Apple INC Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Apple INC - Essay Example most of these factors are caused by the fact that there are many countries which are involved in the manufacture of Apple’s products. While most of the manufacturing activities take place in Japan, assembling activities take place in Europe and the United States. This process can be affected in terms of transport across borders considering that situation in one country have a bearing on the activities of Apple products in other counties (Porter, 1985). The PESTEL analysis of Apple Inc. can be understood as following. Most of the operations of Apple are done outside America. This implies that the overall performance of the company is prone to problems raised by bad international relations such as war of terrorism, political issues, and geopolitical instabilities, natural and man-made disasters (Apple Inc. 2008). Other problems are caused by distribution and transport issues between the two counties which can disrupt the whole operations. Such international challenges which are beyond the control of the company are common in Apple (Bright Hub, 2010). The economic factors affecting Apple Inc. are attributed to the depression which caused immense negative effects on most sectors of the economy (Business Case Studies, 2012). The rise in the inflation rate has led to overall reduction in the purchasing power of consumers. Most countries where Apple operates experience economic problems such as inflation, unemployment and slow growth. USA and Europe are experiencing high rates of unemployment recently which reduced the sales of their technological products (Marketing Magazine, 2005). Globalization has positive effects on Apple Inc. this is because technology is very influential in promotion of globalization. As such, Apple is able to market and promote most of its products globally. Furthermore, the MP3 sector of Apple enables it to cater for a wide market since the social influence is positively

Slumdog Millionaire Essay Example for Free

Slumdog Millionaire Essay One movies I’ve seen is â€Å"Slumdog Millonaire† directed by Danny Boyle. The movie tells about the story of Jamal Malik, an 18 year-old orphan from the slums of Mumbai, who is about to experience the biggest day of his life. With the whole nation watching, he is just one question away from winning a staggering 20 million rupees on Indias Kaun Banega Crorepati it was about:Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? But when the show breaks for the night, police arrest him on doubt of cheating. How could a street kid know so much? Desperate to prove he is innocent, Jamal tells the story of his life in the slum where he and his brother grew up, of their adventures together on the road, of cruel encounters with local gangs, and of Latika, the girl he loved and lost. Each chapter of his story reveals the key to the answer to one of the game shows questions. Each chapter of Jamals increasingly layered story reveals where he learned the answers to the shows seemingly impossible quizzes. But one question remains a mystery: what is this young man with no what so ever desire for riches really doing on the game show? When the new day dawns and Jamal returns to answer the final question, the Inspector and sixty million viewers are about to find out. At the heart of its storytelling lies the question of how anyone comes to know the things they know about life and love.

What Documents To Review At A Closing For A Mortgage :: Mortgage Closing Documents

What Documents To Review At A Closing For A Mortgage Three important mortgage documents 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Mortgage 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Note 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  HUD-1 Settlement Statement Mortgage †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  People who sign only have an interest in the property and our not responsible to pay for the loan †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Make sure the correct legal description and address are listed †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Gives the rights of the mortgage company o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Usually very standard †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Secures the note †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Gives the lender a claim against the home if you fail to live up to the terms of the loan Note †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Those who sign the note are responsible for paying the mortgage and their credit will be effected (positively and/or negatively) by the loan †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  States the interest rate o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Fixed o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ARM loan and how often the interest rate will change †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  States the loan term o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  How many years the loan is o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A prepayment penalty will be listed if applicable †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  States the late charge amount o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A percentage of the principal and interest †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  States the principal and interest of the payment o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The escrow amount is not stated †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  States the payment is due o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Check with the lender if there is a grace period †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  States the loan amount †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Promise to repay the mortgage †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  States what the lender can do if you fail to make payments HUD-1 Settlement Statement †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A detailed list of all costs related to the sale of the home †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A precise record of the settlement costs †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Both buyer and seller sign Helpful Tips †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Have an attorney present that represents you and you only †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  You have a three day rescission period †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Review sections 900 and 1000 of the HUD statement if you sign for an escrow †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  At closing you have the opportunity to make last minute changes †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Bring any documents that you previously received to the closing and refer to the documents at closing †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Check to see if there are any back taxes on the property o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Once you sign off on property those taxes are your responsibility Explanation of the HUD-1 Statement BUYER’S RECAP Line 101 is for purchases, purchase price would go here. Line 102 is for any personal property that is included with sale on purchases only. Line 103 is Total for Page Line 104 and 105 are for Mortgage Payoffs. Lines 106 thru 112 are items that buyer has agreed to pay for in advance. Line 120 is the total of all charges to buyer. Line 201 is money deposit given by buyer Line 202 is new loan amount Line 203 is for existing loans buyer will assume or pay to seller. Line 204 thru 209 is for misc. credits to buyer as agreed to up-front. Lines 210 thru 219 are for credits to buyer from seller for taxes, etc. Line 220 is total credits to buyer Line 303 is difference due to or from buyer.

Btec Sport National Extended Diploma Level 3

Name: Jean-Pierre Nsinga Date: 1 September 2012 IV'D: Name: Jean-Pierre Nsinga Date: 1 September 2012 IV'D: BTEC LEVEL 3 EXTENDED DIPLOMA IN SPORT (Development, Coaching & Fitness) ASSIGNMENT BRIEF Student Name:Jean-Pierre NsingaTutor Name: Lizzie Farquhar Unit Seven:â€Å"Fitness Testing for Sport & Exercise Launch Date: 10 September 2012Hand In Date: 22 October 2012 Criteria Covered:LO1,3,4 P1,5,6 M1,3,4 D2 ————————————————- ————————————————-ASSIGNMENT TITLE: â€Å"Fitness Testing† No : 1/2 ————————————————- ASSIGNMENT SCENARIO: As a Personal Trainer at Farquhar Health Club, one of your main roles and responsibilities is to conduct fitn ess assessments with clients and provide feedback. ————————————————- To PASS this assignment, complete the following tasks: ————————————————- ————————————————- Task One: You will take part in different fitness tests for: flexibility, trength, aerobic endurance, speed, power, muscular endurance and body composition to enable you to: ————————————————- Describe ONE test for EACH component of physical fitness. Include advantages & disadvantages (e. g. cost, time, equipment, facility requirements, skill level of person carrying out test, issues with test validity, and issues with test reliability). ————————————————- Present this as an A4 information booklet. ————————————————-PASS1 ————————————————- Task Two: Select SIX different fitness tests for a selected individual suitable to their fitness activities. Safely administer these tests whilst being assessed by your tutor, include photographic evidence. The assessment will include observed evidence of: correct pre-test procedures, correct sequencing of tests, and adherence of health & safety procedures, termination of tests if required, and accurate recording of results ———————— Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€- PASS5 ———————————————— Task Three: Give feedback to a selected individual, following fitness testing, describing the test results and interpreting their levels of fitness against normative data (e. g. population norms, accepted health ranges, norms for sports). Present this information in the form of an individual client information booklet. ————————————————- PASS6 ————————————————- To progress to higher grades see next page ————————————————- —————â⠂¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€ To progress to MERIT grade for this assignment complete the following: ————————————————- ————————————————- Explain the advantages and disadvantages of ONE fitness test for EACH component of physical fitness. You must consider factors related to test validity and reliability and how these factors could affect data results. Provide reasons and/or evidence clearly supporting this. Draw on examples from personal experiences or observations. ———————————————— MERIT1 —————————————â€⠀Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€- Justify the selection of fitness tests commenting on suitability, reliability, validity and practicality. Why were they most suitable for your client? In your selection of tests, did you take into account their goals, needs and general level of fitness? Give reasons or evidence to support your views and how you arrived at these conclusions. ————————————————- MERIT3 ————————————————-Compare the fitness test results to normative data and identify strengths and areas for improvement ————————————————- MERIT4 ————————————————- à ¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€- To progress to DISTINCTION grade for this assignment complete the following: ————————————————- ————————————————- Analyse the fitness test results and provide recommendations for appropriate future activities or training.You must look beyond basic facts and make appropriate comments. Recommendations must include: frequency, intensity, time and type of activity that the individual should take part in to facilitate improvements for each component. ————————————————- DISTINCTION 2 ——————â⠂¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€- ————————————————- ————————————————- ————————————————- ————————————————- ———————————————— ————————————————- ————————————————- PLEASE HA ND THIS BRIEF IN WITH YOUR ASSIGNMENT – AS A TOP SHEET Followed by your â€Å"front page† Student Name: Jean-Pierre Nsinga ID: 1205079 Tutor: Alysia Bastock Unit Seven:â€Å"Fitness Testing for Sport & Exercise Launch Date: 10 September 2012Hand In Date: 22 October 2012 Intro; In this assignment I will be talking about different fitness test, to check their reliability and validity, their advantages and disadvantages.Furthermore I will choose fitness test for a client for them to perform and provide suitable feedbacks on their performance. Task. 1 Flexibility, test â€Å"Sit And Reach† This test is made to test an athlete’s flexibility, (in particular their lower back and hamstrings) This test demands; A flat surface for the athlete to sit down in the correct position, A box (preferably the main â€Å"sit and reach box† with all the measurements on the box, to have a better visual on the athlete’s result), a ruler for the athlete to pus h to perform the test and an assistant to record the results.

Ethical principles contribute to good business operations

Businesses that practice good ethics tend to succeed in the business world. Not only is it the right thing to do it is also proven to pay off in financial gains. To have good ethics a business must be legal for starters. Businesses must conduct themselves with integrity, be honest, and fair. Businesses should manage relationships in an organizational and ethical manner as well. This allows employees to address problems with other employees and management without fear of retaliation. Management must effectively convey with employees and not put pressure on them to act unethically. They should also have a zero tolerance for any kind of sexual harassment or discrimination in the workplace. There are factors that may seem touchy in practicing good business ethics such as giving gifts. This can be perceived as bribes to some but innocent to others. To avoid any problems companies should have a policy set in place stating what is acceptable and the value of the acceptable gift in detail. There are principles the make a business have respectable business ethics. Some of these principles include the following: being trustful, keep open mind, meet obligations, have clear documents, stay involved in the community, maintain account control, and be respectful. Businesses should understand that consumers want to do business with a company that they trust. This built strength and a growing client base. For continued growth the leaders of the cooperation should keep an open mind foe new and improved ideas that help them growth. Honor all your commitments as a business try everything in your power to keep your customers happy. Make sure all that you advertise or promise is correct not falsely or incorrectly isrepresented this leads to distrust so stay on top of what is actually represented by your company. Participating in community events or staying involved in local affairs shows you care which could bring in more business because customers might trust you even more. Finally, treating others with respect regardless of any differences goes a long way in practicing good business ethics. There is little difference between service and manufacturing business. Discuss I believe this is totally false according to the research that I have done on this topic. First, of all manufacturing businesses sell different than service businesses. Manufacturing businesses creates and sells a physical while a service business just sells a service. For example, Pepsi sells Pepsi products which are a physical product that comes from a manufacturing business. If a lawyer represents the Pepsi Company he is not selling any products but rather a service. Manufacturing and Service businesses also reside in different locations. Manufacturing businesses need to be close to their customers either retail or distribution. Service businesses have more latitude. This depends on the service that is being offered. Some service businesses are successfully ran out of homes or warehouses. In these cases most of the time the client never visits the business. Accounting is another way that these businesses are run differently. Manufacturing businesses have inventory to keep track of while service businesses do not. However, service businesses have to levy a cost on the hours their service provider’s work. Manufacturing usually uses the account method. This method counts an invoice as income. If any returns happen then the company has to make an offset of the income. Which can lead to further reduction by the costs of goods sold to eventually find the company net profit. Finally, there is a thing called forecasting that manufacturing businesses do differently than service businesses. In a manufacturing business they count inventory first. Then it estimates the number it can produce in a certain amount of time. This is dictated by the equipment that the business has as well as forecasted or predicted sales. Lastly, they add up the cost for all goods sold. Service businesses run completely different. They have no costs of goods to keep track of except the cost of overhead. Since there is no inventory there is no way economize equipment that helps determine efficiency gains. In the end, service businesses base their forecast entirely on what the service providers themselves can manage. It is all up to them not any product or any kind of equipment. In conclusion, It is definitely more profitable to run a business I believe with the best ethical standards set in place for a business. People trust a company more that has a strong background and a known image of being trustworthy. Not practicing good business ethics can end a business fast or cause bankruptcy. It is best to do the right thing at all times no matter if it is in business or just life in general.

Famous Quotes About Dance

Famous Quotes About Dance Dancing is an expression of your soul. You dont need to know complicated steps to dance. You dont have to sashay across the  room  or spin your partner with finesse. If you enjoy dancing, you will be able to find your feet. Dance to the rhythm of your heart, and you will feel happy, guaranteed. It doesnt matter whether you like jazz or waltz, jive or salsa. What matters is that your (literally) heart loves to dance. Dancing is one of the best forms of cardiovascular exercise. But dancing also helps the release of endorphins, the so-called happiness hormone. As  Dave Barry  said, Nobody cares if you cant dance well. Just get up and dance.   Even if the only time you can dance is when no ones watching (possibly the best time of all), these quotes can inspire you to let yourself feel the freedom of dance whether in your living room or on the dance floor.   Alice Abrams In life as in dance: grace glides on blistered feet. Albert Einstein Dancers are athletes of God. Voltaire Let us read and let us dance, two amusements that will never do any harm to the world. Jerome Robbins Dance is like life, it exists as youre flitting through it, and when its over, its done. Martha Graham Dance is the hidden language of the soul. Maya Angelou Everything in the universe has rhythm. Everything dances. George Carlin Those who dance are considered insane by those who cant hear the music. Friedrich Nietzsche He who would learn to fly one day must first learn to stand and walk and run and climb and dance; one cannot fly into flying. Vince Lombardi The good Lord gave you a body that can stand most anything. Its your mind you have to convince. Ginger Rogers I do everything the man does, only backward and in high heels! Edward Lear And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand, they danced by the light of the moon. Oprah Winfrey Every day brings a chance for you to draw in a breath, kick off your shoes and dance. Merce Cunningham You have to love dancing to stick to it. It gives you nothing back, no manuscripts to store away, no paintings to show on walls and maybe hang in museums, no poems to be printed and sold, nothing but that single fleeting moment when you feel alive. Agnes de Mille To dance is to be out of yourself. Larger, more beautiful, more powerful. This is power, it is glory on Earth, and it is yours for the taking. Martha Graham Nobody cares if you cant dance well. Just get up and dance. Great dancers are great because of their passion.

How to Write a Thesis

How to Write a Thesis How to Write a Thesis How to Write a Thesis By Mark Nichol An analytical or persuasive essay is a capsule thesis, and, like its more substantial analogue, it requires a thesis statement. Here are some notes about how to develop that statement. A thesis statement is a sentence (or two) that encapsulates and introduces an analysis or argument. An essay benefits from a thesis statement by concisely expressing the writer’s argument and serving as a basis for developing and organizing it. If you are assigned to write an essay, whether in an academic or professional setting, the topic may or may not be given. If the topic is specified, you can produce the thesis statement by converting the explanation of the assignment into a question; your response to that question is the thesis statement. For example, if you are asked to write about feeding wild animals, you might pose the question â€Å"Why is feeding wild animals a bad idea?† You might reply, â€Å"Feeding wild animals disrupts natural habits in animals and endangers them and the people who feed them.† You would then research the issue and jot down notes about how feeding wild animals, or making food available to them, might make them dependent on food supplied by humans, which in turn may affect their ability to forage or hunt when the human-provided food may no longer be available. Another supporting point would be the consequences to humans: Animals that are fed may become insistent or even aggressive, damaging property or attacking humans or their pets; diseased animals may infect humans they come in contact with, and so on. If it is your responsibility to select the topic, consider these elements of a successful persuasive essay: the topic is an issue that is arguable (that is, it isn’t a given that every reader would agree with you), and it can be adequately discussed in the framework of the assignment. In addition, confirm that you are adhering to one main idea and that, when you are done, you have not only stated your views but also supported your conclusions. Distinguishing characteristics of effective theses are that they are specific, they clearly state the writer’s position, and they encourage discussion. These qualities should be apparent in the work as a whole as well as in the thesis statement itself. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Business Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:50 Idioms About Legs, Feet, and Toes30 Baseball IdiomsThe Uses of â€Å"The†

An Introduction to Irregular Verbs - Proofeds Writing Tips

An Introduction to Irregular Verbs - Proofeds Writing Tips An Introduction to Irregular Verbs Most verbs do exactly what you’d expect them to when you change their tense. But this isn’t always the case. Some verbs are grammatical rebels. And when these terms pop up, it is easy for errors to creep into your written work. Join us, then, for a quick look at how to handle irregular verbs. Regular Verbs Before we look at irregular verbs, though, we should define what a regular verb is first. These terms are easy to understand because their simple past tense and past participle forms all end with the letters â€Å"-ed.† For instance, the verb â€Å"sail† becomes â€Å"sailed.† Other examples include: Base Verb Form Simple Past Tense Past Participle Bake Baked Baked Hurry Hurried Hurried Kick Kicked Kicked Lower Lowered Lowered Play Played Played As shown above with â€Å"hurry† and â€Å"hurried,† the spelling of certain words changes slightly when forming past tense forms of a regular verb. But even these terms end â€Å"-ed.† Importantly, too, the simple past tense and past participle forms are the same in each case for regular verbs. Irregular Verbs An â€Å"irregular verb† is any verb that doesn’t follow the rules above when forming simple past tense and past participle forms. As a result, these words don’t end with â€Å"-ed† like regular verbs. For example, the simple present tense verb â€Å"break† does not become â€Å"breaked,† but actually changes into â€Å"broke† (simple past tense) and â€Å"broken† (past participle). Other examples include: Base Verb Form Simple Past Tense Past Participle Cut Cut Cut Drink Drank Drunk Sit Sat Sat Think Thought Thought Write Wrote Written As you can see, there is no real pattern to how irregular verbs behave: Some change just one letter in different forms (e.g., drink drank drunk) Others change more significantly (e.g., think thought) In some cases, the simple past tense and past participle forms are the same Some words use a different term for past tense and past participle forms Others don’t change from the base form in either case (e.g., cut) It can, therefore, become a bit confusing! Our advice is to watch out for irregular verbs when reading and learn how they’re used. Checking unusual terms in a dictionary and having your work proofread to correct any verb-based errors is also a good idea. To Be or Not to Be? No, we’re not quoting Shakespeare. We’re just highlighting how tricky the verb â€Å"be† can be. This little word is one of the sneakiest around, with a variety of forms depending on how it is used. Verb Forms First Person Second Person Third Person Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Present Tense Am Are Are Is Are Past Tense Was Were Were Was Were Present Participle Being Past Participle Been This may make â€Å"be† the most irregular verb around! And while it is easy to master the basic forms with practice, you should still be careful when using the subjunctive mood.

Empirical Evaluation in Software Engineering Essay

Empirical Evaluation in Software Engineering - Essay Example The systems developed are inherently complex by nature not to mention that they are constantly changing and this has in a large part required empirical evaluations to be carried out especially with regards to the large systems so as to incorporate continuity. Question 2 What factors might make it difficult to conduct an empirical evaluation of the scenario? Explain five factors and relate each of them to the scenario. There are several factors that might make it difficult to conduct an empirical evaluation in this scenario. They include: i. The researcher’s inexperience. The complex nature of carrying out such tasks requires one to have experience in this field. In this scenario, the person concerned has not even studied this subject and this coul prove to be a mjor stumbling block. ii. Inadequate resources. In order to carry out an empirical evaluation, large amount of resources are required. In our scenario, it might not be possible to acquire adequate funding to carry out s uch a project and therefore transforming theory into reality via empirical evaluation might not be possible. iii. Cumbersome. ... v. Inadequate information.Another difficulty might come about when seeking further information with regards to the two methods. There is very little information on the matter as there has been little or no reaserch done cocerning this. Question 3 Using the Fenton and Pfleeger model, why is it hard to show that an lntegrated Development Environment (such as those stated in the scenario) leads to improvements in the software project, or in the quality of the software produced. The end product in software production is greatly dependent on two factors; the experience of the developers and the input applied to the development process. A high quality software at the end of the day should do what it was intended for but in a simpler manner and for this to come to fruittion, it depends largely on the design principles and the developer. The Integrated Development Environment lays more emphasis on the ease of use, manageability and user interfaces. This makes it more difficult to evaluate th e importance of determining the quality of the controls, resources and input since they are determined by the developers. Further, in order to determine the output, provision of empirical evidence is key so as to predict it. Coming back to our scenario, this is not practical because of the complexities and numerous functionalities of the environments (Lewis & Veerapillai 2005) Question 4 Critically discuss the benefits and limitations of the case study and the survey study to answer'- the friend's question. There are many benefits that can be realised through conducting a case study method in the evaluation process. Some of these benefits may include; quantifying of the various benefits and functionalities that may be realised in a single

Senior Project - Team Contract Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Senior Project - Team Contract - Essay Example The deadline for turning in the work should be set well before the final deadline so that any changes that need to be made can be accomplished. The best case scenario would be to see that all components are turned in at least two days before the deadline so that the work can be assessed for its value by all of the members of the team. By creating this deadline, the group can ensure that there is enough time for all aspects of the project to be perfected after evaluations by each member. If a member does not turn in their work by the team deadline it will give the team time to compensate for this problem. Lack of participation will be incorporated into the notes that will be made on the overall project and reported according to the guidelines that are provided for the project. Team leadership will be selected according to a group discussion. However, the best teams are not divided by leadership, but by responsibilities. Therefore, the team leader will have the responsibility of making sure that all aspects of the project are in on time, but will not be given the powers to rule over issues that occur during the project nor be given the power to veto aspects of the project. The goal will be to work as a team in such a way as to encourage the strengths of each team member and compensate for any weakness. The team leader will organize the details of the project, but will not have the power to control the project. This should be a collaborative effort, rather than ruled by a dictator. Section III In order to deal with team conflict, it will be necessary to put into place a way to negate any disagreements on how the team should progress towards its goals. Conflicts can occur due to a number of different problems that might arise during the project. Seeing the project through different ideas will be the first potential problem. A team vote on how to focus the project from the beginning will help to negate this potential problem. Making sure that all members are on boar d and agree on how the project should proceed will be the best way to prevent problems from the beginning. A second problem that might arise involves the issues of strengths and weaknesses. Before tasks are given to each of the members, it is important that each member identifies which parts of the project will give them the best opportunity to excel and which aspects are representatives of weaknesses. Creating a chart that identifies all tasks and allowing members to identify their strengths and weaknesses will assist in giving responsibilities and in balancing out where weaknesses are shown. The team agrees to handle all conflicts through mature and reasonable methods of communications. The team agrees that it will not argue, but discuss any disagreements on the project and that it will be necessary to sometimes deal with conflicts that arise. Through a recognition that the potential for a disagreement exists, it is clear that the project members are willing to work through any pr oblems that might come to light. As disagreements come to light, the differing sides of the problem will be discussed through breaking down each element of the disagreement, assessing which portions are similar and which elements require a decision or

Astronomy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 4

Astronomy - Essay Example Global warming due to climate change is recognized by many individuals, but big business, politicians, and deniers have caused serious doubt among some. The five following current articles reviewed show the perception of today’s world about the climate change occurring. â€Å"Climate change may trigger earthquakes and volcanoes† is an article about the link between volcanoes and earthquakes and climate change. Even slight climate changes can cause responses of the earth’s crust. â€Å"Evidence of a link between climate and the rumblings of the crust has been around for years, but only now is it becoming clear just how sensitive rock can be to the air, ice and water aboveâ€Å" (Fisher). With the warming of the earth, the sensitive crust is erupting more than other. This article showed how new technology is proving the link between earthquakes and volcanoes due to global warming. It also presents the idea the whole world is already being affected by global warming, not just the Artic regions. Global warming affects the whole Earth. â€Å"Scientists: Pace of Climate Change Exceeds Estimates† is article reviewing the expectations of world scientists about global warming and the rapid climate change. Scientists are now finding out their original estimates of climate change and global warming. At first the predictions were bad, but more recently the predictions have become worse. Scientists had not planned on the earth’s reaction to climate change worsening the affects of the global warming. The cycle of warming and worsening has already begun. Scientists have found: The permafrost holds 1 trillion tons of carbon, and as much as 10 percent of that could be released this century, Field said. Along with carbon dioxide melting permafrost releases methane, which is 25 times more potent a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. In â€Å"Address threat of climate change† a passionate plea for the world to take action to stop climate change is asserted. Since

Argumentation-Persuasion Essay - Obesity and Tax on Soda and Candy in

Argumentation-Persuasion - Obesity and Tax on Soda and Candy in US - Essay Example on of their money, around $150 billion dollars on resources being consumed in the healthcare department to treat morbidities which pop up due to metabolic syndrome. In U.S, obesity is now considered to be a ‘threat to national security’ after an observation was made that many of the military men were rejected to become part of the army due to obesity. This is affecting the country on national level and realizing the critical importance of the issue, the U.S government has decided to take a serious step to combat with the issue. The government is now considering implying penny per-ounce soda tax which will be the result of an increase in the price levels of a single can i.e. of 2 cents. Around 58% of the consumed soda contains sugar and a sufficient amount of 216 liters per year is consumed by every U.S citizen (Lustig, ‎ et al 2012). This shows that the people living in U.S have made soda a part of their daily food consumption which means soda will be price inelastic, demand of the soda will be less responsive to the change in price. So here a question can be raised: ‘Is the price change will affect the demand of soda and in all lead to a decrease in soda consumption?’ Well the answer to this question is: No, because people will continue to demand for soda and such a small increase in prices will not stop this massive intake of sugars leading to few changes in obesity. This means that this will be less beneficial and near to useless. This is also proved in a study and it is clearly stated that a considerable change will begin to appear only when there will be a double price increase. In many places like San Francisco etc. milk is more expensive than soda drinks. The level of consumption has been proliferated, continuing the problem of obesity. Besides Soda, candies also have led to some excessive consumption of sugars in US. Many schools are trying to curb this issue by stop vending candies in the school premises and instead of them, they provide

New Business Proposal Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

New Business Proposal - Research Paper Example The needs of the customer are vital because they help in making changes for the product such that it conforms to their needs (Stark, 2011). Providing a product that suits customer’s needs in terms of size, price and other characteristics will enhance revenue generation due to increased sales (Stark, 2011). The revenue will increase by creating a new product line extension. This process entails bundling the new product with the existing products by using a similar brand name. Apart from improving the name of the brand, the process will act as criteria for marketing the new product (Stark, 2011). As the product gains customers, it is possible to perform an analysis of the market in terms of demand and elasticity. This determines how customers will respond to any changes in price. If demand appears to be inelastic, it will be convenient to increase the prices of the commodity in order to generate sufficient revenue. When demand is inelastic, the amount of sales remains unaltered, meaning that a slight increase in price will result in high revenue (Stark, 2011). Determination of the profit-maximizing quantity requires understanding of basic concepts of total revenue and total cost (Stark, 2011). After performing the sales of the new product, there will be a need to determine the gain at each sales level. This computation shall involve a consideration of all costs including labor plus other variable costs. It is possible to determine the profit maximizing quantity by first computing the marginal profits after the sale and finding where the marginal revenue becomes identical to the marginal cost (Stark, 2011). In this case, the formula: marginal profit= marginal revenue – marginal cost, will apply. If the marginal revenue is higher than marginal cost, it means that there will be a marginal gain (Taylor & Weerapana, 2012). In order to maximize profits, the business shall ensure reduction of marginal costs and improvements in

Nelson and Mr. Head in 20 years Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Nelson and Mr. Head in 20 years - Essay Example Nelson knows that Mr. Head is really old now and he doesn’t want him to leave this world without seeing other continents. Nelson knew that Mr. Head is old and old people create very strong associations with objects and surroundings. However, he was determined to show him Africa, the way he showed him the city and the Artificial Nigger. Nelson owns a clothing store near his house and is in good business, owns a fat bank account and has contacts that can safely ship them to Africa. The only problem is Mr. Head’s stubbornness. But Nelson is also the grandson of the same stubborn man. He is determined to drag him to another continent and show him around. One fine Tuesday morning, Mr. Head is up earlier than usual and decides to go for a little walk around his house. He grabs his stick, puts on his slippers glances over to Nelson’s room where he’s sound asleep and walks out the door. It’s winters and the morning breeze is chilling. Mr. Head buttons up his shirt to the neck and wraps his free arm around him in an unsuccessful attempt to cover him from the wind. He turns around and takes a look back at his house which is 20 odd yards away from him now and in a moment of perplexity decides to continue his morning walk. All the time he suppresses the voice in his head that it is a bad idea to leave the house in such a cold weather, but there is strange spirit within him that is pulling him forward. Maybe he wants to prove to himself that he is still a man and can take care of himself. He doesn’t want Nelson to escort him to the bathroom, to the breakfast table or to tie his shoelaces. He is feeling tired now, and very cold. His determination is giving up. He is trembling now as he frequently wipes of the mist from his glass with the sleeve of his sweater. Mr. Head is panting and the walking stick is wildly shaking now and he realizes his mistake of leaving home. He shouldn’t have left the house in

New Business Proposal Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

New Business Proposal - Research Paper Example The needs of the customer are vital because they help in making changes for the product such that it conforms to their needs (Stark, 2011). Providing a product that suits customer’s needs in terms of size, price and other characteristics will enhance revenue generation due to increased sales (Stark, 2011). The revenue will increase by creating a new product line extension. This process entails bundling the new product with the existing products by using a similar brand name. Apart from improving the name of the brand, the process will act as criteria for marketing the new product (Stark, 2011). As the product gains customers, it is possible to perform an analysis of the market in terms of demand and elasticity. This determines how customers will respond to any changes in price. If demand appears to be inelastic, it will be convenient to increase the prices of the commodity in order to generate sufficient revenue. When demand is inelastic, the amount of sales remains unaltered, meaning that a slight increase in price will result in high revenue (Stark, 2011). Determination of the profit-maximizing quantity requires understanding of basic concepts of total revenue and total cost (Stark, 2011). After performing the sales of the new product, there will be a need to determine the gain at each sales level. This computation shall involve a consideration of all costs including labor plus other variable costs. It is possible to determine the profit maximizing quantity by first computing the marginal profits after the sale and finding where the marginal revenue becomes identical to the marginal cost (Stark, 2011). In this case, the formula: marginal profit= marginal revenue – marginal cost, will apply. If the marginal revenue is higher than marginal cost, it means that there will be a marginal gain (Taylor & Weerapana, 2012). In order to maximize profits, the business shall ensure reduction of marginal costs and improvements in

Teaching and Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Teaching and Education - Essay Example Even the government allocates a large portion of the national budget for the improvement of the educational system of the nation. Education mainly begins at home. Parents have an important role in educating their children too. They should participate more actively in their child’s early development and learning. A child does not only acquire knowledge from the teacher alone, their parents are their first and most influential teachers. Parents cannot just rely on the schools to teach all of life’s lessons to their children. Many of life’s lessons are learned outside the structured environment of the classroom. Parents have a role too in curriculum development. It is not the sole responsibility of the school and the teachers. I believe that parents should have a role in the development of the curriculum because they have an indirect interest and concern in it. At the content level however, curriculum development lies primarily to the state officials and local admin istrators. At the processing level of the curriculum, the facilitators, teachers and support staff take on the major roles. Parents and students play a key role at the process level because they must learn and apply the objectives through their own methods and styles. Parents can be more involved in goal setting, finding alternative learning opportunities and in the evaluation of the curriculum. Parents must however recognize and respect the roles of the other participants in the curriculum development such as the teachers. A teacher’s role is not confined to merely educating the students in various subjects. I view their role as more encompassing. Teachers should educate students so that they will be equipped with the needed knowledge, possess a noble character and be responsible individuals of the society. They should also educate students to develop a strong will power to acquire various skills necessary to fulfill their aspirations and the requirements of the nation. Teac hers have a great impact on the students’ lives during their school years and even after. It is therefore essential that they guide them towards the right attitudes and help the students uncover their roles in society in the future. Teachers are agents of change too. They should have the ability to carry out new changes according to the requirements of the student and the society. Teachers are important factors for a modern, updated and advanced society because their knowledge and skills not only enhances the quality of education but it also serves as prerequisites for future research and innovation. It is the responsibility of teachers to adopt their teaching method to the fast pace of our society today. The role of teachers today has undergone a dramatic transformation. This transformation is due in part by the massive advancement in knowledge and information technology and a growing demand for better learning methods in schools. The teachers of today are more concerned wit h their relationships with the students, colleagues and community. They are rethinking the tools and techniques that they use, as well as the form and content of their curriculum. Teachers realize now that it is their responsibility to get to know each student as an individual in order to understand his unique needs, learning style, social and cultural background, interests, and abilities. Their jobs now include counseling students to assist them to unite their social, emotional and intellectual growth to make better decisions in their lives. This is a totally new form of instruction for teachers which is no longer geared at traditional classroom lectures, but rather a teaching style which challenges students to have a more active

Analyse How Businesses Are Organised Essay Example for Free

Analyse How Businesses Are Organised Essay Definition: The way a business is organized internally to enable employees to carry out their job roles and communicate with each other. There are many Organisational structures these organizational structures allow you to know what everyone’s role is in a business and also who they have power over. The business is able to work more sufficiently if they have an organizational chart. Span of control A span of control is the number of people who report to one manager in a hierarchy. The more people under the control of one manager, the wider the span of control. Less means a narrower span of control. Chain of command Chain of command is the order in which orders and decisions are passed down from top to bottom of the hierarchy. Line Manager – A Manager who is responsible for achieving an organisations main objective by executing functions such as policy making, target setting and decision making. Purpose of organisational chart: The purpose of an organizational chart is that it depicts the staffing order of a company. It is commonly shown in a hierarchical format; it also helps identify who does what in an organization, how many staff work in the company and what the chain of command is. This information is important to internal staff, HR departments, stakeholders and board members. Why is there a need for an organizational STRUCTURE? It is essential for a business to have an organizational structure because if they didn’t have one the business would be a disorganised mess. Here are the advantages of having an organisational structure. Firstly it would be favorable towards the employees. There would be less inconvenience as the employees who- know who to go to and report to if they have any problems and need a person higher up in the hierarchal structure of the business to sort it out for them. Therefore the workers would know what responsibilities they have and what job they would need to do. Without the structure a business has the employees wouldn’t be able to carry out their jobs and the departments of the business would have too many employees or too little. Moreover both business London Heathrow Marriott and McDonald are allocated nationwide which shows that they need to be able to carry out orders quick and adequately which it also shows they are well organized. London Heathrow Marriotts organ isational structure: Here is London Heathrow Marriott’s organizational chart. London Heathrow Marriott’s hierarchical structure is a Flat centralized hierarchy structure this allows the business to make faster decisions and it allows more responsibilities for the managers and others increasing motivation but this disallow to fewer opportunities for promotion leading to lower self-confidence. the advantages of a flat hierarchical structure for lhm: A wide span of control is an example of an organizational structure and where additional employees are at an equal level instead of being superior to one another. This is an advantage to the London Heathrow Marriott as it tells us that there are fewer hierarchies consequential in an easier and faster communication. Also there would be fewer employees working at the top of the hierarchical structure which means it would cost the hotel less money. This shows that employees lower in position are not constantly maintaining authority and being managed which will make the workers more persistent and give incentive to achieve their responsibilities to the best of their abilities. This will give confidence to the employees to work to the best of their abilities and show that they are committed to their job which could lead to receiving a promotion which shows that London Heathrow Marriott don’t have to spend more money in order to train new employees. This also shows that London Heathrow Marriott are not losing any sufficient amount of money which they can spend on something else and it also shows that they are achieving their aim of making ‘ £20million per annum’ of profit. In addition to being able to communicate without any trouble there is also â€Å"excellent team spirit†. Disadvantages of a hierarchical structure for lhm: Even though there are lots of advantages to having a flat hierarchical structure it has its disadvantages. When some employees have other boss’s it shows that it is a flat hierarch in a business. This is sometimes not meant or adapted for a particular purpose and can cause lot of Trouble or difficulty caused to ones personal requirements or comfort, they may find it distressing being controlled from more than one boss’s. Also there is less control within the business as there is only one manager per department and it would be harder for the manager to keep track of each inferior to who they are in charge over. This shows that there is a large area of responsibility this might direct to some tasks that a business wants to achieve to be completely inefficiently meaning that they want to do things without any trouble which can effect the business as a loss for the business as there might be a problem but if it hasn’t been fixed or repaired after a period of time and if the person in charge of the people lower in the chain e.g. trainees, employees might be dealing with a lot of staff but some jobs and prospects of a business might be at risk of no longer existing. Therefore there will a less chance of getting promotions as a flat hierarchical structure as described in the hierarchical chart, there are more people lower in the chain than there is of superiors leading to lower morale. how flat hierarchical structure helps LHm achieve its aims and objectives: One of the objectives London Heathrow Marriott wish to achieve is; â€Å"75% of guest’s to be satisfied†. The hierarchical organizational structures lead staff a clear principle to what their job is and the aims and objectives they should meet. With a flat hierarchical structure there is less confusion for employees and also many customers are satisfied, especially when the employees in the business know what they are doing. London Heathrow Marriott also want to achieve;â€Å"Labour turnover less than or equal to 25%†.By having a flat hierarchical structure in the business shows that rules within the business are made faster, furthermore managers are able to take actions quicker to any worries which a employee has. Hence employees will feel as if their need and concerns are heard out and met so they wouldn’t have any reason to leave the business. McDonalds organisational structure: Here is McDonald’s organizational chart. McDonalds hierarchical structure is a flat plan. Where there is one manager who is in control of the other assistants and employees. He takes all the decisions and he is in charge of the main functions. This makes it very simple for the staff because all they have to do is selling. This way they can pay more attention to the customers, so I think this is indeed the best structure for a McDonalds restaurant. But the McDonalds corporation has a hierarchical structure. This is a huge company with lots of different departments which has to be organized very well, because if the employees arent directed in the right way they wont do their jobs right. So this way it is all ordered and the people can work undisturbed, this saves time and money for the business. the advantages of a flat hierarchical structure for McDonald’s: The advantages of a flat hierarchical structure for McDonald are that faster decision can be made so that they wouldn’t have to waste time on making decision and make quick profit. Also there is a shorter channel of communication so that employees can find out any necessary information which they need to know. It is also more cost effective as Flat Organisation is less costly because it has only few managers. It also creates fewer levels of management. It is more suitable for routine and standardized activities. Disadvantages of a hierarchical structure for McDonald’s: There are chances of losing control because there are many subordinates under one manager this will result in bad discipline in the organisation as they have lost control. [ 1 ]. Business text book [ 2 ]. Business Dictionary [ 3 ]. Business Dictionary [ 4 ]. http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/line-manager.html [ 5 ]. Interview with HR Manager Anna Foley [ 6 ]. Interview with HR Manager Anna Foley [ 7 ]. Interview with HR Manager Anna Foley

Essay --

Ethical Issues Regarding Genetic Engineering and the Threat of Biological Weapons â€Å"advances in biotechnology ... have the potential to create a much more dangerous biological warfare threat ... engineered biological agents could be worse than any disease known to man.† (Central Intelligence Agency) Recent developments in genomics and biotechnology are unquestionably creating a range of political, environmental, and ethical challenges for developed societies. They also have the potential for harsh repercussions for international peace and security. These advances open up great avenues for the invention of new biological weapons. Genetically engineered â€Å"superbugs,† which can be resistant to antibiotic treatments and can be highly lethal, are only the beginning to this concern. The possibility of designing completely new biological weapons on the foundation of existing biomedical research have proved to be much more disturbing. Weapons that have been created for modern kinds of conflicts and warfare situations, secret operations, or missions involving sabotage, are more and more becoming a reality that we have to deal with (van aken). New instruments and techniques for investigating and altering an organism's genetic material have resulted in an increased danger of biowarfare (van aken). The circumstances where the outcomes of scientific research, which was at first well-intentioned, can be used for both good and harmful purposes give rise to what is now commonly known as the â€Å"dual-use dilemma.† It is an ethical problem since it is about promoting good, while at the same time has the potential for also causing injury and destruction. It is a dilemma for the person performing the research because of the actions of other people that... ...o doubt that more technical possibilities will arise in the years to come. With these new discoveries comes the potential for military abuse too. Because it is currently so easy to not only research but transport anything internationally – including genetically engineered disease organisms along with human and animal vectors – scenarios of plagues and disease outbreaks are not that distant. (Dudley) International and local efforts to increase investigation, detection, and reporting of disease pathogens, and to better understand the dynamics of disease transmission within and among populations will greatly enhance our ability to combat the effects of bioweapons and emerging diseases (Dudley). Following an ethical code of conduct, and promoting awareness of the real danger of biological weapons are just a couple things that scientists can do to help deter the threat.

Homework :: Teaching Education

Homework Is it not amazing that in today’s society students must not only spend seven hours in school doing work, but then they must go home to spend another five or six hours doing homework? Their grades are not improving enough to make a difference, and they are becoming extremely unhealthy. Not only does the average student suffer from sleep deprivation but many times malnutrition and emotional breakdowns. These are all caused by the over assigning of homework outside of school. How much homework is there really? Some say that for every hour spent in class a high school student should spend at least and hour doing homework and studying for that particular class. Well considering that a student would have to wake up by 6 a.m. and does not get home until around 2:30 p.m. there just are not enough hours in a day. Seven hours of school would be seven more hours out of school this would mean that if the students came home from school, they would have to works non stop from 2:30 p.m. until 9:30 p.m. every day. This may not seem bad until a person realizes that in today’s world, the average student has at least one or two activities a week. The students may not be home until 5:00 or 6:00 in the evening, if not later and then would be required to stay up until 1:00 a.m. doing homework. This is ridiculous. This homework causes sleep deprivation; without sleep it is almost impossible for the body to function. A student could easily become ill. With only five hours of sleep, a student is less likely to wake up in the morning, causing many tardies in school. If the students become sick they will miss even more school and the makeup homework will begin to pile up. This makeup work adds hours to the regular work. Eventually the student will become so tired and ill that the stress will become unbearable. The average teenager in the year 2000 is already subject to extreme stress. This stress exemplifies with sleep deprivation and illness. Stress is an amazingly powerful thing. Any student can become stressed but with more and more homework begin added into everyday schedules, the stress factor can increase severely, causing students to become tired, irritable, ill, depressed, and even to have emotional breakdowns.

American Express: Branding Financial Services – Essay

American Express: Branding Financial Services Introduction American Express is known worldwide for its charge cards, travelers’ services, and financial services. It is one of the best-known and most-respected global brands. As it grew from a 19th Centurynineteenth- express company into a travel services expert by the mid-1900s, American Express (AMEXAMEX) became associated in the minds of consumers with prestige, security, service, international acceptability, and leisure.Advertising for the company, which began in earnest in the 1960s, reinforced these associations. For example, the now-famous taglinetag line â€Å"Don’t leave home without it† was created to convey the essentiality of owning an American Express cardAmerican Express Card. As the company grew, it expanded into a variety of financial categories, including brokerages, banking, and insurance, and by the late 1980s, American Express was the largest diversified financial services firm in the world.The difficulty the company encountered integrating these broad financial services, combined with increased competition from Visa and MasterCard, compelled AMEXAMEX to divest many of its financial holdings in the early 1990s and focus on its core competencies of travel and cards. The company weathered a decrease in cardholdercardholders at this time by greatly increasing the number of merchants that accepted American Express cardAmerican Express Cards and developing new card offerings, including co-branded cards and a genuine credit card that allowed customers to carry over the monthly balance.By the end of the 1990s, American Express was again seeking to broaden its brand to include select financial services in order to achieve growth. Beyond the challenge of integrating these services, AMEXAmerican Express faced a number of issues in the 2000s, including a highly- competitive credit card industry, a slowing economy, and a subdued travel industry. American Express Builds a Financial Emp ire Early History of American Express The American Express Company was formed in 1850 when two competing express companies merged.The express business, which was less than two decades old, specialized in shipping packages that were smaller than the bulk freight that railroads handled but were over the U. S. Postal Service size limits. Before express companies began operating, stagecoach drivers and even civilian travelers were recruited to deliver packages. Express companies also carried packages that required special handling or were particularly valuable. Bank transactions involving cash, securities, and goldGold gave express companies much of their business. In response to losing business to express companies, the U. S.Postal Service created the money order, which allowed people to send a cash equivalent through the mail that could only be cashed only by a specified recipient. The cash delivery service was traditionally the domain of express companies, since because postal worker s would often steal cash sent through regular mail. To counter the Postal Service’s move into financial services, American Express created its own money order in 1881. The American Express money orders were easier to use than the Post Office money orders, and AMEXAMEX extended the line to include orders in foreign currency that could be cashed internationally.The money order was a great success, selling 250,000 in its first year and more than half a million the next. In the late 1880’s, AMEXAMEX president J. C. Fargo returned from a trip complaining about how difficult it was to use his letter of credit, used to obtain cash abroad, at foreign banks. To solve the problem of obtaining credit abroad, in 1890 American Express employee Marcellus F. Berry designed the â€Å"Travelers Cheque,† intentionally using the British spelling of check to give it an international flair.The Travelers Cheque used the same signature security system still in use today and had exchan ge rates guaranteed by AMEXAMEX printed on the front. AMEXAMEX also gave foreign merchants commissions to encourage them to accept the check. Aided by the network of international financial relationships established for support of the AMEXAMEX money order, sales of the Travelers Cheque quickly took off. From 1882 to 1896, Travelers Cheque sales quadrupled as travelers all over the world were using AMEXAMEX products more and more to make their journeys easier. In the meantime, AMEXAMEX’s express business was growing overseas.Federal antitrust regulation led to the separation American Express’s express business from its financial services and tourism businesses. By that time, however, AMEXAMEX was already booking tours, hotel stays, and steamship and railway tickets. Money orders were still popular and tTravelers check Cheque sales were constantly increasing. AMEXAMEX had also been investing the float – —the money that remains in the company’s accoun t during the interval between when Travelers Cheques are bought and when they are cashed – —and earning millions of dollars in interest.The Travelers Cheque was AMEXAMEX’s flagship product. The travelers Travelers check Cheque fees and its float investments were responsible for most of AMEXAMEX’s earnings and almost all of their profits. History of the Charge Card In 1914, Western Union, another express company, issued the first â€Å"charge card† in the form of a metal plate given to preferred customers that enabled them to defer payment for services. Charge cards required that the balance be paid in full at regular intervals, but did not charge interest on the balance.Soon, many different companies from department stores to oil companies issued charge cards that customers could use to purchase goods and services from the issuing company. In the 1940s, several U. S. banks began issuing a paper document – —similar to a letter of credi t – —that customers could use like cash in local stores. Diner’s Club introduced the first modern charge card in 1950, when it issued a â€Å"travel Travel and entertainmentEntertainment† card designed for use by business travelers. The card was accepted by a large variety of merchants, who paid a fee to Diner’s Club in compensation for the added business.The first bank card was issued by Franklin National Bank in Long Island, New York. The bank-issued card was accepted by local merchants only, unlike the Diner’s Club card. Shortly after Franklin National Bank debuted its credit card, several other banks across the United States. S. issued credit cards to their customers. â€Å"The Card† AMEXAMEX actually had considered issuing a charge card on several occasions before Diner’s Club unveiled its card in 1950. AMEXAMEX management discussed issuing a charge card as early as 1947, but then-president Ralph T.Reed refused because of security problems given the possibility of fraud. In 1956, when DinersDiner’s Clubs’ card charges began to cut into AMEXAMEX travelers Travelers check Cheque sales, AMEXAMEX initiated negotiations to buy Diner’s Club. Talks lasted for two years, but Reed ultimately declined, citing concern about the dilution of AMEXAMEX’s prestige. In late 1957, AMEXAMEX leadership decided that the company would issue its own card. The public clamored to possess an AMEXAMEX charge card. Even before the card was officially available, thousands of customers had written in or visited AMEXAMEX offices to apply early.By the launch date of October 1, 1958, AMEXAMEX had issued over more than 250,000 cards and signed on 17,500 merchants that would accept the cards. The American Express cardAmerican Express Card required the cardholdercardholder to pay off his or her entire balance monthly. The company also charged a six dollar annual fee, which was one dollar greater than the Din er’s Club fee, â€Å"for prestige. †Ã¢â‚¬ [1] AMEXAMEX’s worldwide network of offices, travel agents, and associated banks helped it build the card’s membership rapidly.Since Because the American Express CardAmerican Express Card was initially designed for the travel and entertainment expenses of businessmen and the upper class, it was known as a Travel and Entertainment (T&E) card. This classification puts it in a category with such cards as Diner’s Club and Carte Blanche. In 1958, Bank of America issued the first modern credit card, called the BankAmericard. The key feature of the BankAmericard and other credit cards was a â€Å"revolving† credit line, which allowed cardholdercardholders to pay their account balance in installments, with interest assessed on the remaining balance.The BankAmericard originally served the state State of California, but within a decade Bank of America was licensing its card services to banks throughout the co untry. While American Express earned most of its card revenue from annual fees and merchant discounts (the percentage of a dollar transaction the merchant was required to pay to American Express in compensation for the business brought in by the card), credit cards earned revenues from interest charges and a lower merchant discount. Another mportant difference was that AMEXAMEX issued its own cards while individual banks issued cards under license agreements from credit card companies. Neither AMEXAMEX management nor the accounting department had any experience with charge card operations. Rather than creating a separate accounting function for the card division, Reed had assigned AMEXAMEX’s existing comptroller’s office to handle all of the card transactions. This proved an overwhelming amount of paperwork, and within a few months of the introduction, the comptroller’s office was flooded with unprocessed transactions.Compounding the internal problems was the fa ct that customers were not paying on time, while AMEXAMEX was required to pay merchants within 10 ten days after a transaction. The card division had lost over more than $4 million dollars in its first two years and an additional $14 million by 1962. One of the Howard L. Clark’s first moves after becoming AMEXAMEX president in 1960 was to try to sell the card division, ironically enough, to DinersDiner’s Club. The negotiations failed because of antitrust issues and so AMEXAMEX kept its card. In spite of the card problems, though, AMEXAMEX as a whole was financially stable, with 1959 profits of $8. million from $69. 6 million in revenue and Travelers Cheque sales of over more than $1 billion. Clark instituted measures to help the ailing card division, such as requiring cardholdercardholders to pay their balance within thirty days, raising the annual fee to ten dollars, raising the discount fee (the percentage merchants had to pay AMEXAMEX every time the card was used at their business), and imposing stricter credit requirements for cards issuance. The card division finally achieved profitability in 1962. By 1967, the card business yielded a net income of $6. 5 million, or one-third of the company’s total profit.The American Express CardAmerican Express Card had surpassed the Travelers Cheque to become the most visible symbol of American Express. Marketing Strategy and Advertising The first AMEXAMEX President president to place a high priority on advertising was Howard L. Clark. Before he took office in 1960, AMEXAMEX’s annual advertising budget was only $1 million. Clark increased it every year thereafter and in 1962 replaced their ad agency, Benton & Bowles, with Ogilvy, Benson, and & Mather. The new agency designed AMEXAMEX’s first modern ad campaign with the slogan â€Å"The Company for people who travel. This tag line promoted AMEXAMEX’s travel and card products in a single campaign that conveyed AMEXAMEX’s one-stop travel shopping expertise. Campaigns The now-famous tag line, â€Å"Don’t leave home without it,† was developed by Ogilvy & Mather in the early 1970s. AMEXAMEX wanted a â€Å"synergy tag line† like the other Ogilvy-produced line: â€Å"The company for people who travel. † Ogilvy came up with â€Å"Don’t leave home without them† for the AMEXAMEX Travelers Cheque, â€Å"Don’t leave home without us† for AMEXAMEX travel services, and the â€Å"Don’t leave home without it† tag line for the American Express CardCard.Ads for the Travelers Cheques featuring screen actor Karl Malden speaking the taglinetag line ran for 21 years. In 1974, AMEXAMEX debuted its now-familiar â€Å"blue-box logo,† on which the words â€Å"American Express† are printed in white outline over a square blue background. Ogilvy & Mather tried several conceptual approaches to use with this tag line for the card, and eventually h it upon the idea of replacing everyday and unknown actors in the ads with endorsers whose names were famous, but whose faces were not as familiar. This was referred to as the â€Å"Do You Know Me? campaign. The ads typically began by showing the face of a moderately well-known celebrity, as with Neil Simon, and then showing a close-up of his or her American Express CardAmerican Express Card to reveal their his or her identity. The ads implied that using an American Express card Card would get the cardholdercardholder â€Å"recognized. † This was an obvious example of marketing the card as a status symbol. Acquisitions In the 1970s, American Express executives looked for ways to grow the business beyond Travelers Cheques and credit cards.The fact that Master Charge and the BankAamericard (later to become Visa) were already issuing cards themselves suggested that AMEXAMEX would soon lose market share of its Travelers Cheques and that the growth of its cardholdercardholder base would slow. AMEXAMEX also had been worried for some time that the company’s small size and high profits made it an attractive takeover target. A large acquisition would make a takeover less likely and give AMEXAMEX a new source of income. Clark chose a company three times the size of AMEXAMEX with the 1968 acquisition of Fund America Group, based in Novato, CACA.It included Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company and four mutual funds that were later sold off. Other relatively small changes by Clark included the acquisition of the magazine which was later of US Camera magazine (later renamed Travel & Leisure) and the creation of the Travel Related Services (TRS) division in 1971, which pooled the travelers Travelers checkCheque, the card, and other travel and tourism businesses. AMEXAMEX also organized its banking operations under the renamed American Express International Bank Corporation (AEIBC).The year 1977, in which Clark left as president, saw AMEXAMEX with $250 millio n in profits and 8 million cards generating $10 billion in charge volume. The American Express Company. had three divisions when James D. Robinson took over for Clark as CEO in 1977: Travel Related Services (TRS), American Express International Bank Corporation (AEIBC), and Fireman’s Fund (FF). Robinson pursued an aggressive acquisition strategy. In 1979, he purchased fifty 50 percent of a cable TV equipment and programming partnership with Warner Communications for $175 million with the idea of selling financial products through cable television.A few months later in 1980, American Express bought First Data Resources for $50 million. First Data was a computerized billing operation that processed Visa and MasterCard transactions for banks. This was only a warm-up for Robinson, and in 1981 AMEXAMEX merged with Shearson Loeb Rhoades Inc. , the second largest public brokerage firm in the country behind Merrill Lynch. AMEXAMEX continued its expansion into a financial conglomerate by purchasing two additional brokerage houses and a real estate company. The international investment bank Trade Development Bank Holdings S.A. (TDB) was acquired in 1983 for $520 million to shore up AEIBC and focus its operations on trade finance and international private banking. That same year, AMEXAMEX purchased Investors Diversified Services (IDS) for $773 million, a Minneapolis- based company that offered mutual funds, life insurance, annuities, and financial planning to middle- income consumers. The investment bank Lehman Brothers Kuhn Loeb Inc. was acquired in 1984 for $360 million, and AMEXAMEX again added to its brokerage cache by acquiring E. F. Hutton & Co. n 1987 for almost $1 billion. Marketing Strategy and Advertising American Express advertising conveyed the prestige associated with tthe he cards. CardholderCardholders are called â€Å"card members,† and the year they became members is on their card – —signaling membership to a club. American Ex press cards Cards were perceived by many as status symbols, signifying success and achievement. AMEXAMEX sought to maintain this elusive image through advertising, impeccable service, promotions, bonuses, special events, and so on.The introduction of goldGold and platinumPlatinum cards to the credit card industry further enhanced their special cachet. By 1985, AMEXAMEX was spending $500 million a year in marketing. â€Å"Marketing is our number one priority,† said Robinson. [2] Service Customer service was a key element of American Express’s marketing program. One of James D. Robinson’s favorite sayings was â€Å"Quality is our only form of patent protection. †[3] Before he became CEO, he Robinson developed a comprehensive system for measuring AMEXAMEX’s service quality.His goal was to have customer service employees handling more than 99 percent of the requests without any mistakes. AMEXAMEX measured the time it took a customer service representat ive to answer the phone and the time it took for a replacement card to arrive. The company established a Quality University in Phoenix, AZ, where customer service representatives and their managers were trained to deliver excellent service. In addition, AMEXAMEX set up a committee of managers from throughout the corporation that who met to discuss new ways of measuring and improving quality. â€Å"Quality Conferences† were even held to disseminate and implement quality initiatives throughout the organization. Besides the internal monitoring, AMEXAMEX constantly surveys surveyed its customers and merchants by mail and by phone to ensure that the level of service remains remained consistent. AMEXAMEX developed a database system, which was was updated weekly, of customer information that tracks tracked spending patterns, age, and 450 other characteristics. This database enabled enabled the company to target specific marketing efforts to the customer segments most likely to respo nd.AMEXAMEX also useds this system to recruit new merchants by demonstrating what AMEXAMEX can could do for their businesses using real customer data, not projections. For example, a customer that who shopped at a certain store might receive a discount for shopping there again based on an agreement between the merchant and AMEXAMEX. Throughout its lengthy history, American Express has earned a reputation for the highest level of customer service. One representative personally delivered a card in the middle of the night to a stranded cardholdercardholder at Boston’s Logan airport.Another case involved an AMEXAMEX representative in New Delhi who arranged for another representative’s brother (a military helicopter pilot stationed close to the caller) to deliver cash to an AMEXAMEX Gold Gold cardholder cardholder who was stranded in a remote village in the Himalayas. One Enterprise Robinson and his top executives envisioned a transformed company structure called â€Å"One Enterprise. † The One Enterprise vision would make AMEXAmerican Express a one-stop financial and travel services powerhouse with each division cross-marketing its products to the others.The cardholdercardholders could obtain travel services from TRS; property & and casualty, flight and travel, and life insurance from Fireman’s Fund; financial advice and other products from IDS; and brokerage and investment banking services from Shearson Lehman Hutton; while the wealthier international clientele would be pampered by AEIBC (renamed American Express Bank Ltd. or AEB in 1986). Each division would in turn push American Express CardAmerican Express Cards to any of their customers who weren’t already cardholdercardholders or higher- end goldGold or platinumPlatinum cards to those who were.Advertising in the 1980s The â€Å"Do you know me? † campaign was targeted at older successful, affluent businessmen that who traveled a lot. The campaign’s nine years h ad seen these cardholdercardholders quadruple to 12 million, a full 40 percent of that market segment. Fearing that growth in this segment would soon level off, AMEXAMEX looked to stimulate growth in other segments. In the 1980s, women were attaining more powerful business positions in large numbers. AMEXAMEX wished to target this segment of the population with ads tailored towards young urban professional women. In 1983, women comprised only 2. million of current AMEXAmerican Express card holders, only 20 percent of the women the company thought were eligible for the card. Testing had shown that women did not respond positively to the older ad campaign. Marketing data from the early 1980s showed that consumers thought that status and prestige came not necessarily from huge wealth or success, but from a varied and exciting life. Ogilvy & Mather came up with the â€Å"Interesting Lives† campaign. It aimed to position AMEXAmerican Express cards Cards as symbols of people with i nteresting and multifaceted lives, people with unusual hobbies or who have had unconventional careers.The AMEXAmerican Express cardCard, the ads indicated, gave these holders the opportunity to indulge in their varied interests, to be spontaneous by going to the Australian Outback or climb a mountain, for example. Rather than featuring celebrities, the ads showed confident independent women using the American Express cardAmerican Express Card to take their husband to dinner or their kids to lunch, bantering with a flirtatious man in a bookstore, or leaving a sporting goods store with a briefcase and a lacrosse stick. â€Å"The American Express cardAmerican Express Card,† the tag line says, â€Å"It’s part of a lot of interesting lives. The ad campaign included and featured women in ads, and soon the volume of female applicants doubled the number of men who applied for the card. By 1984, 27 percent of AMEX cardAmerican Express holdercardholders were women compared to t en 10 percent in the late 1970s. The â€Å"Interesting Lives† campaign also had an unanticipated, but positive, side effect: young men also started applying for the card in large numbers. This convinced AMEXAMEX to tailor some of the ads specifically towards them. One such ad was titled â€Å"Young Lawyer. It showed a father talking to his son over lunch about his decision not to join the family firm. The father was disappointed until the son got a job at the District district Attorney’s attorney’s office. The sons pays with the American Express cardAmerican Express Card and the father says, â€Å"The pay must be getting better over at City city Hallhall. † Even though these campaigns did very well, AMEXAMEX’s marketing strategy for their core potential cardholdercardholders had become stale. They dropped the â€Å"Do you know me? † TV ads in 1987 and Ogilvy & Mather devised a new series of print ads called â€Å"Portraits. Renowned photog rapher Annie Liebovitz was recruited to photograph celebrities rarely shown in advertisements. The ads showed these celebrities in a more intimate, playful light, without the pomp and circumstance that celebrity ads usually employed. America’s Cup yachtsman Dennis Connor played with a sailboat in his bathtub in one shot, while in another basketball center Wilt Chamberlain and jockey Willie Shoemaker were shown standing back to back wearing identical white suits. Another shot showed Christian rock singer Amy Grant walking on water while in yet another Tip O’Neill was shown at the beach under an umbrella.The only text was their names, the date they became â€Å"members,† and the taglinetag line that was to become one of AMEXAMEX’s most enduring: â€Å"Membership Has Its Privileges. † The ads received much praise for their ingenuity and quirkiness. That same year, AMEXAMEX unveiled its first major TV campaign for its goldGold card. The goldGold card a dvertising was handled by McCann-Erickson, and their ads for this campaign focused on showing successful businessmen in lavish surroundings. One businessman lounged in a jacuzzi complaining about an award acceptance speech he had to give.His wife told him to just enjoy the honor. Another ad featured a successful businessman taking time from his busy schedule to learn the piano. These ads were the subject of criticism for their celebration of the opulence and free-spending attitudes of the decade. A year and a half later they gave the goldGold card account to Chiat/Day. This agency’s approach was over the top compared to McCann’s more subtle ads. Chiat targeted a younger, more affluent clientele by touting excessive spending. One ad in particular showed a man in a Jjaguar, sprawled with his legs dangling over the side.A voice says, â€Å"For when you finally run into that 1953 XK120. † The phrase â€Å"Worth its wait† flashed on the screen while a sax play ed sensually in the background. The ads were supposed to increase the goldGold card base by targeting younger wealthy men. By 1989, AMEXAMEX was spending $250 million annually on advertising, more than twice as much as Visa’s and MasterCard’s budgets combined. This expenditure reflected the numerous marketing initiatives underway to expand the company’s cardholdercardholder base, including efforts to attract more women, students, senior citizens, and small companies.Additionally, the company developed a major ad campaign to get cardholdercardholders to use their cards at retail shops, not just fine restaurants and boutiques. Research showed that the majority of card purchases were made with other credits cards while only high-ticket items were charged to AMEX cardAmerican Express Cards. This campaign was developed by Chiat/Day, which in 1991 won the green Green card and Optima accounts from Ogilvy & Mather, AMEXAMEX’s agency of record for 30 thirty years. Chiat/Day immediately developed a new taglinetag line for the company: â€Å"The Card.The American Express CardAmerican Express Card. † The initial ads developed by Chiat/Day sought to convey the iconic status of the card, by superimposing oversized flagship green Green cards into images of a restaurant, a golf course, the tail of a Concorde jet, and the Easter Island monoliths. Cause Marketing Since 1981, AMEXAMEX has also embarked on many cause-related advertising campaigns where a percentage of the proceeds were donated to a specific charity. In fact, the company is credited with coining the phrase â€Å"cause-related marketing. Between 1981 and 1984, Amercian Express donated to more than 45 different charitable organizations. Most of these donation drives occurred at the local level, such as when American Express donated two cents to the San Francisco Arts Festival each time Bay Area card members used their cards. By encouraging card members to spend more to support the cause, AMEXAMEX profited from increased card usage. Similar campaigns around the country generated total donations in the tens of millions of dollars and increased card usage in locations where a cause-related marketing campaign was active by an average of 25 percent.The company’s first national cause-related marketing campaign was organized in 1983 to raise money for the Statue of Liberty Restoration Fund. To build awareness for the program, American Express developed an $4 million advertising campaign that included print, radio, and television advertising. Each time a card member used his or her card, a one cent donation was made to the fund. For every new account opened, AMEXAMEX donated one dollar to the fund. Donations were also made for Travelers Cheques and travel purchases. Between September and December 1983, American Express gave $1. 7 million to the Statue of Liberty Restoration Fund.Card usage rose 28 percent nationally in the first month compared with the previo us year, while new card applications increased 45 percent. [i] . 1 Following its early success with cause-related marketing campaigns, AMEXAMEX developed more than 90 ninety programs in 17 seventeen countries. One of AMEXAMEX’s best-known campaigns was the â€Å"Charge Against Hunger. † The Charge Against Hunger, begun in 1993, was a charity effort in which the company donated a certain amount of money to hunger relief agency Share our Our Strength every time a cardholdercardholder used an AMEX cardAmerican Express Card to make a purchase during the holiday season.The 1993 Charge Against Hunger raised $5. 3 million. To raise awareness for the campaign, AMEXAMEX produced a series of advertisements featuring information about the charity and detailing the specifics of the program. Between 1993 and the last year of the program in 1996, the Charge Against Hunger campaign raised more than $21 million. AMEXAMEX Success Due to the acquisition-based growth and cross-marketing concepts, which were fashionable corporate strategies in the 1980s, Robinson was hailed as a savvy CEO in building up AMEXAMEX in this fashion.By the end of 1984, AMEXAMEX had developed $61 billion in assets and posted annual revenues of $13 million. The TRS division, which supplied AMEXAMEX with almost three-quarters of its earnings, was selling $13 billion worth of travelers checksTravelers Cheques, while 20 million cards were generating $45 billion in charges. AMEXAMEX had name recognition of 75 percent and its services were used by 14 percent of the population, more than any other financial company. Credit Card Competition Heats Up By 1985, AMEXAMEX had issued over more than 20 million cards that were producing more than $47 billion in billings.That compared with Visa’s 115 million cards with $82 billion in billings and MasterCard’s 103 million with $62 billion in billings. About 3. 3 million of AMEXAMEX’s cards were GoldGold cards (first offered in 1966) an d about 60,000 were PlatinumPlatinum (introduced in 1984). Visa had 3 million higher- end â€Å"Premier Visa† cards and MasterCard had 2. 5 million â€Å"Preferred Customer† cards (both began issuing them in 1982) with annual fees of $55. In spite of their similar numbers, AMEXAMEX still had a clear advantage in the high-end market with GoldGold card charges totaling $13 billion while Visa and MasterCard only had only $7. billion combined. While Although most credit cards had features similar to AMEXAMEX’s charge cards, prestige still seemed to win people over in wanting AMEXAMEX’s cards and in using them for their more expensive items. One analyst said, â€Å"If you want to buy an expensive car, you tend to buy a Mercedes or a Cadillac, not a souped-up Honda. † For AMEXAMEX customers, the fact that MasterCard and Visa were accepted at over more than 4 million sites while AMEXAMEX was only accepted at only 1 million sites was mitigated by the fact that only AMEXAMEX had offices in many remote locations capable of handling almost any travel emergency.Indeed, prestige seemed to be so important to consumers that they signed up at twice the expected rate for AMEXAMEX’s $250 annual fee PlatinumPlatinum card Card and eventually numbered six times what AMEXAMEX expected. In the 1980s, the standard American Express Green card had an annual fee of $35 and offered $1,000 check cashing at representative banks and AMEXAMEX travel offices, the ability to withdraw $500 from ATM’s, and $100,000 travel accident insurance. For a $65 annual fee, GoldGold cCard members upgraded to $2,000 in checks cashed and a credit line of $2,000.The PlatinumPlatinum card Card allows members to cash up to $10,000 in checks, get $1,000 from ATM’s, $500,000 in travel insurance, and nonresident privileges in over more than 25 private clubs around the world. AMEXAMEX offered these cards to only about 5 percent of its American cardholdercardho lders who charged more than $10,000 a year and hadve good payment histories. Higher-end credit cards (e. g. , goldGold, platinumPlatinum) proliferated in the mid-1980s as the market for standard cards became relatively saturated.Credit card delinquency rates were increasing due to banks’ efforts to shore up profits by signing up more cardholdercardholders. The average cardholdercardholder possessed seven cards, so banks had to find other ways to compete. Many consumers were frustrated with banks because they maintained high interest rates on their cards (around 19 percent) in spite of the fact that the prime lending rate had dropped 14 points since 1982. The banks defended their card rates, citing the cost of processing millions of card transactions every week.In order to appease their customers, banks offered special perks like such as bonus points and cash back offers. They also began issuing goldGold and platinumPlatinum cards to attract more customers. These â€Å"eliteà ¢â‚¬  cards were used 50 percent more often than regular cards, and the average purchase with them was 150 percent greater than with a normal card. Visa and MasterCard gained enough GoldGold cCard members, 12 and 11 million, to beat AMEXAMEX’s 6 million. Optima Unveiled AMEXAMEX responded to the increasing popularity of credit cards by issuing its own credit card, called Optima, late in 1987.Not only would it compete head-to-head with the revolving credit bank-issued cards, but also it would do so with a much lower interest rate of 13. 5 percent. Even the annual fee was lower, priced about half what other credit cards charged at $15. Optima also allowed AMEXAMEX to greatly expand its card base without damaging its upscale image since because it was a separate card. AMEXAMEX only offered Optima initially to its 8 – to 9 million current AMEX cardAmerican Express holdercardholders. Since Because these customers were accustomed to paying their balance monthly, they were c onsidered the lowest-risk segment.Banks were worried that Optima cardholdercardholders would use the new credit card for regular purchases and the AMEXAMEX charge cards for their T&E expenses, dropping regular and high- end bank cards in the process. Citicorp, the nation’s largest issuer of bank cards with close to 15 million, countered AMEXAMEX’s new card by lowering its rates to â€Å"preferred customers† to 16. 8 percent from 19. 8 percent. Visa USA Inc. even urged its issuing banks to stop selling American Express Travelers Cheques in protest.AMEXAMEX replied with a Travelers Cheque ad that told consumers, â€Å"If your bank doesn’t sell them, go to one that does! † In order to compete, most of the charge and credit cards furiously began cutting prices and offering special incentives. Co-branded cards also became very popular. Visa had 768 affinity programs approved by the end of 1987. Most MasterCard and Visa silver Silver and goldGold cardhol dercardholders also got rebates on hotels and plane fare in addition to rental car discounts. WhileAlthough AMEXAMEX did not offer any affinity cards, it did continue to offer benefits and special offers.In addition to its Buyer’s Assurance program, which doubled the manufacturer’s warranty up to a year on items purchased with its cards, AMEXAMEX also began its Purchase Protection program, which insured these items for 90 ninety days against theft, loss, fire, or accidental damage up to $50,000. AMEXAMEX also offered its GoldGold and PlatinumPlatinum members free rental car insurance. By the end of 1988, after being out for only 18 months, Optima ranked as one of the top ten credit cards in terms of cardholdercardholder volume.Optima had 2 million cardholdercardholders with over more than $3 billion in outstanding balances. The interest and fees for Optima was were nearly pure profit sincebecause AMEXAMEX spent so little, only $100 million, in starting it. American Exp ress had the advantage of an established cardholdercardholder base to offer it to and merchants already willing to accept it. Thanks to Optima and improved marketing to young men, women, and students, AMEXAMEX’s domestic share of the card market increased to ten 10 percent by 1989, totaling 22 million cards (30 million worldwide).AMEXAMEX’s charge volume also increased to 27 percent or $69 billion, which lead all card issuers. Visa meanwhile had 52 percent cards hare with 115 million cards, and MasterCard had 38 percent with 84 million. The remainder was primarily Sears’ Discover card, which had about 28 million cards outstanding. Sears issued Discover in 1985 using its existing customer credit base of 40 million accounts, low interest, no fee, and a cash- back program as advantages. AMEXAMEX had signed up over more than 2. 5 million merchants to accept its card, compared to Visa’s almost 7 million merchants.Nevertheless, AMEXAMEX maintained that because consumers only charged only 15 percent of the possibley number of items that could be charged, its main competition was not the other card companies, but rather, cash. AMEXAMEX Applauded Success continued through the late 1980’s. Revenue and profits grew in every division and earnings topped the $1 billion mark in 1986. In 1989 AMEXAMEX grossed over more than $26 billion and netted $1. 2 billion with a travelers checkTravelers Cheque float of over more than $4 billion to invest.Compounded earnings and sales over the last decade had risen nine 9 percent and 13 percent every year, and AMEXAMEX had a return on shareholder equity of more than 15 percent a year. Their direct marketing department was the fifth largest in the nation selling electronics, furniture, jewelry, luggage, mutual funds, and insurance. AMEXAMEX’s publishing arm included â€Å"Travel & Leisure† and â€Å"Food & Wine† magazines, with having a combined circulation of over more than 2 millio n, and they planned on acquiring or creating more than ten more magazine titlespublications.Overall, analysts were recommending AMEXAMEX stock, saying it was undervalued based on its future earnings potential with AMEXAMEX being called â€Å"one of the great success stories of the last twenty years. †[4] AMEXAMEX STUMBLES Problems in Iits Subsidiaries James Robinson III had spent a total of $3. 5 billion in acquiring Shearson, IDS, TDB, Lehman, and E. F. Hutton, and in the process had built American Express into what was one of the most respected and well-known companies in the USUnited States. AMEXAMEX was rated by one poll as among the top three brands in America behind only Coca-Cola and McDonald’s.In the late 1980s, AMEXAMEX was the largest diversified financial services company in the world. But Ddespite the apparent success, however, signs of future troubles appeared as early as the early 1980s. In the latter years of that decade, the financial empire slowly bega n to crumble. While Although each subsidiary had its share of problems, consensus seemed to be that AMEXAMEX had expanded too rapidly without enough attention as onto how all the parts would fit together and so could not manage itself efficiently. AMEXAMEX’s first big problem with a subsidiary came in 1983.An insurance industry price war had caused Fireman’s Fund (FF) to lower its policy prices and add business. A surprisingly large number of claims on these policies caused AMEXAMEX to have to add $230 million to FF reserves causing a $141 million fourth quarter loss for the unit and a $22 million loss for AMEXAMEX. AMEXAMEX managers said they were blindsided by the losses while FF managers said they had tried to warn their superiors at AMEXAMEX but were ignored. AMEXAMEX profits dropped 11 percent in 1983 due to FF losses, breaking the much hallowed 35- year earnings record.AMEXAMEX later sold off Fireman’s Fund to the public, keeping the life insurance divisio n, but retaining only 27 percent of the property and casualty business. In spite of their magnitude, the problems at Fireman’s Fund had little impact on AMEXAMEX as a whole. They did, however, draw attention to AMEXAMEX’s management style and what impact it might have on the other divisions. Shearson Lehman Hutton, the nation’s second largest securities firm, was probably the biggest disappointment of all.After the acquisition, Shearson imposed its existing no no-bbonus onus policy for clerical employees at the investment bank where everyone was up to that point used accustomed to annual bonuses. Shearson also imposed its much less generous medical benefits plan on Lehman employees and even made them take lie detector tests. Most job openings after the acquisition were filled with Lehman employees in an attempt to appease them, but this wound up alienating Shearson employees. Lehman also lost many top clients after the acquisition including ABC, Chase Manhattan, and Uniroyal.Big M & A deals, the reason Lehman was acquired in the first place, never materialized. The loss of clients and internal talent was too big to overcome and only a trickle of small deals and its brokerage operations kept the unit going. Even with 1988 revenues of $10. 5 billion (same as Merrill Lynch), the unit’s earnings had dropped to 81 eighty-one cents from $4. 34 two years earlier. Robinson admitted he wanted to sell Shearson, but couldn’t because he wouldn’t get the price he wanted. Card CompetitionIn 1991,, AMEXAMEX debuted its â€Å"Membership Miles† loyalty program, which gave customers one point for every dollar spent on the card. These points could be exchanged for credit in frequent flier airline miles. The program had the dual benefits of attracting more customers and increasing the spending volume of customers who wanted airline miles. The success of this program’s introduction was offset, however, by problems with the Op tima card. Though Optima made the company one of the ten largest credit card issuer issuers worldwide, AMEXAMEX’s first offering in the credit card category was fraught with problems.The company’s decision to offer the card only to existing cardholdercardholders, who were accustomed to paying their entire balances monthly, led to millions of dollars in bad debt. AMEXAMEX failed to account for the fact that a significant portion of charges on their classic cards were business expenses for which the cardholdercardholder was reimbursed. Therefore, the majority of Optima cardholdercardholders used that card strictly as a credit device, and as a result only five 5 percent of Optima accounts paid the full monthly balance.The resulting losses rose to 10 percent of outstanding balances in 1992, which was double the industry average. In its first three years, Optima cost American Express $2. 3 billion. The company was forced to re-evaluate its Optima portfolio, and relaunched t he card in 1992 with a slightly different payment structure. In 1994, the company pared the number of Optima cardholdercardholders to 3 million from about 3. 5 million. By 1996, Optima’s 5. 2 percent annual loss rate was only marginally higher than the 4. 6 percent industry average.Other card companies were able to make up enormous ground on the American Express by offering bonuses, service benefits, and cheaper fees to both merchants and consumers. Bank cards certainly lacked the prestige factor, but, as one analyst noted, â€Å"Prestige is less of a Nineties concept than an Eighties concept. †[ii]2 AMEXAMEX’s traditional points of difference were service and prestige, but 1990s’ consumers appeared to place greater value on â€Å"function [and] utility. †[iii] Compounding problems was the launch of Visa’s brilliant ad campaign, â€Å"Visa.It†s Everywhere You Want to Be. † That campaign highlighted desirable locations, resorts, events, restaurants, etc. – none of which would take American Express. AMEXAMEX was under siege from a number of new competitors, such as Capital One, which in 1991 was the first company to issue so-called â€Å"teaser rate† cards with introductory rates well below the standard 19 percent. Other sources of competition came from co-branded or â€Å"affinity† cards, which were becoming increasingly popular with consumers seeking added value in the form of additional goods or services.AMEXAMEX had the opportunity to issue one of the first co-branded cards back in 1985, when American Airlines approached the company with a proposal for a joint credit card that would offer frequent flier miles for dollars spent on the card. AMEXAMEX rejected the offer and American Airlines inked a deal with Citibank instead, which that attracted 4 million cardholdercardholders within a decade and set off a co-branding trend. AMEXAMEX similarly declined to enter into a co-branding agre ement with AT&T in 1990.Within five years, the AT&T card had more than 11 million cardholdercardholders. Many corporations began to issue co-branded credit cards, including General Motors, Shell, all major airlines, and Sony. Other entities with co-branded cards included NBA basketball teams, the University of Alabama Alumni Association, Star Trek, and the National Wildlife Federation. Between 1990 and 1992, the number of American Express cardAmerican Express Cards in circulation dropped by 1. 6 million, or six 6 percent. The company was in danger of seeing its competitive advantage disappear.Attempts to diversify into financial services had largely failed, and the company’s flagship card business was faltering. â€Å"We were losing relevance with our customers,† said current CEO Kenneth Chenault. â€Å"We were trying to be all things to all people with a few products. †[iv] This developments led AMEXAMEX’s board to force James Robinson to resign as CEO i n 1993. AMEXAMEX FOCUSES ON ITS CORE BUSINESS Divestiture After forcing Robinson’s resignation, American Express selected Harvey Golub to succeed him as chairman and CEO in February 1993.Golub was a nine-year veteran of the company, having come to the IDS division from McKinsey & Co. consulting firm. He immediately initiated a series of divestitures to reduce AMEXAMEX’s holdings. Golub negotiated the sale of the Shearson brokerage operation and the Lehman Brothers investment bank. These sales, combined with other profit-saving cutbacks, eliminated 50,000 of the company’s 114,000 workers. Following these moves, the now-leaner company was in a position to focus on its core competencies: charge and credit cards, Travelers Cheques and travel services, and select banking and financial services.In the midst of these cutbacks, Golub pursued aggressive plans for high growth in the card sector. In mid-1994, he announced plans to introduce up to 15 fifteen different credi t cards. Ready to improve on the company’s first credit card offering – —Optima – —AMEXAMEX introduced its next card, called Optima True Grace, in August 1994. The Optima True Grace card Card featured a low introductory rate of 7. 9 percent and came with an automatic â€Å"grace period† of 25 twenty-five days after a purchase, during which time no interest would be charged to the cardholdercardholder.Additionally, the company would waive the annual fee for cardholdercardholders who used Optima True Grace at least three times per year. These features came as a result of a year-long research effort that included 4,000 consumer interviews. The Optima True Grace launch was accompanied by a $40 million marketing campaign starring lifestyle maven Martha Stewart. In its first year, Optima True Grace was selected by about 1. 4 million users, a figure that doubled the company’s membership predictions.The flexibility of Optima True Grace marked a departure from AMEX cardAmerican Express Card policies of the past. As bank-issued cards exploded in the 1980s by enticing customers with low annual fees, cash back offers, partnerships, points bonuses, and other special offers, AMEXAMEX continued to charge high annual fees and flatly refused to partner with other corporations despite offers from companies such as American Airlines. The gap in market share between AMEXAMEX and Visa and Mastercard only widened, and Golub reflected in 1995, â€Å"We should have seen what was happening. . . We were inflexible. We were arrogant. We were dreaming. †[v] To spur growth in the card category, Golub sought to greatly increase merchant acceptance of American Express cardAmerican Express Cards. In October, responding to the requests of over more than 14,000 card members, AMEXAMEX inked a deal with Wal-Mart stores to have its cards accepted at over more than 2,300 Wal-Mart locations. During 1995, other retailers such as Laura Ashley, S hopRite, Service Merchandise, and Vons Supermarkets signed on to accept AMEX cardAmerican Express Cards. That year, research by the ompany showed that based on card member purchasing patterns, AMEXAMEX customers charged 86 percent of their spending to AMEX cardAmerican Express Cards. Said CEO Kenneth Chenault, â€Å"If our customer wants to use the American Express cardAmerican Express Card at a hot dog stand, we want to be there. †[vi] In addition to adding merchants that would accept the cards, Golub worked to improve relations with the existing merchant roster. In the past, AMEXAMEX was able to demonstrate to merchants that its cardholdercardholders charged a higher volume with their cards.For many merchants, this mitigated the fact that AMEXAMEX’s merchant discount was considerably higher than Visa or MasterCard’s. Purchases by AMEX cardAmerican Express holdercardholders carried discount fees of over more than 3. 5 percent, compared to merchant discounts low er than 2 percent for Visa and Mastercard. By 1991, however, the case for accepting American Express was not as compelling. Not only were there a greater number of Visa and MasterCard goldGold cardholdercardholders, but also nearly 90 percent of all AMEXAMEX customers carried bank cards as well.AMEXAMEX needed to retain as many merchants as possible, since overbecause more than half of its annual revenues came from merchant discounts. The turning point came in 1991, with the so-called â€Å"Boston Fee Party. † A group of Boston restaurant owners coordinated a boycott of the American Express cardAmerican Express Card because they believed the discount rate to be too high. American Express worked rapidly to repair relationships with these and other merchants. By 1996, the discount rate for AMEXAMEX purchases was below less than 3 percent and all the Boston Fee Party boycotters had been re-signed.Golub also attempted to better relations with current cardholdercardholders. In Oct ober 1995, the company expanded its Membership Miles program to include points bonuses for retail merchandise and gourmet gifts, as well as more travel offerings such as car- rentals, hotel stays, and vacation packages. This revised program was named Membership Rewards, and points earned through the program had no limit or expiration date. The renewed focus on American Express’s core business led to the first new campaign for American Express Travelers Cheques in twenty years.Though still dominating the Travelers Cheques category with $64 billion in annual worldwide sales and a 45 percent market share, AMEXAMEX was looking to protect its lead against competitors like Visa. In 1994, a new $15 million advertising campaign updated the classic Travelers Cheques commercial, which traditionally featured hapless travelers falling prey to criminals while abroad and then experiencing firsthand the safety and security features of the Travelers Cheques. The new crop of ads focused on th e â€Å"Cheques for two† feature, which enabled the same checks to be shared between two parties.Instead of getting stolen, the Travelers Cheques in the new ads were only lost, and features featured lost-and-found employees in travel destinations describing the quirky items they encountered in the line of duty. The ads were intended to illustrate in a more lighthearted fashion the benefits of AMEXAMEX Travelers Cheques. In 1995, the company renamed its IDS division â€Å"American Express Financial Advisors† (AEFA) in an effort to provide with a more uniform image to its customers.AEFA, which provided financial and estate planning, annuities, mutual funds, life insurance, pension plans, 401(k) plans, and loans and accounting services to businesses and individuals, was part of the â€Å"select financial services† that contributed to AMEXAMEX’s core competencies. A One-third of AMEXAMEX’s net income in 1996 came from AEFA, which controlled $130 billio n in assets. After firing Chiat-/Day, AMEXAMEX re-hired Ogilvy- & Mather, who introduced a corporate ad campaign themed, â€Å"Do More. † This global ad campaign extended the company’s advertising to include financial services and travel in addition to its card businesses.The purpose of the campaign was to underscore the transformation that had taken place at American Express during the previous several years, given that the company had: 1)Sold or spun off subsidiaries and refocused on businesses operating under the American Express brand; 2)Broadened its traditional charge card business to include revolving credit, co-branded cards and other products aimed at specific customer segments, such as students and senior citizens; 3)Expanded its global travel network; )Begun a major expansion of its financial services businesses; and 5)Introduced new products to its corporate services customers. â€Å"For much of our history, our company’s brand was defined by our ca rd and Travelers Cheques businesses,† said John Hayes, executive vice president of Global Advertising. â€Å"Now we are extending our brand to a variety of other products and services to mirror both where our company is and where it is going. What will remain consistent is our vision— — to become the world’s most respected service brand. The new advertising campaign was designed to capitalize on several of American Express’s historical brand attributes: trust, customer focus, travel, and financial insight. â€Å"American Express is one of the very few global brands in the financial services arena,† Hayes added. â€Å"All over the world, people’s experiences with our travel services, card products, and financial advice have defined our brand’s characteristics, reflecting the reasons that both corporations and consumers are loyal to American Express. Themed, â€Å" American Express Helps You Do More,† the campaign attempt ed to bridge both the company’s historic strengths and, as well as its newer initiatives. The pool of advertisements included commercials that featured a range of American Express products and services, as well as those designed to focus on individual businesses, such as American Express Financial Advisors. It also included ads for the American Express charge cards, â€Å"Our advertising used to be about a limited number of products and services, and was often defined by the people who used them.This campaign stresses our growing number of services and what American Express can do for you,† Hayes said. The television spots will ruran on network, cable, and spot television, supported by newspaper and magazine ads in a variety of publications including USA Today, tThe Wall Street Journal, The the New York Times, Time, and Newsweek. Card Wars American Express launched its first co-branded card in 1995 with Delta Air Lines. The airline miles card was called the Delta SkyMi les Optima, and within two years of its introduction it was the number-two airline affinity card with over more than 1 million cardholdercardholders.American Express forged co-branding relationships with other partners, including Hilton Hotels, ITT Sheraton, and the New York Knicks. Beginning in 1992, American Express used comedian Jerry Seinfeld in advertising that emphasized the card’s flexibility and added humor to the personality of the brand. In 1997, as part of the â€Å"Do More†Ã¢â‚¬â€œ themed campaign, American Express used ads featuring Seinfeld to emphasize the card’s acceptability in locations such as supermarkets and gas stations. In one ad, Seinfeld stops at a gas station to fill up.The premise is that he aims to put an even dollar amount into the car, presumably so he can pay with cash without breaking change. Upon reaching the target amount, he gives the pump an extra squeeze that pushes the total a few cents over. Onlookers gasp in dismay, until he pulls out his American Express cardAmerican Express Card in dramatic fashion and pays at the pump. Another ad starred Seinfeld and an animated Superman. The unlikely duo were depicted walking along a city block, when Superman spotted Lois Lane in peril at the front of a grocery store line.When the two come to her rescue, Lois informs them that she has forgotten her wallet. Superman pats his suit where pockets normally would be located and sighs, â€Å"I can’t carry money in this. I’m powerless. † Seinfeld exclaims, â€Å"I’m not! † and begins spinning around in a blur brandishing an American Express cardAmerican Express Card. Again in dramatic fashion, he swipes the card and pays for the groceries. American Express signed one of the leading athletes in the world in 1997 when it inked a five-year, $30 million endorsement contract with Tiger Woods.That year, Woods appeared in print ads and television commercials that promoted American Express Fina ncial Advisors. In one television spot titled â€Å"Tiger Wants,† the phenom golfer discusses discussed personal aspirations, which included â€Å"tak[ing] care of the ones who took care of me† and â€Å"help[ing] people who need help. † The campaign also featured Tiger’s father, Earl, who explaineds that with the help of an American Express Financial Advisor, he was able to retire early and dedicate himself to helping Tiger reach his goals.John Hayes characterized the endorsement deal as follows: The appeal of Tiger Woods – —and, indeed, of his father, Earl – —transcends the world of golf. While Tiger’s tenacity, work ethic, and abilities are outstanding, we also recognize him as a person whose achievements are the result of perseverance and an incredible focus on a goal. That kind of earned success is a hallmark of financial success as well. [vii] In appraising AMEXAMEX’s position, Hayes also noted: The market b ecame very segmented, and we needed to catch up with that to become more relevant to more segments.So now we’ve gone from a brand that was basically represented by one card product to one that has 25 products. That’s a drastic change. [viii] Our toughest balancing act is not to lose our traditional core customers and our reputation for premium quality and service while we enact new initiatives to expand against other segments. We’re tracking that on a quarterly basis to make sure we don’t go too far in one direction or the other. [ix] Marketing and Advertising In 1999, American Express unveiled the biggest new card launch since Optima, with the â€Å"smart smart cardcard† Blue.Blue, which was launched with a $45 million advertising campaign, was considered a smart card because it contained an embedded chip that enhanced security for Internet purchases using a home-encryption system. American Express issued Blue cardholdercardholders a home card car d-swiper free of charge, which could be used for Internet transactions. The card targeted the 25 percent of Americans that owned computers and used sophisticated consumer technology, as well as another 25 percent of the population learning to use such technology. Unlike other American Express cardAmerican Express Cards, Blue carried no annual fee.One perceived risk of the Blue marketing campaign was the implication that the other American Express cardAmerican Express Cards were not secure for use with Internet purchases. Said Alfred Kelly, president of the American Express Consumer Card Services Group, â€Å"I would rather be cannibalizing myself than have the competition do it. †[x] Launch advertising involved television, print, and subway advertising, as well as event marketing. The introductory television ads focused on the technology aspect of Blue. One ad showed a sea of amoeba dancing and multiplying over a rock-and-roll soundtrack.This ad was intended to demonstrate th e â€Å"evolving credit† aspect of the card, which meant that Blue would improve as the company added new functions features to it. Another ad emphasized Blue’s payment flexibility – —unlike other American Express cardAmerican Express Cards, monthly balances could be carried into the next month – —by showing the card bent, pulled, and reshaped by robotic arms to the sounds of a classical score. In addition to major network broadcasts, these ads ran during television programs targeting young people, such as Fox’s â€Å"The X-Files† and â€Å"Futurama. Print ads appeared in newspapers and magazines, as well as in sports clubs and on restaurant table-top menus. The ads did not use the familiar Roman Centurion soldier logo associated with other cards, choosing a new look that suggested a compact disc with blue concentric circles bordered by white. American Express also sponsored a concert in New York called â€Å"Central Park in Blue. † The concert was promoted by a â€Å"street team† of sharply- dressed scooter riders, who used handheld swipers to enable cardholdercardholders to pick up free tickets at nearby Blue information kiosks.These marketing activities were designed to give the card â€Å"a different, modern, more hip feel,† said Alfred Kelly. â€Å"We wanted to break out. †[xi] American Express continued to market cards based on prestige. In 1998, it introduced the matte Matte black Black Centurion Card – —otherwise known as the â€Å"black Black cardCard† – —for elite clients. To obtain an invitation invitation-o