Why Effective Thought Leadership Pieces are Worth the Investment

Although thought leadership is one of the hottest buzzwords in content marketing today, it’s also a somewhat misunderstood term.While many companies are familiar with what it is (if you’re not, click here), there remains to be some confusion revolving around its overall benefit. So, we’ve decided to clear things up and break it down so you can utilize it effectively and competitively. Free Actionable Bonus: Looking to elevate your SEO strategy?We partnered with Jay Baer of Convince Convert to create this free ebook on 6 Ways to Fix Your Barebones SEO Strategy What Makes a Great Thought Leader? Successful thought leaders have three major strengths: Expertise. They don’t just talk the talk: great thought leaders have the skills and knowledge to back it up.Having this edge allows them to craft meaningful content that consistently delivers value. Passion.To be an effective thought leader, you must be passionate and excited about what you do, with a healthy dose of purpose and drive. This also helps with authenticity in your pieces. Authenticity.The best thought leaders have a strong and unique voice that sets them apart from the competition.Everything they say and do reflects their values and what they stand for – so make sure you’re prepared to do that. What’s in It for Me? Done right, thought leadership content can reap multiple rewards for your brand. TakeIT solutions provider Logicalis. They used a thought-leadership approach when they launched a new marketing campaign in the form of an Ebook, scrapping the typical sales-y stuff and focusing on helpful information. It then promoted the Ebook through a series of emails to share that information.By the end of the 12-week campaign, Logicalis had gained $8 million in new business. Content Marketing: Position your business as a leader in your field, and you will find your other content marketing efforts benefit as well. Yep, you can reap the rewards of good thought leadership content long after a piece is published.It’s the gift that keeps on giving. Conversions:Thought leadership content that’s rich in value can help you better connect with potential customers. Not to mention it could lead to a significant boost in conversions. SEO:Authoritative content reigns supreme in Google-land when it comes to SEO ranking. Consistently publishing quality content with your byline attached to it is crucial to building a great online presence for your brand. And, the Google gods will reward you appropriately. I Can Do This. But, How? Now that you’re convinced that your brand needs to jump on the thought-leadership bandwagon, you need to ensure you’re doing it right when you craft your content.That means next-to-no mistakes. According to one survey, 94% of respondents thought less of a company that shared poorly-written content. Here’s a few tips to boost engagement: Simple language:Keep your writing jargon-free, and stick to brief, yet meaningful sentences.If you go on and on without a clear message, readers will think you lack substance. Real solutions:Ok, so you’ve talked about a problem or issue in a meaningful and authoritative way. But, then what? Your readers need to know what to do next. Hot tip: try writing the end of the piece first so you can pack a powerful punch (and a solution). Competitor awareness: Consider subjects that your competitors are talking about. It could be an opportunity to bring a fresh perspective to a pressing issue – further establishing your authority in your industry. Free and easy sharing: Don’t be selfish with your thought leadership content; it should be freely available and easy to share among consumers. Think of it as knowledge-base pieces that educate, inform and deliver value. There’s no doubt that thought leadership – one of the most powerful aspects of content marketing – can be hugely beneficial to a business; that’s why nearly half of content marketers list it as their top business success goal. A strong combination of authentic, passionate and expert content will go a long way to enhancing your company’s reputation, taking your brand to the next level.

All About New Hampshire Colony

All About New Hampshire Colony New Hampshire was one of the 13 original colonies of the United States and was  founded in 1623. The land in the New World was granted to Captain John Mason, who named the new settlement after his homeland in Hampshire County, England. Mason sent settlers to the new territory to create a fishing colony. However, he died before seeing the place where he had spent a considerable amount of money building towns and defenses. Fast Facts: New Hampshire Colony Also Known As: Royal Province of New Hampshire, Upper Province of MassachusettsNamed After: Hampshire, EnglandFounding Year: 1623Founding Country: EnglandFirst Known European Settlement: David Thomson, 1623; William and Edward Hilton, 1623Residential Native Communities: Pennacook and Abenaki (Algonkian)Founders: John Mason, Ferdinando Gorges, David ThomsonImportant People: Benning Wentworth  First Continental Congressmen: Nathaniel Folsom; John SullivanSigners of the Declaration: Josiah Bartlett, William Whipple, Matthew Thornton New England New Hampshire was one of the four New England Colonies, along with Massachusetts Bay, Connecticut, and Rhone Island colonies. The New England colonies were one of three groups comprising the 13 original colonies. The other two groups were the Middle Colonies and the Southern Colonies. Settlers of the New England Colonies enjoyed mild summers but endured very harsh long winters. One advantage of the cold  was that it helped to limit the spread of disease, a considerable problem in the warmer climates of the Southern Colonies.   Early Settlement Under the direction of Captain John Mason and his short-lived Laconia Company, two groups of settlers arrived at the mouth of the Piscataqua River and established two fishing communities, one at the mouth of the river and one eight miles upstream. David Thomson set sail for New England in 1623, with 10 others and his wife, and landed and established a plantation at the mouth of the Piscataqua, near what is Rye called Odiornes Point; it only lasted for a few years. About the same time, London fishmongers William and Edward Hilton set up a colony at  Hiltons Point near Dover. The Hiltons obtained financial support to buy land in 1631, and by 1632, a group of  66 men and 23 women were sent out to the budding colony.  Ã‚  Other early settlements include Thomas Warnertons Strawberry Bank near Portsmouth and Ambrose Gibbons at Newichawannock.   Fish, whales, fur, and timber were important natural resources for the New Hampshire colony. Much of the land was rocky and not flat, so agriculture was limited. For sustenance, settlers grew wheat, corn, rye, beans, and various squashes. The mighty old-growth trees of New Hampshires forests were prized by the English Crown for their use as ships masts. Many of the first settlers came to New Hampshire, not in search of religious freedom but rather to seek their fortunes through trade with England, primarily in fish, fur, and timber. Native Inhabitants The primary tribes of Native Americans living in the New Hampshire territory when the English arrived were the Pennacook and Abenaki, both Algonquin speakers. The early years of English settlement were relatively peaceful. Relations between the groups began to deteriorate in the latter half of the 1600s, largely due to leadership changes in New Hampshire and to problems in Massachusetts that led to a migration of native people into New Hampshire. The town of Dover was a focal point of struggle between the settlers and the Pennacook, where settlers built numerous garrisons for defense (giving Dover the nickname Garrison City that persists today). The Pennacook attack on June 7, 1684, is remembered as the Cochecho Massacre.   New Hampshire Independence Control of the New Hampshire colony changed several times before the colony declared its independence. It was a Royal Province prior to 1641 when it was claimed by the Massachusetts Bay Colony and was dubbed the Upper Province of Massachusetts. In 1680, New Hampshire  returned to its status as a Royal Province, but this lasted only until 1688 when it again became part of Massachusetts. New Hampshire regained independence- from Massachusetts, not from England- in 1741. At that time, the people elected Benning Wentworth as its own governor and remained under his leadership until 1766. New Hampshire sent two men to the First Continental Congress in 1774: Nathaniel Folsom and John Sullivan. Six months before the signing of the Declaration of Independence, New Hampshire became the first colony to declare its independence from England. Josiah Bartlett, William Whipple, and Matthew Thornton signed the Declaration for New Hampshire. The colony became a state in 1788.  Ã‚   Sources and Further Reading Daniell, Jere R. Colonial New Hampshire: A History. University Press of New England, 1981.Morison, Elizabeth Forbes, and Elting E. Morison. New Hampshire: A Bicentennial History. New York: W. W. Norton, 1976.Whitney, D. Quincy. Hidden History of New Hampshire. Charleston, SC: The History Press, 2008.

Netflix's Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Netflix's - Case Study Example As mentioned above, Netflix can capitalize on the software features, provided by Amazon, by providing tailored services to its customers. However, due to its dependability on Amazon for delivering service features, it is considered that Netflix cannot make vital decisions independently. The software application used by Netflix has created certain values for the company in its domestic market i.e. the United States. However, it has created opportunities for its competitors such as such eBay and Intel to take complete advantage of this application. Netflix has a huge opportunity to expand the market share through effective financial operations, but its share price has been declining significantly. Netflix’s stock has been trading at a lower rate, but the company can increase its stock price value through productive measures. Customer value creation is a potential opportunity for Netflix to increase its market existence through Amazon Web Services, but this particular aspect has adversely affected its managerial functions, due to excessive usage of web servers. Netflix through its relationship with Amazon has increased opportunities to upgrade its cloud services, whereas the decision making process has been problematic to a certain extent. The overall size of its domestic market is relatively smaller due to increased competition, although it has created opportunities for Netflix to expand its subscriber’s base. The average rate of return on services and contents provided by the company is continuously declining. Nonetheless, Netflix has a huge opportunity to replicate its business model and enter in overseas market for greater effectively. Understanding market behavior is quite important for each and every company to sustain in the market for a long term. Thus, it is suggested that marketing managers of Netflix through performing a thorough market research might understand the market behavior as well as customers’

Work integrated project Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Work integrated project - Lab Report Example Evaluation of Limitations and Alternative Proposal 13 References 15 Bibliography 17 Overview Swan Sweet  is the manufacturing and wholesale segment of Lebanese Sweet and is located at Maddington, West Australia.  Swan Sweet was founded by Hassan Youssef in the 1920’s and was then known as ‘Hassan Youssef Sweet Lebanon’. The company has positioned itself as the key supplier of confectionery items for the business market. Swan Sweet  offers sweets and other  catering solutions to fulfill all the business needs of their customers. They are well known for their supplies of freshly baked Baklava, a variety of Mediterranean pastry.  They also offer wholesale solutions to their customers for promotional  proceedings and corporate events  by providing bulk products enabling the clients to develop and build their businesses (Swan Sweet 2011). The report addresses the issues pertaining to a change intervention process of Swan Sweet. The report analyzes the int ernal and the external drivers which led to the change intervention in Swan Sweet explaining it’s rational and purpose. The study considers the change perspectives that might have driven the owners of Swan Sweet. The study also describes the change strategy adopted by the management of Swan Sweet and demonstrates the approaches employed for the development as well as implementation of the change strategy. An assessment has also been made of the options available to and restraints the company Swan Sweet faced when selecting the resulting strategy. The report also confers about the strategic planning tools employed as well as how they were customized or discarded to match the organisational requirements of Swan Sweet. The report evaluates the confines of the change intervention process, and finally proposes alternative change perspectives and strategies for the change intervention in Swan Sweet. 1. Rationale of Change Intervention Swan Sweet has evolved over the years since its foundation in the 1920’s and has under gone various modifications in their functioning process. Swan Sweet’s incessant up gradation in terms of quality is aligned to their objectives of customer satisfaction. Swan Sweet has implemented a distinctive blend of technology and service to offer sufficient products options. The  product service of Swan Sweet is designed in a mode that it enables the customers to specify  their exact requirements. Swan Sweets ensures that each and every product delivery made by them is unique and precisely as per the requirements of the client.  Customer service and customer satisfaction is the top priority of Swan Sweets. The company guarantees to deliver every product order on accurate time,  as per the agreed budget and of the best possible quality. Swan Sweet’s goal is to provide customer delight by means of the utmost levels of service and quality achievable (Swan Sweet 2011); this had served as the internal driver or the principle which had motivated Swan Sweet to employ incessant change in order to upgrade the level of the services provided by them. The management of Swan Sweet believes in contemporary marketing technologies and has also developed online shop for marketing their products. The management of Swan Sweet was certain that there was a demand for an online platform which would provide best quality sweet and other confectionary products for the business segment (Swan Sweet 2011). The success of their online delivery service has proven the existence of such a requirement amongst the public. In the initial years of the formation of Swan Sweet, the growth of Muslim populace in

Environmental Impacts On Pfizer Business Operation Commerce Essay

Environmental Impacts On Pfizer Business Operation Commerce Essay The operations management is involved in all types of organizations and it is considered as a core value of the organization. Business is a typical field where operations management fits in. However, several other fields require good understanding of operations management such as industry, Healthcare, education, and governmental sectors. The scientific background of these sectors is quite different from each other but the managers in these fields usually share same management qualification. The pharmaceutical companies always reflect the field of science and rarely been thought of their highly demand of operations management. Sales and researches are the main activities in pharmaceutical companies which require certain procedures to be carried out in a specific sequence. Despite its scientific background, pharmaceutical companies procedure would reflect the operations in this type of organization; thus, managing these operations are highly demanded to avoid errors. Pharmaceutical companies are one type that host scientific from several backgrounds. Despite its necessity for high sales achievement, pharmaceutical companies aim to keep their image as a trusted source of information and adding values to the health care culture. As a result, operations in Pharmaceutical companies require indeed a high level of operation management, and challenges that apply to organizations in the business field are applied here as well. Operations management consists of several aspects such strategy, process design, planning and control, supply chain management, and improvement which could be applied on the laboratory work. However, the current study will emphasis only on three aspects related to operations management, which are IT and decision making, performance measurements, and productivity, in the Pharmaceutical companies. Pharmaceutical companies now face a lot of challenges which need more agility to react properly with. Many of those problems are external and unpredicted as what is going to be discussed later. Literature review Information Technology (IT) and Decision Making The emergence of Information Technology (IT) as most efficient tool made the communication, monitoring operations and performance, and managing data easier than before. Sometimes it is used as a product delivery medium in software developing companies for example. As consequence, it becomes a powerful for tool that influences the decision makers for its accuracy and clarity. Numerous researches have been carried out that showed the significant influence of IT on the decision makers. This section will covered various aspects related to IT and decision making in different type of organizations. One obvious example of using IT is the internal communication within an organization. Anderson carried out hypothesis testing research to study the effect of enhanced telecommunication capability on performance while practicing improved strategic decision making and improved coordination of strategic actions. The study investigated the influence of internal communication by using computer networks (Intranet) and external communication through (Internet). The investigation was associated with two strategic decision making approaches (autonomous and participatory) alongside the strategic planning. In order to assess probable environmental contingencies, two different industrial settings that are characterized by low and high levels of dynamism and complexity were used to test the relationship. The use of intranet showed positive association with innovation in less dynamic and complex industries. Whereas internet use indicated positive association with profitability and innovation, but companies following participatory decision approach. On the other hand, the combination of intranet usage and autonomous decision approach was found positively associated with high profitability and sales growth in highly dynamic and complex industries. The combination of internet usage and participatory decision making was found positively associated with higher innovation. Finally, the study revealed that using both internet and participation are highly related to innovation in general. Also, use of Intranet and autonomy has a positive relation with the economic efficiency in dynamic and complex industries. The effect of IT in term of network speed was found to influence the decision making of medical personnel. Networking specialists execute an empirical investigation by constructing testbed to control the network impairment levels. A video obtained from a medical institution was used as well as physicians who evaluated the contribution of video quality to their diagnosis. Despite the utilization of one video and small number of physicians, investigators concluded that medical decision making capability are dependent on video frames instead of overall video quality. Internet . The study was able to show the significant effect of one small aspect of computer networking on the decision making of medical personnel. The effect of IT on strategic decisions in the industrial companies was studied. Executives from thirteen companies in The Netherlands and in Germany were interviewed. Information about decision process followed in thirty two recent decisions . Executives found to apply a rational approach while collecting and using ample information. The structured decision-making process undergoes number of distinct phases before decision is made. The necessary information gathered by IT increases confidence and reduces uncertainty. Authors stated clearly that circumstantial evidence was obtain about changes in the decision making process. The underlying causes of these changes were regarded to developments in new information acquisition and analysis methods, ex. Internet use became common practice. The study revealed that with more relevant information available, decision making process can be controlled efficiently in addition to facilitating rational decision making. The necessity of IT is not restricted to industrial or business firms, the role of information delivery enhances decision-making capabilities of Indian farmers within Indian Tobacoo Companys, e-Choupal initiative . E-Choupal implemented information communication technology (ICT) to increase information deliver among farmers in different areas. On various agricultural practices across the agricultural supply chain, users of e-Choupal significantly show better decision-making aptitudes compared to non e-Choupal users. The study emphasizes the importance of designing information communication technology (ICT) which enables information systems to suit different socio-demographic groups. It is obvious that implementing up-to-date applications in business firm become a priority in highly competitive market. Business environment remain changing every while and required modifiable and scalable IT application to adapt itself instantly when it is required. Often, a dramatic change in market environment requires essential system upgrade. However, decision for investing in system upgrade sometimes remains tough task for managers in term of cost and time to upgrade. Mukherji et.al. clarifies a decision support model able to determine the optimal time and choice of upgrades. Their analysis confirmed that feasible continuous upgrading is not always optimal strategy when the cost is significant. They suggest that necessary upgrade has to take place after measuring the gap between current technology and new technology. As the gap increases and reaches a critical threshold, system upgrade become essential and company priority. Performance Measurements In its general meaning, performance measurement is action of measuring and evaluating particular process of the entire operations performance. Therefore, organizations performance is most important concern for stockholders and company owners. This activity is a helpful tool to know how effective the current operations are as well as how much the organization meets the market demands. Performance measurements vary according to the organization field. Some measurements are very critical at particular organizations and useless in others. A literature review was performed on supply chain performance measurement recommended the adaptation of partnership development, collaboration, agility, flexibility, information productivity and business excellence metrics in performance measurement system. The study indicated further research is required as the environment of this business is changing . Along the same way, most of performance measurement systems practiced is proposed to improve the productivity only. As a result, managers utilize insufficient measures to increase performance, which in turn does not reflect the reason of using this tool. Developing a performance measurement remains challenge. The desired performance measurement system needs to serve both purposes, improved performance and accountability . The human factor was found to play a significant role in improving performance. In practice, performance measurements serve the higher level managers who monitor the overall organization and therefore draw the suitable strategy. Involving managers on the operation level showed a significant impact on performance. It is the consequent enhancing the employees beliefs in performance measurements system and the commitment of operation managers to performance improvement . Authors adopted a developmental approach for performance measurement based on five principles. Among these, building on employees professionalism, transparency and employee ownership, and outside facilitators were more toward employees and leadership rather than measurements themselves. (I advise to remove the below part as Pfizer RD is only in USA Europe and not relevant to the focus case of Pfizer Gulf States) Performance Measurements vs. RD In the field of research and development (RD), defining performance measurement system is very critical and was found to be challenging mission. It is still uncommon among RD organizations. Avoiding the under or over estimating performance is more important issue when it reaches decision making level and motivates people in RD companies. Designing effective performance measurement system properly found hard to achieve and was regarded to the lack of intensive studies in actual context, such as pharmaceutical research field in a biotech company . In healthcare organization, selecting an appropriate performance measurement system is still unresolved issue. One study suggested that performance measurement system has to be sensitive to both changes in the external and internal environment of such organization . Authors proposed a framework that measures performance from both multi and interrelated perspective, specifically effectiveness, flexibility, and efficiency. An early effort seeking a proper definition for performance measurement system for RD activities took place but it was very difficult. The most likely reason is the uncontrollable factors which influence the measurement elements used and hence delay the assessment. These studies was focused mainly on performance measurement such as dimensions of performance to be controlled and the metric measurement of such performance . The drawback of these studies is the ignorance of managerial and organizational meaning of each measure. Taking them into consideration would allow an appropriate use of each measure. This approach will lead to better RD performance analysis with respect to the organizations strategy. Later, Kerssens-van Drongelen and Bilderbeek applied the same idea using Balance Scorecard (BSC) to RD, a performance measurement method that link all four measurements to each other and was suggested by Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton . In general, numerous attempts was found in the literature suggest that efficient performance measurements depend desperately on the type organization and should take its internal and external environment into account. Performance Productivity Measures In principle, productivity is a measurement that used to evaluate the performance. It is necessary to implement various processes in performance measurement but it is more important to include at least one process that has a significant influence on the productivity. They are quite linked to each other and derive confusion often. Performance measurement is highly demanded when goals achievement is under assessment in the top managerial level. It illustrates how efficient the resources are used so it has high impact on the company overall. Productivity Measuring productivity is a challenge and is a result of many factors contributing separately or together. A ratio of output to input is a basic measurement company performance. Thus, variety of ratios can be defined based on the measurements type such as physical or financial terms as well as type of resources implemented in performance assessment . A ratio of current output to current inputs will yield the production technical efficiency. A ratio of current outputs to the maximum possible outputs for a given set of inputs will yield the production cost efficiency. A ratio of current inputs to the minimum possible inputs for a given output level will yield the production capacity utilization efficiency. Therefore, the relationships of productivity propose that productivity ratios are interlinked with various internal processes. It is influenced by the mixture of input factors. Input resource is a combination of capital, labor, etc. and every type of resource has its own effect on productivity to a certain level. Likewise, non-production labor (e.g., product designer, engineers, administrators, and quality inspectors) was found to have a value in manufacturing plants productivity. However, a comparison of the effect of non-production labor with other input resources was not investigated deeply. As a result, lacking the understanding of individual input resources affect might lead to mismanage resource investment hinder the growth of productivity afterward. In this manner, a study was conducted to examine relative elasticity of three input resources on factory productivity (production workers, non-production workers, and capital equipment) away from comparing relative productivity levels . 508 samples from 16 countries were used in the study. Authors developed three hypotheses: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Non-production workers or capital equipment, have higher elasticity than production workers in most countries studied. This finding suggests factories studied are more automated and require non-production workers to support output. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ In developed countries, concentrating the investment on capital equipment showed a significant impact on output, which means that improved productivity is a consequence of improved capital investment. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Some countries have higher levels of non-production employee elasticity than other countries. How do you measure the productivity or evaluate the total performance in an organization of professional functions such as purchasing, accounting, personnel, and data processing? Operations Challenges Pfizer Inc. Pfizer was founded by Cousins Charles Pfizer and Charles Erhart in 1849. Since that time, it has remained dedicated to the discovery and development of disease treatment and healthcare improvement. The company focuses on meeting the worlds diverse health needs and continually evolves to keep pace with the needs and expectations of its stakeholders and society as a whole. The production of Penicillin, Pfizer Helpful Answers, and Medicine Safety website are strong evidence of Pfizers flexibility. Pfizers Executive Leadership Team is the companys senior-most leadership and decision-making body. It brings together top leaders to focus on major financial, strategic and operational decisions. A series of decisions has been made by this team which provides extra evidence of Pfizers high flexibility management. One example is the establishment of two distinct research bodies, Pharma Therapeutics Research Development Group and BioTherapeutics Research Development Group. The decision was made to maximize new opportunities in biomedical research, and bring more innovative medicines to more patients more quickly. Pharma Therapeutics Research Development focuses on the discovery of small molecules and related modalities where BioTherapeutics Research Development Group focuses on large-molecule research such as vaccines. Pfizer has also developed an enhanced commercial operating structure and has nine diverse health care businesses: Primary Care, Specialty Care, Oncology, Emerging Markets, Established Products, Consumer Healthcare, Nutrition, Animal Health and Capsugel. Each of these businesses is managed by an executive who has strong accountability through the entire processes that start at product development level to proof of concept followed by providing access to patients all the way to the end of product life cycle. The businesses are supported by resources to pursue attractive growth opportunities and to deliver benefits to everyone require certain medications around the world. The strategy was made to enable rapid investment on opportunities which would develop the business in turn. The strategy was focused on supporting new successful medicines, increasing partnerships with key customers, entering co-promotion and licensing agreements, investing in new technologies, and acquiring new products and services from outside the company. Environmental Challenges Pfizers Evolution Product uniqueness was the cornerstone of pharmaceutical product success but the whole environment has been changed. The high competition and patency expiration were the most underlying causes the recent dramatic changes in pharmaceutical market. For example, Lipitor Norvasc, the widely used medicines for cholesterol hypertension, is not restricted within Pfizer anymore. These changes placed a huge force on Pfizer to move from a Product Focused company to a Customer Focused company. This mind shift was clearly reflected on the strategies as well as plans operation, which will be discussed shortly in the following context: Information technology its effects on operation decisions Performance measurements which satisfy all stakeholders Performance productivity measures its framework Pfizers Operations and Current Challenges Information Technology and Decision Making It is very crucial for Operations Managers to have clear, consistent reliable data to be able to make right and precise decisions. The role of IT is to make these data manageable and usable rapidly and accurately. Accordingly, decisions are usually about budget setting, processes, performance improvement, and revenue analysis within the company. Many examples would illustrate the importance of IT in Pfizer: 1. Business Technology Department: The information technology solutions unit. 2. Weighting Matrix Project: Customer targeting -segmentation program. 3. e-SMART: Sales force comprehensive reporting system. 4. Gulf States Portal: A Portal where all the different aspects of the commercial activities (Sales, Marketing logistics) executed are analyzed together to measure our ROI. Performance Measurements: A set of performance measures was used by the company to monitor the daily and the short term and long term performance. It ensures how close the company operations are to the right track in terms of achieving the strategic objectives resources usage. These measurements consider all the stakeholders. Performance measurements are dubbed Key performance Indicators or KPIs. The KPIs is helpful signs for an operations manager in Pfizer Gulf States to judge the operation and pinpoint errors. Pfizers Performance Measures: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Financial achievements: Evaluate revenues and profits of short and medium term and monitor sales and overheads to ensuring they match the plans. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ On time commitments achievements: in terms of on time supply to the accounts and on time payments to the internal suppliers and on time payments of salaries and expenses of the employees à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Consistency of performance in the operations: Observing fluctuation in the performance. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Budget restricting processes: The company operates within the budget or not? à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Risk and change management: plan the company response to risks or changes à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Clear guidelines for the operations: clarity of the processes in each department i.e. criteria of hiring people and qualification of people recruited à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Discipline of the company employees: in terms of in and out timings, and their complying with the values and ethics of the company à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Optimization of the company design: Evaluate the company structure to estimate the future needs i.e. establishment of key account management department à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Data reliability: evaluate data reliability and accuracy The need for a performance measurements framework: Performance measurements are all interrelated and interlinked with each other, so they are all encompassed together for achieving the goals. Analysis of the Operation Challenges Information Technology in the Operations Decision Areas Business Technology Department Offering innovative IT solutions improved the performance of several processes and helped in achieving the overall Pfizer Gulf States objectives. Developing an automated dash board where all the data (sales, consumption stocks, and market data) are encompassed on regular basis to enable both operations manager and senior managers make the right decision forecast. It allows a rapid response to any risk or change before it virtually harms the performance. Weighting Matrix Project It has an essential role in stating the concept of (customer focused) company. The system filters the costumers to different layers by weighting them according to coverage area and value of investment. The system then suggest particular layer to be focused on. e-SMART Reporting system enables all the operations processes of the field force (sales teams) to be reported. The system delivers and analyzes both field force activities performance and feedback. It enables senior managers make their decisions about operations reforms or changes. Gulf Portals The latest innovation of the company is the Gulf Portals that evaluate the performance of the operation processes. Gulf Portals is deep analysis achieved by comparing directly the input of the company to the output. Gulf Portals receives all the information about the number of visits, and number of activities investment per account, Then it compare those data to the revenue of each account. For example, if a sales person has 2 accounts A B, and he spent 2000 visits equally for those account annually. Account A achieved 30% of the total budget, while Account B achieved 70%, so was that the optimal exploitation of the time effort? The answer is no, hence we need to reallocate visits between these 2 account, and the same is true regarding any other resource. So, its a matter of reallocating the company resources for a better outcome. Performance Measurement to Satisfy Various Stakeholder Groups According to Pfizer operations manager, KPIs has to be a real measurement for the job description of operations manager as it is summarized below: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Participating with senior managers in plans setup, forecast and budgets à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Aligning the resources of Enabling Functions (HR, Finance, Logistics and IT) with the opposite part (commercial parties) of the Core Functions(Sales, Marketing and medical) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Facilitating decision making related to employees, investments and strategies in all the departments à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Continuing improvement of the process à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Re-engineering the company design when needed to cope with changes and risks. Performance objectives or KPIs has to satisfy all stakeholders, internally and externally, for reasons shown below: Financial objectives are vital to satisfy the senior managers and external audits because every business will end up with the level of profits. Moreover, on time commitments is a common interest for all stakeholders such as employees, senior managements, internal suppliers and customers which become priority according to customer focused strategy. Senior managers concern is performance long term consistency and prepared for market dynamics. Reducing the operation cost will increase the net profit directly and will satisfy the senior management and the audits. Having clear guidelines to follow and to minimize errors may occur within the operations. Discipline of the employees is a good indicator the people compliance inside the company to the rules and strategies applied. Company design is a crucial issue for reacting with the changes. For instance, new regulations in the market, based on new policies and cost cutting, gave Pfizer an indication of the necessity to establish new department called (Key Account Management) to focus on the key accounts and to secure the business. Reliable data is the basis of any successful plan and determining the achievements also needed by stakeholders. The Need for a Performance Measurements Framework Productivity is part of performance measurements as it is the ultimate goal of the company. The direct link between each performance measurement and represented productivity measurement can be noticed. Financial achievements: improvement in achieving financial goals is an indication of productivity increment, the more Pfizer achieves goals with cost effective the more its productive On time commitments achievements: on time commitment allows more product consumption and prescriptions loss. It increases the demand and the sales consequently. More Commitment with suppliers will force them to be restricted to time frame which enables smooth steadiness supply to maintain Pfizers productivity. Along the same way, employees will becaome more motivated to achieve their target, which is a very important element for improving productivity. Consistency of performance in the operations: Consistency ensures high productivity level and avoids backlog. For example, satisfying the customers demands and expedite their shipments by increasing performance of some products would help increasing sales. Budget restricting processes: complying with budget is certainly a synonym for doing the best cheaply. So, restricting with budget leads to optimum use of the resources and ends up with increasing the profit. Risk and change management: It reflects the reliability and the agility of the company to react properly to any change or risk to keep the company productive and profitable constantly. That is, fast reaction to the exclusion of one product from Health Authority Formulary will help the company to return it to the Formulary after two weeks only to secure the business. Clear guidelines for the operations: Understanding operations guidelines is critical to do the job correctly within time frame to reach high level of professionalism. Along the same way, it minimizes errors and failure in the operations, reduces the cost, and raises performance and productivity. For instance, setting up a criterion for marketing approvals prevents time and investment loss. Discipline of the company employees: According to Pfizer ethics and laws, employees discipline minimizes errors and reduces loss. if a product manager put an off-label indication for a medicine in a campaign, the company will be entitled to millions of dollars as a penalty. Also ensuring that employees effort will be reflected on the productivity. Optimization of the company design: A proper design maximizes the use of human resources. The recent restructure of business units in Pfizer to serve customer focused strategy showed better performance and productivity. Also creating new departments helped the company in maintaining business growth, such as the key account managers dept. which allowed the company to build relationships to the decision makers in the market. Data reliability: data can be used to show an adequate description of productivity and performance; however, it demands high level of accuracy and consistency to give the company a clear vision to current situation. Finally, we can say that performance measurements are closely related to the productivity so that to achieve the company goals. The need for clear framework that includes satisfaction of the internal and external stakeholders was achieved by Pfizers management (see figure 1). Figure 1. Performance Measurements used by Pfizer Conclusions Comparison of Case with Theory Information Technology and Decision Making Pfizer Gulf States has improved its business operations in the past two years through the utilization of tailored IT solutions to fit in pharmaceutical industry in the Gulf. Considering customer centricity, the operational decisions which was made to expose both resources and established projects to the right customer within precise program was successfully achieved. Managers utilized right applications that were fed with data about the market which interpreted significant information about the market demand and business opportunities. The holistic approach application analyzes sales, projects, and competition performance data to retrieve clear guidance for operations managers. The integration of this approach highlighted areas where alignment across different functions is required. Therefore, it ensures successful execution and customer satisfaction for service and value added programs Performance measurement to satisfy various stakeholder groups: The satisfaction of the various stakeholders has been always the prime objective of the executive team in any successful organisation, especially in pharmaceutical industry. Hence, the operations managers are always keen to have clear KPI to both internal team members and relevant stakeholders. These managers ensure successful execution of the different tactics corresponded to the relevant strategies to meet the companys objectives. At Pfizer Gulf States, as a part of the Pfizer Global company, various stakeholders within Pfizer Africa Middle East leadership team expect clear KPIs that ensure operational objectives along with the overall business objectives. These KPIs focus on measuring the level of employees engagement with clear metrics every year. Therefore, proper evaluation and continious improvement to employees performance. The Need for a Performance Measurement Framework In matrix structured organizations, ensuring alignment across all functions working together to create deliver the service or product is vital for business success. A framework of KPIs and productivity measures has proven to be with a synergic effect on business revenues in Pfizer Gulf States. Working on growth opportunities which was sought out from the market potential is linked with clear framework for the KPIs. This clarity enables operations manager to make adjustments and follow up easily. Recommendations With no doubt, IT showed positive impact in operations within Pfizer Gulf States. Nevertheless, it indicates the success of movement toward more innovative approaches in utilizing IT with more concentration on customer information. Basically, it analyzes costumers data for

Human Organ Shouldn’t Ligalize Essay

The sale of organs means that organs are removed from inside the body for the purpose of commercial transactions. Although the sales of human organs have been done since long ago, and there are many claims and proposal to make it legal, a lot of oppositions are against this idea. * Money the purpose Considering the poor status of most donors, one of the primary stated reasons for organ selling is to pay off debt. Those who are poorest are frequently seen as more reliable targets for transplant tourists because they are the most in need of money. It is said by the other side that legalizing the organ sale can help people who are in need to continue to survive. But at the same time, it also increases money desire for many poor people. For example, in 2007 a man in UK tried to sell his kidney online for 24,000 pounds in order to pay off his gambling. * Increase crimes and black market Legality of the organ sale would even encourage organ theft through murder and neglect sick individuals for a financial gain. There are many case like beautiful girls or handsome men trying to attract someone and flirting around with them until they agree to go with n end up waking without kidneys. Another example, Few families would turn down the opportunity to receive compensation (ensure financial stability or the dead is the main earner), so they may charge the hospital the same price, or they will turn to black market for higher price. Besides, there might be some criminal who break the promise to pay the donor higher amount for the organ than it was actually paid out or even escape without payment. * Imbalance between the rich and the poor Payment for organ is likely to take unfair advantage of the poor. Even if organ trade is legalized, it is still the third – world wealthy people who can afford the organ for transplantation. And the poor people are still vulnerable and unfortunate because they are the one who always make donation. Moreover, it is injustice to give pure organ to those rich people who usually spending lot of money on drinking, eating, party, and cause the disease by themselves. * Health: The  WHO  first declared organ trade illegal in 1987 *Affect to living donor Although some medical research proved that there are not many effects on the donors with their left organs. However, a question is asked that if it is not so important, why people are born with both organ, for example kidneys or livers. Kidneys or livers do not regenerate as the other human products like blood or sperm. WHO reports has shown that there is decrease in human well being, especially, those who make living on physical labor. 96% of donors regret selling their organs. *Affect to recipient It is risky to introduce trafficking diseased organ to recipients because those donors often comes from the poor population where they don’t live well and receive good health care. There is a possibility of 1:18 to acquire HIV from such transplant. The diseases don’t show up on the screen of the analysis probably because they just start within three weeks before the donor’s death. One more thing is the change of recipients’ body rejecting of organ result from different blood type or genetic make-up. * Ethical concern *Violate human right The state often denies individuals the right to do certain things with their bodies because they may not make good decision for themselves. Furthermore, any procedure which tends to commercialize human organs or to consider them as items of exchange or trade must be considered morally unacceptable, because to use the body as an object is to violate the dignity of the human person. World Health Organization said that the transplantation promotes health but transplantation tourism violates human right. Organs can be bought and sold arbitrarily. *Corruption There is corruption in healthcare system and government and it sometimes turn to organ trafficking. For instance, In India, a patient unaware that his kidney transplant procedure took place and was asked to pay after that. For example, in 2006 China made selling of executed prisoners’ organs and claimed that those prisoners had filed agreement and permission, but still the Chinese officials are suspected of these corrupted activities that the profit might go to them not the donors or their families. * Religion For the religious view, body and soul are one entity and very valuable that cannot be treated as property and make business. Traditionally, Muslim believes that oppose donation from human living and deceased donors because the human body is sacred thing from God so any part of the body must not be separated in life or death. Chinese customs call for people to be buried or cremated with the body complete orginally. One die-hard superstition has it that if an organ is taken from a body after death, the person in question will be reborn with a handicap in that organ in his or her next life. Nowadays, trade in human organs is illegal in all countries except Iran. Before, India and Philippine used to legalize this activity too but it turns out that they ban it later on, and it is clear enough why it couldn’t be practiced. There must be many complicated issues occurred. Solution The solutions have been put forward to both increase the amount of legally available organs and stop the flow of illegal organ trafficking around the world. One policy is â€Å"presumed consent†. (Successful in Brazil, US, several nations of Europe and increase the amount of organs available), patient can choose not to donate by submitting document. Worldwide, the trend has been move toward increased regulation of organ trading internationally.

Texts in Time: Heart of Darkness vs Blood Diamond

Leukocytes Salmon's situation he schemes to use him to get his hands on an extremely valuable diamond; the Diamond of Salmon's eye (his son Did) for the large conflict stone. During the first half of the movie Danny is inconsiderate and self-centered; however he is influenced by Salmon's love, Maydays passion and Benjamin philosophy and slowly transforms into thoughtful man who can see further than the simplistic principles of greed and wealth. 010 Troy Greater pappy, but at great cost to the African civilians. But now we know the truth and we're not so happy anymore. We should thank Kick for opening our eyes and questioning how far is too far? An obsession with wealth is the driving force for not only antagonists Captain Poison and Van De Kappa but for the star-of-the-show, Danny Archer, too. Danny was born in Rhodesia, the country we know today as Zanzibar and lost his parents when he was seven. His mother was violated before murdered along with his father and Danny was adopted int o he army.After serving his country and being robbed of his family and childhood he felt he deserved to be wealthy and became involved in the illicit diamond trade. As he never had the opportunity to value something other than money, wealth was his highest priority. Lear inning o f Of course, these particular stories are fictional, but they have been created to inform us that these horrific events happen, and have been taking place for over one hundred years. Kick as described his movie as ‘holding up a error to the world, to remind the world of itself, even if this image is unflattering. He has commented shifts in the paradigm only come about when people are willing to do this. Conrad and Kicks works comment on values like wealth, power and family and issues such as exploitation, discrimination and violence. In both stories something small like the desire for a sparkly ring can have a powerful and ongoing unintended effect. The film's negative situations and human suffering a re meant to outrage us so hat we will take action, thereby producing a positive outcome from the film.This is true for Conrad and Kicks creations, as a single book/ movie has sparked awareness of the horror and inspired people to reach out and make a change. Please Join us in our crusade for a brighter future. Feature Article Not So Crystal Clear The truth about diamonds and proof our values haven't changed in one hundred years. BY HOLLY SMITH Over time, our core values have remained relatively unchanged, even if attitudes towards them now differ.