: (Frey, 2005, p. 13) The breakeven point of the company is expected to be approached after two months after the business has established itself and or generated enough funds to cater for its running costs. Within the first month, the business is expected to be in the area of losses, with little gains being made. However, the financial projections are that the business will improve over the next couple of months to be self-sufficient. The unit volume is likely to increase over the next months too thus contributing to the achievement of the breakeven point. The duration of the breakeven point will depend on the rate of growth of the business and the rate at which the sales are improving. For this particular business enterprise, the last f ew months of the business are expected to be more favorable than the initial months to ensure that the duration of the breakeven point will be reduced. The business will therefore be profitable in the greater part of the year. The goals and targets that are stated above may be realized based on this. Financial Position This section includes the estimated financial position of the company at the end of the first year and the estimated capital/investment needs during the same period (Frey, 2005, p. 29). Any assumptions used in estimating this information is also included, and this helps in the determination of the rough figures and not the actual values. By the end of the first year, the expectations are that the company will have paid off its debts and loans to the bank, and settled any arrears. The capital that will have been injected at the start of the business should also be available for the use in the subsequent year without any deficits being experienced. By the close of busin ess for the first year, the business should be able to run independent of any external financial inputs, with profits being realized for the same period. Most of the targets and goals that the business has made are aimed at ensuring that the business is stable by the first month. To achieve this goal m, however, the business will need further investment. A proportion of the returns will be injected back to the running of the business. By the end of the last month, the proportion should be as high as a half of the returns to ensure that the business maintains an upward growth trend. The capital required for the next year should be readily available from the returns of the first year. It should be enough to cater for all the business needs. Capital /Investment Needs In this section, an effective estimation of the capital and investment needs for the company is done (Frey, 2005, p. 23). Any equity contributions that the company will need along with other start up costs required will be highlighted. The initial investment will be in the main business premise where the locker laundry service will be located. The capital invested, as stated above, will be in the range of 200, 000 dollars, and this will be provided in the form of bank loan and personal savings. The future contributions will be necessary when the business needs expansion to other locations, both in the area and around the town to expand her market. The contributions will then be sourced from the banking systems and the personal savings. With the financial projections in place, the business will experience appositive growth, and this is what is expected. Over the next year, however, the major contributions will come from the profits that are obtained with no anticipated external funding. Reference List Baxter, J. (2011). Dry Cleaning Laundry Services. Hampton, Middlesex England: Note Publications. Drucker, F., Maciariello, A. (2008). Management. New York, NY: Collins. Frey, S. (2005). Successful prop osal strategies for small businesses using knowledge management to win government, private-sector, and international contracts. Boston: Artech House. Paley, N. (2005). The manager’s guide to competitive marketing strategies. London: Thorogood. Sant, T. (2004). Persuasive business proposals: writing to win more customers, clients, and contracts. New York: Amacom. This case study on Business Plan Financial Plan for Locker Laundry was written and submitted by user Anya Kirby to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. 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Establishment of the rye grass

Establishment of the rye grass One of the most remarkable features in most of the American homes is the lawn grass. A lot of efforts go into making and sustaining the lawn all year round. But most importantly knowing which grass grows fastest and in which region is vital for having a good lawn.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Establishment of the rye grass specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Thus it is important to know how each of the various types of grasses grows and the period of time it takes for them to germinate. Research has established that the rye grass is the fastest growing type of grass amongst those found in America. This type of grass is highly recommended for cool season periods. This type of grass is popular because of its rich deep green color, which makes it very attractive especially on the lawn. The rye grass seed has the potential to germinate in less than three weeks of planting. It also grows at the same fast speed wh ich means that it can make a mature lawn within the shortest period. This also means that there is minimal waste of seed through surface wash away or rotting making it one of the most successful grasses to grow. There are two types of rye grasses: the annual rye grass which is rather slower in the rate of germination and growth, and the perennial rye grass which germinate faster than the annual rye grass Rye grass seeds become well established in cool and moist conditions. The contact of the soils has to be increased for maximum effect. There are other factors that affect the establishment t of rye grass seeds. They include Cultmulching as well as keeping the soils moisture sufficient. If the rye grass establishment has to reach maximum expectation. The level of competition for space and nutrients between the seeds as well as from other varieties of grasses has to be kept very low. Per acreage about 20 to 30 pounds of rye grass seeds has to be maintained. To avoid over soaking and r otting of rye grass seeds have to be germinated in well drained loamy soils preferably in low lying plains. The best method of planting ryegrass is the broadcasting method. Broadcasting can be done using either hands or by machine. However machine broadcast is the most efficient.Advertising Looking for research paper on agriculture? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Rye grass is well established in fields or lawns that have been cultivated well before planting. Mechanical seeding does produce the best results. The bests seeding depths ranges from 1/4 to 3/4 inches deep, which mean that rye grass seed thrive on shallow seeding. Because rye grass seed establishment is moisture sensitive, broadcasting method is used for soils with sufficient amount of moisture. For soils with limited moisture content, row seeding is used where wider rows are used. Where row method is used the results are less sufficient than when broadcas ting is used (Ehlke and Undersander para 12). While ryegrass is used in lawns well because of its deep rich green color, it can also be used as fodder. This is because of a number of factors. Studies in the recent past suggest that rye grass is one of the highest yielding types of grass when all conditions for establishment are observed. Per acreage, it has been found out that about rye grass yields about 1,430 pounds. This means that if the grass is grown for lawn then the desired lawn thickness is achieved and if grown for fodder the desired volume is realized. To increase the quality if the ryegrass fodder, planters are encouraged to use nitrogenous fertilizers during broadcasting. Actually there is about a 50% difference in the volume of fodder realized from fields where nitrogenous fertilizers have been used and those where not. It has also been found that the use of nitrogenous fertilizer increase the protein level in ryegrass fodder. When ryegrass is established with other ty pes of grasses as fodder it generally increases its value as well as the quality (College of Agricultural and Life Sciences paras 5 – 8). Furthermore, rye grass can be used to build the soils, reduce surface run off thus keeping erosion to a minimum, improving the organic content of the soil as well as keeping the level of nitrogen optimum (Rye Grass Cover Crop para 3). Rye grass suffers for winterkill and as such it may need protection from such adverse effect as such needs protection by other crops. Even though mixing rye grass with other companion crops increases the completion during summer and spring, during winter, these crops acts as cover to protect rye grass (Ehlke and Undersander para 9).Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Establishment of the rye grass specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Weeding is better done before seeding. The most effective method of weeding is chemical. However, due to the sensitivity of the chemical method often used, it always useful to get information on chemical weeding from any county agricultural office. Mechanical methods can be used, but are laborious and less effective. The history of rye grass cultivation dates back to the 1930s. During this time a lot of vegetation was destroyed and as environmentalist suggested grass cultivation done as one of the methods of conservation. Thus extensive research yielded result that rye grass was one of the fastest growing grasses. Early researchers who made significant contribution in rye grass research include The John Innes researchers, who made significant studies in the crop breeding including (Murphy 79). In the 1950s a researcher by the name Schultz found out that when rye grass was cultivated with other types of grasses, it germinated and generated faster than the rest. Furthermore Schultz found out that the rye grass did well in altitudes of about 2500 above sea level. Such and other historical res earch work has led to the current knowledge on the cultivation of the rye (Barro and Conrad 4). Barro, Susan and Conrad, Susan. Use of Ryegrass Seeding as an Emergency Revegetation Measure in Chaparral Ecosystems 2011. Web. College of Agricultural and Life Sciences . â€Å"Annual Ryegrass Trial Shows Limits, Promise (Research Brief #47).† 2011. Web. Ehlke, Newton and Undersander, Dwight. â€Å"Cool-Season Grass Seed Production.† 2011. Web.Advertising Looking for research paper on agriculture? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Murphy, Denis. Plant Breeding and Biotechnology: Societal Context and The Future Of Agriculture. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 2007. Print. Rye Grass Cover Crop. â€Å"Annual Ryegrass and Cereal Rye.† 2011. Web.

Business memo Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Business memo - Assignment Example ring test data into adequate statistical process control system.  As the next step in my professional development I would like to try myself on the position of a supervisor. I consider my objectives for the next year is to be able to inspect the product for the correct orientation and placement. In addition, I would like to be able to run tester diagnostics at specified intervals and perform the preventive maintenance at specified intervals on testers. I am also interested in accounting and am already mastering the course in that field. I am a creative thinker, have an open mind about how should things work best. I also like to explore alternative solutions to problems. I am highly organized person and this feature helps me to be as productive as possible on the job. I am sure that position of supervisor requires more responsibility not only for my actions, but also for the activities other perform. That is why I find it as the area for my improvement as a leader to be able to attr act and retain employee’s attention on common goals and objectives. I have a strong vision of how my work should be organized, what should people do and what contribution I can do for the good of the entire

The Life of a Woman Found Guilty of a Crime under Sharia Law Research Paper

The Life of a Woman Found Guilty of a Crime under Sharia Law - Research Paper Example Islamic nations embracing the Islamic law dictate the conduct of women in the society. The law, primarily, prohibits sexual activity outside of marriage. In most cases, women usually face difficulties in defending themselves against this law. According to the provision of the law, the public has a jurisdiction of monitoring the conduct of women. This condition deprives women of making free choices over what kind of men they should marry. The case of Malaysian woman Siti Zan Binti Kamarudin against Public Prosecutor, held in 1979 for example, found the woman guilty without subjecting the man who impregnated the woman guilty. In essence, while the law intended to protect the society from moral decadence, it failed to handle male counterparts who contributed an equal amount to moral decay. In the sentence remark, the judge of the case indicated, the Siti had the right to sex; however, her parents had to take an active role in getting a man for their daughter. In Nigeria, Amina Lawalâ₠¬â„¢s sentence did not only attract international condemnation but also challenged the liberty law promoted globally. Although Amina was guilty of Zina as proved in the courts, the death sentence through stoning was cruel than the crime she had committed. Ironically, men in the same saga did not have a case to answer. In most cases of women convicted by the law, the evidence adduced in the case by the prosecutor usually show that women had an extra material affair because they have given birth to children.... Although Amina was guilty of Zina as proved in the courts, the death sentence through stoning was cruel than the crime she had committed. Ironically, men in the same saga did not have a case to answer. In most cases of women convicted by the law, the evidence adduced in the case by the prosecutor usually show that women had an extra material affair because they have given birth to children. This attribute makes the law selective. The provision in the law may subject women to sentence such as receiving strokes along side a jail term depending on the gravity of the case. Largely, the sexual desire that women harbor is not under their control but under the desire of men. It is the will of the man to choose when to have sex. In this sense, women act as minors who seek the guidance of a man in the society. The Sheria law prohibits a woman from entering into a relationship with non-Muslims. For instance, the case of Sakina binti Husain v Public prosecutor of Malaysia found Sakina guilt aft er she argued in the court that she had been cohabiting with a non-Muslim (Otto, 2011). Reading the convicting statement, the judge noted that Sakina had walked out of the precepts of the law by engaging in a relationship with a man who did not belong to his faith. Women convicted under Sheria law face public humiliation because the provisions of the law demand that the execution of the sentence has to occur in public domain. Women suffer psychologically under the Sharia law. It is traumatizing to think of the atrocities committed to women without choice. Largely, human values do not apply in countries that administer Sharia law. Women testimony does not fully count as that of a man in

Injustice Toward Women. Candide by Voltaire Essay

Injustice Toward Women. Candide by Voltaire - Essay Example Women who opposed the values of the society faced rejection and were not recognized within the populace. The purpose of focusing the study of injustice toward the woman is to emphasize that the novel will help us to develop the thesis of the study women identity from the starting point of women injustice in the society. Men claim to value and respect the dignity of women in the society, they abuse them at every opportunity. In the Novel, most of the significant female characters are raped and treated brutally by men characters this is depicted by Cunegonde who inform Candide of mistreatment during the war. In various countries, rules and laws are formulated to protect the injustice of women; although, the situation is not perfect the rules have helped to maintain women justice in society. Various human rights often do not recognize the justice rights of women around the world especially as they explain the subordination and injustices committed against women in society. Women suffer injustice in marriage laws and divorces the infidelity in the wife will always make most people to sympathize with man without tangible reasons of condemnation. As in almost all contract of marriages the husband has a substantial superiority to the wife. Thus, the injury done to his honor will be more grievous, as all effects done to a superior by inferior are more sensibly felt than those done to an inferior (Montes and Schliesser 51). The Voltaire’s novel Candide will help to discuss how injustice toward women affected the characters, and how the injustice is still significant in today’s society. The novel is full of exceptionally incident of the sexual exploitation of Women in the society, and this abuse was imposed on the three major characters old women, Cunegonde, and paquette. These characters were all raped, induced into sexual bondage that caused psychological, social, and physical problems. The victims were viewed as immoral, and many people looked down on th e victim without understanding the difficulties they had to endure. When Candide says he wants to marry Cunegonde, Maximilian refuses the marriage saying that Candide is not worthy to marry the product of generation of nobility in the society. The writer use three characters to demonstrate the extraordinary dangers that women are vulnerable and that affect the way they live in the society. Although, men really want a strong woman with outstanding virtues, many view these types of women as stubborn and bad example to society. The pressure on women’s time and the gender injustice that women face, with remarkable limited access to the productive resources, have serious implication for the sustainable development in the community. According to Montes and Schliesser (53) gender injustice, occur when women face ongoing covert attempts to maintain their subordination, and when men face sustained efforts to deprive them access to necessary resources or view them as inferior gender in the society. When women face the tests to existing relations of power, and their attempts to change the injustice condition, encounters severe outcomes. For example, the male character in the novel respect the power and sexual chastity in women, but when Cunegonde tries to show her dignity by defending her right, he makes it impossible for her and other women to value such sexual chastity. When a society exists with an unjust

Evaluation of Digital and Online Marketing Technology

Evaluation of Digital and Online Marketing Technology Part A Question 1 I believe online marketing tools are part of the marketing mix as channels that can be made use of. There may be diverted focus in regards to digital marketing if it is just used for advertising or promoting a product/service online. Digital marketing can be used in multiple ways whilst we consider facilitating it in an organisations marketing communication mix, rather than focus on 1 form of the marketing communication mix. As technologies are on a rise and the attention span of users is declining, I would suggest investigating marketing tools to help advertising via online content behaviour, understanding ways to inform consumers about the product if for example they were to search a certain product. If we look at the amount of data mining, consumer purchase behaviour and so on via the internet. The organisation can use such data to tap into relevant information that would help accelerate their sales or avail specific products whilst understanding the demand exists. If we look at A mazon and Google, these two organisations tend to have a lot of digital marketing working very well for them, as they have put it into practice in collecting information and monitoring what they purchase and how they purchase it. With such tools an organisation can tailor advertisements towards the users, we can see it more like an On-Demand Advert which would then grab the attention of users who are looking for specific items. There exists many accelerated ways of marketing on the web, with the level of innovation we have adopted, web marketing made it simpler to facilitate the following: Public Relations Investor Relations Customer Service Prospect Qualifications Product Sales Customer Interaction and Feedback Internal Communications With that all being said, the digital world has opened up more opportunities for marketers as to understanding Buyer behaviour, Communicating frequently to the customer, Public relations and so much more. Marketers tend to consider digital marketing to be more time-efficient and is used by the masses, hence it makes it easier to capture a wider reach, whereas the ways they market or allow themselves to be seen by the consumer may need to change as to avoid the click-through behaviour of the customer. I agree that digital marketing will become critical tools in brand building and other forms of communicating to the consumer, mainly Customer Relationships. Marketers can evade ad-blocks and such, if they just spend a bit of time trying to learn a bit about the online content behaviour and yet look out for technologies out there such as Geo-tagging, proximity marketing and so on. Question 2 As a marketing manager, there are 5 steps to evaluating digital technologies: Step 1: I would evaluate the goals of the organisations digital marketing campaigns by understanding the number of social shares our posts are receiving, size of our fan base on social networks, the amount of times Nike is being mentioned on social media, look up the number of positive reviews found online via consumers, check the amount of online traffic we are getting on our webpage as well as how many times links are being diverted to our webpage from other social media outlets. If all these things were done by the previous marketing team, I would look at whether or not the targets are being met, if not I would then revise our goals as to accommodate our objectives. Step 2: I would re-assess the target market, if it is changed I will have to facilitate an information search as to have an idea of the demographics, interests and online activities that the consumers may have, this will allow me to achieve consumer profiling as to marketing reasonable content to them. Step 3: I would have to look at our online digital presence, this means I will have to see how well Nike is doing in the social online environment, are they active or passive when it comes to public relations and customer relationships. Are they utilizing everything the online world has to offer from technologies that can be feasible to adopt? Step 4: I would evaluate the types of messages Nike is communicating to the consumers in digital form. Are they sending the right message to the right consumer? Is the consumer understanding the message and acting upon it, positively or negatively? Step 5: I would evaluate the performance of Nikes digital marketing campaigns. How is Nike benefiting from such channels? Are we making a profit while keeping costs low? Is our rate of investment on digital marketing visible to us, and is it positive? Question 3 I would utilize almost all online marketing tools to allow the visibility of the new product. The common marketing communication tools will be put into effect, such as advertising, promoting the concept in various trade shows, speaking opportunities as to describe the product, joint marketing, co-branding and many more traditional ways that can be broadcasted online via online content ads, which are simple adverts that will pop up due to their relevance whilst consumers maybe be browsing for a new phone for example. Search Engine Optimization. Get the word out there, be noticeable via social outlets. Email marketing is one way to inform the consumers about the product. Google AdWords to help online advertising. Bloggers or social media influencers, by offering the phone for testing by wide reach blogger or youtubers as to mention your product or talk in more detail about it. Online retail stores, you can be selective as to who you wish to sell the new phone and when they can sell it, such as your own website, amazon and the likes of amazon. The strategy would start differing as adoption rates either increase or decrease, if they increase then the organisation will need to be and stay proactive whilst dealing with public relations, enhance customer services and promote customer satisfaction, if they decrease I would then suggest revisiting the product and re-examining the whole process of the marketing communication. Part B Question 1 I would particularly evaluate why should McDonalds introduce a vegetable burger to their store? I will need to define the problem and understand where the information search should start, before developing the needed research, once that is arranged then I would identify the research method. It will either be Primary or Secondary, or both. For this particular scenario, I will explore the secondary data at first since it is cheaper, faster and available whereas this may be biased. For example, in certain region McDonalds can idealise a target market for such a product, such as in place where there exists a great population of vegetarians in compared to non-vegetarians, and see if the product gains popularity, if so they can proceed in furthering the choices of products in different places as to cater to the groups of people who are vegetarian per se. Therefore, I would select Descriptive and Causal research rather than Explanatory research. Once I have found the relevant, impartial, accurate and current data I require, we can advise for testing of the product as to not waste much time in looking for primary data, when such data can be availed to us by promoting the product on trial basis and see how well it does.

Forces Keeping Romeo And Juliet Apart in Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet :: William Shakespeare Romeo and Juliet

Romeo and Juliet are madly in love with each other and will go to any lengths to be together. To support my thesis that the conflict between the heads of the Montague and Capulet families are responsible for Romeo and Juliet's death, I quote from Romeo and Juliet (V, iii, 291-293) Prince: "... Capulet! Montague! See, what a scourge is laid upon your hate, that heaven finds means to kill your joys with love! What the Prince is saying is that, see what dreadful punishment has been laid upon your hatred. Heaven finds a reason to kill your joys with their love!" There are many forces in the tragic play of Romeo and Juliet that are keeping the two young, passionate lovers apart, all emanating from one main reason. In this essay I will discuss these as well as how love, in the end, may have been the cause that led to the tragic deaths of Romeo and Juliet. Their strong attraction to each other, which some call fate, determines where their forbidden love will take them. The leading force, in my opinion, that led to Romeo and Juliet's death is the conflict between the two fathers, Capulet and Montague. It's because of this conflict that Romeo and Juliet feel they must hide their love which, in the end, is the cause of their deaths. Because of this conflict, confrontations occurred and insults were thrown. Hatred is bred which is evident when Tybalt, who is Lady Capulet's nephew, joins the fight against the Montague family. Tybalt hates Romeo and doesn't hesitate to let it be known. The next force is hatred and it is widespread and commonplace in this play, it sometimes seems necessary for others to join the fight in order to portray loyalty for a particular person. Romeo wanted the fighting to end so he could announce his love and marriage to Juliet so he wasn't happy when his best friend, Mercuto, decided to stick up for him against Tybalt. In desperation, Romeo intervenes between the two, which in turn breaks Mercuto's concentration and allows Tybalt to stab him. Like any good friend, Romeo now has to challenge this death and fight Tybalt. Romeo kills Tybalt, which ultimately leads to his banishment. Romeo spent one night of passion with Juliet before going into "hiding" after killing Tybalt. He chose to hide in the Mantua countryside where nobody would recognize him.

A New Employee Reward and Recognition Program Essay

In efforts to increase motivation, increase employee job satisfaction, increase communications, and raise the employee retention rate, a rewards and recognition program could be implemented. Being a non-profit organization with no budgetary spending allotted for a rewards and recognition program, makes this project challenging. However, the benefits appear to tremendously outweigh the burdens. Therefore, planning and developing this program will be a both challenging and beneficial. Objectives of Planned Intervention Objective one would be to increase motivation. Employees lack motivation due to not be recognized for all of the hard work, dedication, sacrifice, and fortitude they have performed or given for the organization. Being motivated does not come easy for every person. It is hopeful that the implementation of an employee rewards and recognition program will provide the employees with a common goal in order to receive the recognition; thus, requiring them to be motivated to get the job done. A sizeable change in motivation is hopeful to be around 75-85%, given all employees participate. This will be observable and measurable by the amount of work accomplished as well as how much effort the employee devoted to it. Objective two would be to increase employee job satisfaction. This goal is the purpose for doing this project. Lack of recognition has caused many of the employees to develop negative behaviors and work morale. They feel unappreciated, overworked, insignificant, and ignored. It is hopeful that their feelings will change as a result of an employee rewards and recognition program being implemented. In correlation to the first objective, this objective is suspected to increase employee job satisfaction by 75-85%. Not only will the job satisfaction increase but so will work morale. With employees being happy in their place of employment, improved work morale would be promising. Objective three would be to increase communications. Communication is the key to a successful organization. At this point, there is little to none. What is there is vague and often incomprehensible. Confusion and frustration should minimize due to more systematic employee communications; this being one of the largest obstacles due to the size of the department and the distribution of our locations. Time management should improve due to the reduction of re-doing and/or elimination of the duplication of work done. The employee communication process and procedures will change in order to give a more systematical approach on communication. Objective four would be to raise the employee retention rate. Currently, it is difficult to retain substitute teachers and bus drivers more than any other employee. It is expectant that this rewards and recognition program will inspire these employees to want to stay. It is hopeful that they will be motivated in trying to obtain a permanent position due to this as well. These changes would occur in all four counties (a total of ten locations), as the employee rewards and recognition program is intended to be implemented department wide. This includes four satellite offices/classroom locations as well as six classroom only locations. Strategies to segment the program into quarters are probable. By the end of the first program quarter, a substantial change shall be noticeable. With great anticipation, by the end of the third program quarter at least half will be have made notable growth. Description of Intervention In effort to achieve the objectives stated above, a plan of action is needed. The organization currently has one recognition process which is for years of service. However, there is nothing in the policies and procedures manual outlining this process. Due to the budgetary restrictions, there will be a section added to the policies and procedures manual but rewards will be left to be determined. The new procedure will require some constant creativity and teamwork. Planning strategies to raise money will be a challenge but with some creativity and teamwork, it should be effortless. A few fundraising opportunities that can be done quarterly are as follows. A bake sale! In hopes that employees will join forces and want to initiate this change together, as it will not be handed to them, it will be asked that they donate a baked goods item to the bake sale on a given date. All proceeds will then go into a fun reserved for the employee rewards and recognition program. This could be done monthly or quarterly dependent upon how low the fund is running. A weekend community picnic! This will more than likely be done once a year, as it is a particularly large project and will expect employees to volunteer outside of work. All proceeds again going into the employee rewards and recognition program fund. Blue Jean or Casual Fridays! This would obviously be done on Fridays, every Friday if permissible. Any employee who wants to wear blue jeans or casual clothing will have to pay anywhere from one to two dollars. In correlation, a themed casual day could be implemented as well. Things such as football Friday, where the employee could wear their favorite sports jersey, or during the holidays, they could or dress say in costume on Halloween; of course for a fee.

The Death Penalty, the Practice of Capital Punishment

The Death Penalty, the Practice of Capital Punishment Free Online Research Papers The death penalty is the most arguable and notorious practice today. The concept of capital punishment is a way of deterrence, retribution, restraint or incapacitation rehabilitation and restoration is not new and it is very much understandable from the way human psychology is molded by the fear of happening, the same with themselves. The idea a of deterrence associated with capital punishment has weight and sense, making capital punishment a public example serves it purpose but any judicial system which works on any other principal than the principal of justice cant be trusted. The general moral question of whether government has the right to punish wrongdoers by killing them has long plagued philosophers and theologians. Supporters of the death penalty often argue with those who oppose it about the implications of certain verses in scripture and about the general question of whether people forfeit their right to life when they commit murder. Similar moral arguments focus on whether it is ever legitimate to execute someone for a crime committed as a juvenile or to execute the mentally impaired. Many opponents argue, moreover, that it is senseless for government to kill to show that killing is wrong. (Lawrence C. Marshall, Why the Death Penalty Should be Abolished). In the present day, what is required is a better and more influential judiciary system rather than just sentencing people to death or even long lifetime sentences. It is accepted that one must pay for his ill doings but for that the difference should be made at the level of justice. Justice shoul d be equal for all. The arguments against capital punishment are many and convincing and very influential rather than the ones, which are in its favor, they are not just few but are fallacious. Anthony Porter, thought to be a killer, was found guilty in a case of murder of two people back in the year 1982 and was to be sentenced to death in 1998. Just 48 hours before the implementation, a stay order was approved based on issue about his mental proficiency. A team of journalism students from Northwestern University took the interest and began to examine the case against Porter and after interviewing many witnesses who had testified or were somehow related to the case. After several months of investigation, what came to light was an astonishing fact that Anthony Porter was absolutely innocent and had nothing to do with the killings. On the contrary, the real culprit was found to be Alstory Simon not Anthony Porter. He himself admitted of his crime after his wife told that she was there when he killed them. Even afterwards the chief witness confessed that he had not seen the face of the killer, he just mentioned Ported because the police forced him to do so. Later in Februar y 1999, based on these new facts, Anthony Porter was released and Alstory Simon was charged with murder. Taking this example, we won’t be wrong to say that in the case of Porter Anthony his luck was there to save him, but is this the case of all the innocents being killed, just because they were bound to be killed? There are many arguments against the capital punishment, and on the other hand many people prove the arguments wrong, but what is the point here is how the punishment is enhanced. If we look at the previous record, it is quite cleat that most of the punishments were under the influence of prejudice. The death penalty may not deter but aggravate the crime; it is true with all such acts where justice is over come by discrimination. Death penalty was once practiced in most of the nations, but has been sanctioned by many still yet. In the late 20th century, some countries abolished the death penalty, imposing life sentences instead. Which is another debate? Is the capital punishment is actually a reason for a better social and judicial system? We don’t find any evidence supporting this question. The nations or states were death sentence is prevailed are at the same rate of crimes where there is no death sentence, but if we look at the figures we would see that in the past 20 years Texas, was the state with highest rate of crimes and is also the state with most death sentences given, infect taken into action hence it is not persuasive thus its practical value to society appears to be zilch. If we look at the other side of the image we would find that the fear of being caught and punished makes a person become very keen in doing what he wants to do, but the equality in the judiciary is a must. Still there is a lot of evidence that the decision making process in capital cases is enormously inaccurate. The courts have reversed more than two thirds of the death sentences that have been appealed; on retrial fewer than 20% of these defendants were found to deserve the death penalty, and 7% were found to be innocent of the crime itself (Leibman, Fagan, West, 2000). It is far a debate that in our system, race, wealth, status, geography and cast play a determining role of who should be charged or not. Harry Blackmun once declared, â€Å"Race continues to play a major role in determining who shall live and who shall die.† The judicial system is so biased that we find that when a person has power he will get away; the one with more power is seldom seen paying. The one with low status and race is the first one to be paying for what he has done, and even for what he hasn’t done. This difference of color, creed, status, race and language make the decision of death sentence so fake that it seems it must be stopped. Apart from the racial difference what is the other fact hindering in the way of justice is the fact that legal orders designed to inform the jurors decision between the death penalty and a life sentence are inexplicable, resulting in decisions that are capricious or legally wrong. The death penalty is discriminatory. Wealth, social status, race and geography play an obvious role in determining who is charged with a capital crime, convicted, and sentenced to death (Bright, 1994, Costanzo, 1997). Decades of research have failed to produce any persuasive evidence that the death penalty is more effective than life imprisonment as a deterrent to murder (Bailey Peterson, 1981). Punishment is supposed to be for the protection of society, and for the reformation of the wrongdoer. A punishment should make the person get cautious and should give others the sense of protection. Capital punishment though removes the culprit but is unable to remove the problem, and what is the use of just killing someone when one can’t make the problem solved? Taking a pain killer may stop the pain for the time but won’t make the problem vanish; it will reappear with time and with a much worse effect. Death sentence will no doubt remove one person but would not fill up the flaw, what is needed is to fill the flaws, not to make the flaws. Homicide rates from 1907 1963 in New York (which carried out 692 executions during that period) showed an average of two additional homicides in the month following an execution. (Bowers and Pierce 1980) Taking into account the extremity of the punishment, we know that life has been cut short, devoid of what the person, innocent in real or not, has in mind; he is not given a chance to reform himself. He may become a better person if given a chance, but it is on chance, but life itself is on chance. It is normal practice that kindness prevails; if once a person is given chance he may overcome his faults. But it is again on chance. The people committing murders or very much offensive crimes are mostly mental patients. So if they are really mental patients, then their fate should be treatment not a death sentence. In a 1987 study covering a period between 1900 to1985, it was found that 350 people were wrongly convicted and sentenced to death; 23 of these people were executed. (Radelet, Bedau and Putnam, 1992) Capital punishment is irreversible, and the errors of justice cannot be resolved when that person’s life is gone. All possibility of reassessment is taken away. What if an innocent person is hung, electrified, or given a lethal injection and has been punished for something he has never done. Then who should be the one paying for his life? The jury? The witness? The society? Or whom? â€Å"In view of the very uncertain and unequal character of our merely human endeavors to meet out justice, no proceedings of ours should be of this irrevocable character. So complex and uncertain is the process of sifting whereby finally a few individuals are sorted out from the mass and consigned to punishment, that the selection seems largely arbitrary, and we find that the actual convicts are no worse, and some perhaps even better, than many whom the hand of the law never reaches. What principle of equity or reason can justify us in singling out for our harshest treatment, by so haphazard a m ethod, a few individuals who for the most part manifest no particular reasons why they and they alone, should be so treated?† (To Abolish Capital Punishment: A Plea to the Citizens of every Country, Point Loma, 1914) The facts are that, using capital punishment will not make the crime vanish; it will only kill one more person and put one more family through hell. The real thing to be done is to make that person realize how bad is the effect of what he did, or what is awful. Just giving a death sentence would take away all hopes of many people. The only way to destroy a criminal is by changing his inside and the only way to do that is to give him time, this process may be long, but is far more influential that death sentence. And the duty of judicial system is to isolate such criminals so that there crime is washed away not their life. It is also a fact that when we cut short the life of a criminal, we just prompt the crime rather than giving it an end people who are found guilty are mostly found saying that â€Å"something came over mean I don’t know why I did it?† this shows that with the end of a culprit physically the crime prevails, the real end of a crime is to make people st rong enough to take over everything which tries to overcome them. Mercy is what makes others to over view what he has done, and this is the basic theme of every religion too. If one has done zealous crime, he must be punished, but not giving him a chance to amend is notorious. The role of the government has been very important but unfortunately it has done actions to take care of culprits but not to treat them as human beings. They have aright Io live, and being humans they have their full right to avail the human rights. If one does a wrong act the other should not repeat it would only enhance its effects rather than suppress it. The best way would be kind enough to make the other person realize of the severity of the crime. It should be included in the course and educational system to make the children aware of the hazardous effects of crimes. But should given them the difference at childhood so that when they grow they know the difference of good and bad, rather them just enforcing the laws. No one is perfect, every one sins, but why is it that we take our own sins for granted but when we see any other person has committed a crime we forget all laws and just want him to be punished, forgetting that every man commits sins, this is why he is human. For those who find themselves hysterical over these habeas corpus reform efforts, who believe that speeding up the appeals process will threaten the lives of those convicted and innocent, please contemplate the following question: What innocent or otherwise improperly convicted inmate would wish to linger a bit longer on death row as their attorney, snail-like, labored to prolong their wrongful stay on death row with a series of delayed and frivolous appeals? (jfa.net) The movement to abolish the death penalty needs the religious community because the heart of religion is about compassion, human rights, and the indivisible dignity of each human person made in the image of God. -Sister Helen Prejean The government should immediately call on to halt executions just to make sure that the unjust justice is checked. Capital punishment has been eradicated by most modern industrialized nations; it is not a deterrent to murder. Though the terror of being killed makes a man give a second thought to what he is doing, but the death penalty itself is engraving devastating effects. Even it has been observed that though with the severity of this crime, it is not the deterrent. It isn’t the end there are ways to make others realize their faults. And make them pay for it. But death penalty is not the disincentive.What we assume as an end in not the end, it is merely the beginning. Death is not the end of every crime; it is rather the way to more destruction. Giving time and attention to many prisoners have proved a very positive effect of them. If we want to amend the faults we all must take steps to stop the barbarous punishments as death penalties. And even if it is to be enhanced, it should be fully just, apart from prejudice, race, color, and creed and all such differences. Justice is for everyone not just rich or powerful. All that is just has a good effect, and even if justice would be enhanced to treat the real culprits, and to eradicate the crime our judiciary system needs amendments not death penalties. It is a well-known fact that when one is guilty and he is ashamed on that thing, then his half of the crime is washed a way. What is the flaw here is that the judiciary system does not give a loophole, for those who don’t have anything to prove. But on the contrary there is not just one but many ways for those who have power, race and a status. This proves to be a big flaw. Justice is for everyone devoid of cast creeds and colors and this is what is needed to prevail justice. Hence we can finally conclude that the deterrent power of the death penalty can never be proven with absolute certainty. The question still remain, is death penalty the solution? Or we should make amends in the justice system so that better and more influential judiciary system can be established. REFERENCES Liebman, J. S., Fagan, J., West, V.Capital attrition: Error rates in capital cases, 1973-1995. Texas Law Review. (2000) Uniform Crime Reports, 1980-1989 Lawrence C. Marshall, Why the Death Penalty should be abolished Bright, S. Counsel for the poor: The death sentence not for the worst crime, but for the worst lawyer. Yale Law Journal (1994) Costanzo, M. Just revenge: Costs and consequences of the death penalty (1997) Bowers and Pierce Deterrence or Brutalization in Crime of Delinquency (1980) Bailey, W.C., Peterson, R. D. Murder, capital punishment, and deterrence (1997) Radelet, Bedau, and Putnam, In Spite of innocence (1992) Point Loma, To Abolish Capital Punishment: A Plea to the Citizens of every Country (1914) Research Papers on The Death Penalty, the Practice of Capital PunishmentCapital PunishmentThe Fifth HorsemanArguments for Physician-Assisted Suicide (PAS)Comparison: Letter from Birmingham and CritoUnreasonable Searches and SeizuresThe Masque of the Red Death Room meaningsThe Relationship Between Delinquency and Drug UsePETSTEL analysis of IndiaThe Project Managment Office SystemRelationship between Media Coverage and Social and