Infosys Case Study

Oracle Customer Case Study Infosys Goes to University to Build Business Worldwide â€Å"The quality of the courses is very good and the materials are extremely well designed. We have also had extremely strong feedback from Infosys staff who have completed courses at Oracle University. † – Dr Subhash Chandra Rastogi, Head, Enterprise Solutions Academy, Infosys Technologies Ltd Infosys Technologies Ltd (NASDAQ: INFY) defines, designs, and delivers IT-enabled business solutions. These solutions focus on providing clients with strategic differentiation and operational superiority. Infosys creates these solutions by leveraging its domain and business expertise to offer a complete range of services. For the fiscal year ending March 31, 2007, Infosys recorded revenues of more than US$3 billion with net income of over US$850 million. Infosys is a NASDAQ 100 company. Infosys uses a global alliance with Oracle to deliver Oracle-based systems and services to clients worldwide. These enable businesses to build a more flexible architecture to support faster deployment of new applications, achieve a consolidated view of their global supply chain, reduce costs by leveraging global sourcing, or employ predictive capabilities to exploit emerging opportunities or avert looming obstacles. To support Infosys’ status as a Global SI Partner—recognized at the Worldwide Certified Advantage Partner level—Oracle has provided extensive training support through its Oracle University educational resource. More than 3,000 Infosys employees globally have benefited through Oracle University-based knowledge, enabling them to deliver Oracle products and services to a high level of expertise. Oracle University courses typically run between five and 15 days, depending on the complexity of the product and associated business process changes. â€Å"The quality of the courses is very good and the materials are extremely well designed,† said Dr Subhash Chandra Rastogi, head of the Enterprise Solutions Academy at Infosys. We have also had extremely strong feedback from Infosys staff who have completed courses at Oracle University. † Copyright  © 2008, Oracle. All rights reserved. Oracle is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners. Published February 2008 Infosys Technologies Ltd Bangalore, India www. infosys. com Industry: Professional Services Annual Revenue: US$3. 09 billion Employees: 80,500 Orac le Products & Services: Oracle University Key Benefits: Ensured more than 100 staff are certified in Oracle E-Business Suite, qualifying them to deliver the solution to customers worldwide Provided feedback into the beta version of Oracle E-Business Suite Enabled staff around the world to undertake training in their own time via online courses Enabled more than 3,000 employees to take various Oracle University learning programs through a range of delivery modes Oracle Customer Case Study Upskilling Delivers Results Infosys is one of the world’s most rapidly growing consulting and information technology services companies. In 2007, the company’s revenues crossed US$3 billion. Key to the company’s success is its low-risk, high-quality Global Delivery Model, whereby work is broken up into logical components to be completed in the most efficient location. With staff numbers rising sharply, in 2003 Infosys created an Enterprise Solutions Academy (ES Academy) within the company to manage the educational requirements of everyone from new recruits to 20-year veterans. The ES Academy currently has to service an annual intake that reached 1,740 engineers and MBA graduates in 2006. â€Å"This is a very different concept for a systems integrator, but we had to ensure our staff could get the expertise nd certification needed to service our clients to the very highest level,† said Dr Rastogi. While the ES Academy itself provides an extensive portfolio of training and certification courses, the academy has partnered with Oracle University to provide its consultants with training in Oracle products. â€Å"Oracle is constantly growing its portfolio of solu tions, upgrading existing products, and acquiring new product companies,† said Dr Rastogi. â€Å"Oracle University provides expert, in-depth training across the Oracle suite of products and services. There is no point in us trying to duplicate this effort or invest in something we don’t need to,† he added. Participating in the Oracle University program brings benefits to Infosys other than a more skilled workforce. As a strategic partner to Oracle, Infosys can also contribute knowledge to the development of new Oracle products and services. â€Å"We did contribute to the beta certification of Oracle E-Business Suite, with more than 150 Infosys consultants providing input to Oracle University as to where the product could be improved,† said Dr Rastogi. We now have more than 100 people certified in Oracle E-Business Suite—more than anyone else in the world— and they continue to provide lots of input to Oracle as well as staying appraised of new developments. † Copyright  © 2008, Oracle. All rights reserved. Oracle is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners. Published February 2008 Oracle Customer Case Study Oracle University Reviews Infosys Curriculum It often becomes viable for the ES Academy to deliver Oracle courses internally based on the level of demand, or for some basic products. For example, 85% of consultants that specialize in relatively ‘vanilla’ products such as Oracle9i Database are trained in-house, with the remaining 15% undertaking courses at Oracle University. â€Å"To ensure quality, we engaged Oracle University to review our curriculum content, materials, and questions for course attendees,† said Dr Rastogi. â€Å"They give us sound advice that ensures we deliver the best possible internal courses. † These courses do not cover newer products, or products taken on through acquisition of companies such as Hyperion or Demantra. About 95% of consultants that specialize in these new areas take the relevant courses from Oracle University. Overcoming the Tyranny of Distance Infosys’ burgeoning growth within India and worldwide has created a geographically distributed organization that makes delivering face-to-face training, a sometimes costly exercise. â€Å"This has posed a problem for us because people in India are not used to alternatives such as e-learning,† said Dr Rastogi. â€Å"People prefer to come to a classroom. â€Å"In addition, the firewall we apply across our systems prevents Infosys employees from viewing streaming audio and video. To create more flexibility for staff to access the online courses available through Oracle University, Infosys is establishing e-libraries in offices in Pune, Mangalore, and Hyderabad. These currently include 20 PCs where staff can access streaming audio and video. This number is expected to grow to 100–150 by late 2008 across various locations i n India. Employees working in Europe and the U. S. are already benefiting from streaming audio and video. The availability of online courses through Oracle University means staff will be able to undertake training without disrupting their client work. The benefits of e-learning apply to staff outside India as well. â€Å"Our certification program applies to employees regardless of Copyright  © 2008, Oracle. All rights reserved. Oracle is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners. Published February 2008 Oracle Customer Case Study country,† said Dr Rastogi. â€Å"We have 25 to 30 staff who specialize in Oracle E-Business Suite who work in Europe or the U. S. † Helping Ambitious Employees to Get Ahead A certification from Oracle University can provide ambitious employees with an edge in the competitive Infosys culture. Because it’s an external certification, it provides good branding for an employee,† said Dr Rastogi. â€Å"They become of greater value to Infosys and to our customers. † Infosys Technologies Ltd (NASDAQ: INFY) defines, designs, and delivers ITenabled business solutions. For the fiscal year ended Marc h 31, 2007, Infosys recorded revenues of more than US$3 billion with net income of over US$850 million. Copyright  © 2008, Oracle. All rights reserved. Oracle is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners. Published February 2008 Infosys Case Study Oracle Customer Case Study Infosys Goes to University to Build Business Worldwide â€Å"The quality of the courses is very good and the materials are extremely well designed. We have also had extremely strong feedback from Infosys staff who have completed courses at Oracle University. † – Dr Subhash Chandra Rastogi, Head, Enterprise Solutions Academy, Infosys Technologies Ltd Infosys Technologies Ltd (NASDAQ: INFY) defines, designs, and delivers IT-enabled business solutions. These solutions focus on providing clients with strategic differentiation and operational superiority. Infosys creates these solutions by leveraging its domain and business expertise to offer a complete range of services. For the fiscal year ending March 31, 2007, Infosys recorded revenues of more than US$3 billion with net income of over US$850 million. Infosys is a NASDAQ 100 company. Infosys uses a global alliance with Oracle to deliver Oracle-based systems and services to clients worldwide. These enable businesses to build a more flexible architecture to support faster deployment of new applications, achieve a consolidated view of their global supply chain, reduce costs by leveraging global sourcing, or employ predictive capabilities to exploit emerging opportunities or avert looming obstacles. To support Infosys’ status as a Global SI Partner—recognized at the Worldwide Certified Advantage Partner level—Oracle has provided extensive training support through its Oracle University educational resource. More than 3,000 Infosys employees globally have benefited through Oracle University-based knowledge, enabling them to deliver Oracle products and services to a high level of expertise. Oracle University courses typically run between five and 15 days, depending on the complexity of the product and associated business process changes. â€Å"The quality of the courses is very good and the materials are extremely well designed,† said Dr Subhash Chandra Rastogi, head of the Enterprise Solutions Academy at Infosys. We have also had extremely strong feedback from Infosys staff who have completed courses at Oracle University. † Copyright  © 2008, Oracle. All rights reserved. Oracle is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners. Published February 2008 Infosys Technologies Ltd Bangalore, India www. infosys. com Industry: Professional Services Annual Revenue: US$3. 09 billion Employees: 80,500 Orac le Products & Services: Oracle University Key Benefits: Ensured more than 100 staff are certified in Oracle E-Business Suite, qualifying them to deliver the solution to customers worldwide Provided feedback into the beta version of Oracle E-Business Suite Enabled staff around the world to undertake training in their own time via online courses Enabled more than 3,000 employees to take various Oracle University learning programs through a range of delivery modes Oracle Customer Case Study Upskilling Delivers Results Infosys is one of the world’s most rapidly growing consulting and information technology services companies. In 2007, the company’s revenues crossed US$3 billion. Key to the company’s success is its low-risk, high-quality Global Delivery Model, whereby work is broken up into logical components to be completed in the most efficient location. With staff numbers rising sharply, in 2003 Infosys created an Enterprise Solutions Academy (ES Academy) within the company to manage the educational requirements of everyone from new recruits to 20-year veterans. The ES Academy currently has to service an annual intake that reached 1,740 engineers and MBA graduates in 2006. â€Å"This is a very different concept for a systems integrator, but we had to ensure our staff could get the expertise nd certification needed to service our clients to the very highest level,† said Dr Rastogi. While the ES Academy itself provides an extensive portfolio of training and certification courses, the academy has partnered with Oracle University to provide its consultants with training in Oracle products. â€Å"Oracle is constantly growing its portfolio of solu tions, upgrading existing products, and acquiring new product companies,† said Dr Rastogi. â€Å"Oracle University provides expert, in-depth training across the Oracle suite of products and services. There is no point in us trying to duplicate this effort or invest in something we don’t need to,† he added. Participating in the Oracle University program brings benefits to Infosys other than a more skilled workforce. As a strategic partner to Oracle, Infosys can also contribute knowledge to the development of new Oracle products and services. â€Å"We did contribute to the beta certification of Oracle E-Business Suite, with more than 150 Infosys consultants providing input to Oracle University as to where the product could be improved,† said Dr Rastogi. We now have more than 100 people certified in Oracle E-Business Suite—more than anyone else in the world— and they continue to provide lots of input to Oracle as well as staying appraised of new developments. † Copyright  © 2008, Oracle. All rights reserved. Oracle is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners. Published February 2008 Oracle Customer Case Study Oracle University Reviews Infosys Curriculum It often becomes viable for the ES Academy to deliver Oracle courses internally based on the level of demand, or for some basic products. For example, 85% of consultants that specialize in relatively ‘vanilla’ products such as Oracle9i Database are trained in-house, with the remaining 15% undertaking courses at Oracle University. â€Å"To ensure quality, we engaged Oracle University to review our curriculum content, materials, and questions for course attendees,† said Dr Rastogi. â€Å"They give us sound advice that ensures we deliver the best possible internal courses. † These courses do not cover newer products, or products taken on through acquisition of companies such as Hyperion or Demantra. About 95% of consultants that specialize in these new areas take the relevant courses from Oracle University. Overcoming the Tyranny of Distance Infosys’ burgeoning growth within India and worldwide has created a geographically distributed organization that makes delivering face-to-face training, a sometimes costly exercise. â€Å"This has posed a problem for us because people in India are not used to alternatives such as e-learning,† said Dr Rastogi. â€Å"People prefer to come to a classroom. â€Å"In addition, the firewall we apply across our systems prevents Infosys employees from viewing streaming audio and video. To create more flexibility for staff to access the online courses available through Oracle University, Infosys is establishing e-libraries in offices in Pune, Mangalore, and Hyderabad. These currently include 20 PCs where staff can access streaming audio and video. This number is expected to grow to 100–150 by late 2008 across various locations i n India. Employees working in Europe and the U. S. are already benefiting from streaming audio and video. The availability of online courses through Oracle University means staff will be able to undertake training without disrupting their client work. The benefits of e-learning apply to staff outside India as well. â€Å"Our certification program applies to employees regardless of Copyright  © 2008, Oracle. All rights reserved. Oracle is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners. Published February 2008 Oracle Customer Case Study country,† said Dr Rastogi. â€Å"We have 25 to 30 staff who specialize in Oracle E-Business Suite who work in Europe or the U. S. † Helping Ambitious Employees to Get Ahead A certification from Oracle University can provide ambitious employees with an edge in the competitive Infosys culture. Because it’s an external certification, it provides good branding for an employee,† said Dr Rastogi. â€Å"They become of greater value to Infosys and to our customers. † Infosys Technologies Ltd (NASDAQ: INFY) defines, designs, and delivers ITenabled business solutions. For the fiscal year ended Marc h 31, 2007, Infosys recorded revenues of more than US$3 billion with net income of over US$850 million. Copyright  © 2008, Oracle. All rights reserved. Oracle is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners. Published February 2008

Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code Essay

To start this story, Eoin Colfer introduces the characters and setting in an unusual fashion. Since this book is a sequel, he has the difficult task of introducing the characters to new readers while still keeping it interesting for the ones who have stayed with him through the previous books. He accomplishes this masterfully and with a BANG. He immediately hooks the reader and simultaneously explains the complicated web of his excellent cast of characters. We begin in a Knightsbridge Bistro, present time, and are introduced to the protagonist: a pale adolescence genius by the name of Artemis Fowl and his trusty Eurasian bodyguard Butler. We are also introduced to the antagonist: the shadowy American businessman and fugitive John Spiro and his hulking, beastly, body guard Arno Blunt. Artemis is there to present an offer to the dangerous American. Artemis has stolen fairy technology in the form of a cube (all of which is explained in the prior books) that can read any mechanical information and present it with incredible speed and precision. His offer is that he will not release this incredible product for 9 months, and in that time Spiro can sell all his stock and put it into Fowl Industries. John is suspicious and asks for a demonstration. He requests that Artemis track all the laser satellites monitoring him at that specific moment. Fowl is happy to comply and the machine begins to whirl. It picks up satellites belonging to the FBI and other government owned operations. It then tells them that the LEP is monitoring him as well. Artemis is stunned and quickly shuts up the box. Spiro is confused by the LEP warning, but doesn’t think much of it. Then the inciting incident happens. Artemis and Butler suddenly find that all the restaurants occupants are arms and trained on the two heroes. Spiro has been in control the entire time and with a chuckle he leaves with the cube clamped tightly in his hands. He leaves Arno to make sure that Fowl and Butler are exterminated. Artemis is surprisingly calm in the face of danger. He quotes and old English philosopher and with the final words the building’s occupants fall screaming to the ground. Our hero’s were not niave and completely trusting of Spiro. Therefore, they planted sonic charges inside the building. Artemis and Butler are saved by the ear plugs worn in their ears. Butler leaves Artemis unguarded while he scopes the rest of the building. Arno awakes and with his M9 takes aims and fires into the chest of Artemis. At this point, the reader is either extremely confused, or at the edge of their seat. And to raise suspense Colfer leaves Artie and Butler at a cliff hanger for a minute and changes to another exposition. This time it is with a Fairy by the name of Holly Short in the underground utopia of Haven City. This is a refuge for magical creatures of all sorts to gather and to thrive. A place where technology is far superior then that of the surface world and the â€Å"Mud Men†. Holly and Artemis have crossed paths twice before and even had a slight romance. Holly is part of the LEPrecon police force. LEP standing for Lower Elements Police. Currently she was escorting a group of routy goblins to Police Plaza. All their cars are electronically oriented on a hub in the middle of the city. Suddenly all power goes out in the city. All cars are shut off and every entrance and exit are blocked. This can mean one of two things; A power failure, which is impossible with the countless backup generators the city has, or they have been exposed to the humans. Holly immediately rushes to Police Plaza and reports for duty. She is sent to investigates what has happened and why. The story then returns England and to the conflict. Arno Blunt is aiming his pistol at Artemis and is about to fire when Butler jumps into his way and absorbed the bullet into his own chest. Arno flees the scene as Butler slowly bleeds to death. And with that, the suspense begins to build, Artemis freezes Butlers body in a fish cellar and contacts Holly to help him. She has less then 6 minutes to zoom (with her wings) from her surface entrance in Ireland to England. She arrives with seconds to spare and proceeds accomplish a tricky magical surgery and Butler manages to survive. He is now armed with the anger and hatred to kill Arno Blunt. Now the reader understands the main conflict, Artemis and his friends must discover a way to enter John Spiro’s seemingly unpenetratable fortress and take his prized position. Holly finds that it was Artemis who â€Å"pinged† the Haven. If Spiro were to get past the â€Å"Eternity Code† set up by Fowl to secure the cube the existence of the Lower Elements could be exposed to all mankind. Holly agrees to help Artemis only if he agrees to have his mind wiped after the exposition. Artemis hurriedly agrees and formulates a plan hat he tells only parts of to everybody. They then proceed to execute the well formulated agenda. Spiro cannot open the cube since it has an Eternity Code on it, that only Artemis can open. Artemis goes to the Spiro Needle and tells him that it may take weeks to crack the code. Spiro keeps him under house arrest until he completes his objective. Then an invisible Holly, with the help of some of her technologically sophisticated buddies, infiltrates the building. Eager to show off, John presents the complex security system to Artemis, which Artemis records on his iris cam. Holly frees Artemis and then begins the climatic event. Spiro’s paranoia caused him to move his bed to right in front of the cube. Holy and Artemis manage to seduce him by pouring gas from the air filters and continue to work their way through the complicated security measures. They pass the first few test with ease, but they must have a finger print of John’s thumb. They cut his thumb at the joint and are now in extreme pressure to get through the cube and back. Holly can only reattach the thumb using her magic before 2 minutes. This is the peak of pyramid, the reader is practically sweating with anticipation. The duo manage to get back 30 seconds after their apparent deadline and reattach the thumb. After that adventure the story must wind down. How could it not after a climax like that? The dangerous duo continue their way out of the Spiro Needle and head home. While all of that was happening, Butler had been given a special assignment due to his obvious injury. He has the task of saving all their files related to fairy information onto disk that the more sophisticated fairy wouldn’t notice. He is ready when the two adventurers return with their prize. It is quickly destroyed by holly, smashing it into a million pieces. The story could end right now, but there’s a few things needed to be wrapped up. The fairies are left with a dilemma, if they mind wipe Fowl will he become the evil little devil he was in the first book? Will he find a way to get past their mind wipe, but not have the emotional piece of the puzzle, therefore trying to lead another assault on Fairy Kind? Despite the risks they decide to wipe him anyway. The fairies have enough photographs and information to lock Spiro up for the next decade and the story ends sadly with Holly looking at the oblivious friend she had come to love.

Southwest’s Competititve Advantage

STRATEGY IMPLEMENTATION AND MEASUREMENT METRICS ASSIGNMENT-1 SOUTHWEST AIRLINES CASE STUDY QUESTIONS 1. How does Southwest Airlines get its competitive advantage? 2. How does Southwest Airlines execute its strategy? 1. How does Southwest Airlines get its competitive advantage? Southwest Airlines uses a Cost Leadership Strategy, however most pricing strategists would agree that having a low price does not, in itself, constitute a competitive advantage. In fact, thinking that low prices are always a good strategy for competition is deeply misguided.However, at times, targeting low prices can lead to a strategic focus which delivers tremendous results. Modern competitive strategy will often examine firms from a resource-based view. According to this lens, competitive advantage derives from leveraging an inimitable resource to deliver value at a lower cost than the competitors. Price is a completely imitable resource. Any company can match the prices of its competitor if it so chooses. H ence, arguing that a low price is a strategic resource, or that it leads to a competitive advantage in and of itself, is illogical.Southwest Airlines has used the target pricing and utilized a marketing orientation since its infancy in 1971, even though these concepts were not fully defined back then. First, starting with the customers and the value they sought, Southwest Airlines initial target was customers traveling between cities in Texas, specifically between Dallas and Houston, Dallas and San Antonio, San Antonio and Houston. While Texas is larger than many countries, it isn’t so large that people can’t drive from city to city.Hence initially, the most comparable alternative to Southwest, and therefore its prime competition, wasn’t other airlines. Instead, it was the car. In uncovering the car as the competing alternative, Southwest was able to also identify the target price of its offering. Second, to compete with the car, Southwest Airlines had to price their service relatively similar to the cost of car travel. With this target in mind, they chose $20. While $20 is lower than the government allowable tax deduction for travel, it is also significantly higher than the price of gas alone to drive between these cities.Thus, at this $20 price, Southwest Airlines could be confident that it would capture many of the travelers that would have driven and convert them into short-hop air travelers. Third, the product was redefined to serve customers at this low price profitably. Consider what was removed from air travel and what was included instead. The table below enumerates the key points Points 1 Removed Reduced reservations flexibility: Reservations primarily made directly Southwest Airlines as they eschewed working with travel agents.No connections between airlines: Southwest Airlines would not transfer baggage between flights. Included or Added Simplicity in Pricing: Flat rate of $20 per leg of the journey. Also reduced the cost of pr ice management, as no yield management system was needed initially. Higher convenience in terms of on-time arrivals: With a simplified fight route between lesser used airports, Southwest was able to operate more reliably. Higher convenience in flight frequency: With point to point flights, Southwest could offer service between Houston and Dallas with the same plane roughly every 2. hours. 2 3 No long-haul flights: Southwest Airlines customers could only take Southwest between a city-pair, not across the country or even across state lines initially. This greatly reduced cost of compliance with CAB rulings, as Southwest’s operations were not subject to interstate commerce rulings. 4 No in-flight meals: Southwest Airlines only offered peanuts and beverages. Fun: Friendly flight attendants provided jokes, costumes, and made flying comfortable with warm and caring service. Faster boarding times leading to faster flight turnarounds.More seats: With one class of service, Southwest A irlines could put 137 seats in a 737 versus 128 in a United Airlines 737. 5 6 No seat assignments: First come, first seated. No first class: One-class service. 7 Does not fly into major airports: or uses Use of underutilized airports that are less major airports concentrates on point close to metropolitan cities: reduced to point connections costs, punctuality Use of multiple aircraft types Frequent flyer program does not use miles earned Uses fuel efficient 737s: reduces maintenance and training costs Based on number of trips flown: reduced operating costs 9 From this list, we see a number of items which an airline would usually use to define superior value removed from Southwest Airlines offer. A Southwest customer couldn’t be treated to first class, couldn’t get food, couldn’t book them as part of a larger trip, couldn’t book with them through an agent, and couldn’t even preselect their seat. All of these features were exactly what defined a com petitive airline at the time. And, all of these features added cost.Instead, Southwest Airlines selected a specific target customer — a Texan traveling between cities in Texas — and then determined what it would take to satisfy that customer. ? ? ? That customer was far more interested in travel efficiency than travel class. That customer would be glad to forgo a meal, especially in exchange for a friendly flight attendant and a Dr. Pepper. That customer was trading off driving for flying, and needed flexibility in booking rather than navigating through the decisions and planning related to yield management.This service described does not meet the wants of every customer that could have flown Southwest Airlines, but it does describe those of the target customer. And, given the choice of mediocrely satisfying everyone at a high cost or highly satisfying a select few at a low but profitable price, Southwest Airlines rightly chose the latter. As a result of tightly defini ng the value sought by customers (efficient and flexible travel), and the price ($20), Southwest was able to meet the needs and surpass the expectations of their target customer.Moreover, it was able to do this at a significantly lower cost than a standard airline. So can low prices deliver a competitive advantage? NO, not alone. But target pricing, where the price and benefits demanded by customer leads to a strategic focus that drives a redefinition of the product and service, can deliver a winning competitive advantage. One where a customer need is met at a cost below the price the target market is willing to pay. BALANCED SCORECARD FOR SWA 2. How does Southwest Airlines execute its strategy?Southwest Airlines is probably one of the most striking examples of a company that (a) Defined a very clear and simple key business purpose, (b) Chose the right business model to support the business purpose, and (c) Consistently demonstrates the core values and behaviors derived from that ke y business purpose. The brand promise of Southwest Airlines is: ‘Dedication to the highest quality of Customer Service delivered with a sense of warmth, friendliness, individual pride, and Company Spirit'.Every single employee of the company is aligned with this brand promise and in spite of the current economic turmoil in the airline industrySouthwest's performance isamong the best in the industry. Staff morale is exceptionally high. In 1971, Rollin King and Herb Kelleher started an airline service with one simple notion: â€Å"If you get your passengers to their destinations when they want to get there, on time, at the lowest possible fares, and make darn sure they have a good time doing it, people will fly your airline†.Southwest currently has the lowest operating-cost structure in the US domestic airline industry and consistently offers the lowest and most of all simplest fares. Southwest holds the best cumulative customer satisfaction record for the past 18 years. In December 2008, the airline had 35,499 employees and generated total operating revenues of $11 billion (2007 = $ 9. 8 billion, 2001 = $ 5. 3 billion) from a passenger load factor of 71. 2% with a fleet of 537 Boeing 737’s.Its stock exchange symbol is ‘LUV’, representing Southwest’s home at Dallas Love Field, as well as the theme of its employee and customer relationships. The major success to their continued success seems due to their low-cost model and competitors being aware that they cannot match Southwest Airlines’ low prices. Southwest Airlines has the reputation of being able to force a competitor into bankruptcy. It is believed, however, that it was not just the choice of its business model that made Southwest Airlines such a successful company; it is the way they execute their business model through perfect strategic alignment.Southwest Airlines succeeded in defining a very simple yet clear key business purpose; the fact that they aim for being â€Å"the only short haul, low fare, high frequency, point-to-point carrier in America† leaves very little room for interpretation. What makes Southwest Airlines’ key business purpose such a powerful one however, is not just the very clear definition of their ‘raison d’ etre’, but certainly also what the company and its leaders do with it.Their simple but effective key business purpose is the main guiding principle for Southwest Airlines’ strategic goals, business strategy, organizational infrastructure, and last – but certainly not least – their company culture. The organization of Southwest Airlines is best described as an upside-down pyramid – an organization very much in line with the way they want to do business. The upper management is at the bottom and supports the front line employees, who are the experts.Front line employees play a major role in the yearly business planning and operational budget which for a great part is done bottom-up rather than top-down. This is the fruit of co-founder Herb Kelleher's unorthodox leadership style, in which management decisions are made by everyone in the organization, not just the head executives. The company does not put much emphasis on structure; instead, employees are encouraged to think freely without constraints such as titles or official mandates. The reason for Southwest Airline's success is due to their clear key business purpose and core values, and due to the way in hich they consistently execute their business model (a combination of ‘disruptive innovation’ and ‘customer intimacy’) in line with their key business purpose and core values. ? ? ? The Southwest Airlines fleet consists solely of Boeing 737s It offers only economy seats (there is no business or first class). Southwest Airlines also do not offer in-flight meals, only peanuts and other snacks. Southwest is simple and direct at the goal of their service ; â€Å"A primarily short-haul airline that flies directly from city to city, with just one type of plane – the Boeing 737 – and the lowest costs†.With a simple goal, Southwest has excised many of the ‘luxuries’ that competitors offer, such as luxury seats; this is made evident by their decision to enforce a rule for passengers who cannot fit into the seats to purchase an additional seat. This rather unpopular move – whereas other airlines would have suggested a more luxury class seat – is simple in its purpose – get passengers from point A to point B with a minimum of frills, but with a friendly smile and great personal service.While Southwest Airlines offer no frills, they do meet and exceed customer expectations when it comes to personal service. They base their model on the motto â€Å"If employees are happy, satisfied, dedicated, and energetic, they'll take real good care of the customers. When the customers are happy, the y come back. And that makes the shareholders happy†. Southwest invests in very good relations with all their employees. Employees are either of independent labor unions or have flexible contracts which allow employees to work longer hours (adapting the business model to the key business purpose)

Case Scenario: Big Time Toymaker Essay

1. At what point, if ever, did the parties have a contract? Our textbook defines a contract as â€Å"a promise or a set of promises enforceable by law† (). A contract does not necessarily has to be in writing. A contract can be oral and enforceable. Big Time Toymaker and Chou took part in an oral contract. Big Time Toy Maker and Chou held a meeting where an oral distribution agreement was reached. In addition, Big Time Toy sent an email to Chou confirming the agreement. 2. What facts may weigh in favor of or against Chou in terms of the parties’ objective intent to contract? The facts that may weigh in favor of Chow are the exclusive negotiation rights for a 90-day period, the oral agreement that was reached at the meeting and the email he received from Big Time Toy. The facts against Chou would be that there is never an actual written agreement drafted by Chou. In addition, the exclusive negotiation rights agreement stipulated that no distribution contract existed unless it was in writing. Finally, no written agreement was turned in within the original 90-day period stipulated in the exclusive negotiation right agreement. 3. Does the fact that the parties were communicating by e-mail have any impact on your analysis in Questions 1 and 2 (above)? Yes, because the email represents the acknowledgment by both parties of the distribution agreement made in the meeting despite the e-mail failing to mention the word â€Å"contract.† In addition, the subject line of the email read â€Å"Strat Deal† and it explained in detail the price, time frames, and obligations. Also, as soon as Big Time Toy sent a fax to Chow requesting the draft of the contract, he faxed it to them immediately. 4. What role does the statute of frauds play in this contract? â€Å"The statute of fraud is the law governing which contracts must be in writing  in order to be enforceable† (Melvin, 2010). The role of fraud applies to this scenario. The statute of frauds refers to the requirement that certain kinds of contracts be memorialized in a signed writing with sufficient content to evidence the contract. Traditionally, the statute of frauds requires a signed writing in the following circumstances. A defendant in a statute of frauds case who wishes to use the Statute as a defense must raise it in a timely manner. The burden of proving that a written contract exists only comes into play when a Statute of Frauds defense is raised by the defendant. A defendant who admits the existence of the contract in his pleadings, under oath in a deposition or affidavit, or at trial, may not use the defense under the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), however under common law they may still use it.

Changing the Reputation of Nursing Homes

According to Sampsell (2003), In the next 25 years, 76 million baby boomers are preparing to enter the nursing home (LTC) (p. 41). For elderly people who need to strengthen medical care, special nursing home for seniors is a major provider of elderly people who usually have long-term health problems related to disability and dysfunction (Luskey and Ingman, 1994 , P. 265). Due to the anticipated increase in service demand, industry leaders will be able to understand households, consumers, and employees about nursing care facilities by implementing non-traditional principles for attracting new residents I am trying to change. The special nursing home for the elderly has made tremendous changes in the past few decades. Government regulation and pressure from consumers are driving these changes. Today's sanatorium is a highly regulated quality institution for care and treatment of elderly with severe and / or mental disorders. There is no similar rule to aid living facilities to take car e of special nursing home for the elderly. Almost half of the people living in the nursing home for the elderly are over 85 years old. Relatively small resident is under 65 years old. Most are women (72%), many of them do not have spouses (about 70% have been widows, divorced or never married), only a few families and friends are seeking support. The shortage of nursing for nurses in special nursing home for the elderly has been a problem in the medical field for many years. This shortage has a serious impact on today's social welfare facilities and special nursing home for the aged. Because 8.1% of nurses became missing in 2008, it is important to understand the situation of nurses (solving the lack of care, 2010). In order to help people understand more about the shortage of nurses, this article will discuss resource shortages, stakeholders, economic flows, changes in supply and demand, pricing. Moral care and care in a special nursing home for the elderly are essential. There are many unethical practices in special nursing home for the elderly. Since it is doubtful whether the special nursing home for the elderly is safe or not, the special nursing home for the elderly needs to take care of the elderly and those who can no longer manage it at home. Many residents believe that nursing homes are their home. - In the beginning of the 20th century, there is no sanatoria we are talking about now. If the elderly can not go anywhere, they will be sent to a devastated poor farm. On August 14, 1935, President Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act to provide appropriate subsidies to each state 's old aid (OAA). This in turn starts opening up private houses, allowing people to live in nursing homes and request old age allowances.

Associations of Diet and Lifestyle with Hyperlipidemia for Middle-Aged Assignment

Associations of Diet and Lifestyle with Hyperlipidemia for Middle-Aged and Elderly Persons among the Guangxi Bai Ku Yao and Han Populations - Assignment Example Since the study is focused Guangxi Bai Ku Yao and Han Populations, all other populations apart from ones used as control samples will be excluded from the study. Information on demography, dietary intake, and lifestyle factors was collected by standard questionnaires. Blood pressure, height, weight, waist circumference, and serum lipid levels were measured, and body mass index (BMI) was calculated as weight (kg) divided by height (m) squared. Data will be collected depending on various methods that will be used in the study to collect data. Since study will be conducted within certain period of time, there will be specific timing of measurements collected, depended variable like diet and lifestyle, and independent variables like middle-aged and elderly people. There will also be control variables as discussed above. In this study, people between the age of 25 and 65 (both male and female) were used in this study. This study will be focused on two clans Bai Ku Yao and Han. Their lifestyle and eating habits will also be used in this study. The prevalence rates of hypercholesterolemia, hypertriglyceridemia, and hyperlipidemia in Bai Ku Yao and Han were 19.59% vs 36.13% (P0.05), and 28.45% vs 43.11% (P

Difference and similarities between modern orthodox, hasidic, and a Essay

Difference and similarities between modern orthodox, hasidic, and a unaffiated jew - Essay Example Reuven: I m a modern orthodox, I believe woman is part of modern American culture we need to engage with. i believe in the modern ways but one should still hold on to the jewish tradition. Engage in the secular world is what makes our believes survives in these days. On the other side of the podium we have girls from all of the Jewish background. All of the 24 lights were still on at this time. There are two female guest we are known of. Malkie and from the story Who Knows Kaddish, the narrator. I named the narrator â€Å"Kaddish†. Malkie: Hi Reuven. I’m Malkie, I am from hasidic orthodoxy, but some what I agree with your opinion. I really prefer spiritual in the Jewish faith. I think be a part of the modern world is an important part of Judaism. there should be acomplement between the the secular and the traditional believes. I’m interest in you. Kaddish: Hi, Reuven. I’m Kaddish. I am unaffiliated Jew. I don’t have much belief in Jewish, but I live around it and I like how it bonds within the culture. My families were Jews but we lived like Unitarians, and celebrated the secular trappings of Christmas. But we celebrate no Jewish holidays because as far as we knew, they werent any fun (Kirshenbaum, 174). Reuven: I had my secular education at Yeshiva University and I read a lot of books my father recommend me. But I am still a faithful Jew. Don’t say that reading books would make you less religious because now I have both knowledge and faith as the outcome. My father is a great guy. He didnt restrain me much on the choice of my education. My father is a modern Jew he devote his life to his faith in modern orthodox, he also promoted a Jewish state. (cite and connect to lecture?) Malkie: My parents didnt allow me to get a secular education and this is what i have grown up with. I really adore my parents devotion into hasidism. We