Finance & Accounting for London Stock Exchange - myassignmenthelp

Question: Write about theFinance Accounting for London Stock Exchange. Answer: Introduction The companys financial information is of atmost importance to the users of the financial statements. They can be external as well as internal based on their needs and it helps them to take the financial decisions.(Alexander, 2016) For the given assignment and analysis, a British multinational telecom company Vodafone Group Plc has been chosen. It is one of the pioneer companies in the British market and has been amongst the most profitable companies in the recent past. Further, it is ranked five in the world in terms of revenue and 2nd in terms of no. of connections and is the 8th biggest on the London Stock Exchange in terms of market capitalization. Analysis on the topic We would like to invest in the company as it has been one of the biggest and renowned brands in the recent past in terms of telecommunication and has been yielding high profits and returns for the shareholders. Further, it one of the Fortune 500 companies and is growing rapidly and has a good history of corporate governance in the past. (Abbott Kantor, 2017) The companys stakeholders in this case can be external like the government, the taxation authorities, the investors, the banks and the financial institutions, the competitors, the economy as a whole, etc. whereas the internal stakeholders can be like the employees who are directly affected by the decisions, the management, the creditors, the debtors, etc. of the company. They would be interested in the events and decisions being taken by the company for the personal interests like the competitors like AtT, China Mobile Ltd., T-Mobile US Inc., etc would be interested because even a slight change in the pricing policy or the data pack network policy would bring about a drastic change worldwide and the revenues of others may fall in that case.(Boccia Leonardi, 2016) Therefore, the competitors needs to be aware and take the similar competitive reactions in order to retain the customers. Further, the employees would be interested in the results of the company because the good average or the bad results directly or indirectly have a bearing on the salaries, the bonus and the stability of their employment. The banks and the financial institutions have differnet use of the financial statements as they use it to access whether the company is eligible enough to be given the loans and the borrowings and whether the company would be able to repay it back with the give timelines. To meet all the above objectives of the users of the financial statements, the board of directors of the company prepare the financials and hold tha annual meetings with the shareholders and annual accounts is adopted therein post which the auditors check the financials and express their opinion opn whether the financials give a true and fair view of the affairs of treh company and whether is it non biased. They give a reasonable assurance to the users of these financials that it can be used to take the critical economic, financial and investment decisions. (Dichev, 2017) There are various legal and regulatory requirements which the company has to follow like the Local Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and the International Financial Reporting Framework basis which the financial statements needs to be presented. These regulations and legal requirements are mandatory in some of the places whereas in some other places it is just recommendatory. Further, as per the SOX compliance regulations and corporate governance requirements, the company needs to invest towards the betterment of the environment and the society in which they are operating.(Flix, 2017) These are few of the regulations which the company has to adhere. Besides all these, there are requirements like to publish annual and half yearly financials in order to maintain the transparency of the operations of the company. The implication of all this on the users is that they get to know the progress of the company and the present status of the company on the basis of which they take the respective financial decisions. Further, they get to know if there are any financial litgations which the company is underoing or any financial risk which may impact the returns of the company. In the era of globalization, the harmonization of the accounting practices has become extremely important considering the materiality and the usability of the financial information. There should be uniformness in the way the financial information is disclosed to the users of the statements and policies being followed towards accounting of assets, liabilities, expenses and incomes. (Gooley, 2016) This will help the users to understand the financial statements better and will make them understandable and usability of the accounting information would increase. Different laws and regulations follow different accounting rules and regulations and the ways of accounting and judgements. Based on this, the values reported may also be changing like in IFRS and the GAAP, the way of depreciation accounting and valuation of the assets is different and might result in different profitability for the company. Further, some of the standards are rigid whereas some of the standards may be recommendatory and might depend on the company as to how the management takes the call on the accounting of the same. (Visinescu, et al., 2017) Information requirements of the different users do vary based on the company. Such as in case of a retail company like ZARA the users might require details on how the company is competing with the other brands, whether it has come out with any new brand of its own, whether it is offered any discount or incentive in the last year and whether that has added to the revenue of the company, which the other countries or regions to which the company has expanded its business, whether there is an increase in treh customer base.(Trieu, 2017) Further, the users will also want to know that the company is meeting the other legal and regulatory requirements. Conclusion From the above analysis, it is very much clear that the requirements of the users wirh respect to the financial statements may change depending on the needs, the type of industry in which the company is operating and the legal and reporting standards being followed by them. To harmonise the same and to make the same beneficial from the user perspective, the same should be made uniform and standard throughout the accounting arena. References Abbott, M. Kantor, A., 2017. Fair Value Measurement and Mandated Accounting Changes: The Case of the Victorian Rail Track Corporation. Australian accounting Review. Alexander, F., 2016. The Changing Face of Accountability. The Journal of Higher Education, 71(4), pp. 411-431. Boccia, F. Leonardi, R., 2016. The Challenge of the Digital Economy. Markets, Taxation and Appropriate Economic Models, pp. 1-16. Dichev, I., 2017. On the conceptual foundations of financial reporting. Accounting and Business Research, 47(6), pp. 617-632. Flix, M., 2017. A study on the expected impact of IFRS 17 on the transparency of financial statements of insurance companies. MASTER THESIS, pp. 1-69. Gooley, J., 2016. Principles of Australian Contract Law. Australia: Lexis Nexis. Trieu, V., 2017. Getting value from Business Intelligence systems: A review and research agenda. Decision Support Systems, Volume 93, pp. 111-124. Visinescu, L., Jones, M. Sidorova, A., 2017. Improving Decision Quality: The Role of Business Intelligence. Journal of Computer Information Systems, 57(1), pp. 58-66.

Zara International Supply Chain Management

Introduction A company’s management has the role of managing operations and Supplies to ensure adequate supply of materials in the company at the right time at an appropriate competitive cost. Supplies takes the form of having the raw material required for production at the right time to make the process effective and in the case of outsourced manufacturing services, the timely supply of the finished products (Cousins, Lamming, Lawson and Squire,2008).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Zara International Supply Chain Management specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More As many Europeans companies are shifting their operation (manufacturing) base to China, African Nations and Asia, to enjoy the cheaper labor markets there; however, some companies like Zara International Fashions have opted to procure their products in Europe. The main question is why has Zara International ignored the perceived benefit from outsourced manufacturing? This paper seeks to answer the above question; it will discuss the answer from a supply-chain management angle. What is Supply Chain Management? A business process is a well-coordinated sequential task, undertaken to fulfill certain set objectives. Every stage is managed as it contributes to attainment of the set goals and objectives. Generally, three sets of business processes they are, managerial processes, operational processes and supporting processes. Supply chain management aims at providing goods necessary for production in a business. It starts from identifying the materials required for various processes in the company and ends with the supply of those goods. It has a period; an efficient process must be completed within a set period. A supply chain management is an internal operation whose results the internal and final consumer feels. It has the following objectives: To ensure that there are quality and quantity supply of goods and services To ensure that there is a Just in time delivery of goods and services Control the supply system and attain highest efficiency possible Reduction of transportation cost, lead time and warehouse costs Enhance customer service through provision of high quality goods. When a company has an adequate supply of materials, it is able to produce goods in the right time at an affordable and competitive price. When sourcing products from another country, the approach of supply chain management moves a notch higher, companies in Europe has to contend with other logistics though in the supply chain network that companies like Zara procuring locally are not entitle to, they include: International logistic issues To have adequate supply, the prevailing conditions must be optimal and no external influence; when a company is procuring from abroad, it is affected by economic, political and social changes in the procuring country; this makes the business miss the confidence that they can supply when wanted. This reason makes Zara opt for local produced goods.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Complication of international procurements When getting goods abroad, companies are seen to operate two stage complicated supply chain, they must ensure that either the foreign country gets the materials, those sent from the buying country or it has procured in the local market; to manage such a process is complicated and time consuming. Zara has opted to have a simple local manufacturing that it can manage effectively (Zara International, 2011). The make-buy decision When in business, the management must make the decisions whether they will use their own manufactured goods or they will buy already made goods; the decision is rather personal to a business and considers many options. When a company decides to make products, it ensures that it has the right expertise materials are available as w ell labor. The main factor of consideration is whether making ones products will lead to a reduced cost of production or alternatively it will lead to higher quality that will lead to increased sales. The reason why other European countries have decided to get their products made from Asian and Chinese countries is the labor costs, this makes the goods cheap in the end; however managing the process for quality is complicated; again it is a shaky deal where a company has to worry about any change in the country of procurements stability. Zara International has opted to buy more form the market because of a variety of factors; they include: When buying locally, it will not be given the margin to buy to be sold at an appropriate cost; this is different than when manufacturing, the manufacturer has to make some products to break even which may lead to over production. When buying locally, the company will have the option of comparing the many varieties in the market and procure form tho se companies that have the products in demand. This makes the company have the best products at an affordable cost (Zara International, 2011). Sourcing strategies and supply chain configurations When manufacturing goods from a country different form the country of sales, the European companies depending on other companies have to undertake some suppliers/abroad manufactures. Configuration of supply chain is a procedural way that ensures that goods are delivered their place of need when they are needed to be. Logistic management involves processes undertaken by a company to ensure that it has goods and services it requires for its day-to-day activities when they are needed. Some governmental procedures or companies processes may shape it. In an international procurement, there are customs logistics that must be adhered to ensure that commodity is delivered at the right time. It involves procuring, handling, warehousing, verifying and control of goods imported. Customs laws must be ad hered.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Zara International Supply Chain Management specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It is a lengthy process and thus an importing company must ensure that it has enough time for a just in time delivery. Logistics management team is given the mandate to ensure that delivery is done at the right time, right cost and the right place (Harrison and Hoek, 2008) When Zara procures locally, then it avoids all the above logistics and it can be sure that it will get what the market is offering; in the case the above logistics are hampered by something may be special to a procuring country or applying across the board, the procuring company will have to suffer the loss of business. However, the case is different when a company is procuring from the local scenes. Zara always has the option of selling what is available in the market thus at any one point is it on toes with the market, a move th at offers it competitive advantage. Strategic supplier selection A company should develop a good business relationship with its suppliers, as this will assist in making sure that there is reliability in the supply of materials. When in the international arena, a company should ensure that it has good relations will all the people in the line of business all the way from the sourcing of materials to the last person who will bring the goods into the company; this is not an easy task. When there is a good relation, it is easier to get goods at a better price and market data from suppliers whom the company has established good business relations. Maintaining the good relation with people of different personalities and companies with varying philosophies is not an easy job, sometimes it fails the manufacturing companies (Mangan, Lalwani and Butcher, 2008). The decision of Zara International to procure locally can be attributed to avoidance of the above hassle the management is better con centrate on looking for the best commodities in the local market and ensuring that the internal businesses processes are up to date and competitive. As other businesses are looking for relationship building approaches, the company is busy developing business processes and enacting them for a competitive business. Aligning supply with corporate strategy Companies are guided by corporate strategies; they should align their processes, including supply management processes to the company’s corporate strategy. A Company’s procurement and supplies department ensures that production materials and equipments required for an effective production are available, in the right quality and at an appropriate price, this will meet the company’s main goal of being profitable.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More With globalization, companies can procure goods and services that meet their requirements from different countries; the wide availability of materials and their markets has facilitated industrialization; however the policies and the ideologies in the international business has sometimes contradicted the procuring company corporate structure (Lysons and Gillingham, 2003). For example, many European companies have sustainable development agendas as one of their corporate strategies; however, they may procure from countries that have relaxed environmental laws, thus the procurement ends up violating the company’s corporate goal. Another area is in labor and its costs, different countries have different labor cost, Europeans companies have corporate goal of ensuring they have the best cared for human capital, but when they procure abroad, the standards set in those countries may be different thus the company ends up violating its own corporate goal indirectly (Christopher, 2005). Zara International is keen on maintaining and respecting its corporate goals and objectives; when the company buys from local scenes, it is able to make sure that all areas have been looked into before making a move. For example, it will be able to make sure that it buys from companies that respect their employee’s rights and those that protect the environment. With such moves, it will be satisfying its corporate goals and objectives (Zara International, 2011) Conclusion Having an effective supply chain management offers a competitive advantage to an organization; supply chain management has the main objective to ensuring that at any one time there are adequate supplies to a business, at an appropriate cost and place. To buy locally available goods or manufacture goods for sale is a decision that management has to make; Zara has opted to purchase over 80% of its goods locally, instead of having international manufacturing joints that have cheaper labor. The main reason for t he decision is to offer management a chance to concentrate on other business processes that will offer a competitive advantage to the company; it is also a risk management approach. References Christopher, M. ,2005. Logistics and Supply Chain Management; creating value-adding networks. Harlow: Prentice Hall Cousins, P., Lamming, R., Lawson, B. and Squire, B. ,2008. Strategic Supply Management: principles, theories and practice. Harlow: Prentice Hall. Harrison, A. and Hoek, R. ,2008. Logistics Management and Strategy. Harlow: Prentice Hall Lysons, K. and Gillingham, M. ,2003. Purchasing and Supply Chain Management. Harlow: Prentice Hall/ Financial Times. Mangan, J., Lalwani, C. and Butcher, T. ,2008. Global Logistics and Supply Chain Management. Chichester: John Wiley Sons Ltd. Zara International., 2011. Zara. Web. This essay on Zara International Supply Chain Management was written and submitted by user Shiny Sheep 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.

Shakespeares Vocabulary

Shakespeares Vocabulary Shakespeares Vocabulary Shakespeares Vocabulary By Maeve Maddox Shakespeare (1564-1616) wrote during the Renaissance, a time when the English language was being inundated with new words. Based on a count from the OED, between 10,000 and 12,000 new words were added to English during the 16th century. About half have found a permanent place in the language. The majority of the new words came from Latin and were used by educated people who wrote books. They jumped quickly from the printed page into everyday speechpresumably by way of such popular entertainments as plays and sermons. The character of Sir Andrew Aguecheek in Twelfth Night may reflect the eagerness of non-scholars to learn new words: VIOLA [to Olivia] Most excellent accomplished lady, the heavens rain odours on you! SIR ANDREW [aside] That youths a rare courtier: Rain odours; well. VIOLA My matter hath no voice, to your own most pregnant and vouchsafed ear. SIR ANDREW Odours, pregnant and vouchsafed: Ill get em all three all ready. Except for a professional translator like Philemon Holland (1552-1637), Shakespeare used the largest vocabulary of any English writer. Some of the words he used in his plays are documented only a year or two before his use of them: exist, initiate, and jovial, for example. Its impossible to say how many words Shakespeare coined, but his works provide the first documentation for words including accommodation, apostrophe, assassination, dexterously, dislocate, frugal, indistinguishable, misanthrope, obscene, pedant, premeditated, reliance, and submerged. He makes fun of some of the new words going round by putting them in the mouths of pompous clowns like Holofernes in Loves Labours Lost: HOLOFERNES The deer was, as you know, sanguis, in blood; ripe as the pomewater, who now hangeth like a jewel in the ear of caelo, the sky, the welkin, the heaven; and anon falleth like a crab on the face of terra, the soil, the land, the earth. SIR NATHANIEL Truly, Master Holofernes, the epithets are sweetly varied, like a scholar at the least: but, sir, I assure ye, it was a buck of the first head. †¦ HOLOFERNES Most barbarous intimation! yet a kind of insinuation, as it were, in via, in way, of explication; facere, as it were, replication, or rather, ostentare, to show, as it were, his inclination, after his undressed, unpolished, uneducated, unpruned, untrained, or rather, unlettered, or ratherest, unconfirmed fashion, to insert again my haud credo for a deer. Shakespearean words we still use are agile, allurement, antipathy, catastrophe, critical, demonstrate, dire, emphasis, emulate, extract, hereditary, horrid, impertinent, meditate, modest, pathetic, prodigious, vast, barricade, cavalier, mutiny, and pell-mell. The meanings of many of these words have changed since the 16th century. For example, we use communicate to mean exchange information. When Shakespeare uses it in Comedy of Errors, it still had the Latin meaning of to share or make common to many. In Merchant of Venice, Lorenzo uses expect (from Latin expectare, to await) in the sense of to wait for: †¦lets in and there expect their coming. The word humorous has been used in English with various senses before coming to mean comical or funny, including the meanings damp, capricious, moody, and peevish. Five of the words that Shakespeare made fun in the speech of Holofernes (intimation, insinuation, explication, replication, and inclination) caught on and survived into modern usage. Some of the same educators who are willing to drop the study of Shakespeare from the general curriculum probably complain about a decline in vocabulary in todays high school graduates. There may be no connection, but the fact remains that the close study of even one of Shakespeares plays will yield a significant jump in vocabulary for the serious reader. Sources: A History of the English Language, Alfred C. Baugh The Complete Works of Shakespeare, The Literature Network Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:30 Religious Terms You Should KnowCapitalization Rules for Names of Historical Periods and MovementsTrooper or Trouper?

What Fossilized Poop Can Tell Us About Dinosaurs

What Fossilized Poop Can Tell Us About Dinosaurs Herbivorous, house-sized dinosaurs like Apatosaurus and Brachiosaurus, not to mention carnivorous behemoths like Giganotosaurus, had to eat hundreds of pounds of plants or flesh every day to maintain their weight - so as you can imagine, there was a lot of dinosaur poop littering the ground during the Mesozoic Era. However, unless a giant blob of Diplodocus doo happened to fall on the head of a nearby critter, he was unlikely to complain, since dinosaur feces were an abundant source of nutrition for smaller animals (including birds, lizards and mammals), and, of course, a ubiquitous assortment of bacteria. Dinosaur droppings were also crucial for ancient plant life. Just as modern-day farmers scatter manure around their crops (which replenishes the nitrogen compounds that make the  soil fertile), the millions of tons of dinosaur dung produced every single day during the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous periods helped keep the worlds forests lush and green. This, in turn, produced a near-endless source of vegetation for  herbivorous dinosaurs to feast on, and then turn into poop, which also enabled carnivorous dinosaurs to eat the herbivorous dinosaurs and turn them into poop, and so on and on in an endless symbiotic cycle of, well, you know. Coprolites and Paleontology As important as they were for the primitive ecosystem, dinosaur droppings have proved equally crucial for modern-day paleontologists. Occasionally, researchers stumble across huge, well-preserved piles of fossilized dinosaur dung- or â€Å"coprolites,† as they’re called  in polite society. By examining these fossils in detail, researchers can figure out if they were created by plant-eating, meat-eating, or omnivorous dinosaurs- and they can sometimes even identify the type of animal or plant that the dinosaur ate a few hours (or a few days) before going Number 2. (Unfortunately, unless a specific dinosaur is discovered in the immediate vicinity, its nearly impossible to attribute a particular piece of poop to a particular dinosaur species.) Every now and then, coprolites can even help to settle evolutionary disputes. For example, a batch of fossilized dung excavated recently in India proves that the dinosaurs responsible fed on types of grass that weren’t believed to have evolved until millions of years later. By pushing back the flourishing of these grasses to 65 million years ago from 55 million years ago (give or take a few million years), these coprolites may help explain the evolution of the megafauna mammals known as gondwanatheres, which had teeth adapted for grazing, during the ensuing Cenozoic Era. One of the most famous coprolites was discovered in Saskatchewan, Canada, in 1998. This gigantic poop fossil (which looks pretty much the way you’d expect) measures 17 inches long and six inches thick, and was probably part of an even larger chunk of dinosaur dung. Because this coprolite is so enormous - and contains fragments of bone and blood vessels- paleontologists believe it may have derived from a Tyrannosaurus Rex that roamed North America about 60 million years ago. (This type of forensics is nothing new; as far back as the early 19th century, the English fossil-hunter Mary Anning discovered bezoar stones, containing fish scales, nestled in the fossilized skeletons of various marine reptiles.) The Coprolites of the Cenozoic Era Animals have been eating and pooping for 500 million yearsso what makes the Mesozoic Era so special? Well, aside from the fact that most people find dinosaur dung fascinating, absolutely nothingand coprolites dating from before the Triassic period and after the Cretaceous period can be equally diagnostic of the creatures responsible. For example, the megafauna mammals of the Cenozoic Era left an exquisite assortment of fossilized poops, of all shapes and sizes, which has helped paleontologists tease out details about the food chain; archaeologists can even infer facts about the lifestyles of early Homo sapiens by examining the minerals and microorganisms preserved in their feces. No discussion about fossilized poop would be complete without a mention of Englands once-burgeoning coprolite industry: during the mid-18th century (a few decades after Mary Annings time had come and gone), a curious parson at Cambridge University discovered that certain coprolites, when treated with sulfuric acid, yielded valuable phosphates then  in demand by the growing chemical industry. For decades, the east coast of England was a hotbed of coprolite mining and refining, to the extent that even today, in the town of Ipswich, you can take a leisurely stroll down Coprolite Street.

Financial Management in Banks Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Financial Management in Banks - Essay Example It is said to be very essential because it decreases the chances of loss and enhances profit expectation. Like any other firm, the ultimate objective of banks and financial institutions is to maximize profit and shareholder wealth. Financial management plays an important role in achieving these goals in banks. The crucial aspects of financial management such as capital budgeting, investment appraisal, capital structure and risk management are some very important considerations in banking operations. Maximization of profit and shareholder wealth is only possible if banks perform its fundamental activities i.e. advancing loans and receiving deposits in a manner that can minimize the elements of risk. For this purpose, the use of financial management is very important in banks. The preceding paragraphs elaborate the use of financial management in banks for the maximization profit and shareholder wealth and the importance of risk management techniques in this regard. Financial management is considered to be very crucial when a bank undertakes a new project or investment. Investment and capital budgeting decisions in banks are taken on the basis of positive NPV criterion. It is because of the fact that it is consistent with the notion of shareholder wealth maximisation as a positive NPV means increase in the expected bank cash flows (Schroeck, 2002). Therefore, when decisions are taken on the basis of positive NPV, they are expected to enhance profit as well as shareholder wealth in the form of share price maximization. These new projects and investments have a great impact on bank cash flows, earnings and shareholder wealth. The use of financial management capital budgeting techniques help bank to stabilise their rate of return and minimise costs. Risk management is one of the most essential aspects of bank activities. Managing risk is important for the purpose of profit and shareholder wealth maximization. Banks confront with lending capacity restrictions and rising cost of acquiring new funds. This makes it crucial for banks to invest their funds in a prudent manner by employing various risk management techniques (Froot and Stein, 1995). Risk management helps a bank to reduce the volatility of its expected cash flows and earnings and thus increase the chances of profit and shareholder wealth maximization. It protects a bank's stock price to fluctuate in response to market uncertainties and stabilises return on equity. Risk management can also lead to reduction of cost of capital as it enables banks to proactively acquire enough funds to meet its future investment needs. Shareholder value is also protected as risk management techniques prevent fluctuations in the market value of banks (Schroeck, 2002). Increasing competition in banking sector due to ever increasing number of banks is also becoming the major source of risk. Banks remain ready to advance loans without extracting complete information on borrowers' capacity and credit rating. This leads to increase in bank's credit risk because most borrowers fail to pay off the loans they acquire (Marquez, 2002). The risk in the banking sector has increased a lot in the recent year. Many

Supply Chain Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Supply Chain - Case Study Example It is the world’s largest apparel retail store having chain stores in many countries. It is famous that the production, operations and then the supply chain activities are so well managed at Zara that it takes just two weeks to manufacture a new product and then launch at a display store. Whereas other competitors working in the Apparel industry take minimum of six months for manufacturing and then launching a new product in the market. This developed structure is really a source of competitive advantage for the Company Zara (Bhagwat 2011). Benetton is another Italian based Clothing Company, working globally regardless of the geographical boundaries. Benetton is famous for its dual supply chain system. The production is usually based on the quantity demanded from the stores themselves. This is also sometimes known as pull driven strategy. In addition, the last one, H & M is Swedish based Apparel Company working successfully in the market. The full name of H & M is Hennes and M auritz. The products are famous for its reasonable prices and the availability of variety of stocks within no time. It is famous that no single item remains on shop shelves more than a month duration. At Zara, the efficient operational activities and the processes are the real cause or the source of gaining competitive advantage as compare to many other competitor firms operating in the industry. The managers at Zara Company continue the research process throughout the whole season and not just in the end. For this reason, they are successful in the provision of new products within no time. The lower prices as compare to many other competitors may also give a positive impact to strengthen the competitive advantage of the company. Anyone can imagine the work efficiency at Zara Company that the product stay at distribution centre is only three days and after that, workers dispatch it to different retail stores. Another innovative thinking of marketing managers at Zara

A History of Bravery and Conflict Essay Example for Free

A History of Bravery and Conflict Essay Although many protest against the SWAT team’s use of force, history shows how vital it is for SWAT teams to wield more power than standard police officers. SWAT officers have captured and killed criminals who could not be stopped by conventional methods. Without them, incidents such as the Texas Tower Massacre might occur with more frequency and with a greater number of casualties. Therefore, the SWAT team ought to be applauded for its power of protection and not hampered in its duties. ? Although many note that specialized weapons and tactics were used as early as the time of the civil war, special SWAT teams were not created until much later. Chris Pizzo cites William E. Fairbain as the creator of the first SWAT team. Fairbain organized his specialized teams, the Shanghai Municipal Police Force, to defend against riots, guerilla attacks and terrorists in the 1920s. Fairbain’s men were the first police group to use automatic weapons, carbines and high-powered rifles. They also used body armor, armed motorcycles, and chemicals to repel attackers. They countered snipers, used martial arts, and excelled at hand-to-hand combat. While Fairbain’s men originally worked in Shanghai, they brought their methods back to the United States (Pizzo, 2007). In Los Angeles, the need for teams with specialized weapons and tactics was made evident in 1965, when Marquette Frye, a black man, was arrested for driving while intoxicated. His mother tried to stop the arrest, and drew a crowd. The event sparked anger and rioting against policemen in Los Angeles. According to Lee W. Minikus, the rioters threw rocks and gigantic pieces of concrete at patrol officers. The officers were armed only with eleven shotguns – one per car, and batons. After being attacked, they used their batons on the rioters to defend themselves. According to Minikus, â€Å"They were not rioters, as far as I’m concerned, they were gangsters. † The officer’s neighbors, some white, some Latino, defended his wife and children, holding rifles on their front porches. The riots left 25 blacks and nine whites dead. Meanwhile, more than 1,000 others were injured. Rioters burnt businesses to ash and damaged more than 600 properties. Ironically, Minikus and Marquette remained friends after the incident (Reitman Landsberg, 2005). In the summer of 1966, America’s need for SWAT teams became even clearer when a tragedy struck Texas. A disturbed engineering student and former marine, Charles Whitman, killed his wife and parents, then climbed to a tower on the University of Austin’s campus and began shooting down students. Whitman allowed others to get close enough to aid the wounded victims, and then shot the would-be rescuers as well. He even shot an eight months pregnant woman in the stomach, killing her baby. When police arrived on the scene, they had to plan to reach Whitman or to help the victims. Some tried to bring him down with an airplane, but were repelled by his gunfire. Eventually, the officers were able to bring Whitman down by using an underground tunnel. When they reached Whitman, he fired on them. They returned fire and finally ended Whitman’s attack (Snow, 1996). The tower massacre lead police to the realization that they needed to be more prepared for such attacks. Meanwhile, after the Watts riots, several snipers shot innocent civilians and police were not able to respond efficiently to such disasters. The Los Angeles Police Department was the first to find a way to respond (LAPD, 2008). Officer John Nelson, supported by inspector Darryl Gates, came up with a special weapons and tactics squad, which would enlist a small group of extremely disciplined officers to handle the most challenging and unusual problems faced by the force. The original LAPD SWAT team consisted of fifteen men, who had both police and military experience. They operated once a month, or when they were actually needed. By the 1970s, however, SWAT teams operated on a full-time basis in larger cities. In 1971, they officially adopted the name of SWAT (Snow, 1996).