The Legacy of the Vietnam War - 2297 Words

The Legacy of the Vietnam War The Legacy of the Vietnam War University of Phoenix The Legacy of the Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1965-1975) was fought between the North and South Vietnam. The North was called Democratic Republic of Vietnam and the South was the Republic of Vietnam which was supported by the United States. The Vietnam War brought so many mixed emotions, fear from communism, and many lost lives. The Vietnam War was also very costly the war had spending over $140 billion dollars, the war seemed to start with good intentions that seemed to get lost in the lengthy battle for the North’s freedom, unity, and hopes that America would put a stop to the continuing communistic presence from taking over in Indonesia. In†¦show more content†¦That and his sometimes radical view points; combined with the long and grueling war the American people couldn’t risk it. Antiwar Protests On January 27, 1973 there was the Paris Peace Accords that were signed, it this peace accord had restored some of the peace in Vietnam and had the U.S. forces pulled out. President Nixon had put a stop to all of the American attacks on Vietnam. Social movements have been something that is part of influencing and in shaping U.S. foreign policy. There were many organized protest that many protests that were done by the American people and was a factor that help push Nixon to eventually taking the troops out of Vietnam, even though this was not really his intentions when he was first elected for president. There was a protest on July 3rd, 1964, in Lafayette Park which was across the street from the White House, There was an activist Dave Dellinger that organized an antiwar demonstration. He got a group to walk up to the fences of the Whitehouse and knelt down there, it was to be an act of civil disobedience but no one had gotten arrested during this demonstration. With so many protests going on all around the United States there was yet to be an answer to all of the concerns the protestors had, so there these types of protests continued. There were many veterans that lived and died that never reallyShow MoreRelatedThe Legacy Of The Vietnam War1113 Words   |  5 PagesThe Vietnam War, similar to the past wars broke down, had an enduring financial legacy because of the expanded levels of government consumption which was financed by expansions in tax collection from 1968 to 1970. The victory in spending plan deficiencies was driven by both military and non-military expenses in mix with an expansionary financial arrangement that prompted quickly rising swelling in the mid-1970s. Figure six demonstrates the expansion in government spending which crested in 1968. UtilizationRead MoreThe Legacy Of The Vietnam War1832 Words   |  8 PagesThe Vietnam War is widely regarded as the lowest point in the history of U.S. foreign affairs. It mercilessly dragged an unwilling country on a fatal ride for twenty years, all while receiving low approval ratings and high funding. The Vietnam conflict served as an optimum environment fo r the virus of controversy. No one has more experience with controversy than Heinz Alfred Kissinger. He is the ultimate pragmatist, as embodying his philosophy of realpolitik, a diplomatic ideology based on utilitarianismRead MoreThe Legacy Of The Vietnam War934 Words   |  4 Pages Upon reflecting on the three main generations that comprise the workplace today, a few differences emerge. â€Å"Baby Boomers† grew up in a time when movements were prominent, the Vietnam War occurred, key figures were assassinated, the Watergate Scandal occurred, and television was introduced (Twenge et al., 2010; Schullery, 2013). Overall, â€Å"Baby Boomers† seem to exhibit a distrust of authority, value hard work, and want to enjoy their achievements (Robbins Judge, 2015; Twenge et al., 2010). As suchRead MoreThe Legacy Of The Vietnam War865 Words   |  4 Pages As a society, we are gradually losing faith in our political system. We live in a country casted by a shadowed of dark cloud, clouds of lie and arrogance. The Vietnam War, a war in which we are set up to believe is a war against communist, a war in which the United States felt they could have won, yet didn t. We brainwash our children to believe that the Indians and the pilgrims enjoyed a festive celebration yet we don t acknowledge that we wiped out almost their entire population and take overRead MoreThe Legacy Of The Vietnam War1517 Words   |  7 Pagesthe United States of America. First of all the Vietnam War was taking place during this time. It was a war that took place during the years that followed World War 2. These years were characteristic of the cold war era where political and military tension was still at an all time high between the United States of America and its NATO allies and the eastern allies of the Soviet Union. Therefore when war broke out between North Vietnam and South Vietnam the United States with its very anticommunistRead MoreThe Legacy Of The Vietnam War967 Words   |  4 Pagesyears afterwards. The Vietnam War had been going on for nine years up to this point, and the events that would occur during 1968 would help solidify anti-war sentiments. One of these events is the Tet Offensive, which occurred on January 30th, a campaign that targeted strategically important cites, all major US bases, and the Saigon embassy. While the losses were much heavier on the enemy side, the effects on the ARVN and the US army were more severe, with the realities of the war being exposed (RoarkRead MoreThe Legacy Of The Vietnam War Essay1246 Words   |  5 PagesWhile historians place considerable focus on his role in the Vietnam War, McNamara also helped shape the U.S.’s greater Cold War strategy. A large component of this included the relatively new field of nuclear politics. He understood the significance of nuclear weapons as a strategic tool for bargaining. Through clear messaging, the weapons could create gains while never actually being fired. However, he also proposed that nucl ear war could be limited, and not inevitably lead to global extinctionRead MoreThe Legacy Of The Vietnam War1691 Words   |  7 Pages1942, in the throes of World War II and the lingering aftershocks of the Great Depression, the movement of social and technological change that Brenhofer experienced was more than a quantitative list of advancements and historical events, but the melding of the two into a continual and formative span of life. The upheavals that Brenhofer would come face to face with in his time were indescribable, whether they be the lasting effects of the Vietnam War and every war that followed, or the events thatRead MoreThe Vietnam War : Nixon s Policy And Legacy Essay1540 Words   |  7 PagesThe Vietnam War: Nixon’s Policy and Legacy The true history of the Vietnam War does not appear to be widely know, and did not begin with the Eisenhower Administration, but in fact actually dates back to 1945 and the end of WWII. The issues first began when the Japanese recognized their lost efforts during WWII and surrendered. This is now as the First Indochina War, which took place between 1946 and continued until 1954. Their surrender left Vietnam vulnerable as they were now any formal nationalRead MoreThe Failure Of Guerilla Warfare Methods During The Vietnam War1369 Words   |  6 PagesGuerilla Warfare Methods in the Vietnam War: An Analysis of the Causality of the â€Å"Counter Insurgency† Governmental Policies and the Presidential Campaign of 1968 This colloquium will define the connection between various sources related to the â€Å"counter insurgency† policies of the American government throughout the 1960s that caused a slow escalation of the Vietnam War in the fight against communist expansion in Southeast Asia. The Campaign of 1968 defines the legacy of president Kennedy â€Å"counter

William Shakespeare is a renowned poet, playwright and...

William Shakespeare is a renowned poet, playwright and actor. Many believe that he was the most zealous writer in the English language and also the most significant playwright in history. Shakespeare wrote his plays for an assorted audience, he manipulated complex and universal themes such as patriarchy and gender roles while placing emphasis on women’s quest for power, equality, happiness and identity. Shakespeare embarked on issues that everyone could relate to, hence, his stylistic techniques appeal to an extensive audience. Shakespeare wrote for an â€Å"audience encompassing almost an entire social spectrum of his time- from the monarch to the working class citizens who could occasionally just afford a penny to see the play† (Anderson†¦show more content†¦in Singh 33). Shakespeare’s plays consistently reflect the social norms of the Elizabethan era; we witness the banishment of Cordelia in King Lear when she refuses to soothe her father’s ego by perpetuating over exaggerated compliments to gain her father’s love and fortune. The play opens up with an atmosphere of male and paternal dominance where the females or daughters are expected to conform to the gender role expectation and submit to male authority. In response to King Lear’s question of who loves him most, Cordelia replies; â€Å"Unhappy that I am, I cannot heave/My heart into my mouth: I love your Majesty/According to my bond; no more no less† (1.1.90-93). By refusing to add to her sisters fabricated lies of love and respect for her father, she is shunned for deflating herself from adapting the prescribed female gender role of doing and saying anything to please the masculine gender. Cordelia’s refusal to compliment can be seen as an act of resistance against Lear’s preconceived notion of love. Cordelia’s lack of words when describing her love for her father, hints at the silence that women during Shakespeare era were s ubjected to in terms of expressing displeasure. King Lear then vents his disapproval by stating; Let it be so; thy truth, then, be thy dower: For, by the sacred radiance of the sun, The mysteries of Hecate, and the night; By all the operation of the orbs From whom we do exist, and cease to be; Here I disclaim all myShow MoreRelatedEssay On William Shakespeare1127 Words   |  5 PagesThis is an informational essay about Poet, Actor, and Playwright,William Shakespeare. In this essay you can find much information ranging from fun facts to his death. This essay tells much about his life and includes some details of family members. The key purpose of this essay is to inform curious people about William Shakespeare. â€Å"I regard the theatre as the greatest of all art forms, the most immediate way in which a human being can share with another the sense of what it is to be a humanRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Influence On The Course Of World History1440 Words   |  6 Pages â€Å"He breathed upon dead bodies and brought them into life. Nor sequent centuries could hit Orbit and sum of Shakespeare’s wit† (â€Å"nosweatshakespeare†). This quote above was said by Ralph Waldo Emerson, a famous essayist inspired by Shakespeare’s works. William Shakespeare was a renowned author, poet, actor, and playwright. He has contributed to many components of life today such as; founding modern English language, contributing to literature, contributing to modern theater, and contributing manyRead More Doubt Of Shakespeares Authorship Of His Plays Essay2378 Words   |  10 Pagesexpressed doubt as to the authorship of William Shakespeare. These doubts are as old as his plays. American author, Henry James once said, quot;I am haunted by the conviction that the divine William is the biggest and the most successful fraud ever practiced on a patient world. (Hoffman 27) On the other hand, author Calvin Hoffman was convinced that Shakespeare was quot;the author of the most magnificent English dramatic prose and poetry ever written. (Hoffman 27) But, he reiterated this belief nineteenRead MoreThe Heartfelt Play, Romeo And Juliet, Exemplifies The Fact1473 Words   |  6 Pages William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616 ) is one the most influential writer in all of English Literature. He was born in Stratford England where he grew up and attended grammar school. He later married to Anne Hathaway in 1582 and their union produced three children. In 1590 he left his family behind to pursue his career being an Author and playwright in London and soon became successful to the point where he became part owner of The Globe Theatre. He was well known and a very reputable poet. InRead Moreâ€Å"the Spirit of Renaissance and Elizabethan Era†5448 Words   |  22 PagesThe English Renaissance was a cultural and artistic movement in England dating from the early 16th century to the early 17th century. It is associated with the pan-European Renaissance that many cultural historians believe originated in Tuscany in the 14th century. This era in English cultura l history is sometimes referred to as the age of Shakespeare or the Elizabethan era, the first period in English and British history to be named after a reigning monarch. Renaissance literally meansRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Much Ado About Nothing3289 Words   |  14 PagesSection One Title Analysis: As an author, William Shakespeare had titles ranging from the light at heart and ethereal to the rigid and formal. The title, Much Ado About Nothing, is one such title that fits very neatly into his light at heart category. However this doesn t mean that the title doesn t reflect the story as in Shakespeare s other plays. His light at heart stories have titles that are just as reflective as his more serious titles. The title is an obvious indicator of the story thatRead More Analysis of Shakespeares Antony and Cleopatra Essay5083 Words   |  21 Pages The most influential writer in all of English literature, William Shakespeare was born in 1564 to a successful middle-class glove maker in Stratford-upon-Avon, England. Shakespeare attended grammar school, but his formal education proceeded no further. In 1582 he married an older woman, Anne Hathaway, and had three children with her. Around 1590 he left his family behind and traveled to London to work as an actor and playwright. Public and critical acclaim quickly followed, and Shakespeare eventuallyRead MoreAN ANALYSIS PAPER ON ANTON CHEKHOV’S THE SEAGULL AND THE CHERRY ORCHARD12092 Words   |  49 PagesORCHARD Submitted to: Mrs. Joneth D. Vibar Submitted by: Vincent del Castillo IV-St.Francis of Assisi Outline of Analysis 1 Author’s Style 1.1 Anton Chekhov as a Playwright and Author of Short Stories 1.1.1 Russia’s best known Modern Playwright 1.1.1 Master of the Modern Short Story 1.2 Anton Chekhov and his Influences 1.2.1 Nineteenth Century Russia 1.2.2 His Contemporaries 1.2.2.1 Anton Chekhov and Leo Tolstoy

Feminism Ophelia Hamlet Free Essays

Aphelion’s struggles in the patriarchal society in which she lives and the loss of her identity as a whole, by not only her father, but other authorial males in her life. Throughout the beginning of the play, Aphelia, is used as somewhat of a pawn by all the male figures in her life, emotionally, physically, and even for sheer politics. Her lack of a mother figure and severe dependence on her father and brother, as well as other males, has literally taken away who she really is, her opportunity to make and act on her own decisions. We will write a custom essay sample on Feminism Ophelia Hamlet or any similar topic only for you Order Now Aphelia is treated by her father as if she is not only his daughter, but his possession. When Aphelia first speaks to her father about Hamlet, he states â€Å"l do not know, my lord, what I should think,† (1. 2). Polonium responds in an authoritative way, basically attesting himself as the decision maker. When he states â€Å"You do not understand yourself so clearly.. â€Å"(l . 3), he attacks her competence to handle herself. He goes on to say ‘†¦ As it behooves my daughter and your honor†(l . 3), making it clear that it would be in her best interest to behave according to the â€Å"set† standards and how she acts and presents herself, reflects onto him as her father and as a member of the kings court. It is clear he doesn’t care for Hamlet and ants his daughter to have nothing to do with him, convincing her that she is nothing to him.. But, after hearing more about Hamlet acted towards her by grabbing her and just staring into her, he takes full advantage of the situation and instructs his daughter to behave according to his best interests, to get closer to the king, Claudia. Aphelia, living in a male dominated world, has over the years, lost herself as a person, as a woman, doing things that she wouldn’t normally do, such as be a part of her fathers plan to expose Hamlets reason for his â€Å"madness. † During the time when the play was written, women were marginalia, often dewed as property, even with fathers and daughters. In that society a woman would be required to be a dutiful daughter, wife, and mother, and dare not stray away from those approved roles that were placed upon them. Aphelia, growing up always being the dutiful daughter, obeys her fathers wishes and follows through with the plan. The pitfalls to being a dutiful daughter, in her case, is that she lost the one man that made her happy, her lover, not only says horrid remarks to her, but breaks her down, and any little bit of â€Å"reality’ she had was lost forever. The hazards of being a dutiful daughter/mother/wife, are always present. There is the immediate consequences, then there are the ones that over time, as her character â€Å"screams† out to the audience, being oneself becomes obsolete. Her brother, Alerter, who is going back to France, also â€Å"advises† his sister to keep away from Hamlet. Expressing that Hamlet being a prince, would marry for the good of the state and due to the differences in class, Hamlet would not marry Aphelia. Alerter also believes that Hamlet cares for her but â€Å"loves† her only for sexual need. â€Å"Forward, not permanent, sweet, not lasting. † (1. 3). Unfortunately, exposing another â€Å"role† a woman would face in a patriarchal society, sexual roles. He is also concerned with her good name and family reputation, possibly implying that she could get pregnant and he would leave her, thus putting herself in a â€Å"unacceptable† role of a woman; a woman with a past, forever branding her and the family name. Hamlet plays on her emotional strings. He has expressed his love for her and has given her gifts. The sudden death of his father and finding out the reasons behind his death, as well as the disgust of his mother marrying so quickly afterwards, molds Hamlet too man he has never been before; untrusting, and very paranoid about others close to him, and for very good reason. He took out his anger with his mother on all who loved him. His only life line was Aphelia, the only one he thought of as true, or tried to make himself believe that she was, by grabbing her and observing her closely, as if he could see right through her. After her ultimate betrayal, by setting him up and lying to him about where her father was, she, cut off his life line. By doing so, he insults her, tells her that he loved her once, and belittles her to no end, until she is ambushed by so many emotions, that she is left in total confusion and heartbreak. With her brother in France, Hamlet rejecting their relationship, Aphelia finds out ere father has been killed by Hamlet. She in a sense, is left â€Å"alone,† and cannot handle herself, without the direction of her father , brother and Hamlet. At this point its clear, Aphelia has gone totally mad, Speaking very little, and if anything it is about her deceased father in chants and song. Now with the males in her life are gone, she has served her purpose in the story. She starts going down a downward spiral and shortly thereafter, she commits suicide, or at least it was implied that she did, by drowning. In conclusion, although a small, seemingly insignificant character, Aphelia, not only provides the reader to the philanthropic ideals and patriarchal attitudes towards women. But also serves to be somewhat like a mirror to the audience, one by one, â€Å"reflecting† the characters true self/intentions. Maybe being her ONLY purpose in the story to unveil her co-characters motive and who they really are in general. Polonium, her father, uses his daughter as some sort for property, for political gain and interest. Her brother, Alerter, again uses her for political reasons, somewhat, and to protect his name, uses her for the sake of his pride, and introduces sex, as Hamlets true goal with Aphelia. Then Hamlet himself, takes her on a reallocates of love/hate and confusion, labeling her as untrustworthy and corrupt, he destroys her emotional being, rendering her completely helpless and incompetent to handle life on her own. This view was the norm at the time, that many men saw as being true, that a woman will be nothing without a man but also fail to realize that without women men would hardly be anything as well, they need women, as shown in the play, to succeed in their own personal goals, whether financial, political or other. [1180] How to cite Feminism Ophelia Hamlet, Papers

Principles of Marketing Nike Inc free essay sample

Principles of MarketingNike, Inc11/25/2010| Prepared by: * Menino Pereira * Karthik Gowda * Shreyans Sethi Prepared by: * Menino Pereira * Karthik Gowda * Shreyans Sethi * Nike’s mission statement is all about combining the love for sports with a mutinous and headstrong nature to think out of the box by means of innovation and inspiration (Katz 1994) * Nike’s mission statement is all about combining the love for sports with a mutinous and headstrong nature to think out of the box by means of innovation and inspiration (Katz 1994) Principles of Marketing Principles of Marketing TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION3 The Story So Far3 MARKETING ORIENTATION3 Types of Orientation4 COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE7 Porter’s five forces7 Porter’s Generic Strategies9 The MARKETING MIX11 Product11 The Ansoff Matrix13 BCG Matrix14 Product Life Cycle16 Price19 Nike’s pricing Strategies20 Price versus Promotion Matrix21 Price versus Quality Matrix22 Place (Distribution)23 Nike -Direct Marketing24 Nike Indirect Marketing (Wholesalers Retailers)25 Value added services – Intermediaries25 Distribution strategies25 Promotion26 Nike’s promotional strategies27 Communication Model28 SWOT ANALYSIS OF NIKE INCORPORATED30 Strengths:30 Strong Brand Image30 Supplier Diversity30 High Growth31 Weakness:31 Recent Setbacks31 Child Labour and Sweat Shops31 Opportunities:31 New Product Launches31 Growth of e-Retail Industry32 Threats:32 Increase in Counterfeit Products32 Increase in Wage Rates32 Intense Competition32 UNDERSTANDING AND SUSTAINING COMPETITION33 REFERENCES34 INTRODUCTION Blessed from the mighty heavens by the Greek Goddess of Strength, Power and Victory read Nike; the brand has always captured one’s imagination and strengthened its position among the upper echelons of marketing icons. Nike’s marketing strategy draws your attention by interrupting you, attracting you, ensnaring you and finally and most importantly satisfying you. In a recent conference, Paul Knight , the charismatic founder and ex- CEO of Nike chose a divergent outlook to most other speakers on the subject of choosing Nike over competition. He asked people who run to rise from the comfort of their seats. He then asked those who run three or more times a week to keep standing. He looked on and `exquisitely announced –We are for you. â€Å"When you get up at 5 o’clock in the morning to go for a run, even if it’s cold and wet out, you go. And when you get to mile 4, we’re the one standing under the lamp post, out there in the cold and wet with you, cheering you on. We’re the inner athlete. We’re the inner champion. † â€Å"Just Do It is more than a tag line, it’s a motto. It’s a cheer. It’s a rallying cry† (Sinek 2010). A sublime demonstration which augments market segmentation, fortifies positioning, empowers brand building, and exemplifies relationship management in a snapshot, slowly and yet subtly hitting the sweet spot. The Story So Far More than 25 years ago, Co-founder Bill Bowerman used a waffle iron to conjure up a new sole for a pair of running shoes. Nike hasn’t looked back since. Innovation has been the mainspring for a company exalting in its enduring success. With insufficient funds to indulge in advertising, Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman took to the streets, selling shoes at local athletic meets from the backs of their trucks. The word-of-foot gripped the sporting fraternity and marked the beginning of Nike’s success on track. Then came the late 80’s and with it the pain of losing out on sales to Reebok who introduced training shoes, tailor made for a growing breed – health conscious women. In a bid to regain market share, Nike played to their strength and countered punched with new models of shoes designed for various sports as per customer requirements. This was the phase when Knight and Bowman realized the importance of aggressive marketing coupled with product innovation and began to invest a princely part of corporate revenues towards marketing and advertising. By the early 90’s, Nike was ranked as one of the best advertisers in the world, soulfully striking one’s emotional chords rather than the rationale ones (McDonough and Braungart 2002). MARKETING ORIENTATION In the earlier days, Nike was known to be a product oriented organization. The motto was to just plainly and simply just sell shoes . Gradually that changed as a function of time with the focus shifting to a more customer oriented approach. Prime importance was given to the consumer by endlessly striving to develop new and high quality products catering to their specific needs whilst endearing them with the feel good factor(Armstrong ,Harker ,Kotler and Brennan 2009:41) Question is can an organisation only survive and continue to grow in the market by just being customer oriented? Well it is imperative to be customer oriented because if any organisation fails to value the importance of the customers and wants to trade on its own terms then in this competitive world, such an organisation will cease to exist. The only exception to this is that when an organisation works in a monopoly market which does not exist these days. Organisations have the onus of keeping the stakeholders happy. Stakeholders are those groups without whose support the organization would be a meltdown. They generally comprise of investors, creditors, suppliers, community and consumers. Barring the consumers, the other stakeholders will only be happy when they get suitable return on their investments, job and growth opportunities etc. In this context, it’s worth mentioning MBO i. e. Management by objective which simply refers to motivate and channelize one’s efforts by suitably awarding or remunerating them and getting the best out them. The individuals think at the end of the day that they have achieved their objective. But it is paramount to keeping them motivated as they would head towards attaining the organisations targets and objectives. So, as a whole Nike is customer as well as sales oriented because only such organisations that are bi-oriented make it to the top and sustain rather than the ones who fail to recognise the importance of the blend. Types of Orientation | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Adapted from Principles of Marketing (David Jobber) Product Oriented Product oriented organisations are those which centre its activities on continually improving and refining it’s products or services so that customers get the best value for the money spent on these products or services. In simple words, in this type of orientation organisations look for ways how to delight their customers. Innovation and quality management is the key to be successful using this marketing strategy. The earlier approach used by some business that whatever is put forward to the customer, he/she will accept it or that there is buyer for everything that a manufacturer produces does not work any longer. Nowadays, organisations have realised the importance of treating their customer’s views seriously and put them into account whenever new products or services are launched . This involves managerial functions of research and development, design, testing, marketing, quality management and various other functions. Nike used to be a product oriented that constantly endeavoured to innovate with products that are comfortable, durable and value for money. In the early days, they would just manufacture shoes and aggressively sell them. But in the late 80’s, it became apparent that they were missing a trick as Reebok overtook them in sales by catering to market needs. This is when there was a realization that a product oriented approach was inhibiting and a customer focussed outlook was the best way forward. A virtual group was formed within the organization to set about working on ways and means of approaching the market along with the perceptions, culture changes and a different thought process about business(Velsor, McCauley and Rudeman 2010:324) . The rest is history! Market/Customer Orientation A market orientated company is one that organises its activities, products and services around the wants and needs of its customers. Until recently not many organisations were customer oriented. A major swing towards market-orientation has led to intensified market research and product ranges carefully designed to fir customer preferences. In these customers wants and needs are given penultimate preference rather than developing products which are just imposed on the customers. Being market oriented makes the companies less vulnerable to product failures as in the first place the products are developed and introduced at the right time as per the customers’ needs. Organisations treat this with utmost importance and have able people with a foresight hired to handle the customer preoccupied department (Heiens 2000) Nike has gauged this and strived to be highly customer oriented. They have their designers and strategists work around the year to develop products and making sure that they are introduced in the market at the right time . Timing of the launch of product is very important for the product to become a cash cow. They have seen steady rise in profits since the time that they have started treating customer’s views and financial conditions prevailing in the market at any given time with importance. For example, in the times of recession there is no point of launching a luxury shoe in the market. The people are anyways bearing the brunt of a depressed economy and would become very cautious of what they are spending on during such hard times. Instead, it would be wise to introduce a shoe which is not very expensive -something like a ‘budget shoe’. What this will do is that it will help Nike in the long term by keeping the customers loyal to them even during recession times. People will associate with them more as they will see Nike as a company who still looked after the customers’ interests during tough times and will also help Nike build a good image of it in the minds of the people. By employing such strategy it is also possible that Nike may be able to attract customers who were using other brands as Nike is providing better quality shoes at a lesser rate. This can help generate new business even in hard times. Also, Nike was a pioneer in coming up with a product named â€Å"NIKEID†. This is a service that helps people to customise a product for themselves. This was a giant step by Nike to provide customers with a personalised experience thereby giving them an impression of well looked after and cared for. This was a masterstroke in terms of generating more business, increasing customer loyalty and probably referrals. Hence as Market/Customer Oriented, Nike should continue to – Carry out research as to what customers want and develop products on lines of customer research. The company should also think of new ideas to keep the customers happy and test new products in smaller market before launching them into wider market to ensure what has been developed is in line to what people want. Sales Oriented Such an organisation’s main objective is to maximise the profits at any cost. This kind of orientation is also necessary as the main aim with an organisation is created is to earn profits via sales. It has a liability towards its stakeholders to show that it’s doing well and progressing steadily or at least it’s stable and sustainable in the long run. People get confidence in any organisation when they foresee a reasonable rate of return on their investment or probably the amount of labour they put in taking the organisation ahead. Since, long profit has been an indicator of the health of an organisation, the first thing that people ask is whether an organisation is making profit or loss or at least is it breaking even. Hence, to answer these questions and keep everyone happy and interested in the organisation, companies have to adopt a sales oriented strategy as well. Sales oriented organisation helps itself to grow fast since profits can be earmarked for growth plans in other countries or probably for introduction of new product lines. Nike has got their strategy bang on in the sales orientation area. Their low manufacturing costs and high selling price has helped them scale unprecedented heights. Revenue generation of 19 million and a net income of 1. 9 million in 2010 are sums that speak for themselves. The soaring profits have helped them further invest in diversifying and entering new markets. This has also kept all stakeholders involved content in terms of monetary as well as non-monetary benefits. COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE Competitive advantage can be defined as a set of exclusive features and offerings of a company that are perceived by markets to be a step ahead of competition (Lamb, Hair and McDaniel 2010:39). By constantly embarking on innovative time and again, Nike has come to be known as the most successful player in the past and continues to be today. How has Nike become the biggest player of the game? How has it successfully captured almost half of the market in sport sector? Well, they JUST DID IT and are continuing to JUST DO IT! Roots to competitive advantage: It is obvious that it has not been a red carpet journey for Nike. The way Nike whiffs at the opportunities and with the way it approaches challenges makes it unconquerable. Apart from having vital and enthusiastic workforce and entrepreneurial attitude, its wide range of quality products, effective efficient marketing tactics and strong presence in e-retail industry give Nike an extra edge. Price and product differentiation, an impact the swoosh logo has created, greater benefit (utility) to customers are a few reason why company is still at the top. Corporations often seek to achieve both productivity and differential advantages but only a few succeed. Nike features right up top. Porter’s five forces Sustainable competitive advantage is when one company’s value creating products are impossible to imitate by its competitors. Michael Porter’s model helps to understand the sources of Nike’s sustainable competitive advantage over its rivals. Adapted from Competitive Advantage (Michael Porter) Threat of new entrance Apart from the usual suspects, competition cannot be underestimated from new contestants in the industry. This affects the business more or less in a negative manner with the newbies eating into the profits of the already established brands. In the case of Nike, new competitors like Under Armour are rapidly move up the ranks and are certainly the ones to be watched out for. Threat of substitute products This threat thrusts the company towards constant innovation and also pushes to produce cost effective products. Nike felt the ill effects of Doc Martens persuasion of making young buyers experience hiking style sneakers in place of traditional shoes. Bargaining power of customers Consumers dont just buy a product for its attributes. They purchase it for the experience, value and the emotional benefit that the product provides. During intense competition, technological lead is not enough and the company must possess strategic marketing and presenting capabilities. It is very important to make the buyer a feel that they have purchased the best available product in the market. Nike is in a position of strength having accumulated a loyal customer base. All they need to ensure is to come up with appealing products at regular intervals of time. Bargaining power of suppliers How much of a bearing does the supplier have on the overall business of the organization? The suppliers call the shots in terms of bargaining power to companies that depend on one of them and are devoid of any alternatives. Conversely, a business can hold the upper foot on the suppliers as is the case with Nike. Nike does not make its own shoes, using private contractors In Vietnam to get the job done. They exercise control by paying low wages to helpless factory workers and threatening to switch factories in case of anomalies (Lussier and Kimball 2009:90). Competitive Rivalry This is described as the jockeying and scrambling for position. Cut throat competition ceases to exist over a combination of factors like quality, price and speed. Nike faces strong competition from Adidas-Reebok, Fila and Puma. One’s move is monitored and anticipated diligently by the other. (Lussier and Kimball 2009:90). Porter’s Generic Strategies Nike falls into the differentiation strategy quadrant. Their successful brand management strategies have ensured that their products remain less price sensitive on the backdrop of a loyal customer base. Nike’s position has made it even harder for emerging competitors to break into the lucrative market. Market Share – Key Players Nike has a substantial competitive advantage over its rivals in terms of market share. Its brand image has largely benefitted from its reputation for innovation and quality placing it as number one in the apparel and athletic footwear industries. In terms of e-commerce, Nike is a step ahead of competition with their highly interactive website. They have adopted a merchant model encompassing three pillars of their e-commerce approach: bricks and clicks, pure-play e-retailers and an online store to help them market and promote products. The Internet has helped Nike reduce cost and increase sales. The website has helped them conduct market research and analyse customer’s buyer behaviour. This has helped them spring out exciting promotions and marketing campaigns. Nike has also moved into a strategy of lobal 3 marketing capitalization whist their competitors suffer from a restricted distribution line of attack. Graph of competitive advantage: Altman Z-Score By combining 5 different ratios, Edward Altman came up with a very useful tool called Altman Z-Score which uses statistical techniques to predict a companys fiscal-fitness using the 8 variables from a companys financial statements. Based on this evaluation, we can compa re Nike’s credit risk with others. Nike| 6. 94| Adidas Group| 2. 5| Reebok| 4. 37| Score (;2. 99) – Safe zone Score (between 2. 7 and 2. 9) – Grey zone (exercise caution) Score (between 1. 8 and 2. 7) – Based on the financial figures only, company in distress zone (going bankrupt within 2 years of operations). Score (;1. 80) – Bankruptcy Imminent Nike stands high with the score of 6. 94 The MARKETING MIX Adapted from Exploring Business (Karen Collins) One of the key ingredients of the perfect marketing recipe comes by way of blending in the marketing mix. The key elements of the marketing mix are a set of interrelated entities which are set in unison with one another. (Proctor, 2001: 212). The marketing mix is a combination of the 4 P’s Product, Price, Place and Promotion for any business venture. We shall evaluate the positive and negative impact of Nike’s marketing mix in more detail. Product Product is the company’s offering via goods or services to the customer. A product can be viewed at three different levels: Adapted from Selling and Sales Management (David Jobber) * Core Product It is the main benefit that the product offers to the customer. In the case of footwear, it is meant to protect and comfort the human foot whilst it is on the move * Total Product (adding value) The chief aim is to ensure that customers purchase your brand. Nike has been a dominant player in the footwear market over the years. Their well-crafted design, innovative products, marketing and brand building activities have helped them gain a differential advantage over their rivals. Their packaging and labelling has been state of the art over generations. * Augmented Product(Extended Product) The non-tangible benefits that the product can offer. This encapsulates customer service, after sales and warranty. Nike prides itself on excellent customer services with faulty products instantly replaced without any flutter. Nike warranty time is standard to current markets. Today, Nike’s products are manufactured in more than 700 factories, employing over 500,000 workers in 51 countries. The company, through its Footwear segment, offers footwear products for men, women and children. Through its Apparel segment, it is engaged in selling sports apparel and other accessories designed for specific purposes. Under the Equipment segment, the company offers a range of performance equipment such as bags, socks, timepieces, sport balls, electronic devices. Other segment offerings are brands such as Cole Haan, Converse, Hurley, NIKE Golf and Umbro. Over the years, Nike has changed the way the game is played with its wide range of products. Nike’s offerings have been in the ascendancy with the sales of 175 different styles of shoes in the 1980’s springing to almost 772 different styles in the 1990’s collections to a remarkable 1200 different styles showcased in the 2000 collection. Nike Air Max was the first line of shoes introduced in 1987 with frequent additions in the same product line over the years. The Air Jordan XX3 was its marquee shoe product designed for basketball with the contemporary issue of environment consciousness in mind. The Ansoff Matrix The Ansoff Matrix is a marketing tool developed to help marketers figure out the best way to grow their business via new and existing products and new and existing markets. The four strategies involved comprise of (Kotler, 2006:48): Adapted from Marketing Management (Philip Kotler) Market Penetration Market penetration is built around marketing existing products to existing markets. Some of the techniques involved to increase revenue are promoting the product, professing brand loyalty etc. Nike has invested heavily in drawing up an elevated level of brand awareness to its omnipresent customer base by way of sponsorships, advertising and promotional activities. The company have significantly revamped their supply chain system which in the past has hampered their quest to meet global customer demands. They have also driven their retail based sales strategy to maintain their shelf space with enticing incentives. Market Development Market development focuses on marketing existing products to new markets. Some of the methods involved in capturing a new audience are exporting products, targeting a new market segment etc. Nike has effectively been able to expand geographically with their multifarious product offerings. They pulled off a masterstroke in 2003 signing up Liu Xiang, China’s first gold medallist at the Olympics . This was followed by an advertisement showcasing his muscle and that of a nation with the trademark Swoosh on his shoulder. The result – a walloping 66% rise in sales of its core products in China in what was the start of an intangible treasure hunt. Product Development Product development talks about marketing new products to existing markets. The capabilities here involve innovating new products to replace already existing ones. Nike has constantly been on the run with its technically advanced shoes time and again. The classic example is that of the Air Jordan Lines. There have been a staggering 25 major models of the product released over the past 25 years with variable designs and signature performance re-layers. Diversification Diversification thrives on marketing new products to new markets. It can be classified as related and unrelated. Related means remaining in the same market one is familiar with. Unrelated is delving into a new industry with no marketing experience. Nike has followed related diversification. The Prime example: adding the clothing line to its existing shoe operations. Nike has introduced a 3D soccer game available for download from their website which advertises their key products. This is targeted on a global scale at youngsters who gradually get associated with the product – catch them young they say! BCG Matrix The Boston Consulting Group matrix is a chart designed to help companies analyse the performance of their business units. The market growth and market share dimensions provide a handy evaluation for the company on how to prioritize their product portfolio. Adapted from Perspectives on Strategy – (Carl W Stern/George Stalk) Cash cows earn a lot of revenue and the onus is on stability strategies. In Nike’s case, a vintage example is that of the Air Jordan sneakers. They exhibit low growth but already have a dominant market share. Stars are fledging businesses that thrive on accelerated growth of market share. Companies tend to reinvest their profits back into the business hoping to gain enough market-share to envisage themselves as cash cows. Nike has recently announced quadrupling their investments in apparel innovation and trends citing it as their biggest opportunity in the next five years. Nike has also developed its Nike+ products combining the best of both worlds – superior products and technology. Question marks are new businesses whereby companies delve into expanding markets albeit with a low market share. Companies use share profits from other businesses to try converting a question mark into a star. Fitting example of a question mark in Nike’s case are their recent watches and electronic products designed to capture more market share. Dogs yield low returns in a low growing market. Companies tend to employ turnaround and retrenchment strategies for their dogs or even dispose them off if they don’t foresee a measurable future. The Nike brass decided to sell Bauer Hockey in 2008 in the event of tight margins in hard goods and a flat hockey market. Product Life Cycle Product life cycle explains the history of a product and the stages which it went through. It can be divided into the following stages: Introduction Stage: When a product is introduced, sales are going to be low till the customers become aware of the product and its benefits. During this stage, the companies will try to establish a market and build a demand for the product. Growth Stage: The growth stage is a period of quick revenue growth. Sales start increasing as customers start getting to know the product and its benefits . Sales will increase further as retailers express their interest in stocking the product. Maturity Stage: Maturity stage is the most profitable phase. Advertising expenditure will be reduced. Competition by other firms on similar products will be foreseen. The primary objective at this stage is defending market share whilst going hell for leather with profit making. Decline Stage: Sales gradually begin to decline because of a potential variance in customer tastes. The market reaches its threshold for the particular product. Decrease in sales leads to either less or no profit at all. Air Jordan (Example – 1) Air Jordan, also simply as  Jordan’s  are a brand of shoes and athletic apparel produced by  Nike  originally designed for a very well-known professional  NBA  basketball player  Michael Jordan. The Air Jordan line is now sold by the  Jordan Brand  subsidiary of Nike. Since its first release in 1985, there have been new designs of the shoe released each year and have been making decent profits even after Michael Jordan retired from the NBA. Below is the Life cycle for this product: Nike introduced the first series of Air Jordan shoes in 1985, there were a multiple series released till date. The above graph illustrates the stages this product went through in product life cycle, which was introduced in 1985. It had a decent introduction, it reached the next stage i. growth by 1992 and made a good amount of profit and reached a maturity state by 1998 and has maintained stability in this stage till date. Nike Hockey Sticks (Example – 2) In 1994, the year Nike bought Montreals Canstar Sports, maker of the popular Bauer skates and other equipment, it then manufactured the series of hockey sticks between 2004 -06 in china. Random testing by health has found the lead in t he sticks far exceeds the acceptable tolerance and because the sticks are used by youths, lead is especially harmful. Approximately 100,000 sticks have been found to have dangerous levels of lead. Nike Bauer has issued a recall that takes the sticks out of the hands of youth and junior players. Below is the product life cycle for this product: The above graph illustrates the sudden decline of a product. Nike introduced different models of Hockey sticks for respective customers in American region in the year of 2008. This product has not gone through the stages which comes before the decline stage, since, quite before the product would start growing, it started to decline since the sticks were found harmful to be played with. Positive Impact: Nike’s gift to the world lies in the comfort of mankind’s happy feet. Creativity has always been Nike’s forte and it comes as no surprise that they have toyed with the idea of customers designing their own shoes. Watching over the process of production of their creation adds to customer satisfaction and gives them a sign of belonging. Keeping abreast with technology, Nike has collaborated with Apple Inc. to produce the Nike+ product used to monitor a runners performance through a radio device in the shoe linked to the iPod Nano. The cricketing fraternity has largely benefitted from the Air Zoom Yorker, devised to be 30% lighter than competitor shoes. Athletes have found the Nike Free edition to be a major boon with the design allowing foot muscles to gain strength by way of less constriction mechanism. Basketball players found the Nike Hyper dunk to be quite useful with its superior shock absorption techniques minimizing the impact of stress on the muscles. Customer satisfaction can be directly mapped to the success of the company. Nike’s capture of market share with its diversified product range has seen its revenue shoot through the roof in recent years. Nike, Inc. , Performance Chart (2006-2010) (USD Millions)| | Global Data Limited 2010| Negative Impact Nike also had its fair share of brickbats with respect to its products. Its futuristic-looking hockey skates bombed in the markets during the late 1990’s. The failure was deduced to be a result of rushing the product into the market before fully straightening out the probable design problems. A good 13 years after acquiring Bauer, and arrogantly making promises that it would revolutionize the business of hockey, Nike eventually sold its Nike Bauer unit to investors Roustan Inc. and Kohlberg ; Co on February 2008, an unassuming fall from grace for one of the world’s powerful brands. Though Nike Bauer was a market leader, it was predicted that the company would find it hard to recover even half the $395 million amount it paid for Canstar Sports, Bauer’s Montreal-based parent, in December 1994 mainly due to the stagnant hockey market. Nike as a company was built on the assertion that low cost and high quality running shoes could be imported from cheap Asian markets like Japan and sold in the US. Nike felt the negative tremors as allegations were rife that they underpaid factory workers in Indonesia – they sold shoes for around about $150 and paid the person making them a meagre 50 cents. Along came the by-products of child labour in Cambodia and Pakistan and unsatisfactory working conditions in China and Vietnam during production. Recently, Nike has brought about winds of change towards its irrelevant practices and is also dedicating its efforts towards environmentally responsible business operations Price Price is one the key component which more or less decides the fate of a company. It is a return on efforts poured into manufacturing and marketing a product. Listed below are the various components of an effective pricing strategy (Proth and Dolgui, 2010: 101) Pricing Strategies Nike’s pricing Strategies Nike’s pricing strategy all comes down to understanding the products, competition, marketing the product and most importantly determining which price point is the best for their product. Needless to say, it is very rare that an organization makes use of all the above permutations and combinations in pricing techniques. Nike is no different with its pricing strategy revolving around penetration pricing, premium pricing, value pricing, skimming pricing and psychological pricing. Skimming pricing This approach dwells on skimming market profits layer by layer. Nike has used this to good effect in setting high initial prices for the new design they bring into the market. This is then tailgated by a gradual decline in price as the design has been in the market for a while and a new product is on its way. Price versus Promotion Matrix Adapted from Principles of Marketing (David Jobber) Penetration Pricing Nike initially started out on the principle of penetration pricing so as to capture market share and then gradually increased prices. Premium Pricing As Nike exclusive products developed; it became recognizable to consumers in that marketplace. This drove its perceived value to a higher level especially with the limited editions of the Air Jordan’s. Value pricing Nike went about setting the price to the degree at which consumer’s place their value on the product. It is at this very point that customers associated themselves with Nike and paid the extra penny, as long as their products remained state of the art and exhibited the cutting edge. Psychological pricing Nike has priced their products to $99. 99 (for example). After all in one’s mind, a . 99 is always cheaper than a . 00. Nike employs a rapid skimming strategy of setting high prices as well as investing heavily in advertising the new product. Generally, Nike shoes current season last for a period between 3 to 6 months where they are sold at peak prices. After that season, comes a process called closeout where prices are gradually reduced. The final stage is that of the inventory cleanout where a take all basis strategy is employed to sales. Price versus Quality Matrix Nike’s quality is directly proportional to its commitment of excellence. Excellence comes at a premium and fittingly so. This places Nike in the upper rightmost quadrant of the Price vs. Quality matrix. Nike’s products are well worth their weight in gold. Positive Impact Nike’s dominance in the market through its vehement promotional strategy coupled with a smart pricing function makes the market as a whole unattractive for competitors. In most cases, it has identified the precise price points across its range of products. The impact of Nike’s pricing strategies can be seen in its overwhelming sales and profit margins (on a single pair of shoes!!! ) as depicted below. Breakdown of costs for a pair of Nike shoes from an Indonesian plant (Lormand 1995) Production labour Rent, equipment Materials Duties Supplier’s operating cost Shipping Cost to Nike| $2. 75 $3. 00 $9. 00 $3. 00 $3. 00 $0. 50 | $20. 00| Promotion and advertising Research and development Nike’s operating profit Sales, distribution, and admin. Cost to Retailer| $4. 00 $0. 25 $6. 23 $5. 00 | $35. 50| Retailers rent Personnel Retailers Operating profit Others Cost to consumer| $9. 00 $9. 50 $9. 00 $7. 00| $70. 00| Negative Impact Nike’s pricing strategy has not always been quaint. The Air Jordan brand shoes were premium priced, released once every year in order to keep the value of the shoe as high as possible and make it a collector’s item. However, this has prompted this line of shoe to be highly duplicated or imitated which has become a major headache for Nike with the virus spreading to the other products just as well. In 2003, the overpriced Air Jordan’s at $200 were biting the dust on store shelves as consumers shifted base to Sketchers (SKX ), K-Swiss (KSWS ), and New Balance shoes who slowly began nibbling away at Nike’s heels. Nike has not utilised all the strategies of pricing. Each and every pricing strategy has its own advantages and disadvantages. Nike can venture into approaches like promotional pricing as an attraction tool for the customer by mentioning the word FREE. Nike can also utilize product bundle pricing by combining products (with a high and low demand) and selling them at a discounted price. Place (Distribution) Place pin points to effective distribution of products or services to the end customers. It is paramount for the organization to correctly estimate the needs and wants of the customers to meet its marketing objectives. Adapted from Principles of Marketing (David Jobber) Channel 1: Direct Marketing (No intermediaries) The direct marketing channel has no intermediaries. The company sells straight to the customers. Channel 2: Indirect Marketing (One intermediary) The first level of indirect marketing involves one intermediary. The company sells its goods to large retailers who in turn line them up for customers. Channel 3: Indirect Marketing (Two intermediaries) The second level of indirect marketing involves two intermediaries. The company sells its goods to wholesalers who buy in bulk and sell them to smaller retailers. Channel 4: Indirect Marketing (Three intermediaries) The third level of indirect marketing involves three intermediaries. The company sells its goods to agents who contact wholesalers who further sell to retailers. From the view of the producers, more number of levels leads to higher complexity and much less control. Nike employs these channels to good effect. Here’s how: Nike -Direct Marketing By 1999, NIKE had opened 13 of their privately owned NIKE Town superstores located in high traffic upmarket surroundings. The first of those was a posh store in Portland which was soon bettered by a larger than life outlet in downtown Chicago. Nike also operated 53 outlet locations focussed on liquidating overstocked and outdated inventory. NIKE redesigned and overhauled their website incorporated with e-commerce functionality. A variety of products were put up for sale at full retail prices (McIntyre and Perlman 2000). Nike Indirect Marketing (Wholesalers Retailers) Nike’s store formats include a mix of departmental stores, footwear stores, goods stores, tennis, skate and golf shops, and as well as retail accounts. Nike store are centrally located and easily accessible. The company operates three significant distribution centres located at Memphis, Tennessee and Wilsonville, Oregon in the US. Then, there are the leased distribution facilities which operate on a comparatively smaller scale in the home country. Nike also runs 14 distribution centres worldwide with Japan and Belgium among their prime locations. Nike controls 338 retail stores in the US and 336 stores worldwide. Nike’s products are distributed on a level basis. Highly priced premium products are saved up for some distributors whereas lowly priced products are readily sold to mammoth stores such as Wal-Mart at cut prices. Value added services – Intermediaries Nike benefits from a strong intermediary nexus. Stores like Footlocker contribute significantly to Nike’s successful performance as an organization. They help in all of the above mentioned aspects(in chart) especially reducing transactional costs, providing after sales benefits, finance and marketing benediction and state of the art storage space . Distribution strategies Nike follows an intensive distribution strategy where products are stocked in scores of outlets. They are readily made available to genuine and interested intermediaries so as to further help them extend their reach to the end customers. For example in the UK, Nike products can be found in retail outlets like JJB Sports , supermarkets like Tesco’s as well as promotional exhibition fairs. Positive impacts As Nike’s market share grew, it buoyed merchants who carried their products. This helped Nike negotiate terms with retailers on location, display and inventory levels all of which contributed to the overall customer experience. Nike towns in Portland and Chicago became an instant hit with customers flocking in to witness the two-story wall painting of Michael Jordan and trying out shoes in the mini basketball courts. Souvenirs and other rarities was a showcase for the latest Nike had to offer and helped in brand building activities. The 53 stores opened up for liquidation served as a handy means for getting rid of excess inventory whilst maintaining control of the brand. Nike’s re- launched website keying in on inspirational content as well as innovative products was met with a phenomenal amount of success. Negative impacts In the early days, Nike suffered from retailer inconsistencies. Imperfect information was received on inventory levels leading to stock outs and misallocations . The infamous i2 fiasco was a rap on the knuckles for Nike’s brand image. It was made an example of as a company that botched up its supply chain unit. It was a deemed to be software glitch and the repercussions cost Nike more than $100 million in lost sales, leading to a depressed stock price by about 20%, which further went on to trigger a flurry of class-action lawsuits. Succinctly, the i2 demand-planning engine ordered for a surplus of thousand Air Garnett sneakers than the market had called for and a thousand fewer Air Jordan’s than were actually in demand. Nike looked at various operational workarounds but at best it was a classic case of damage limitation. The opening of the NIKE Towns and e-commerce applications was a cause of concern for Nike’s traditional retailers initially as it would eat into their business. Nike allayed fears by positioning their direct marketing strategies differently to the retail markets but doubts were still casted on the anomalies of this move. Promotion Compelling promotions and captivating advertisements are the cornerstones of a successful product in contemporary times. Listed below are the various components of an effective promotional mix. Adapted from Principles of Marketing (David Jobber) Nike’s promotional strategies Advertising Nikes legend with television commercials dates back to October 1982 with the first advertisement broadcast during the New York Marathon. Wieden and Kennedy were the creators in chief back then and not surprisingly their partnership with Nike still holds fort to this day and age. Nike advertisements are very appealing and leave a long lasting imprint in the viewer’s minds. Public Relations Public relation is an entity that focuses on brand building and as well as defending. Nike has recently employed the green public relations strategy. This has been a powerful weapon in the corporate social responsibility aspect with environmental issues the subject of concern in contemporary times. Personal Selling Nike endorses the personal selling technique to good effect. Customer assistants in Nike retail stores have direct contact and constant interaction with the buyers of their merchandise. Nike representative’s often train customer assistants on the latest in technology and merchandize. Sales Promotions Sales Promotions are driven around the accelerated purchase of products. Nike entices its customers with discounts, rebates and gift coupons. Direct Mail In the direct mail method, publicity material is sent to a customer within the targeted segment. Nike’s concentrated efforts in recent times towards publishing its customer catalogues has been met with open arms – a staggering 200,000 responses to the catalogue e-mail in 60 days. Internet Marketing The dot com industry has been an emerging trendsetter in ever growing and evolving marketing strategies. Nike has given volumes of ad space to its armada of products via a network of sites. Nike is accelerating Internet marketing campaigns to diversify extensively on the web. The impact of these promotional strategies can again be traced back to the profits at which Nike operates on. Sponsorship has been a key strategy in Nike’s promotional activities. Nike endorses a galaxy of celebrity athletes across all sports. Michael Jordan was an absolute superstar for them in terms of publicity and sales. A whole array of national teams including the Indian National Cricket Team is under sponsorship contracts with Nike. News has just come in of Nike’s win as the official uniform sponsor of the National Football League (NFL) for a deal worth a whopping $500 million. Communication Model Adapted from Marketing Management ( Philip Kotler) Research by Jobber and Lancaster (2009) has revealed that selling is often the prima facie of the communication mix rather than the promotional mix. Nike has efficiently translated all the key factors in efficient selling via their communication mix. Through their marketing strategies, they have reached out to a plethora of audiences and gained a profitable response. They have encoded their ideas, coated them with creativity and pushed them through to be easily decoded by the receivers (customers). The message has been conveyed through a variety of promotional channels as discussed earlier with a phenomenal amount of success. The feedback and response have been overwhelming. Positive Impact Nike has always been a bold marketer. They have endorsed top sporting personalities and teams as part of their promotional strategy on the outlook that customers always want to associate themselves with success. The commercials featuring Michael Jordan were a huge hit with people flocking to stores to buy what caught their eye. Nike’s direct mail and internet marketing scheme has come to be a model of success. Their promotional strategy has targeted specific segments and magically ingrained their products in line with the customer’s secret aspirations. Nike is iconic signifiers of personal health, faith and social inclusion. This has helped Nike propagate their brand, thereby capturing market share in a diverse range of products and generating hefty revenues in the bargain. Negative Impact Some of Nike’s tie ups have adversely affected them in the market space. Nike had to pull back more than 38,000 pairs of sneakers from the market because the logo offended Muslims. Nike has constantly engaged in ambush marketing since the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. Ambush marketing is seen in both lights – creative as well as parasitic but arguments are that a reputed company Nike could well do without it. Tiger Woods commercial advertisement for Nike after his infidelity issues was not well received by viewers and deemed as bad PR. The sweatshop debacle remains a blot on Nike’s otherwise vanilla image. SWOT ANALYSIS OF NIKE INCORPORATED Strengths| Weakness| * Strong Brand Image * Supplier Diversity * High Growth| * Recent Setbacks * Child Labour and Sweat Shops | Opportunities| Threats| * New Product Launches * Growth of e-Retail Industry| * Increase in Counterfeit Products * Increase in Wage Rates * Intense Competition| Below is the evaluation of Nike’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Strengths: Strong Brand Image Nike relishes a very solid brand image, which assures the company both great sales and profits. It is and has been the largest seller of sporting apparel athletic footwear on a global scale. The company attracts customers with a marketing strategy which centres around a distinctive logo and an advertising slogan â€Å"Just do it† which is widely popular across the globe. Through its huge celebrity brand endorsements and strong brand awareness campaigns it has been climbing the top brands chart over the years. Nike ranks 25th in the top global brands list with an estimated brand of value of nearly $14 billion compared to its competitor Adidas rank of 62 (Interbrand, Best Global Rankings 2010). It currently ranks 124 (2010) in the fortune 500 list (CNNMoney). In addition to its lead brand Nike, the company also owns other strong brands such as Umbro, Converse, Hurley, Chuck Taylor, All Star, One Star, Cole Haan and Bragano. (Global Data Limited 2010) Supplier Diversity Nike has a strong and wide supplier base worldwide, which helps the company in meeting its customers needs efficiently. Nike’s belief in â€Å"diversity drives innovation† has helped in gaining competitive advantage and its well-planned supplier diversity program has had a major impact in the way they conduct their business. Its apparel manufacturing takes place in the 13 different countries and the company’s Nike brand apparel is also manufactured in 34 countries by various independent contract manufacturers. The company incurs relatively lesser operational costs as all of its footwear is produced in low cost nations such as China, Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand. During the financial year 2009, these countries manufactured 36%, 36%, 22% and 6% of total NIKE brand footwear, respectively (Nike Annual Report 2010) High Growth The company has been witnessing a strong growth in sales in geographies such as Asia Pacific and the Americas. Nike’s increasing presence and growing customer base in these regions have resulted in a strong financial performance. Earnings reports of highlight how the company’s employees are working overseas to improve profit margins, as growth in the world’s biggest economy is slowing down. Nike’s orders for delivery through late November 2009 signalled emerging market demand will remain strong. Comparing with the previous year (2009), orders from emerging markets for Nike’s brand athletic footwear and apparel rose 30%. In China, Nike’s orders in 2010 rose by 16%, the company’s 2nd major market behind North America, compared with 7% in North America. Nike Annual Report 2010) Weakness: Recent Setbacks Operations may take a hit due to the company suffering setbacks in Russia. Stockmann and Nike agreed to terminate the franchise and announced the closure of 5 stores in Russia from 2010. Stockmann used to operate Nike chain comprising seven small s tores located in Nizhny Novgorod, Rostov-on-Don, Novosibirsk, and St Petersburg. As of now, only two stores in St Petersburg are likely to be transferred to another company. This development is expected to impact its sales in Russia. (Global Data Limited 2010) Child Labour and Sweat Shops Nike has been critiqued for moving out of countries like South Korea and Taiwan because of workers demand of higher than poverty level wages. The company has relocated factories engaging in below par working conditions in low cost countries such as Mexico, China, Vietnam and Indonesia. Nike has also been criticized for child labour in some of its factories in countries such as Cambodia and Pakistan. Such allegations undermine the companys corporate social responsibility and may adversely affect its brand image. (Segerstorm 2010) Opportunities: New Product Launches Nike always focuses on new product innovations which helps the company create competitive advantage and build brand equity. Innovation continues to be a cornerstone of the company’s corporate strategy with significant efforts focused against consumer demands for products that are convenient and effective. Recent new products include Zoom Kobe V, lowest-profile and lightest basketball shoe. It also launched N7 Collection, a select range of performance footwear. Further in 2009, the company also introduced Nike Lunar Glide+ and Nike+ Sport Band. Such new product launches will be beneficial for the company in the near future. (Global Data Limited 2010) Growth of e-Retail Industry Rising popularity of online shopping may benefit Nike. According to Internet World Statistics as on March 2009, the internet penetration in the US is about 74. 7 % of the total population and the user growth has been 138. 3 % in the period from 2000 through 2008. The Company can increase customer base by utilizing the opportunity to market its presence across the world through web services. As it is cheaper to maintain online shops compared physical stores, company can save on operational costs. The company already retails through its website and further enhancement of its internet service will prove to be beneficial. With the increase in the internet penetration in the US, the company can foster its growth. (Global Data Limited 2010) Threats: Increase in Counterfeit Products Counterfeiters are benefitting from Nikes brand name, pretending as official sellers on the internet and playing on customer’s confidence in the company. The growing market for counterfeit merchandises has been on upsurge across industries and is affecting the sales as well as the image of the company’s brands. The fake merchandises in the industry are eating into the market share of the branded products through their low price offerings. Since the customers end up buying the counterfeited goods bearing the duplicate brand labels, low quality of these counterfeits affects the consumer confidence and also tarnishes the brand image of the genuine company. Thus the company is prone to these challenges and any underperformance of the counterfeit products can have a major effect on the company’s fortunes. (Global Data Limited 2010) Increase in Wage Rates Increasing manpower costs may have an adverse effect on the retailers, such as the company. In the US, the government increased the minimum wage rate in 2009. Furthermore, many states and municipalities in the country have minimum wage rate even higher than $7. 25 per hour due to higher cost of living. Such increases in the minimum wages increase the operating costs of retailers and have an adverse effect on their profits. With Nike’s employee base of more than 95,000 people, the company is bound to come under pressure due to the pay hikes. (Global Data Limited 2010) Intense Competition The company could be impacted by the growing competition in the market. With rising competition, the industry has been witnessing consolidation wherein the smaller entities are being acquired by or merged with major players. The arrival of private brands in the industry is also on the rise. The company also faces stiff competition from players such as Adidas Group, PUMA AG Rudolf Dassler Sport, Polo Ralph Lauren, Fila USA, Inc. , Reebok International Ltd. and Callaway Golf Company. Rising competition may also force the company to reduce its prices, which may adversely affect its margins. (Global Data Limited 2010) UNDERSTANDING AND SUSTAINING COMPETITION Nike competes globally with a significant number of athletic and leisure shoe companies, sports goods companies, and big firms with diversified lines of businesses, apparel, and equipment, including Adidas, Puma, and others. Annual Report 2010) With $19 billion in revenue in 2010 (Annual Report 2010), Nike is the largest player in its industry, outpacing number-two Adidas by $5 billion at current exchange rates. However, with just 7% of the market, the company has sufficient growth opportunities. Nike can sustain and top the competition by: * Continuing to explore and invest on emerging markets such as China and India. Given its global brand and unrivalled product innovation capabilities, Nike can gain significant market share in the emerging markets * Concentrating to grow its nascent brands such as Converse, Umbro and Hurley. Leveraging Nike’s marketing and logistics resources, each of these brands can double their size over the next five to seven years * Designing promotional as well product bundle pricing strategies for the untapped consumers and segments who are not able afford Nike brands because of the brand’s high price structure * Renewing and extending contracts of key sporting celebrities such as Kobe Bryant, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lebron James. The introduction of â€Å"Air Jordan† by linking up with Michael Jordan was one of the mega success stories till date * Continuing to invest on product development and new technologies, to provide advantages to customers who buy Nike products * Forming partnerships with more retailers to promote and sell their products, especially in the emerging markets * Developing newer and innovative products for youngsters (children) and women (Nike currently holds the number one spot for women’s training footwear. There is still scope to capture more market share in this area) * Supporting more organisations such as â€Å"Livestrong† which in-turn helps the community. (Livestrong is a Lance Armstrong foundation which has been formed to fight cancer. Nike has helped raise more $80 million for the foundation) (Reuters) REFERENCES McDonough W. , Braungart M. (2002) From Inspiration to Innovation [Online] available from http://www. mcdonough. com/writings/inspiration_innovation. htm [30 July 2006] Sinek, S. (2010) Why Does Your Company Exist? [Online] available from http://sinekpartners. typepad. om/refocus/2010/03/why-does-your-company-exist. html [12 March 2010] Katz, D. (1994) Just Do It: The Nike Spirit in the Corporate World. New York: Random House Armstrong G. , Harker M. , Kotler P. and Brennan R. (2009) Marketing: An Introduction. Edinburgh: Pearson Education Limited Heiens, R. (2000) Market Orientation: Towards an Integrated Framework. Academy of Marketing Science Review 2000 1 Pro ctor, T. (2001) Strategic Marketing: An Introduction. New York: Routledge Locke,R. (2002) The Promise and Perils of Globalization: The Case of Nike. The Promise and Perils of Globalization: The Case of Nike 1 8 Lormand,E. 1995) Breakdown of costs for a pair of Nike shoes [online] available from http://www-personal. umich. edu/~lormand/poli/nike/nike101-8. htm [1995] Dolgui, A and Proth, J. M (2010) Pricing Strategies and models. Annual Reviews in Control 34 101 McIntyre, K. and Perlman, E. (2000) Nike Channel Conflict [online] available from http://https://gsbapps. stanford. edu/cases/documents/EC9B. pdf [18 November 2010] Kotler, P. (2006) 12 edn. Marketing Management. New Jersey: Pearson Education Limited Jobber, D. and Lancaster, G. (2009) 8 edn. Selling and Sales Management. Edinburgh: Pearson Education Limited Lussier,R. nd Kimball,D. (2009) Applied Sports Management . Illinois :Human Kinetics Lamb,C. , Hair,J. and McDaniel,C. (2010) 6 edn. The Essentials of Marketing . Canada :Cengage Learning Porter, M. (1985)  Competitive Advantage . New York: Free Press Global data (2009) NIKE, Inc. Financial and Strategic Analysis Review. NIKE, Inc. 9 Nike Annual Report 2010 (2010) 10-K, Annual Report. Nike Inc 4 Segerstrom, P. (2010) Naomi Klein and the Anti-Globalization Movement Sweden: C. E. P. R Nicolaus,S. (2010) Initiating Coverage of Nike, Inc. . Sports and Lifestyle Brands 1 Baird (2010) NKE’s Five-Year Plan. Nike Inc. 2

The Viking Age Has Long Been Associated With Unbridled Piracy, Essays

The Viking age has long been associated with unbridled piracy, when freebooters swarmed out of the northlands in their longships to burn and pillage their way across civilized Europe. Modern scholarship provides evidence this is a gross simplification, and that during this period much progress was achieved in terms of Scandinavian art and craftsmanship, marine technology, exploration, and the development of commerce. It seems the Vikings did as much trading as they did raiding. The title "Viking" encompasses a wide designation of Nordic people; Danes, Swedes, and Norwegians, who lived during a period of brisk Scandinavian expansion in the middle ages, from approximately 800 to 1100 AD. This name may be derived from the old Norse vik(bay or creek). These people came from what is now Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, and had a self-sustaining, agricultural society, where farming and cattle breeding were supplemented by hunting, fishing, the extraction of iron and the quarrying of rock to make whetstones and cooking utensils; some goods, however, had to be traded; salt, for instance, which is a necessity for man and cattle alike, is an everyday item and thus would not have been imported from a greater distance than necessary, while luxury items could be brought in from farther south in Europe. Their chief export products were, iron, whetstones, and soapstone cooking pots, these were an essential contribution to a trade growth in the Viking age. The contemporary references we have about the Vikings stem mainly from sources in western Europe who had bitter experiences with the invaders, so we're most likely presented with the worst side of the Vikings. Archaeological excavations have shown evidence of homesteads, farms, and marketplaces, where discarded or lost articles tell of a common everyday life. As the Viking period progressed, society changed; leading Chieftain families accumulated sufficient land and power to form the basis for kingdoms, and the first towns were founded. These market places and towns were based on craftsmanship and trade. Even though the town dwelling Vikings kept cattle, farmed, and fished to meet their household needs, the towns probably depended on agricultural supplies from outlying areas. They also unfortunately did not pay as much attention to renovation and waste disposal as they did to town planning, as evidenced by the thick layers of waste around settlements. In contemporary times the stench must have been nauseating. Trade, however, was still plentiful, even in periods when Viking raids abounded, trade was conducted between Western Europe and the Viking homeland; an example of this being the North Norwegian chieftain, Ottar, and King Alfred of Wessex. Ottar visited King Alfred as a peaceful trader at the same time as Alfred was waging war with other Viking chieftains. The expansion of the Vikings was probably triggered by a population growth out stepping the capacities of domestic resources. Archaeological evidence shows that new farms were cleared in sparsely populated forests at the time of their expansion. The abundance of iron in their region and their ability to forge it into weapons and arm everyone setting off on raids helped give the Vikings the upper hand in most battles. The first recorded Viking raid occurred in 793 AD, the holy island of the Lindisfarne monastery just off the Northeast shoulder of England was pillaged, around the same time, there are recorded reports of raids elsewhere in Europe. There are narratives of raids in the Mediterranean, and as far as the Caspian Sea. Norsemen from Kiev even attempted an attack on Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire. Unfortunately, in the picture handed down to us in written accounts, the Vikings are portrayed as terrible robbers and bandits, this is strictly a single sided view; and, while the above statement is probably true, they had other traits as well. Some of their leaders were very skillful organizers, as evidenced by the fact that they were able to establish kingdoms in already-conquered territories. Some of these, such as the ones established in Dublin and York did not survive the Viking period; Iceland, however, is still a thriving nation. The Viking Kingdom in Kiev formed the basis of the Russian Empire. The remains of fortresses dated to the end of the Viking period, have been found in Denmark; the fortresses are circular and are divided into quadrants, with square buildings in each of the four sections. The precision with which these castles were placed indicates an advanced sense of order, and a knowledge of surveying techniques and geometry in the Danish Kingdom. The farthest westward drive occurred around 1000 AD, when people from Iceland or Greenland attempted to plant roots in the North coast of Newfoundland in North America, however, conflicts

Hopi Indians and their pottery1 essays

Hopi Indians and their pottery1 essays Hopi Indians lived in the western part of America (Arizona). Their civilization is about 3000 years old and they usually farmed for living. The Hopi reservation is a remote area, comprising approximately 650,000 acres, and is surrounded on all sides by the Navajo Reservation. The Hopi people have lived in this area for over a thousand years, with one of its native villages on Old Oraibi, having the distinction of being the oldest continuously inhabited village in the United States. Hopi brought a lot of influences to many people. Hopi people were famous for their pots they make. Hopi pottery is assumed to have been made by women, there are few early historic references to men making pottery. Pottery varied from village to village so all the neighboring villages showed different blending of style. Hopi pottery are made very similar today as the olden days just that now days, it is much expensive. Modern Hopi potters make their pottery in the traditional manner. The clay is hand dug on the Hopi mesas and hand processed. The pots are carefully hand constructed using the coil and scrape techniques their ancestors taught them. The paints used are from naturally occurring materials. For example, boiling Beeweed for a long time until it becomes very dark and thick makes black paint. Before making a pottery, they found clay near the ocean or by inland streams and pond. They would wedge the clay to help remove air bubbles from the clay. If air is not removed from the clay pottery may break or crack when dried and fired. They tasted the clay to choose which clay is better. They picked sweet clay because it would be smoother than the bitter clay. After choosing which clay they were going to use, they started to make the pot, known as the coil pot method. They would roll a piece of clay into a thin line. After, they would add the thin line and built it up step by step placing the rolled up clay on top of each other. ...

Managing Financial and Information Resources Coursework - 1

Managing Financial and Information Resources - Coursework Example Gross profit margin showed an upward trend throughout the period; it increased from 57.76% in 2011 to 63.31% in 2013. This implies that the company earns more cents per dollar of revenue, and this is favourable because more profit is generated to cover non-production costs. Operating profit margin increased in 2012 but decreased in 2013. Even though there is a decrease, the company is still profitable because it is generating enough money from its operations to pay for both variable and fixed costs. In general, the company’s profitability is improving as indicated by the increase in its profitability ratios (Kimmel et al 290). Efficiency ratios indicate how the company is managing its liabilities and using its assets to generate income. Fabrique AÃ ©rospatiale is relatively efficient in its operations. The debtor days increased from 59.33 days to 59.79 days in 2012, and further decreased considerably to 34.31days in 2013. This improvement in debtor days implies that the company’s efficiency in collecting its receivable increased (Kapil, 128). The company is, therefore, very liquid because it takes less time to collect its receivable hence increase in efficiency. Creditor days increased from 91.56 days to 97.5 days but decreased to 78.43 days. This indicates prompt payment to creditors. This reduction implies that the company is trying to take advantage of the discount that the suppliers is offering. Fabrique AÃ ©rospatiale is inefficient in managing its inventory. It has higher values of stock days that is not favourable for the business. Stock days increased from 134.21 days in 2011 to 142.5 day s in 2012 but decreased to 116.14 days in 2013. Even though the decrease is a good indicator, it is very minimal. The company has higher days’ inventory on hand. In terms of liquidity, Fabrique AÃ ©rospatiale is very liquid. Both its acid test ratio and current ratio have values greater that one for all the years. The company is able to meet its near-term

Molecular Therapeutics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Molecular Therapeutics - Essay Example Later in 1970, the mechanism of prostaglandin biosynthesis was demonstrated to involve the formation of bicyclic peroxides or endoperoxides as the initial product of polyunsaturated fatty acid oxygenation. Prostaglandin endoperoxides were successfully isolated and the name 'cyclooxygenase' came into existence as a term that describes the enzyme that is responsible for this complex biochemical transformation (Lawrence et al 1999; Hamberg and Samuelson 1973). According to Lawrence and his colleagues (1999), the chemical process catalysed by cyclooxygenase; the conversion of arachidonic acid, (which is known to be the precursor to prostaglandins), to Prostaglandin G2 (PGG2) involves the enzymatic removal of the 13-pro-S-hydrogen, giving rise to a Pentadienyl radical with maximal electron density at C-11 and C-15. Trapping of the carbon radical at C-11 with Oxygen produces a peroxyl radical, which when added to C-9 generates a cyclic peroxide and a carbon-centred radical at C-8. The double bond at C-12 become re-inforced by the C-8 radical, generating the bicyclic peroxide and an allylic radical with maximal electron density at C-13 and C-15. The carbon radical at C-15 is trapped with oxygen to form a peroxyl radical, which is reduced to prostaglandin G2. Cyclooxygenase came t... Prostaglandins were shown to be involved in a wide array of physiological and pathophysiological responses such as pain, inflammation, homeostasis, regulation of renal function and maintenance of the mucosal integrity of the stomach wall (Remmel et al 2003), their inhibition therefore spells the anti-inflammatory and analgesic utility of NSAIDs and also their adverse effects, such as gastrointestinal toxicity and bleeding. However, Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs happen to be the most widely used drugs in the treatment of pain and inflammation, their therapeutic effects was seen to stem from their ability to inhibit cyclooxygenase induced prostaglandin synthesis, which was also their major source of adverse side effects. The dilemma that ensued was how to separate the pharmacologic value of these drugs from the adverse effects. In the course of the search for a specific inhibitor of the negative effects of prostaglandins, which could spare the positive effects while reducing the adverse effects, it was discovered that depending on the structure of the cyclooxygenase enzyme involved in their synthesis, prostaglandins could be separated into two groups (Green 2001). This led to the discovery of two different cyclooxygenase isozymens encoded by two genes with different protein pattern and distribution (Remmel, 2003; Lawrence et a 1999; Ouellet, 2001) with Cyclooxygenase 1 (COX-1) constitutively expressed in most cell types, including platelets while COX-2, though not found in healthy tissues of the body, was induced in response to proinflammatory and proliferative stimuli (Ouellet et al 2001) essentially in response to cytokines, endotoxins, mitogens and at times growth factor (Herschman, 1996) . Available body of evidence, therefore showed that the

The role of the Nazi medical professionals in the Holocaust Essay

The role of the Nazi medical professionals in the Holocaust - Essay Example The id is the violent, animalistic side that comes to the fore in moments of stress and also within wars, when the power of the superego (laws, norms etc.) becomes diluted (Jones, 1955). The case of the Nazi medical professionals, who indulged in a series of experiments that ranged from the nominally 'medical' to the outright sadistic, seems to suggest that given the opportunity, many people, and even those who are meant to be dedicated to caring for people will allow the id that has been lurking within them to fore. This essay will deal with both the general tendencies of Nazi rule that led to the doctors' involvement in various atrocities, from euthanasia of infants to selections of those to go to the gas chambers to medical experiments, together with the specifics of some of the people involved. The questions of "how" and "why" are often linked within this study. As will be seen, many of the doctors seemed to be able to convince themselves that what they were doing was at least nominally in the interests of medical science. William Shirer (1959) presents the situation very well. He states that Thus the Nazi medical experiments must be considered not only from the relatively small number of doctors who actually took an active part in them, but also the tens of thousands other doctors who passively endorsed the experiments through their silence. This overall complicity of the German medical community within the Holocaust in general may be partially explained by the indoctrination to Nazi principles that had occurred with the steady development of Nazi hegemony within Germany. As Robert Lifton (2000) puts it, "the oath of loyalty to Hitler they took as SS military officers was much more real to them than a vague ritual performed at medical school" (p.207). Even for those doctors who were not members of the SS there was a sense of loyalty to the state that was perhaps much more real than the Hippocratic oath they had probably taken decades before. As with many of the atrocities committed by the Nazis, those performed by doctors did not start at the extremes, but rather gradually developed. Thus medical doctors were first used to perform the "mercy killing" or "euthanasia" of the mentally handicapped, the physically handicapped and those that were terminally ill or otherwise regarded as a burden to the Nazi state. This started with the killing of "idiot children" and the severely "mentally ill" (Lifton, p.180). Such killing was also accomplished through essentially letting newborn babies with defects die. Doctors argued that "there was no justification for keeping such a child alive" (Lifton, p.51). It is interesting to note that the act of killing is transformed into a more passive definition of "not keeping" the child alive. In these initial stages of using doctors within the Nazi plan for dominance, the Nazi hierarchy, on Hitler's explicit instruction, was careful to consider the sensibilities of those involved with the killing. Thus a

A Family Medical Pedigree Health And Social Care Essay

A Family Medical Pedigree Health And Social Care Essay Individuals inherit many traits and characteristics from their parents. The color of your eyes, hair, and body type can all be traced back to the genes passed on to you by your family. Perhaps more important to your future well being than your outward appearance is the family medical tendencies you inherit. The United States office of the Attorney General states that obtaining an accurate health history and recording it can give you and your medical provider information you need for better health (http://www.hhs.gov/familyhistory/).The Family Medical Pedigree is also called a Family Tree or Genogram (Olsen, S., Dudley-Brown, S., McMullen, P. 2004). The Pedigree is a diagram showing connections to relatives going back at least three generations. At a minimum it includes date of birth or age, sex, and health problems (http://www.nsgc.org/).Once this information is gathered and recorded it can be shared with medical providers and other family members to provide information needed to ma ke sound health decisions (http://www.hhs.gov/famlyhistory/). Significant Health History Using the information contained in Jarvis (2008), the National Society of Genetic Counselors (http://www.nsgc.org), and Health and Human Services (https://familyhistory.hhs.gov/fhh-web/home.action), web sites I was able to construct by own Family Medical Pedigree. Seeing the information in print allowed me to easily determine the predominant disease traits in my family. Jarvis (2008), names specific diseases or conditions to pay particular attention to including: heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, diabetes, blood disorders, cancer, sickle-cell anemia, arthritis, allergies, obesity, alcoholism, mental illness, seizure disorder, kidney disease and tuberculosis. In my Pedigree there is an obvious tendency towards cardiovascular disease. Specifically five of my relatives have had myocardial infarctions (MI), one MI resulted in death, seven had/have hypertension including myself, my paternal grandmother died from complications related to cerebral vascular accident that was caused by untreated hypertension, and my father died of kidney disease which was directly related to damage caused by hypertension. My mother has hypertension and although fairly well controlled she has had an MI and suffers from a retinal vein occlusion and macular degeneration which has resulted in severe vision impairment. Furthermore osteo and rhematoid arthritis is very prevalent in our family. In addition there is a strong maternal tendency towards hypothyroidism of which four females on the maternal side of the Pedigree have including me. Lifestyle Contributing Factors It is important to note that five of my relatives had lifestyles that contributed to hypertension and three of the five also suffered from an MI. My mother and father were heavy smokers for most of their adult lives, each quitting when the health implications became obvious. My paternal aunt was a heavy smoker until an MI which resulted in her death. Although obesity is a contributor to hypertension and heart disease, all of my relatives had/have relatively normal weights. My mother has sarcoidosis and was actively treated for a long time with prednisone which contributed to her vision problems. Important to note is that not only did my mother smoke but she also exposed herself to countless hazardous chemicals while working most of her life in kitchens. One would not think a commercial kitchen as a hazardous place to work until you realize the cleaning agents that are used on a regular basis. My mother was and continues to be a cleaning fanatic and considers the harsher the chemical the better. Torpy, J. (2006) claims that there are many theories about how sarcoidosis is acquired including environmental exposure, and genetic tendencies. In addition to sarcoidosis my mother has age related macular degeneration (ARMD), the American Medical Association (http:// ama-assn.org) states (as cited by Haines, J., Spencer K., Pericak-Vance, M., 2007) that ARMD has genetic and environmental links especially smoking. Risks and Risk Reduction From reviewing my Family Medical Pedigree it is easy to see that I have inherited the tendency towards and the conditions of hypertension, hypothyroidism, and arthritis. In addition I am at risk for ARMD and sarcoidosis which also has genetic tendencies. My physician is very proactive and has taken my family health history into consideration in providing my care. I have had an EKG and stress test, laboratory analysis for rheumatoid arthritis and annually I undergo tests to check for kidney function and cholesterol and routinely monitor my blood pressure. I see an ophthalmologist every year and hope that by reducing my risk factors for ARMD such as not smoking I do not succumb to it. Finally I am on medication for hypertension and hypothyroidism and I am happy to report both are well controlled. Considering lifestyle I have never smoked, and try to stay as active as possible with horseback riding and working and playing with my dogs. Another lifestyle change I should consider is diet; although I watch what I eat, I could do a much better job by eliminating saturated fats and losing 20 pounds. Conclusion There are user friendly, easily accessible tools available on the internet that can assist everyone to create and record their family health history using a Family Medical Pedigree. The information gained can assist individuals to make informed decisions about their lifestyle and medical care. Olsen, S., Dudley-Brown, S., McMullen, P. (2004) confirm à ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒâ€¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"Appropriately used, a family history generated pedigree can be one of the health care providers most powerful clinical tools for health risk identification and preventionà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ (295). Even the U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Regina M. Benjamin feels that accurate family medical history is important enough that she has created the Family Health History Initiative. This initiative has made recording health information accessible to everyone by providing a free online site to create your own Family Health Pedigree (www.surgeongeneral.gov). In summary by providing a Family Medical Pedigree and working collaboratively with your medical provider for proper screening, treatment, and lifestyle change you can decrease your risk for inherited diseases and preserve health.