Marketing Communication Equity and Advertising

Question: Discuss about the Marketing Communication for Equity and Advertising. Answer: Introduction Brand is any symbol or feature that distinguishes a product from its competitors(Keller Parameswaran, 2011). Brand power of firms differs because of their marketing activities, image, size and positioning. Dominos Pizza is an international chain of fast food restaurants headquartered in USA. Dominos was founded by Tom Monaghan in 1960. In 2004 it was listed on New York stock exchange(Domino's, 2016). Dominos has a franchise system of operations and operates in 81 countries making it the second largest international pizza chain. Dominos Australia is the Australian based franchise of Dominos. Dominos has a 25% market share in fast food industry in Australia (Domino's, 2016) Therefore it is a very well established brand. Pizza Capers is an Australian fast food chain based in Queensland and has expanded to Singapore but is still small in comparison to Dominos. The firm has 110 stores across Australia and is owned by Retail food Group. The firm has 4% market share(Pizzacapers, 2016). Both Dominos and Pizza Capers exist in the same industry that is fast food. However, they cater to slightly different market segments. While Dominos tries to position itself as a brand which offers Pizza for youth and family entertainment(Domino's, 2016). Pizza Capers focus more on in-house ambiance of the restaurant. Pizza Capers is similar to Dominos as both are now focusing on online ordering and delivery however the brands have different appeal for customers. Brand positioning strategy Positioning is the image that the brand occupies in the mind of the consumer(Gabam, 2015). Firms use various strategies to create a favorable impression on the customers regarding the brand. Creating awareness about product features or using price as an impact creating tool are some of positioning strategies. Delivery process and product experience can also be used as positioning strategies(Temporal, 2011). Dominos Pizza focuses on product quality, variety in flavors and product experience as the major positioning strategies. Family and youth enjoyment is also a major ploy through which the firm tries to create a favorable impression in the customer mind(Domino's, 2016). Dominos through its marketing activities has been successful in associating family entertainment with its Pizza. Convenience of takeaways and delivery is also a positioning strategy which has endeared Dominos pizza as a top brand worldwide. On the other hand, Pizza Capers is a smaller brand in comparison. However, they have also used positioning strategy to acquire a part of the market share. Delivery and product quality is used as the main positioning strategy. Pizza Capers tries to ensure product quality. Therefore, their promotional strategy focuses on on-time delivery. Pricing is also a main positioning strategy. They have kept the prices lower than the top brands to attract customers. Therefore, Dominos and Pizza Capers are similar in positioning strategy in terms of delivery however, different in terms of pricing. Brand Identity Brand identity is the perception of the customers about the brand or the way the brand wants itself to be identified(Wheeler, 2010). Elements of brand identity are Logo, name, tagline etc. Companies create brand identity to convey the value association that the brand is trying to create for the customer(Dahlen, 2014). Brand identity displays the impression that the firm generates in the customer mind through various cues like its logo. Dominos is an international brand. The red and blue logo of Dominos used worldwide is very recognisable. Fast delivery and hot pizza are associated with its tagline.(Domino's, 2016) The firm uses marketing communication and advertising to convey its message. Dominos also uses cartoon characters to create an identity of family enjoyment (Domino's, 2016). Additionally, the colour red and blue are attractive to children. Therefore, Dominos has a clear and strong brand identity Pizza Capers is a smaller brand. However, it also has a very strong and identifiable logo with its name written in bold letter. The colour is white and brown which may not be as attractive to youth and children as red and blue of Dominos. Pizza Capers focuses on home delivery as a tagline(Pizzacapers, 2016). Though people associate the brand with quality product delivery the firms brand identity has not yet become as deep rooted in the customer mind as Dominos. The firm has successfully achieved brand recognition with in clusters but it has to use more highlighted identification cues to become more recognisable. Leveraging of the Brand Equity Brand equity is a term used for the value of a brand(Aaker, 2013). It can also be understood as the value which customer associates with a product. If customers associate quality with the name of a product then that product is said to have high brand equity(Aaker, 2013). Additionally, people also tend to trust a well-known brand as compared to a lesser known brand because of its equity. Dominos is an international brand of long standing(Domino's, 2016). The fact that its the second largest Pizza chain in the world gives it huge brand equity. People trust the brand. Dominos has been able to leverage its brand name to a very great extent. The firm has been able to price its product higher(Domino's, 2016). It has been able to convince the customer about quality, enjoyment and health quotient of the pizza. Therefore, Dominos due to its international status has been able to enjoy greater revenues because of its brand name. Pizza Caper is relatively a very small brand(Pizzacapers, 2016). However, it has been able to create a niche for itself. People do associate it as an alternative to major brand names. Firm has not been as successful, as Dominos to leverage its brand name as it will not be able to sell the products at a higher price. However, slowly the brand is being recognised internationally as well which is leading to more trust of customers which may help to enhance brand equity in future. Brand Touch points The points of interaction of customer with the brand are known as brand touch points(Yohn, 2013). Touch point can be customer service, website, social media or marketing communication tools like word of mouth or advertising(Kautish, 2013).These touch points are important because they help the customer in comparing their existing knowledge of the brand with their previous knowledge. Dominos has various touch points for customer interaction(Domino's, 2016). The most important is its highly supportive customer service and website for online delivery. Dominos has managed to give proper training to customer service staff so that they give impression of care, support and quality product delivery to the customer(Domino's, 2016). Additionally, the delivery process is managed to create customer convenience. The website is another touch pony where customer can select menu and order. This is manged by expert employees and IT management teams. The touch points help in supporting the brand image of quality product and timely product delivery. Pizza Capers also has website as the most important touch point(Pizzacapers, 2016). The focus of the firm is on online ordering. Therefore, the website supplies knowledge about the menu and prices. The firm manages it through expert employees trained to handle customer queries and manage IT systems. As Dominos is a bigger firm it is able to give better training to its staff therefore, it is able to handle the touch points in a better way. Website management of Dominos is better as it is more attractive and creates greater customer convenience. Customer Buying Pathways and Involvement Buyer decision making process is based on attitude, feeling and belief. If the consumer exhibits a positive attitude for a brand he may make the decision to purchase it(Keller Parameswaran, 2011). Attitude and consumer buyer pathway can be created through affective component which is governed by emotions or cognitive component where the consumer evaluates the brand rationally(Gabam, 2015). Sequence and path of purchase decision varies based on whether the attitude is motivated by emotions or by cognition(Gabam, 2015). If the attitude towards the brand is cognitive the consumer will first think about it, develop feelings and act accordingly. However, if it is emotional then they will develop feelings, act upon the feelings and then think about it. Dominos is a brand with a very long standing reputation. If it comes out with a new product, due to its brand equity the customers may take the emotional path. The may feel good about the new product, act to purchase and then think whether it was the right decision. On the other hand, Pizza Capers is a smaller brand in comparison; hence if they come out with a new product, customers may take cognitive path. They may think about it then develop feelings and then act to purchase it. Therefore, path taken for both brands may differ. Fast food and pizza offered by both brands are low involvement products as they are frequently purchases products(Gabam, 2015). However, comparatively as Dominos is a more reputed brand the involvement of the whole family in choice of flavour might be more. Conclusion Branding helps in distinguishing a company from its competitors. Dominos has long standing brand name due to which it is ahead among its competitors, However, Pizza Capers is also making a name for itself and adequate image building can enhance its brand value. References Aaker, D. A., 2012. Building Strong Brands. New York: Simon and Schuste. Aaker, D. A., 2013. Brand Equity Advertising: Advertising's Role in Building Strong Brands. sussex: Psychology Press. Brown, S., 2016. Brands and Branding. London: SAGE Publications. Dahlen, M., 2014. Marketing Communications: A Brand Narrative Approach. Melbourne: John Wiley Sons. Domino's, 2016. Home. [Online] Avail able at: https://www.dominos.com .au/[Accessed 10 Dec 2016]. Gabam, J., 2015. Brand Psychology: Consumer Perceptions, Corporate Reputations. London: Kogan Page Publishers. Kautish, P., 2013. An Analytical Study on Perspectives of Brand Awareness and Its Impact Upon Consumer Buying Behavior with a View to Facilitate Managerial Decision Making in Organization. Norderstedt: GRIN Verlag. Keller, K. L. Parameswaran, J. I., 2011. Strategic Brand Management: Building, Measuring, and Managing Brand Equity. New Delhi: Pearson Education India. OGuinn, T., 2011. Advertising and Integrated Brand Promotion. London: Cengage Learning. Pizzacapers, 2016. Home. [Online] Avail able at: https://www.pizzacapers.com. au[Accessed 10 Decemebr 2016]. Rosenbaum-Elliot, R., 2015. Strategic Brand Management. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Temporal, P., 2011. Advanced Brand Management: Managing Brands in a Changing World. New Jeresey: John Wiley Sons. Wheeler, A., 2010. Designing Brand Identity: An Essential Guide for the Whole Branding Team. New Jersey: John Wiley Sons. Yohn, D. L., 2013. What Great Brands Do: The Seven Brand-Building Principles that Separate the Best from the Rest. New Jesrsey: John Wiley Sons.

Gene Therapy Essay Research Paper What is free essay sample

Gene Therapy Essay, Research Paper What is Gene Therapy? What types of cistron therapies cure familial diseases? Many diseases seen today are the consequence of a faulty cistron in the Deoxyribonucleic acid of thepatient and can non be cured utilizing the traditional methods such as antibiotics and antiviral medicine. The victims are now looking to cistron therapy as a possible remedy for their jobs. Gene Therapy is the procedure of replacing a faulty cistron inside a patient s Deoxyribonucleic acid with a working cistron that will bring forth the right cistron merchandises. The familial diseases, in which a individual known cistron does non work decently, such as reaping hook cell anaemia is the most suited to be treated with the cistron therapy. There are two types of cistron therapy in bring arounding these diseases, patient therapy and embryo therapy. In the procedure of the patient therapy, the first measure is placing the faulty cistron and insulating a normal opposite number. We will write a custom essay sample on Gene Therapy Essay Research Paper What is or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page To obtain right cistron action, it may be necessary to set it into the right site on the host cell chromosome, or even to cancel the faulty cistron, and the Deoxyribonucleic acid can so be replicated each clip the host cell divided. But if the new cell is injected straight into the patient s organic structure, it will be capable to the organic structure s immune system that will acknowledge it as foreign and aim it to be destroyed along with the healthy Deoxyribonucleic acid that it is carrying.So the cells extracted from the patient are to be treated and adding the new cistron in a trial tubing in the research lab to do certain that the Deoxyribonucleic acid is inserted inan appropriate topographic point in the genome, and the cells can so be returned to the patient s organic structure. Now it is possible to offer the parents an prenatal diagnosing to look over if the foetus is affected by some individual cistron defects. If it does, the parents can take embryo therapy to bring around it instead so abortion. While the basic procedure is similar with the one of patient therapy, to make an embryo therapy is a small spot easier than a patient therapy, because the immune rejection system of the embryo is non to the full developed. The new DNA will non be ejected, while the former DNA will be altered. Gene therapy seems to be a promising and positive measure for the medical community, but ethical inquiries arise every twenty-four hours as we discover more and more about the contents of the human genome. Gene therapy has a promising potency to better the lives of those who have diseases that have until now been decease sentenced, but to take it into existent pattern human existences still have a long manner to travel.

Successful Implementation of the Change Process

Organizational managers are change management tools that are critical for implementing change within organization endeavoring to changing from one level to another in line with an organization’s strategic vision. Therefore their roles coupled with appropriate skills and experiences are critical to successful change over.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Successful Implementation of the Change Process specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Among the requirements for a manager to initiate and successfully transform an organization is a clear and unambiguous understanding of the current position of an organization, the reasons for initiating change, understand organizational environment in terms of the culture, organizational behavior, processes involved in the change process, and the relationship between employees, the organization, and management (Harris Moran, 1987). An organizations’ environment must be assessed before commencing change. Managers must ensure change plans are well designed and the implementation accurately done to give a satisfactory feedback when an evaluation is conducted of the new look organizations (Christensen Donovan n.d). Equipped with the skills highlighted above, an organizational manager plays various roles in the transformation process. Among these is creating the need for urgent change within an organization. Urgency should be characterized by reality and relevance. When organizational employees see the need for change and associated relevance, the resistance to change is minimized and workforce energy is efficiently optimized in bringing about change. Hall and Hall (1990) argue that managers should understand that change can be emotional and may impact adversely on organizational employees. In addition to that, organizational executives understand that change cannot be imitated single handedly or through management orders, therefore they unde rstand the value of team work. The next role of a manager bringing about change is to create a team to effect the changes. When people work as a team, the synergistic model indicates that better organizational transformations can be achieved in a short period. In addition to that, team work enhances employee productivity and oneness of purpose in initiating change. The created team should incorporate people of various experiences and skills to ensure successful transformations. The next role is establishing a clear vision that clearly communicates to both management, organizational stakeholders, and employees the next level the organization will be transformed to. Each stakeholder is interested in the gains that could be made at personal and organizational levels. Stakeholders would like to understand if the transformation is worth their involvements and accruing benefits. In addition to that, employee should be made to focus their energies towards achieving organizational success i n the transformation process.Advertising Looking for research paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Another role is communication. A well experienced and sanguine manager wanting to see the transformation process a success communicates the organization’s strategy in a language that stirs employee and stakeholder involvement in the change process. The manager establishes efficient communication networks through which feedback can be received and employee attitude and stakeholder behavior can be monitored and evaluated. Managers with unrivaled keenness of understanding know well that communication is a component that drives change to higher levels of success or bring about resistance to change. Empowering action is one of the critical roles of a manager. When change has been identified as the way for an organization, various obstacles may hinder the change management process. Managers need to desig n plans and strategies for removing any could be an obstacle in the change process to empower action by organizational employees. Obstacles can be removed by rewarding change and progress and at times using other contingency measures that may be deemed appropriate. A manager adept at initiating and driving organizational change creates a aims and objectives that are achievable in the short term. These short term goals should be manageable not to overwhelm employees and the management in initiating and implementing change. These may also be referred to as short term wins. Besides the above roles, a manager should not let up on the drive to bring about change. Rather, the executive should encourage persistence and continuous change progress in the change process. Once change has been introduced into organizations, managers should make change stay. Employees and stakeholders may develop the tendency to revert to old ways if the newly implemented change does not augur well with them. In addition to that, benefits may not be realized immediately. Therefore, a manager should continuously reinforce values and a culture in the new look organization by inculcating new behavior in the organization. To achieve these, a manager may give promotions, conduct new recruitments, and provide new leaders among a host of other strategies (Murphy Conrad, 1994).Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Successful Implementation of the Change Process specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Handling staff resistance Since time immemorial, change has always come with resistance. Organizations meet staff resistance at various levels. However, it is a critical role for the manager to efficiently handle such resistance and transform an organization to a different level. Resistance may be due to fear of losing certain benefits, positions, jobs, status quo, conflicts, disruption, peer pressure, mistrust, and other related po sitions. In such an environment, managers should incorporate the element of a â€Å"learning manager†. A learning manager draws from the experience of other organizations and incorporates the best techniques and experience in handling staff in the transformation process. To effectively handle employee resistance to change, managers should educate staff in clear and unambiguous terms on what to expect in this stage, prepare employees to confront the upcoming situation with realty, and educate them to realize that change is inevitable and the organization is bound to take on a new look. In addition to that, managers who value their staff use various techniques to prepare the staff emotionally confront the new environment. A well prepared does not fight change but embraces as a tool that has come at its own time (Christensen Donovan, n.d). The change Process A number of terms used in the change process include assessment, planning, implementation, and evaluation are defined her eunder. Assessment: Is the act of evaluating the nature, quality, or significance of the proposed change in terms of an organization’s strategic vision. Planning: The process of scheduling change process goals, defining task requirements for achieving these goals in line with an organization’s change strategy.Advertising Looking for research paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Implementation: It is an institutionalized stepwise metric for monitoring the bringing about organizational changes in a defined way. Well implemented change remains consistent with organizational objectives and strategic vision. Evaluation: Is a measure used to determine the employee performance and organizational success in implementing change. Evaluations provide accurate information that is used as a benchmark in appraising the change process. Therefore successful implementation of the change process is a collective effort by managers, employees, and stakeholders which should be conducted with a keenness of purpose to attract all stakeholder involvement in the process to effectively bring about the desired change in line with an organization’s strategic vision. References Christensen C. M. and Donovan T. (n.d). The process of strategy development and  Implementation.   Web. Hall, E. T. Hall, M. R. (1990). Hidden Differences: Doing Business with  the Japanese, New Y ork: Doubleday Anchor Books. Harris, P. R. Moran, R. T. (1987). Managing Cultural Differences,  Houston: Gulf Publishing Company. Murphy, S. E Conrad, L. (1994). The Role of Team Leaders in a TQM  Environment. Human Resource Professional 7 (4). 15-19. This research paper on Successful Implementation of the Change Process was written and submitted by user Beau Payne to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Heartbreak, the biggest Earfquake Professor Ramos Blog

Heartbreak, the biggest Earfquake In Tyler, the Creator’s â€Å"Earfquake†, there is some feeling of heartbreak, sadness, passion, and emotion. In the lyrics there is only a couple main lines that are repeated over and over again throughout the song, however, there is much to be discussed about these lyrics. The main line is â€Å"Cause you make my earthquake, Oh, you make my earthquake. Riding around, your love be shakin’ me up And its making my heart break†. As you can see, there is not much being said, yet, there is a lot of emotion being put into the words. I strongly recommend watching the music video before you continue reading. One of the main topics that comes across in these lyrics is heartbreak. For many, heartbreak is a very sad thing. It can destroy the life of someone for a long time and lead to depression. The song portrays this as a very sad thing and looks down on it. When the song mentions â€Å"your love be shaking me up and its making my heartbreak†, it can mean that someone is being friendly with someone who is interested in them, yet they dont see them this way and just want to be friends. This can cause someone to read into someones kindness too much as being interested in them. So when the person finds out they were just being nice, they can become heartbroken because they were emotionally invested and interested in them. This ties in with the pathos aspect of life because there is so much emotion in these lyrics and the meaning behind them. These lyrics cause the listener to become very sad for the artist singing because no one would want such hurt to be put onto a person. â€Å"Of all the rhetorical techniques highlighted in Aristotle’s Rhetoric, pathos is probably most prevalent in literary writing. Most pieces of writing are designed to evoke emotion regardless of whether they are intended to persuade.† (MasterClass, par.11). As MasterClass brings out, the main reason for pathos is to evoke emotion, and that’s exactly what Tyler, the Creator is doing here. He wants others to feel the pain he is going through. Another couple lines in the song are, â€Å"I dont want no confrontation, no. You don’t want my conversation. I just need some confirmation on how you feel†. Here Tyler is showing that he hates confrontation as it makes him nervous. He doesnt want to talk about his feelings with his person of interest. He is also showing how this individual is ignoring him because when he does try to talk to them, they don’t want his conversation, in other words, they dont pay him any attention or take him serious. He just simply put, wants to know exactly how theyre feeling about the relationship. And its already hard as it is because he hates confrontation. Here, Tyler is showing the audience a very real thing that happens to all of mankind. No one likes to be turned down and stood up. No one likes to feel vulnerable, which usually happens when their feelings are out there. This passage of the song also ties in with pathos because what is mainly being communicated to the audien ce is emotion. Just like the other verse, these lyrics are really relatable because everyone can feel for him and feel the same emotion from this. This song mainly appeals to young adults and even some adults. This is because during the early stages of being an adult is where relationships start to get serious with a significant other. The dating scene is more prevalent, and the chance for hurt feelings and even a broken heart are even higher than when an individual is younger in their teenage years. A lot of character building takes place during this time of young adulthood. And I think one of the things that Tyler is trying to convey is that heartbreak must take place at least once in someones life. This is to make them stronger and possibly know how to handle the situation later on down the road. I think Tyler also released this song as a coping mechanism for some who were hurt really bad and just need a song to relate to. This could show to them that they arent the only ones going through their situation and that even stars such as Tyler, the Creator go through it as well. In the music video, Tyler is putting all of his emotions out there as he is performing on stage and just letting it all out. This video really shows how it can be good and feel good to the hurt individual to just let their frustrations out with no censor. Yet, it also symbolizes how that could be harmful when the stage catches fire. He was told to perform yet not to smoke cigarettes. He was able to figuratively let his anger out, but went too far when he lit the cigarette and lit the stage on fire. I think this symbolizes how its good to let anger out yet to not be overflowing with hate. The video also shows how many things can be fixed. His character turns into a firefighter to put the flame out and shows how he was able to come to terms, per se. The music video is very well done as it shows the possibilities and consequences in a scenic way. The language used in this song is very laid back and nonchalant. He is speaking with genuinity yet so much emotion. He sings as if he has just been shot at war because of all the hurt he has endured. He slurs a little bit in the verses yet you can make out what he is saying. There is only really one occasion where slang being used in the song, like not perfect english. This is when he says, â€Å"Your love be shakin me up†. In this instance he is not pronouncing the whole word ‘shaking’ and uses the word ‘be’ to replace the word ‘is’. Even though this isnt perfect english, in this day and age, everyone can understand what he is trying to say. To recap, this song â€Å"Earfquake† is quite a beautiful melody with an even better message. Tyler shows how everyone, including himself, goes through heartbreak. He shows how it can be sad and depressing, and in the video, how it can even be disastrous. Yet, it can be an instance of growth. If one comes to terms that sometimes things just dont work out, theyll grow from this and be prepared should it occur again later down the line. Tyler, the Creator is a talented and gifted artist that gifted this song to the public to help those going through heartbreak. MasterClass. What is Pathos? Definition of Pathos. Pub. May 23, 2019 Genius Lyrics. Earfquake, Tyler,the Creator. Pub. May 17, 2019.

De-Magnetising a Ships Hull Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

De-Magnetising a Ships Hull - Essay Example The soft iron parts get temporarily magnetized due to the influence of horizontal and vertical components of earth's magnetic field which flows through the huge ship when kept on the harbor for a long time. [1] So the entire ship behaves like a magnetic after construction for which it is subjected to two types of dangers. Firstly, the magnetic compass will not work correctly inside the ship and secondly the ship will be affected by magnetic mines inside the water. So we have to remove ship's magnetism and the process is called degaussing. Above all we have to place magnets and magnetic materials on each side of the compass inside the ship to keep its direction exactly towards the magnetic meridian. It is a process to remove ship's magnetism. [3] This is done by winding few turns of insulated wire around the ship and passing a heavy current so as to create an opposite magnetic field to that of the ship's magnetic field. This will remove ship's magnetism by the demagnetization process. A steel hulled ship is like a huge floating magnet with large magnetic field surrounding it as the ship moves through the water, this field also moves. The ship can act as a trigger device for magnetic sensitive ordnance or devices, which are designed to detect these distortions.

The causes and consequences of low motivation of teens and possible Research Paper

The causes and consequences of low motivation of teens and possible interventions - Research Paper Example Sociologists have come up with several theories for explaining low motivation among high school students. There are also more practical reasons based on the political, economic and social conditions of the locality and country inhabited by the student. This essay will look into three aspects of low motivation among teens, namely causes, consequences and possible interventions. One of the major areas of deficiency that leads to low motivation among pupils is the way education systems are set up. For example, one of the lesser acknowledged reasons for low motivation in the classroom are inadequacy on part of instructors to prepare students for a class. Surveys reveal that many students do not understand the rationale for studying a particular subject and don't comprehend why they are attending classes on the subject. This will make them disinterested and prevent them from fully exploring ideas within the subject. But a bigger reason for student low motivation is â€Å"low self-efficac y† induced by poorly designed instructional programs. As researchers assert, â€Å"instructional programs designed to identify and label students who are lacking in the reading areas of decoding, fluency and comprehension have led to intensely negative perceptions about students' abilities even as the programs strive to correct their reading deficiencies...Others argue that the school curriculum can lead to low motivation by stifling children's choice in reading and continually setting limits on reading, which can permanently affect how students see themselves as readers. Whatever the origin, low motivation can seriously hinder a student's progress within the language arts classroom. (Seglem, 2006, p.76) Another cause for low motivation among highschoolers is their tendency to experiment with recreational drugs. There is also a correlation between early drug abuse and dysfunctional family background. Hence, drug abuse itself can be seen as a consequence of another social prob lem, namely broken homes. These days school playgrounds have become places of drug retailing and drug consumption. Research based on American schools has found that â€Å"Drug use increases as the grade level increases. Many students become involved in using illegal substances because of peer pressure and others due to an emotional need. A feeling for need fulfillment may propel adolescents into the destructive behavior of substance abuse.† (Vanderjagt, 2001, p.39) The atmosphere within the family, and especially the values transmitted from parents to children can play an important role in the motivation levels of teenagers. Adolescence is when individuals rebel from parental values and social norms and try to form an identity of their own – a process referred to by psychologists as 'individuation'. Teenagers face a lot of internal conflict, as their early parental molding comes into conflict with divergent set of values acquired from peers and society during adolescen ce. This leads to a period of uncertainly and personality re-adjustment, which resolves itself into a stable state by the end of adolescence. But if the home atmosphere, especially the relationship between parents is strained or broken, it can leave a lasting negative impact on the formative

Performance Appraisal: Functions and Implementation

Performance Appraisal: Functions and Implementation Chapter 1: 1.1 Introduction This dissertation project has been undertaken for the fulfilment of the business degree MBA, General Management from the University of East London. The findings of this dissertation will contribute to concerned company and the author to complete the MBA degree. At the beginning, a leading mobile tele-communication organisation in Bangladesh named Banglalink was chosen as the research organisation. In the middle of the study, the management refused to cooperate with providing information. As a result the author had to find and choose a suitable company to collect research information and data to finish the study. Secure Facilities Management Company Ltd. (SFM) was the new company chosen to finish the research. The introduction chapter gives an overall idea about the study. In this part, the background, objectives and research questions and the structure of this dissertation will be discussed. 1.2 Background of the Study The study discusses about the functions and the implementation of performance appraisal in the new era. The concept of ‘Welfare Personnel was developed in the end of the British golden colonial history by the humane concerns of some business families like Cadbury and Rowntree. Then within the next century, the concept had changed and became Personnel Management and later on Human Recourse Management. Now the world has just entered into a new millennium and the concept of human resource management has become a strategic partner for the business organisations. (McKenna Beech, 2008:2 3) Organisations require many things in order to be effective, a method for producing a product or service, financial resources, a way of marketing and human resources. While all of these are important to organisational effectiveness, the only factor that represents a potential competitive advantage is human resources. This is why the concept of human resource management is s important to every organisation.. The basics of managing people are getting people, preparing them, stimulating them motivate them. To manage human resources in any organisation the following questions are to be considered: (Dessler, 2005:4-5) Are the persons hired for the job wrong? Is the organisation able to milk out the best from the employees? What is the most frustrated area of human resource management? Is the rewarding system working properly? The above refers to how people worked in the past, what changes are required in future to make the production system effective, what are the weaknesses of the system and how to improve. These actually refer to the evaluation of employees of job which is called Performance Appraisal. Performance appraisal system is an important function of personnel department in any organisation. The system has a close relationship between organisation goals and individual performance. The performance appraisal system represents a year round exercise of managing individual performance in an integrated manner with a view to enabling employees to perform at their performance standards. (Dessler, 2005:310) With the view of increasing organisational effectiveness through the effective management of human resources, the organisations use different methods of appraising performance of their employees. For this research a small security service company named ‘Secure Facilities Management Company Ltd. (SFM) a private single owner security service company has been chosen. SFM became a successful organisation in the last few years. Their high standard efficient employees are one of the key factors for their success. For that, SFM has been chosen to practice the theoretical knowledge and to get familiar with the existing system of Performance Appraisal of a small private company. 1.2 Research Question In general, most of the organisations have a kind of formal or informal performance appraisal system. Through the performance appraisal system, the employees get to know their performance standards, which area of their performance needs to be developed etc. The supervisor also provides them with feedback, development and incentives to help them eliminating their performance deficiencies. If performance appraisal system is effectively used, it can improve attraction motivation of the employees on the job. If inappropriately used the appraisal process can have disastrous effects (Dessler, 2005:310). Hence the discussion leads to the research questions: What is the level of understanding and compliance of the employees on performance appraisal? What are the reactions of the employees regarding the performance appraisal? What are the constraints of the performance appraisal in practical life? 1.3 Aims and Objectives of the Study The research has been undertaken for the fulfilment of the requirement for completion of MBA, General Management for the year 2008/2009. This is mainly aimed to develop the job expertise in the performance appraisal activities under the guidance of expert faculty member of University of East London. It is really a difficult task to assess consistency, relevance and reliability of the tools and techniques of the system, however and effort is made to have some ideas about the matter. 1.3.1 Aims The study mainly aims at knowing about the awareness, the level of understanding and compliance of the employees of SFM regarding performance appraisal system. The study attempts to analyse the present performance appraisal system and the role of both appraisers and appraises in connection with the implantation of the system in real life situation. 1.3.2 Objectives To be acquainted with and acquire practical knowledge regarding performance appraisal system of an organisation. To relate the theoretical knowledge of performance appraisal with practical implication. To determine the acceptability and reliability of the performance appraisal system in a certain organisation. To assess the constraints/factors which influence the performance appraisal system. 1.4 Scope of the Study Target group includes officers of all level. The working forces those who are working in the head office and also in the other sites. Value Perception of both appraisers and appraises of the organisation under study. 1.5 Limitations of the Study While preparing this report, the following limitations had been faced: At the beginning a renowned mobile Tele-communication company in Bangladesh, Banglalink, was chosen for the study but they refused to deliver any information and cooperation just one and half month before the submission date. As a result, the author had to choose a small security company, Secure Facilities Management Company Ltd. (SFM) to carry on and finish the study within such a short time. SFM has a master plan on performance appraisal, but at present implementing a part of it. As a part of the business strategy, SFM did not provide all information on their performance appraisal procedure. The major limitation of the study was the lack of time for such an intensive work which compelled the author to narrow the scope of the study. All officials were very busy with their own assignments. As a result, they had a little opportunity for giving much time in this regard. Limitation was faced on the volume of the report due to which many relevant and important things will remain unexplored in detail. 1.6 Organisation Profile Introduction to Secure Facilities Management Company Ltd. (SFM): Since its formation SFM has built its reputation by providing security personnel of the highest calibre. This has been achieved by combining sound management with sensible terms and conditions for all staff. SFM strives to ensure that their clients and staff benefit from a focused and well-defined professional approach, the ratio of management to client is kept to no more than one manager per 10 clients. SFM strives to provide the highest standards of efficiency to all its clients, both large and small. SFM understands the importance of first impressions and that their personnel are often the first point of contact for their clients visitors and residents. 1.7 Structure of the Research This structure of this study has the following five chapters: Chapter 1 is the introduction chapter where the background, research question and rationale, objective, company profile and structure of the research are stated. Chapter 2 contains a brief literature review on performance management, history and meaning of the performance appraisal, purposes, functions, types of performance appraisal, MBO, 360 degree appraisal, problems and solutions of performance appraisal and essentials of a good performance appraisal. This chapter will provide a basic understanding about performance appraisal which is related to the research questions. Chapter 3 contains Research Methodology which includes research framework, the design of the research, population and sampling, and questionnaire. Chapter 4 provides Data analysis, statistical analysis and findings of the research. Chapter 5 describes the critical review of the findings. Chapter 6 discusses on recommendation and conclusion of the study and reflection summery. Chapter 2: Literature Review 2.1 Introduction Organisations require consistent levels of high performance from their employees in order to survive in a highly competitive environment. In a view of this, performance appraisal can be a systematic system through which evaluation of an employee is done analyze effectively to determine required performance. It plays a key role in rewarding systems. It is the process of evaluating the performance of employees, sharing information with them and searching for ways to improve their performance. Appraisal is necessary in order to: Allocate resources in a dynamic environment; Motivate and reward employees; Give employees feedback about their work; Maintain fair relationships within groups; Coach and develop employees; and Comply with regulations. It is also a formal opportunity to do what should be done much more frequently in organisations to express appreciation for employee contributions. Companies must administer their employee performance reviews, at all levels, fairly and without discrimination. Since all appraisals can be used against a company in an appraisal employee lawsuit, it is critical that these reviews should be completely accurate. This practice of performance appraisal has been given a variety of titles. The academicians call it performance appraisal, performance review etc. In Government services in Bangladesh, it is known as ACR (Annual Confidential Report). In private organisations, it is often described as merit rating, personnel rating, progress rating, annual performance, etc. Performance appraisal plays a major role in Human Resource Management. The subject is a part of Performance Management. It is necessary to discuss the performance management briefly before proceeding to performance appraisal. Performance Management The primary concern of performance management is the improvement of individual and collective performance. It is a continuous cycle of self-renewing. The aim of performance management is make direct link together individual goals, departmental purpose and organisational objectives. It integrates the major elements of HRM like appraisal and employee development, performance-related pay and reward management, individualism and employee relations. In other way it can be called as day-to-day management activity as it deals with organising works to get the best result. â€Å" a strategic integrated approach to delivering sustained success to organisations by improving the performance of the people who work in them and by developing the capabilities of tams and individual contributors†. Armstrong (2001:467) According to Armstrong (2001:475) the main activities of performance management are Role Definition, The Performance Agreement or Contract, The Performance Development Plan, Managing Performance Throughout the Year and Performance Review. These activities are a continuous cycle. According to Marchington Wilkinson (2004:187), the process of performance management system involves Induction and Socialisation, Reviewing and Appraising Performance, Reinforcing Performance Standards and Counselling and Support. Beardwell and Holden (2001:538) stated â€Å"Performance Management is not simply the appraisal of individual performance: it is an integrated and continuous process that develops, communicates and enables the future direction, core competencies and values of organisation, and helps to create an ‘horizon of understanding†. Performance Management is an effective tool by which the employees work behaviours are aligned with the organisations goals. There is no one way to manage performance. Whatever system is adopted needs to be similar with the culture and the principles of that organisation. However, most system of performance management has several parts: Defining Performance: Carefully defines employee performance so that it supports the organisations strategic goals. Setting of clear goals for the individual employee is a critical component of performance management. Measuring Performance: Measuring performance does not need to be narrowly conceived, but can bring together multiple types of performance measured in various ways. The key is to measure often and use the information for mid-course corrections. Feedback and Coaching: In order to improve performance, the employee needs information (feedback) about their performance, along with the guidance in reaching the next level of results. Without frequent feedback, employees are unlikely to know that behaviour is out of synchronization with relevant goals, or what to do about it. The major aim of performance management is to find ways of continual improvement of levels of both organisational and individual performance and performance appraisal is the perfect weapon for that improvement. The Rise of Performance Appraisal The performance appraisal has a long history which started China in the third century, the reign of Wei Dynasty. It was mainly used for the civil servants, army officers and managers until recently. Now it is very much wide spread all over the world and has become a popular management tool. In the UK most of the private sector organisations has introduced and are practicing performance appraisal during the last decade or two. Some people suggested that the reason behind for its growth is to use the individualised performance-pay system. Some other factors like market competition, managing change, organisation goal, milk out the best from the employees etc. are also important. Now the terminology ‘performance appraisal is changing to ‘personal development review and ‘performance review and development. (Taylor, 2004:247-248) Meaning of Performance Appraisal Performance Appraisal (PA) is a methodical, on the job-review of an employees abilities and accomplishments. Performance appraisal functions as a valuable management assessment tool and a superior employee motivation weapon. It enables us to strike a workable balance between organisations need for qualified and trained personnel and employees need for feedback and motivation. Performance is the contribution and appraisal is the procedure of measuring the contribution. Performance appraisal is an integral part of a system of managing individuals working in an organisation. Performance appraisal is an inevitable inspire of modern technology and all the systems and controls coming into widespread us, people remain the most important factor in all kinds of business, government agencies, charitable organisations and all other organisation. Performance appraisal is a process of bringing together the approaches of performance management like counselling, training, improving performance etc. that helps the managers to exercise them to achieve the goal of the organisation. It is a procedure of rewarding and disciplining the employees to improve the over performance of the organisation. It is the process of evaluating performance or contribution of an employee to the organisation during a specific period of time by his or her supervisor with relation to his or her job requirements. An effective, reliable and valid performance appraisal system recognizes the legitimate desire of employees for progress in their professions. Integration of organisational demands and individual needs through career management is the part of performance appraisal. Therefore, the performance appraisal program is inevitable for measuring the contribution of both â€Å"employees and managerial personnel†. Performance appraisal program is the basis of determining who is profitable to higher position and who is to be rewarded for better contribution to the organisation he or she belongs to. Performance feedback lets employees know how well they have performed in comparison with the standards of the organisation. Performance appraisal program is the administrative and employee development tool, which is the domain of the management not shared by the employees. Opponents of the performance appraisal attack it on a variety of grounds but without appraising performance of the employees career development, organisational development, recently a number of organisations have revamped their appraisal system in a bid to reduce possible negative outcomes. Appraisal, no doubt is a complex issue and it is clear that to be effective, a system must be designed and implemented with great care. â€Å"Performance appraisal means evaluating an employees current and/or past performance relative to his or her performance standards†. (Dessler, 2005:310) Michael Armstrong (2001:486) says â€Å"Performance review discussions enable a perspective to be obtained on past performance as a basis for making plans for the future.† He explains that the five elements of performance management (measurement, feedback, positive reinforcement, exchange of views and agreement on action plans) can be achieved through performance review. In the conclusion it can be said that, performance appraisal is the process by which an employees contribution to the organisation during a specific period of time is assessed. Performance Feedback then lets the employee know how well they have performed in comparison with the standards of the organisation. Who Should Do The Appraisal? By traditionally a managers authority typically has included appraising subordinates performance. The logic behind this tradition seems to be that since managers are held responsible for their employees† performance, it only makes sense that these managers do the evaluating of their performance. The employees immediate boss conducts about 95 percent of all performance appraisals at the lower and middle levels of the organisation. Purposes Purposes of Performance Appraisal: HRD Employees View Performance appraisal or evaluation serves a number of purposes for Human Resources Department and for the development of the employees. Management uses performance appraisal for general human resource decisions. Evaluations provide input into such important decisions, transfers, and terminations. Performance appraisals identify training and development needs. They pinpoint employee skills and competencies that are currently inadequate but for which programs can be developed to remedy. Performance appraisal can be used as a criterion against which selection and development programs are validated. Newly Hired employees who perform poorly can be identified through performance appraisal. Similarly, the effectiveness of training development programs can be determined by assessing how well those employees who have participated do on their performance appraisal. Performance appraisals also fulfil the purpose of providing feedback to employees on how the organisation views their performance. Furthermore performance appraisals are used as the basis for reward allocations. Decisions as to who gets merit pay increases and other rewards are frequently determined by performance appraisal. Purposes of Performance Appraisal: Organisations View Identify the successful less successful aspects of the employee needs organisational goals. Assist decision makers in allocating resources in planning for future. Assist managers in just frying expenditure accounting for those expenditures. Monitor employee activities to detect any change in activities or the quality of services. Serve as a benchmark, i.e. identifying best practice performance, using that performance as a goal, investigating the factors that led up to that performance, then trying to replicate that level of performance. Functions / Uses of Performance Appraisal Multiple uses of Performance Appraisal are: Development uses. Administrative uses/decision makings. Organizational maintenance/objectives. Documentation. Types of Performance Appraisal There are various types of performance appraisal which includes Alternation Ranking Method, Graphic Rating Scale, Management By Objectives (MBO) etc. (Dessler, 2005:315) These are explained below. Alternation Ranking Method It is the oldest simplest of formal systematic rating is to compare one person with all others for the purpose of placing them in a simple rank order of worth. In doing this, the appraiser considers person and performance as an entity; no attempt is made to systematically fractionize what being appraised into component elements. Graphic Rating Scale This method is widely used in merit rating is similar to the techniques in point-evaluation plan. This involves the supervisor to rate employee performance in terms of prescribed traits i.e. quality of work, quantity of work, initiative, dependability, knowledge of work etc. Each trait is defined various degrees of each are prescribed in some way. From traits degrees over-all rating can be obtained. Forced Distribution Choice Another attempt to counteract the tendency of raters to give average ratings or even sometimes to â€Å"twist† a report to bring about a desired result is the forced-choice technique. Here the rater is faced with groups of three of four statements, he must tick the one, which applies most nearly to the employee under assessment. These statements are so devised that it is impossible for the rater to know which will give the most favourable rating. Grading It is a further development to the guideline approach which attempts to provide a frame work of reference by defining a number of levels at which the characteristics is displayed asking Managers to select the definition which most closely describes the individual they are assessing. For example, in rating effective output the Manager in a typical grading scheme is asked to choose between: Outstanding Outstanding output of high quality work Satisfactory Satisfactory level of output effort Fair Completes less than the average amount of effective work Poor Low output poor worker. Critical Incident Method The critical incident method requires every Supervisor to adopt a practice of recording in a note-book of those significant incidents in each employees behaviour that indicate effective or poor behaviour. These are recorded in a specifically-designed notebook that contains characteristics under which the various behaviours can be recorded. Management by Objectives (MBO) Management by Objectives (MBO) is a critical process that often consists of four steps as a way to attain desired performance: Objective setting-joint determination by manager employee of appropriate levels of future performance for the employee, within the context of over-all unit goals resources. These objectives are often set for the next calendar year. Action planning-participative or even independent planning by the employee as to how to reach those objectives. Providing some autonomy to employees is invaluable; they are more likely to use their ingenuity, as well as feel more committed to the plans success. Periodic reviews-joint assessment of progress toward objectives by manager employee performed informally sometimes spontaneously. Annual evaluation-more formal assessment of success in achieving the employees annual objectives coupled with a renewal of the planning cycle. Some MBO systems also use performance appraisal to tie rewards for employees to the level of results attained. MBO had been taken likened to a modem form of scientific management. It is also subject to the same possible criticisms of too great an emphasis on individual job definition together with a management authority structure, the assumption of no conflict between individual organisation goals. MBO should not be applied simply as a pressure device by which management apply increasingly demanding targets which Staffs are expected to achieve. MBO draws attention to the objectives for individual members of the organisation as a whole. MBO is a potentially attractive system. It provides an opportunity for staff of accept greater responsibility to make a higher level or personal contribution. There is much to recommend it to both the organisation individual managers. 360 Degree Appraisal or Evaluation The latest approach to performance appraisal is the use of 360 Degree evaluations. It provides for performance feedback from the full circle of daily contacts that an employee might have, ranging from mailroom personnel to customers to bosses to peers. The number of appraisals can be as few as three or four evaluations or as many as 25; with most organisations collecting five to ten per employees. The appeal of 360-degree appraisals is to fit well into organisations that have introduced teams, employee involvement, and TQM programs. By relaying on feedback from co-workers, customers and subordinates, these organisations are hoping to give every one more accurate reading on employee performance. Appraising Performance: Problems and Solutions Few of the things a manager does which are more risky than appraising subordinates performance. Employees in general tend to be overly optimistic about what their ratings will be, and also know that their raises, career progress, and peace of mind may well hinge of how they are rated. This alone should make it somewhat difficult to rate performance; even more problematic. There are more numerous structural problems that can cause serious doubt on just how fare the whole process is. Some of the main appraisal problems and their solution are explained below. Dealing with the Five Main Rating Scale Appraisal Problems Five main problems can undermine appraisal tools such as graphic rating scales: unclear standards, halo effect, central tendency, leniency or strictness, and bias. Unclear Standards: The problem of unclear standards is illustrated. Although the graphic rating scale seems objective, it would probably result in unfair appraisals because the traits and degrees of merit are open to interpretation. For example, different supervisors would probably define ‘good performance, ‘fair performance, and so on differently. The same is true of traits such as ‘quality of work or ‘creativity. Halo Effect: The halo effect means that the rating of subordinate on one trait (such as ‘gets along with others) biases the way that person is rated on other traits (such as ‘quality of work). This problem often occurs with employees who are especially friendly (or unfriendly) towards the supervisor. For example, an unfriendly employee will often be rated unsatisfactory for all traits rather than just for the trait ‘gets along well with others. Being aware of this problem is a major step toward avoiding it. Supervisory training can also solve the problem. Central Tendency: Many supervisors have a central tendency when filling in rating scales. For example, if the rating scale ranges from 1 to 7, they tend to avoid the highs (6 to 7) and lows (1to 2) and rate most of their people between 3 and 5. In a graphic rating scale, this central tendency could mean that all employees are simply rated ‘average. Such a restriction can distort the evaluations, making them less useful for promotion, salary, or counselling purposes. Ranking the employees instead of using a graphic rating scale can avoid this central tendency problem because all employees must be ranked and thus cannot all be rated average. Leniency or Strictness: Some supervisors tend to rate all their subordinates consistently high (or low), just all some instructors are notoriously high graders and others are not. This strictness/leniency problem is especially serious with graphic rating scales since supervisors arent necessarily required to avoid giving all their employees high (or low) ratings. On the other hand, when the raters rank subordinates, they are forced to distinguish between high and low performances. Thus, strictness/leniency is not a problem with the ranking or forced distribution approach. In fact, if a graphic rating scale must be used, it may be a good idea to assume a distribution of performances-that, say, only about 10% of the people should be rated ‘excellent, 20% ‘good, and so forth. In other words, try to get a spread (unless, of course, the raters are sure all their people really do fall into just one or two categories). Bias: Individual differences among raters in terms of characteristics like age, race, and sex can affect their ratings, often quite apart from each rates actual performance. In one study, for instance, researchers found a systematic tendency to evaluate older rates (over 60 years of age) lower on ‘performance capacity and ‘potential for development then younger employees. The rates race and sex can also affect the persons rating. However, bias is not necessarily consistently against minorities or women, as it seems to be in the case of older workers. In one study, high performing females were often rated significantly higher than were high performing males. An interesting picture of how age can distort evaluations emerges from a study of registered nurses. When the nurses were 30-39 years old, they and their supervisors each rated the nurses performance virtually the same. In the 21-29 category, supervisors actually rated nurses higher than they rated themselves. However, for the 40-61 nurse age categories, the supervisors rated nurses performance lower than the nurses rated their own performance. The conclusion here may be that supervisors are tougher in appraising older subordinates. Specifically, they dont give them as much credit for their success, while attributing any low performance to their lack of ability. A related problem is described in the Diversity Counts feature. An employees previous performance can also affect the evaluation of h