Challenges and Opportunities for Entrepreneurs and Business Owners Essay

Rick Suttle Rick Suttle has been writing professionally since 2009, publishing health and business articles on various websites. He has worked in corporate marketing research and as a copywriter. Suttle has a Bachelor of Science in marketing from Miami University and a Master of Business Administration from California Coast University. Business owners often face challenges with financing their companies. Business owners face many challenges when running companies. Competition can be stiff in any industry. Thus, you must find time to keep track of what key competitors are doing. Consumer preferences can also change over time, so you must fully understand what products and features your customers want. You also will face other key challenges with regard to capital, employees and planning. 1. Financing the Business * Owners are faced with the challenge of financing their businesses — both when starting out and during growth phases. Sole proprietors sometimes use savings or investment accounts to start businesses. However, financing your own business can be risky. Make sure you have money for your living expenses when financing your business, as it may take months to earn a profit. It is often difficult to get a bank loan. All banks will check your credit before giving you a loan, so get copies of your credit report and make sure it is accurate; errors can negatively impact your credit score. You also can apply for a loan through the SBA (Small Business Administration). However, the SBA often charges higher interest rates, the Microsoft Business website notes. 2. Building Profits * It can take time to build profits in a business, whether you are using direct sales or advertising to grow your business. You will need reinvest a large portion of your profits into additional advertising. Companies that use advertising build profits by gradually increasing advertising expenditures each month. For example, you may need to spend $500 to make $1,500, a 300 percent return on your advertising investment. Assuming you can average similar returns, you may decide to invest the entire $1,000 profit to make $3,000. Keep in contact with your customers. Try to get repeat sales as often as you can, which also will help you increase profits. 3. Finding Qualified Employees * Small business owners will have the challenge of finding qualified employees. Larger companies usually offer higher salaries and better health benefits than smaller ones, so you may need to find employees who recognize the inherent benefits of working for smaller companies. For example, employees can move up more quickly in a smaller organization. Another option is offering some type of profit sharing. With a solid product concept and business plan, some job applicants will recognize the monetary benefits of profit sharing. 4. Time Management * A smaller but still important challenge for business owners is time management. Small business owners often need to multitask as they have fewer employees to perform routine tasks. The key to mastering time management is prioritizing your tasks each day. Complete the tasks that are most crucial to building profits. For example, go to the meeting with a customer and work on your sales budget afterward. Challenges of Business Owners | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/info_7847252_challenges-business-owners.html#ixzz2HY0QNYtL Common Challenges Entrepreneurs Face and How to Overcome Them * 5 Most Common Challenges Entrepreneurs Face and How to Overcome Them * My Personal Challenges as an Entrepreneur and How I Overcame Them†¦ * Armed for Battle: An Army of Entrepreneurs Book Review * How Far Are You Willing to Go for Your Dreams? * Brenda Rivas: How She Used Her Unhappiness in Her Corporate America Job to Propel Her to Start Her Own Business 1. Negative Mindset The battle always starts in the mind! Our own fears, excuses, and just basically any thing that paralyzes us from moving forward to our destiny is cultivated in our mind. Feelings of inadequacy such as â€Å"I don’t know if I can do this† or â€Å"I am not qualified enough to start this happen† – these are often thoughts that entrepreneurs deal with. This can often come from our own low self-esteem, lack of support, or our upbringing. How to Overcome: a. Do not entertain the thoughts. Remember that whatever you focus on gets magnified. If you pay no attention to it, it will not linger. But for as long as you are nursing it, it will grow in your head and eventually overtake you! b. Surround yourself with positive people. Birds of same feathers flock together is a popular saying but it is true. If you hang with negative people who criticize other people and put them down and do pity party, then before long, you will find yourself like one. See why it’s important to surround yourself with positive people. c. Empower yourself by reading inspirational articles, success stories, great books, movies and anything that will encourage you and motivate you. Attend seminars and workshops if you can! 2. Overwhelming Feelings There is always a huge learning curve when you first start a business. Although you may have lots of experience in the corporate world in your field, it’s totally different when you’re the captain of your own ship. Now, you have to be the boss, the marketer, the secretary, the customer service person, the shipper, and the list goes on! But these overwhelming feelings surely do not only come to starting entrepreneurs. Some experienced and successful entrepreneurs tend to feel overwhelmed at times too so don’t be discouraged. How to Overcome: a. Take short breaks in between your tasks. I find that taking 2 or 3 minute break away from my computer helps. b. Pace yourself. Create a to-do list and make sure that you only put whatever you can handle within a realistic time frame on any given day. c. Outsource some of your tasks. If you’re growing too quick, hire a virtual assistant or a local person who doesn’t mind coming over to your home office to help you out with some tasks. d. Make sure to set aside two days off. A business is a business, however, this time it is yours and you have the flexibility to create your own hours and set your days off without any problem. It is ideal to have a couple of days off or more if you can afford it to avoid possible quick burn out. e. If you’re suffering from information overload, 3. Lack of Support Some entrepreneurs have been blessed to have supportive husbands, family, children, and friends. Some of this support group have the ability to help make the entrepreneur’s business grow but some could only offer moral support†¦which, hey, it’s more than you could ask for! While some of us are blessed like that, others lack both moral and business support. How to Overcome: a. Network with your local business organizations and find people that have the same vision and goal as you do. b. Find a virtual group of people in Social Media that support and promote each other. (Shameless Plugging: Yes, this is what The Entrepreneur Chic Social Club is all about! Details coming soon! *Wink wink*) c. Invest in a mentor or a business coach. 4. Growing a Business The challenge in growing a business mostly lies in the lack of financial resources. Let’s face it, money begets money. If you have the money, it’s easier to put your product out there in hundreds of thousands of people just like the bigger brands, the Fortune 500 companies. You see them on TV, radio, billboards, social media, and sometimes maybe in your inbox! Unfortunately, for most small business and starting entrepreneurs, this is not the case. You have to work hard to make money so you can use that to make more money! How ironic, isn’t it? But that’s where the challenge is! I really do believe that this area of having your own business teaches you a lot about persistence and creates such an experience for you that molds you as a business person. How to Overcome: a. Be patient. Growing a business takes time. The level of effort that you put in is directly equivalent to the level of result you’re going to get but do not expect an overnight result. It’s like planting a seed, it takes time to become a tree. b. Learn as much as you could about marketing (including social marketing) for as long as your brain can handle without overloading it! c. Research on ways you can acquire funding. Be creative! (perhaps you can do your own fundraising technique) See if you might be qualified for a small business loan. 5. Feelings of Wanting to Give Up Because a business takes time to grow and it usually takes a lot of effort to make it work, feelings of wanting to give up do come sometimes, especially when you’re not seeing the results that you want when you want it. Perhaps your funds are already starting to get depleted or you’re getting physically and mentally drained. How to Overcome: a. Do not entertain the thought. b. If you’re not seeing any results, evaluate your product, service, target market, and your marketing strategies. Perhaps your product isn’t the right one for the group of people that you’re presenting it to. Maybe it needs to have a lot of improvement in its presentation/packaging or price. c. Take some time off. Sometimes stepping away gives you a better perspective of where things are at and ideas flow better when your mind is rested. http://www.entrepreneurchic.com/5-most-common-challenges-entrepreneurs-face-and-how-to-overcome-them/ 5 Types of Business Opportunities for Entrepreneurs Are you a restless entrepreneur? Are you the type of person who wants to go into business to be your own boss and succeed through your own decision making? Many people feel the call to become an entrepreneur, but are not sure what type of business to start. There are many entrepreneur opportunities you could choose. Here is a brief look at different types of business opportunities available: Buy a Franchise Many entrepreneurs like to have a business going full speed right off the bat. Rather than spending time reinventing the proverbial wheel, an entrepreneur will buy a franchise opportunity. A franchise is an existing business with a solid business plan and process already in place. An entrepreneur can operate a new business under a recognized business name and receive support from the franchise headquarters with marketing, promotional materials, new business products or services, etc. Good examples of popular franchises are McDonalds and Subway restaurants, home cleaning businesses, Dollar Store, or fitness centers. Distributorship or Dealership Another place to find business opportunity leads is with distributorships and dealerships. A distributor is a person or business that has an agreement to sell products or services produced by another company. Think of an Amway distributor or Avon distributor as a good example. A dealer is much like a distributor, but more focused on one product. An auto dealership may sell only Hondas, or an insurance agent might be considered a ‘dealer’ in life insurance. Network Marketing While an Avon lady might be considered a ‘distributor,’ there is much more to this type of business opportunity. In addition to distributing the products or services offered by the parent company, a network marketer also strives to recruit other distributors. By creating a â€Å"network† of distributors, a person can earn considerable income through residual commissions made from the distributors working under them. This entrepreneur opportunity is also known as Multilevel Marketing. Licensing You might also find entrepreneur opportunities through licensing. Licensing is where you can be creative and invent products, but use the name brand, icon, or trademark of a widely recognized business. Think of Disney products. An inventor may come up with a great idea for a child’s toy that would become a big seller if the famous Mickey Mouse was associated with the product. By obtaining a license from Disney, the inventor could produce his product and profits would be shared by both parties. Filling a Niche While pre-made or other types of business opportunities can be lucrative through a parent or franchise company already enjoying great success, entrepreneur opportunities also exist for a person to simply find a consumer need and discover a way to solve it. Perhaps you are a new mother who finds a need for a baby product not on the market, and therefore, you create and distribute one of your own. Or you are a specialist who finds that other businesses will pay for your consultation and expertise in improving a business function. Any entrepreneur who wants to make a business of his or her own has many types of business opportunities to explore. Find the one right for you and enjoy the success you can build on your own. At the beginning of each year, there is always a little buzz about what will be the next new big ticket. The world is supposed to end in 2012, so I hope you’ll buy 50 pair of underwear, six months’ worth of food rations and about 500 gallons of water. I hope you will make those purchases, not because I think the world is going to end, but because I’m starting an underwear-manufacturing company, a food-rations-supply firm and a water-supply business. Each of these businesses will be hot in the new year as hysteria kicks into overdrive in 2012. Don’t believe me? Flash back to Y2K. Businesses spent around $500 billion to save themselves from impending doom. But nothing happened. Not even a little Y2K postmortem belch. Nothing happened, except that vendors in 1999 pulled in a cool half trillion! So if you’re looking for the next hot opportunity for entrepreneurs in 2012, keep these five areas in mind. 1. Elderly consumers Because people are living longer these days, a flood of products and services will be designed to cater to the older crowd. Businesses will introduce not-so-obvious services. New retirement villages will spring up and new services that cater to the elderly, such as chair lifts for getting into airplane seats. 2. Domestic purchasing With Europe on shaky financial ground, expect businesses to do more domestic purchasing. There is volatility ahead, so if you are based in the U.S. and have competitors overseas, you may have an advantage in 2012. It’s safer to purchase domestically, where buyers perceive more stability, even if it is more costly. 3. Mobile purchasing If you are familiar with Square, you know that this is just the beginning. In 2012, we will see a big surge in payments made with smartphones. Entrepreneurs who have not optimized their websites and their businesses for smartphone transactions are giving money away. In fact, the research firm Emarketer says that smartphone transactions are expected to exceed $6.5 billion by 2015. That’s a lot of coin. 4. Genetic DNA sequencing It’s not the sequencing itself that entrepreneurs need to jump on, but keeping it under $1,000. Technological advancements continue at mind-blowing speed. As Moore’s Law predicts, every 18 months technology doubles in performance and cuts the cost in half. In 2012, we should see genetic decoding available for $1,000 or less. That price point would make it available to the average person. Most people would have the means to determine their genetic propensity to problems, and to take immediate action to live longer and healthier. This will create a boom in DNA-sequencing services and related health care services. Jump on it now, before it becomes another Walmart offering, like flu shots are now. 5. World ending Not. My biggest, boldest prediction is that the world will not end in December 2012 (even though the Mayan calendar shows that it will). But that doesn’t mean there won’t be big opportunities to profit from the hype that will build. It could represent millions, or even billions, in revenue. People spent nearly $1 billion preparing for Y2K to hit, and nothing happened. We are creatures of habit and will likely do the same for 2012. So, if you believe the Mayan calendar may not be accurate about the world ending in 2012, consider ways to profit from these areas. They should be lucrative and provide plenty of opportunity. Besides, the Mayan calendar also predicted that the Kim Kardashian marriage would last more than 12 months, and it was wrong about that, too!

Love and Patriotism Essay

Patriotism is a frame of mind in which one loves one’s country and is proud of it. It is a vigorous feeling of love, loyalty and support for one’s country especially in defense against its enemies. It means that one should give more value and importance to one’s country than to one’s own self. It makes one bound for certain responsibilities, and these responsibilities are ideological commitment and dedication to the defense and prosperity of one’s country. â€Å"Only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country. (Nathan Hale) Man is a social animal. It is hard for him to breathe in isolation. Contact with his fellow beings is inevitable for mutual growth and economic development. Patriotism creates unity among the people for a noble cause and trains them to tolerate one and other and sacrifice for the country. â€Å"Soldiers die not in hatred but in love.† (Anonymous) Patriotism is a virtue that converts a mob into nation. Nations rise and prosper if their individuals are united by a cord of love, sympathy and sincerity. People learn to honor the freedom and independence of their country. They learn that they can prosper and progress if they have a deep natural relation with their country. Birds fly towards their nests, children rush to take refuge in the lap of their mothers and human beings move towards their homes for peace and shelter, and so is our country that gives us protection and peace. It is a sort of heaven for us. We should try our best to make it beautiful, secure, strong and peaceful. Our existence definitely depends on the existence and survival of our dear homeland. We can do so if we have an ultimate faith in our country. We must not undermine our relationship and association which we have with our homeland by birth. â€Å"Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one.† (Mareus) Disciplined armed forces, hardworking and skillful craftsmen, diligent and committed women, and ambitious students have only one aim and that is to serve their country. They believe that their personal achievement will benefit not only themselves but also their country. They want to raise the flag of their country because they have a strong sense of patriotism. Love works wonders. Miracles are not beyond us if we are fired with the passion of patriotism. Patriotism fills us with a magnetic force which overcomes all our petty differences of languages and creeds.

Analysis of Report to Wordsworth

The following lines are significantly symbolic, as the words ‘sky slowing’ can be interpreted as the world itself turning much slower than before, the life and vibrancy leaking out of it. The reference to a ‘dying clock’ may make the reader believe that nature has very limited time remaining and that death is at its doorstep. ‘Smothered by the smog’, this line refers directly to, I believe, the harmful smoke and gases that spoil our air, literally smothering us. This description has the impressive effect of creating a feeling of suffocation, accurately reflecting the idea that is trying to be communicated. References to the great ancient Greek gods of the seas, Proteus and Triton create an incredible effect, notably the one that depicts two of the most powerful beings in existence struggling and suffering at the hands of man. ‘All hopes of Proteus rising from the sea have sunk’, this direct allusion to the tons of pollution man creates is particularly strong as it sends a message along the lines: our oceans are so polluted even the sea god is forced away. Triton’s notes struggle to be free†¦horns are choked, his eyes are dazed’ The idea of man being able to cause such suffering to the gods themselves emphasises all the more the idea of them causing massive destruction to nature. ‘Neptune lies helpless as a beach whale, while insatiate man moves in for the kill’; the adjective ‘insatiate’ depicts man as being merciless and cruel. The following lines may be interpreted from the point of view of poets, who often sit and write of what they see around them, watching the ocean, or wide fields of green countryside. They are now failing as these things that were once so beautiful are slowly being destroyed. Cheng here presents an interesting image, notably that of a ‘wound widening in the sky’, which personally makes me think of our ozone layer getting worn away by pollution, leaving the world at mercy. There is also here a discreet allusion to the poem Composed upon Westminster Bridge, the poem by William Wordsworth (Cheng’s poem is a response to this particular piece of work). God is labouring to utter his last cry’ is, I find, the perfect ending to the poem, as it once again alludes to God himself struggling against what man has caused to the world. The poem’s tone is considerably morose, along with a rhythm that I would compare to a funeral march. The atmosphere is quite deep and the voice could be that of surrender, as the poet does not indicate any possibility of mankind being capable of turning this situation around. I feel that this poem can be morally challenging and is very successful in making us understand the gravity of the world’s condition. Analysis of Report to Wordsworth The following lines are significantly symbolic, as the words ‘sky slowing’ can be interpreted as the world itself turning much slower than before, the life and vibrancy leaking out of it. The reference to a ‘dying clock’ may make the reader believe that nature has very limited time remaining and that death is at its doorstep. ‘Smothered by the smog’, this line refers directly to, I believe, the harmful smoke and gases that spoil our air, literally smothering us. This description has the impressive effect of creating a feeling of suffocation, accurately reflecting the idea that is trying to be communicated. References to the great ancient Greek gods of the seas, Proteus and Triton create an incredible effect, notably the one that depicts two of the most powerful beings in existence struggling and suffering at the hands of man. ‘All hopes of Proteus rising from the sea have sunk’, this direct allusion to the tons of pollution man creates is particularly strong as it sends a message along the lines: our oceans are so polluted even the sea god is forced away. Triton’s notes struggle to be free†¦horns are choked, his eyes are dazed’ The idea of man being able to cause such suffering to the gods themselves emphasises all the more the idea of them causing massive destruction to nature. ‘Neptune lies helpless as a beach whale, while insatiate man moves in for the kill’; the adjective ‘insatiate’ depicts man as being merciless and cruel. The following lines may be interpreted from the point of view of poets, who often sit and write of what they see around them, watching the ocean, or wide fields of green countryside. They are now failing as these things that were once so beautiful are slowly being destroyed. Cheng here presents an interesting image, notably that of a ‘wound widening in the sky’, which personally makes me think of our ozone layer getting worn away by pollution, leaving the world at mercy. There is also here a discreet allusion to the poem Composed upon Westminster Bridge, the poem by William Wordsworth (Cheng’s poem is a response to this particular piece of work). God is labouring to utter his last cry’ is, I find, the perfect ending to the poem, as it once again alludes to God himself struggling against what man has caused to the world. The poem’s tone is considerably morose, along with a rhythm that I would compare to a funeral march. The atmosphere is quite deep and the voice could be that of surrender, as the poet does not indicate any possibility of mankind being capable of turning this situation around. I feel that this poem can be morally challenging and is very successful in making us understand the gravity of the world’s condition.

Kuwaits democratic development Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Kuwaits democratic development - Research Paper Example This essay declares that in developing the context of democracy, the essential approaches for consideration with relation to the democratic development include the procession of development of civil life from the kin-based origins or the contractual and interest-based styles of leadership . The associations of the ancient worlds are much similar to those of today. In the pursuit of liberation and establishment of civil life, the aspects of cultural origin structure the continuity of rule within the political systems. The rule on interest-based conceptions entails the selection of a leader based on his interest for the subjects. Democracy and development remain the driving forces of the ‘new world order.’ The initial opportunity for engaging in Kuwait was the call to liberate Kuwait from the invasion by the Iraqi forces. This paper makes a conclusion that the development of Kuwait towards democracy has a rich history of turbulent times. The aspect of the government structure of the city-state constitutes vastly in the limitation towards achieving complete democratic establishments . Politics and individual interest in the recourses of the oil-rich country continue to increment the gap towards the development of the city-state into adopting democracy in all its constitutions. Further, the factors of religious beliefs and culture also limit the establishment and achievement of democratic development of Kuwait. These factors result in the retarding growth of Kuwait towards the establishment of democratic development.

MANAGING PEOPLE IN RETAIL Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

MANAGING PEOPLE IN RETAIL - Essay Example If a specialist candidates is required, a job agency has the expertise to attract the right person; many also agencies specialize in the candidates they attract e.g. accountancy, haulage. Agencies take the worry out of the employment headache, and for the small business this can save a lot of time. But, unfortunately, they are unable to gauge the exact needs of each individual company. As the agency interviews all candidates, they cannot detect subtle personality requirements, which would help the candidate settle in. If the candidate is found to be unsuitable, this means more lost time. Finally, agencies also charge a fee; so if we are going to use an agency, check their fees, as they could prove quite expensive. Many Job Centres offer recruitment services for companies who use them to recruit. For example, many will offer a room to interview potential candidates; others will help to draw up a short list based on our job specification. Above all, this service is free. Needless to say, this will save a small business quite a lot of time and money when recruiting. This is an effective method as it reaches a large audience in a short space of time, often resulting in a significant amount of interest. We can also target an area or specialist profession, as there are a multitude of magazines and newspapers on offer to choose from. However, we may find that the more specialized or selective we become, the more we have to pay to the advertisement, so it can work out quite expensive. Additionally, if we want to attract the right candidate, we need to have some publishing skills to produce an attractive advertisement. We can of course use a specialist publishing company to design the right ad, but this will again cost us money. Our company is a modern fast growing young retail business. We have a wide net of hypermarkets. We have many branches of our business worldwide and have built up a good reputation within our field of trade. We are

Effects of graduating from college in a bad economy Essay

Effects of graduating from college in a bad economy - Essay Example dual works in the long run as compared to the number of working hours and probability of gaining employment during good economic conditions in the long run (Liu 2). The immediate to short term effects are that fresh graduates fail to obtain positions that are highly desired by them if they graduate in a recession and shifting between jobs is even quite difficult (Oreopoulos 23). They even fail to bargain for higher paying jobs as they fail to gain employment in high paying positions. For example: Kahn figured out that those who graduate during recessionary period earn around 3 to 5 percent less over a period of 20 years (Kahn 310). Those individuals who gain graduation during recessionary sessions do not face difference in gaining job opportunities and working hours in the long run as compared to their peers who graduate during booming conditions. In the short run they experience failure to find high paying jobs, desirable positions, failure to switch jobs and demand low wage rates. Oreopoulos, Philip, Andrew Heisz, and Till . Wachter. The Short and Long-Term Career Effects of Graduating in a Recession: Hysteresis and Heterogeneity in the Market for College Graduates. Cambridge, Ma: National Bureau of Economic Research, 2005. Internet resource. SABLIK, TIM. "Are New Graduates Left Behind in a Recession?." Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2012.

Lorex Pharmaceuticals Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Lorex Pharmaceuticals - Essay Example This essay discusses that Lorex Pharmaceuticals has developed and holds all patent rights to Linatol, a new high blood pressure medicine. Since the pharmaceutical industry operates in a monopolistically competitive atmosphere (where no specific pharmaceutical company dominates the market), the patent-holder of a new product can have considerable market advantage over other companies. Lorex pharmaceutical is therefore seeking solutions to optimize this competitive advantage by balancing cost, productivity, and quality with regards to the production of Linatol. To reach this end, the managers of Lorex Pharmaceuticals must determine and select a target amount to which each of the 10-ounce bottles of the product would be filled. This task takes into consideration two issues: 1) Specifying higher fill targets will lead to higher material cost but fewer seconds, and 2) use of the one-standard-deviation rule can cause production delays. Using tests to determine the optimal fill-line, it has been established that 10.17-ounce mark would result in optimal production and maximum returns. Since probability analysis is only suggestive and the accuracy increases with samples size, it is recommended that more tests be conducted to reach more accurate results. Quality assurance managers of Lorex Pharmaceuticals must determine and select a target amount to which each of the 10 ounce bottles of Linatol, a new high blood pressure medicine, would be filled. ... The pharmaceutical industry is ever changing, as can be seen from the many changes in the structure of markets and organizations that occur over the years. Competition in the industry is intense, which means that mergers, acquisitions, etc. are not uncommon. In the pharmaceutical industry in the U.S., there is an extreme contrast between a specific products market during patent enforcement (where a patent holder may control over 80 percent of the product's market and can charge premium prices) and after the patent expires (where market control is reduced to about 30 percent because of the many sellers and buyers that soon emerge after patent expiration). Lorex Pharmaceuticals has developed Linatol, a new high blood pressure medicine, and the company holds all patents right to it. A company that develops a new drug has the potential to realize very large profits. Decisions in manufacturing budgets and product specifications influence the capacity of a particular product line. These, in turn influence the productivity and actual profit of the company. Thus, manufacturers must take into consideration the cost and quality factors that go into production. It is not unusual for companies to pursue trade-offs in cost, productivity, and efficiency in order to pursue specific markets. This however, can result in poor product quality. This case analysis aims to present some solutions that would help Lorex Pharmaceuticals strike a balance between cost, productivity, and quality. Possible Decision Alternatives Quality assurance managers of Lorex Pharmaceuticals must determine and select a target amount to which each of the 10 ounce

Evaluate the role of the WHO in global health governance Essay

Evaluate the role of the WHO in global health governance - Essay Example This has resultantly called for the reassessment of the rules and institutions governing healthy policy and practice at various levels, including subnational level, national level, regional level and global level. This has been so due to a number of factors, which despite the fact that they are outsider the health sector brackets, they are progressively affecting health. Some of these factors include such as collective violence, trade and investment flows, conflict, criminal activity, communication technologies and environmental change (WHO 2010, p.1). This thus necessitates for the broadening of the agenda of public health to include the aforementioned global forces and at the same time see to it that human health is promoted and protected. It is however broadly believed that the international health governance system is not sufficiently meeting these needs and besides, this current system is characterised by a number of gaps and shortcomings. As a result of these perceived shortcom ings, the concept of global health governance has become a key interest area of debate in the field of international health. ... New health challenges, the likes of rising non-communicable chronic diseases and global warming have been looming on the horizon. This has greatly affected the role of the World Health Organisation (WHO) of availing leadership on worldwide health matter and moulding the health research agenda in a negative way. Having been founded in the aftermath of the World War II, WHO has been dedicated to making improvements in global health through its involvement in various public health initiatives, offering technical support and at times material aid geared towards helping in the fight against infectious and chronic diseases (WHO 1983, p.6). Role of the WHO Being the organisation of nation states aimed at promoting global health, WHO is an actor that focuses on the apprehension of social right in the health arena. Apart from being a core objective of the organisation, health for all is also an established principal wish of national and international health activities by all the world’ s nations. Undeniably, it is common knowledge that WHO’s primary function is to direct and coordinate matters concerning international health. Nevertheless, this intergovernmental organisation is obliged to see through the fulfilment of a considerably stout normative responsibility in the creation of health-related standards that strongly enhance cooperation (Burci & Vignes 2004, p.124). Among the key roles of the WHO was the creation of health-related legal instruments including such as agreements, regulations, conventions and recommendations which would permit it exercise rational and legal authority. Since it had been obliged with ensuring the improvement of the global health grants, this

Business Law (Interbational) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Business Law (Interbational) - Essay Example Schafer (31-46) explicitly describes the current rules applicable to the taxation of companies operating internationally. For examples, multinational companies or enterprises, and firms sited in another locality different from the residence of the people in charge of the companies’ administration. The following taxation principles are in operation: Establishment of framework for international taxation: Schafer (31) strongly believes that the first step in determining what kind of taxes to pay to which locality begins by establishing the framework for the taxation. The importance of the framework is to stipulate: one, whether a jurisdiction is entitled to tax income from an internationally run firm; two, the allocation formula among the entities that could claim the rights to the tax income; and, finally, preventive measures to avoid unduly double taxation. Jurisdiction issue: Schafer (33) defines a jurisdiction as the â€Å"company’s residence country where its main activities are concentrated, and the company utilizes the benefits provided by the residence country†. Some of the benefits the residence country (a tax haven, possibly) provides to the company may include economic resources, security or legal, financial, physical and social infrastructures that could be used at a cheaper cost compared with the expensiveness of such benefits at the company owners’ home countries, as in the case of the three friends from OECD countries (Schafer 33). And tax incomes are traditionally paid to the jurisdiction where is company is situated. Technically, a company’s jurisdiction could be described as the place where the company is registered or incorporated. In case it is unclear to ascertain the exact jurisdiction of a company based on its legal registration, the company’s place of economic allegiance, that is , where its main management structure and business operation reside could be taken as the

Clean Edge Razor Splitting Hairs in Product Positioning Essay Example for Free

Clean Edge Razor Splitting Hairs in Product Positioning Essay Paramount’s newest non-disposable razor, Clean Edge, has brought a new hope for the company whose other products are either on the mature stage of product life cycle or on the declining stage. Clean Edge’s improved design provides superior performance and hence the top management is extremely excited. They need to come up with a marketing strategy including product positioning, brand name marketing budget allocation for the upcoming launch. Another area of concern is how to deal with the cannibalization effect on the other range of non-disposable razors sold by Paramount. It is very important to come up with a suitable strategy to make the product successful in the market. Through a proper economic analysis considering the razor market and the facts available, we have come up with a conclusion that Paramount should position Clean Edge in the Niche Segment. Statement of the Problems Paramount needs to come up with a marketing strategy to effectively position its new line of technologically advanced non-disposable razors. Over the last five year years the industry has seen major advancements in the male grooming industry with the entry of new formidable players turning on the heat for the existing market leaders. Some of the major highlights include * Male specific grooming products seem to have outpaced the growth in women’s beauty market and have become more mainstream * In the male grooming product category, the replacement cycle of razors and cartridges have shortened * Advertising expenditures in the category have been rising faster than retail market sales * The demand has had a cumulative effect on technology as newer advanced products have hit the market resulting in approximately 5% growth per year from 2007 to 2010 * Super-premium segment has experienced significant growth with numerous product innovations By 2009, Paramount had already established itself as a global consumer products giant having expertise in Health, Cleaning, Beauty and Grooming. This helped the company to quickly position itself as a trusted brand in the non-disposable razor market. Capitalising on its reputation it offered its products By 2009, the replacement cycle of non-disposable razor cartridges had shortened due to consumers trying out new products. The challenge with Paramount was that two of its mainstream products – Paramount Pro and Paramount Avail had not introduced any significant technology innovations since 2005. However, its competitors, especially Radiance is on the verge of launching Naiv razor which promises a better shaving experience.

Principle Of Equality In Practical Ethics Philosophy Essay

Principle Of Equality In Practical Ethics Philosophy Essay The principle of equality in Singers work can be rationally defended from many perspectives, especially when it is being applied to human beings. However, Singer goes further to consider all animals as well. It is the basic assumption of the current investigation that Singers ideas about equality are much more rational, and much less radical, when they are employed to describe human beings; however, when they are expanded to include all sentience, some of the supposed equalities Singer proposes are no longer rational. Some of Singers theories about equality can therefore be challenged by logic, and not accepted, by people who, for example, see a difference between animals and humans, in terms of the equality applied and implied to them. When Singer talks about equality, he rejects the traditional Rawls-influenced notion of moral personality and human equality. Singer proposes a broader and more collectivist ethics, and therefore his idea of equality is also broader. However, there needs to be an alternative to this philosophy because it is untenable and seeks a level of sophistication which the author frequently is unable to convey appropriately, as seen by his use in the following sentence of creative semantics within their rhetoric. The day may come when the rest of the animal creation may acquire those rights which never could have been with-holden from them but by the hand of tyranny (sic). The French have already discovered that the blackness of the skin is no reason why a human being should be abandoned without redress to the caprice of a tormentor (Singer, 1989). Singers essay, which proposes to have a utilitarian argument structure, is basically all about morality, and it corresponds to the rightness or wron gness of an action that impacts that actions significance in terms of utility. This concept of utility has been stretched and formed the main basis for those who would criticize Singers embrace of the equality of animals and humans, as a dry and humourless statistical impossibility that drained the imagination out of humanity and based impulse on quasi-scientific ethical propositions. This is a valid criticism in the light of various authors use of utilitarianism, but it is also important to keep in mind that utilitarianism is basically a positive principle that lays out a plan for happiness, not equality. In other words, there are bright and dark sides to this issue, in which the philosophy can be changed and develop a more hybrid definition as it is interpreted by different scholars, such as Singer, or Bentham. In these cases, one scholar usually comes before the other. Singers ideas of equality also have a lot to do with the equal consideration of disparate interests. From this perspective, the philosopher can be rationally defended by those who seek to end the reign of racism, sexism and discrimination on the grounds of disability, from society. From an egalitarian perspective then, Singer can be rationally defended in his conception of equality, as it is basically a parallel of the status quo of most industrialized societies, at least in principle. And Singer asks thought provoking questions about the nature of real equality, for example, asking reasonably if any readers would really consider a strangers family to be equal to theirs, if both were under some external threat. Some of the more utilitarian of Singers defences of equality seem to make more rational sense than his defence of animals being equal to humans. Singers utilitarianism has a political and legal value, even in the justification theory perspective, because it can separate levels of harm caused to society in terms of either rules that encompass actions or actions which in themselves become rules. It is difficult to say which interpretation is more faithful to the basic tenets of utilitarianism, but it seems that in terms of alternatives, Singer has chosen not to look deeper into this philosophy than just one counts as one. What can be said, however, is that, justification-theory utilitarianism as stressed by Singer, consists of a doctrine that relates to moral goodness rather than ethical goodness, and also a doctrine that relates to what the author believes is morally right, not ethically right. The originators of utilitarianism, Mill and Bentham, both saw utilitarianism as a moral theory, and this is correct, and therefore the author uses the moral theory to back up their own moral philosophy. Jeremy Bentham incorporated the essential basis of moral equality into his utilitarian system of ethics in the formula, Each to count for one and non for more than one. In other words, the interests of every being affected by an action are to be taken into account and given the same weight as the like interests of any other being (Singer, 1989). In utilitarianism, deliberation can be conflated with intention and determination, whereas justification can be thought of as proven reasonability. There are differences between different categories of the philosophy in general, which are basically involved with the application of theoretical concepts in terms of predicting and justifying consequences and comparisons. So equality of opportunity is not an attractive ideal. It rewards the lucky, who inherit those abilities that allow them to pursue interesting and lucrative careers. It penalizes the unlucky, whose genes make it very hard for them to achieve similar success (Singer, 1989). When the author is talking about humans, he makes some cogent points. Singer uses utilitarianism as a theory of justification of society and equality of people and animals, but I would also propose that the author looks a little further into utilitarianism and sees that it is really more about proven reasonability as a standard measuring the worth of the end result or consequential result of the concept: happiness, not equality. In terms of institutional application in a historical sense, this has also included a reckoning of the main points of justification theory utilitarianism as a way of grading or categorizing institutions or policy ramifications in terms of testing and proving the efficiency or utility of the institution through a utilitarian viewpoint. This involves justification in that it uses proof and rationalization rather than deliberation theories of intention and determination. This also increases the value of objectivity as a vaunted standard within utilitarianism, seen from this justification perspective. Singer also examines some inequalities that plague society. The important point is that affirmative action, whether by quotas or some other method, is not contrary to any sound principle of equality and does not violate any rights of those excluded by it From this point, Singers theories view inequality as being passed on from one generation to another in terms of wealth and privilege within a family structure that is seen as a space of economic restriction that also works to keep disadvantaged families in the same place from generation to generation. The social class of the parents, from this perspective, will play a large role in the development of their children in terms of advantages or disadvantages that are inherited in the family structure. From this view, society is not seen as the large organism or field of struggle that functional theorists and conflict theorists see it as, but rather is seen more limited in terms of individual and everyday relations. When Singer is proclaiming the equality of animals and humans, this is a controversial subject on which some of his arguments appear less logical. It has been suggested that autonomous, self-conscious beings are in some way much more valuable morally significant, than beings w ho live from moment to moment, without the capacity to see themselves as distinct beings with a past and a future (Singer, 1989). Everyone has their own ethics. Socially positive behaviour may be influenced by moral behaviour, which has a more religious semantic connotation, but ethics should not be confused with moral behaviour. Ethics is not the same as morality or presupposing moral censorship, as some would have it; morality is more of an externalized and often conditioned response, whereas ethics could perhaps be more readily likened to the basic conscience mechanism of social responsibility. Ethics is something that begins with the individual and acts effectively to represent society in terms of fair and balanced information being presented. Animals do have rights. Those who abuse or are cruel to animals can be brought before the law. But there is also a double standard, because the cows supplying McDonalds hamburgers are mistreated and abused every day in a cruel manner, and no one takes a second thought. Animals do have rights, but they are rights that are determined by humans, not animals. When Singer is talking about the equality of humans who are disabled, or minorities, it is a conventional, status quo argument. But when he suggests the equality of animals and humans, he takes a step towards more controversial polemics. (Singer, 1989)