Mass Media Brainwashing

People behave, think and act according to mental manipulation and programming. Industries, mass media, attorneys and the CIA bombards desires, anger, fear, guilt, repeatedly throughout the day.   Emotions manipulated by visual images, education, implied threats, high profile staged crimes, false implications of security, entertainment, television programming, radio programming, repeated suggestions by experts, music videos, songs, and advertising provokes people to act or make decisions seemingly on impulse. Mental programming begins before consumers are introduced to the product.Fifteen second commercials repeated over and over subliminally convince people their lives are incomplete without the product or service. Television programs persuade viewer’s opinions, emotions and mentality. Television sponsors remind the viewer his or her life is not wonderful without the product or services.   Targets eventually act on beliefs that a product or service is an advantage. â€Å" A large portion of the population makes a living simply by getting others to comply with their requests† (Rhoads, 97-04).Programmed individuals mindlessly following subtle suggestions or suddenly find themselves believing they cannot exist without particular services or products viewed over and over is brainwashing, not free will.Manipulation techniques involve social, compliance, propaganda, brainwashing; thought control or thought reforming and persuasion.   Social psychology influences beliefs, attitudes and behaviors. It is persuasion. Industries persuade people to purchase their products. Politicians persuade people to vote for their party. Social psychology does not have to be accurate or have any truth to it for it to be affective. It does not necessarily involve direct communication. In social psychology, the ones influencing individuals do so by controlling their own behavior, not the targets. Compliance technique is instant. The target mindlessly follows the comman ds. It does not change attitudes, beliefs or opinions. Consumers donate to a charity cause in shopping malls.Customers tip the clerks at Starbucks.   Propaganda is education. â€Å"Propaganda must be repetitious and simple† (Northstarzone.com).   Persuasion technique changes the lifestyle of an individual. This technique takes a while to be effective. It is highly effective. The results are harder to change and last longer. Persuasion is much more difficult. Successful persuasion changes the person unconsciously. The industry has an objective to improve everyone’s health. More commercials would advertise protein drinks, and multi-vitamins. Advertisements for cigarettes and junk food would decrease. After a couple of years watching active and people living fitness lifestyles running along side a beach everyday on television results in a stronger desire for healthier alternatives to cigarettes or sodas.A dark side of brain washing persuades the individual that having certain products or services are to his or her advantage. The product or service is always, without question, to the disadvantage of the target. Thought control, thought reforming or brainwashing destroys a persons identity and beliefs. This type of manipulation replaces an individual’s original beliefs and values that he or she strongly resist. An example of thought reforming is an attorney or prosecutor preparing for opposition in court convincing the person in question he or she needs psychiatric counseling. Professional and so called trustworthy people, persuades, manipulates and influence the person counseling is an advantage to him or her.When subtle suggestions and all the other social influences fail to work, implied threats, fear and unjustified demands are used. The manipulators, prosecutors or attorneys, are the ones with the disadvantage if their target refuses to go to counseling. Another example; the manipulator contacting every person the target becomes associ ated with. The target is not supposed to realize the people they are associated with is being controlled, either through reward or punishment. It starts off with reward; When the individual finds out, the promises are transformed into avoiding threats.Advertisers and marketers hardly, if ever use these tactics. It is highly illegal. It discredits the manipulator.   Politicians and educational and other government institutions use these strategies   Of course, when the plan does not turn out as expected, the government entity, police departments or politicians provide no legal protection. In fact, the politicians leave very little, if any, evidence of any association with the people being bribed.Social psychological manipulation deceptively implies that targets make choices by their own free will.   Nothing is further than the truth. Visual aspects of social manipulation involve something like decorating the business to satisfy the target audience. Choosing the right furniture, appropriate music, and dressing mannequins combined with premeditated advertising through commercials, television, movies and magazine ads that the individual chose to view are a combination of social psychological manipulation and over coming resistance.A store sporting hot pink bean bag chairs, oversize posters of Beyonce and the Pussy Cat Dolls, playing the latest hot music songs, even music video screens and a mannequin wearing the same green mini skirt and black halter top, that the stars wear on sitcoms, in latest magazines and in music videos break records sales with the outfit costing $350.00.   Consumers decision to purchase the over priced item started long before they were aware the outfit existed.   Does the consumer who spent $350.00 on the name brand outfit have more friends, more money, a better physique or more fun than the consumer who bought a comparable outfit from the clearance dollar bin at Wal-Marts? Advertising sold more than just an outfit. They sold fal se beliefs.In the comical scene, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCwKbUVyHLY, uses social and compliance techniques. The wife walks in, interrupting her husband while he is very involved in a sporting event on television. She wants to know if the outfit she just bought makes her look fat. The scene implies if the outfit makes her look fat, her husband does not love her. The woman in the clip is not fat, no matter what she wears. Her attitudes and beliefs, feeling loved by her husband, are affected according to what she is wearing. Her husband, whose money was used to purchase the outfit, mindlessly follows the commands in the second scene. The message from her husband; I love you because of the outfit you are wearing.In the very graphic trading cards, http://yorick.infinitejest.org:81/1/cards.html, compliance, brainwashing, thought control and thought reforming are strongly used here. This is a clear cut example of Bush’s and the Texas governments work. The trade cards are pho tos that create fear, horror, and would make someone cry. They shock people, not in a good way. The message implied is to stop the horrible incidences, vote for Bush. People are not supposed to analyze the facts. They are supposed to mindlessly follow the government’s commands.Seven years after the World Trade Center Attack, the media has yet to produce any solid evidence that any middle-eastern nation is our enemy. There is no evidence Bin Laden exists. Hurricane Katrina, exaggerated or not, made an easy opening for any enemy nation to attack America. That World Trade Center attack was an excuse to go to war, a way to hide money foolishly spent, and hide the fraud within the American government. In the very funny, but very true paintings;   the facts about brainwashing are vivid.In the Axis of Evil drawings, the implied messages from the White House, are spelled out in plain English. The paintings are visual effects showing how America’s behavior was manipulated wit hout realizing it. Bush administration used fear, surprises, and shock.   In another drawing, â€Å"New propaganda slogans are being overtly and subliminally implanted by Bush and his gang through their speeches and actions† (LiverGood). War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is strength are examples of how the human mind can be totally transformed.   At the beginning of Bush’s reign, anyone hearing these messages straightforward would have rejected it. People would have automatically said that was absurd. Over time, through a series of events, instilling such beliefs is possible.Education institutions, state and city organizations blindly accept bribes to psychologically manipulate individuals that Bush sets out to target. They may not realize the orders are coming from Bush. When people allegedly with high integrity and high morals are riding in wheel chairs to send someone a message, it does not matter if they realize where the suggestions they followed in the beginning are coming from.This type of psychological brainwashing involves individuals Bush wishes to target, not just the populations. When a government organization bribes a group, a student or an individual, that government organization is on the verge of losing all financial funding. Anyone taking suggestions from these organizations, no matter how attractive the promises, is very risky.Its leaders and attorneys are barely staying above criminal indictment. The patterns of behavior that students, professors and other government people are blindly following were repeated on that individual for years. The individual knows instantly. The people following the orders do not get what they were promised. The people blindly following the orders are no longer anticipating a gain. Their behavior is now avoiding a loss. People acting out of fear act and behave in ways that could have them committed. Bush is strongly applying this psychological technique.   Bush sees one thing. The pe ople he made promises too, are not coming through with what they told him they could do.Advertisers, government, and industries shape and form society’s actions through manipulation, repeated suggestions and numerous psychological methods. People refusing to educate themselves are easy targets. Timothy McVeigh, the Columbine high school kids and the majority of people in maximum security prisons are examples of high tech brainwashing. In perfect society’s, people make their own choices. In a real society, others status, wealth, and credibility depends on persuading and influencing people. People isolating themselves as much as possible, risk being profiled as anti-social.This is another form of powerful brainwashing. Brainwashing shows up in more forms than sales manipulation. Good natured citizens are serving time in prison because they wanted to do good, cooperate with authorities even under questionable circumstances. Those people in law enforcement are not going to stand by the individual who did everything they said to do. Leaving information, filling out questionnaires, and government organizations do not always use information for intended purposes. Manipulators continue to suggest services or products to reluctant targets. People refusing initial suggestions need to be aware that manipulators do not stop. Targets hearing the same suggestions repeated by different people must realize their behavior is being controlled.   The persistent suggestion of the product or service is a disadvantage for the target.Notes;LiverGood, Norman D, â€Å"Brain Washing America† http://www.hermes-press.com/brainwash1.htmRhoads, Kelton Ph.D, â€Å"How Many Influence Tactics are there.† Working Psychology.(1997-2004) : WWW.Workingpsychology.comâ€Å"Mass Media BrainWashing†http://www.geocities.com/northstarzone/NSTRPREZ.html (March 11, 2007)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCwKbUVyHLY, No other info given.http://yorick.infinitejest.org:81/1 /cards.html

Total Hospital Information System Hospital Selayng

1. 0 Hospital Information System (HIS) – Overview 1. 1 Definition Hospital Information System (HIS) is an integrated information system which spans through the organization crafted to manage clinical, administrative, financial and operational functions of a hospital. HIS strives to achieve the most effective support for patient care and administration through various different electronic data processing and analyzing tools (Ismail, et al. , 2010). HIS serves as a platform to provide the required information to each level of the management at the correct time, in the correct form, and in the correct place, contributing towards improved decision making. HIS plays a pivitol role in planning, initiating, organizing and controlling the operations of the subsystems of the hospital and thus equips an organization with synergy and integrity required for it to function. More importantly, HIS also enhances patient care and comfort by offering personalized suggestions for care and enables a hospital to move from retrospective to a concurrent review quality (Ismail, et al. 2010). 1. 2 Global Trend in Hospital Information System (HIS) In early 2009, the market value of Hospital Information Systems (HIS) market was $7. 8 billion worldwide and this figure has been predicted to leap to an alarming $18 billion by 2016. The boom is primarily driven by governments’ dynamic motives and hospitals continually trying to increase workflow effi ciency Hence, hospitals are confident that embracing HIS will result in increased efficiency and reduced medical errors, which later translates into uplifting the quality of care provided to patients (Global Data, 2010). Growing evidence has demonstrated that the current systems fail to deliver adequately safe, high standard, efficient and economical healthcare. This can be curbed through computerization, with electronic medical record (EMR) as the fundamental component. This has resulted in clinicians and healthcare organizations around the globe scrutinizing into adopting more EMR technologies in their respective hospitals. France, UK, US, Canada, Finland, Denmark, Australia, New Zealand and several other countries have proposed plans to construct a fully intergrated computer-based hospital infrastructures with the electronic medical record systems laying the cement work. In the Asia-Pacific region alone, umpteen successful HIS implementations have taken place in various hospitals such as in Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Malaysia (Global Data, 2010). 1. 3 The Malaysian Outlook The federal government had adopted a national-level strategy to create a paradigm shift in the nation’s healthcare system. The Federal Government aims to revamp the healthcare system so as to produce a county of healthy individuals and communities through the adoption of information technology (IT). Major projects which has been undertaken include Multimedia Super Corridor Telehealth Project and MSC Telehealth Blueprint (1997) (Malaysianmedicine, 2004). Dr. H. M. Goh, secretary of both Malaysian Health Informatics Association and Asia-Pacific Association for Medical Informatics mentioned that it is impossible to provide good, safe and efficient healthcare ignoring IT, thus the the cost of healthcare would rise. He also stated that without computerisation, we won’t be able to retrieve timely information. ( Malaysianmedicine, 2004). Following this, Malaysia has witnessed several significant developments in the health care sector. One such eminent development is the establishment of total hospital information systems in Selayang Hospital (Malaysianmedicine, 2004). 2. Overview of organization – Selayang Hospital 2. 1 Brief History Located along the Kepong Selayang road of Gombak District, Selayang Hospital is a 960-bedded hospital which has been in operation since 1996. Selayang Hospital (SH) is the pioneer in being the paperless and filmless hospital in Malaysia. Though classified as a government hospital, it has sophistication of a luxury private medical center with a leading-edge on technology. The need for this ultra-modern hospital came about as Hospital Kuala Lumpur (KLH) was already bursting to its limits with its overworked staffs. Organized and accurate documentation and archiving was impossible with mislaid or missing patients' records. This had resulted on KLH being entangled in legal matters. Increasing number of patients expressed their displeasure and quality of patient care was deteriorating. These circumstances surged MOH to come up with SH project with proper incorporation of HIS (Yook, 1999) 2. 2 Clinical services at Selayang Hospital Among the services offered at Selayang Hospital are Gastroenterology, Hepatobiliary, Cardiology, Nephrology, Urology, Hand and Micro and Surgery. All the rest are categorised under secondary services, outpatient services and supportive services. The core business of Selayang hospital is providing a exclusive tertiary referral services to patients across Malaysia and a broader range of clinical services to customers who rely on Selayang Hospital as their regional or local hospitals. High quality specialist services in a large number of other fields is also a highlighted aspect of this hospital (Yook, 1999). 2. 3 Vision The Selayang Hospital project was designed by the Ministry of Health (MOH) in accordance with the Malaysia’s Vision of 2020, where the country would become a developed the country's Vision for Health was formulated proposed a national health policy. Besides, it was particularly mentioned in the Seventh Malaysian that there will thirty three paperless public hospitals launched in Malaysia. More specifically, eight of these hospitals will be using Total Hospital Information System (T. H. I. S), Selayang Hospital being one of them (Yook, 1999). 2. 4 Mission The mission of Selayang Hospital is to be a role model for Malaysian hospital, in using innovative, dynamic and cost effective technology and delivering a friendly, caring, compassionate and humanistic service. This wiIl be achieved through teamwork in partnership with the community to provide quality care to the satisfaction of our customers (Yook, 1999). 2. 5 Organizational Structure Patients at Selayang Hospital are of top priority so the structure is designed to maximize patients/customers' satisfaction with emphasis on staff efficiency. The Board of Directors (BOD) with the assistance of Total Hospital Information System and a Medical Advisory Board committee oversees the hospital overall operation. There are five distinct divisions in the hospital administration. The total medical and non-medical staffs amounts to 1090 people. The BOD is accountable to the State Health Directors (Image could not be retrieved) (Yook, 1999). 3. 0 Total Hospital Information System (THIS) in Selayang Hospital Selayang Hospital, the pioneer paperless and filmless hospital in Malaysia, uses Total Hospital Information System (THIS) for its fundamental operation. THIS combines aspects of clinical, administrative and financial management, enabling continual data flow between separate areas (Ismail, et al. , 2010). THIS would aid in meeting the objective of enhancing productivity, effectiveness, efficiency, quality and safety. THIS facilitates communication between care providers through sharing of information, enables automation of work processes, integration and interfacing with other components of HIS in addition to providing clinical decision support and maintaining a permanent record as a medico-legal requirement (Abdollah, 2011). For the incorporation and functionality of THIS, Selayang Hospital had opted to vendor solutions like Cerner for electronic medical record, Seimens for radiology department, Spacelabs for critical care unit, Oracle for materials management, finance and administration and Microsoft Office for internet and intranet usage (Li, 2010). Figure 1 depicts the system architecture as well as the technology partners that associate to Selayang Hospital (Abdollah, 2011). Figure 1 : Information Technology System Support and Technology Partners in Selayang Hospital (Abdollah, 2011). Figure 2 illustrates the structure of THIS in Hospital Selayang. Selayang Hospital incorporates clinical, administrative as well as financial processes as their total hospital information system within their hospital operations. There are various information system being deployed to cater specific needs and wants of patients and care providers as described in the following sections (Abdollah, 2011). Figure 2: Structure of Total Hospital Information System in Hospital Selayang (Abdollah, 2011) 3. 1 Types of Hospital Information System 3. 1. 1 Electronic Medical Record (EMR) Clinical Information System (CIS) is thought of as the system that mediates direct patient care. Within it, also lies the mechanical framework for capturing, storing and displaying the data generated by all clinical care activities. A defined portion of patient-specific collected from disparate sources by care-providers working in the various clinical services is put together as the Electronic Medical Record (EMR). EMR essentially provides for the recording of the following groups of data: a. profile of the patient b. information gathered regarding the patient’s illness, allergies and health status c. ctivities performed on the patient d. events that occurred (planned and unplanned) e. results or findings emanating from these activities and events (numeric, text or images) f. communications between care providers i. e. instructions, opinions, referrals and advice g. decisions and plans both immediate and long term (diagnosis, treatment plan) This consolidation is essential for the availabililty of future data for tracking puposes which in turn governs clinical management and patient data mining, in addition to report generating (Abdollah, 2011). EMR largely benefits government and health care providers. The need and requirement to document is both professional and legal as documentation enables care providers to communicate with each other thus facilitating continuity of patient care. Thus, in the form of the EMR, documentation satisfies the legal requirement of maintaining a record of events. It is accessible from multiple access points and units within the hospital and selective access outside the hospital. This largely reduces the time taken to retrieve medical records. Hence, the time taken to retrieve patient records are reduced. This would pave the way for increased productivity and quality of care. In the mean time, it would contribute towards better knowledge in clinical practices. Besides that, administrative benefits include easier report generation, better organization of clinical information, enhanced claiming and ordering processes, reduced billing timings which translates into providing better service to patients. Futhermore, THIS improved clinical decision making and disease management, patient education in addition to better documentation, increased time allocated per patient, and rejuvenated perception of care and quality of a healthcare institute. The incorporation of DSS into drug management, result generation and disease management are essential in good clinical practise. On the other hand, for researchers and policy makers can utilize EMR to device long term strategies for towards development country’s health care and proper allocation of resources (Haslina and Sharifah 2005). The workflow process such as the improvement of data inputting by avoiding duplications of data’s, reduction is transcriptions costs as well as improved communication is also benefited by Selayang Hospital due to the successful implementation of EMR (Erstad, 2003). Hence, in a nutshell, implementation of EMR such as improved decision making, disease management enhanced records and has made it possible to eliminate the use of papers for medical records. As a result, medical records become more trustworthy and easily comprehendable. Figure 3 : Electronic Medical record system . Source : http://level8systems. com/page. php? 3 3. 1. 2 Patient Management System (PMS) This system encompasses Patient Registration, Client-Resource Management and Charging, Billing and Payment system. For example, during patient registration, a identification number unique to that particular person is issued. This would act as the Medical Record (index) Number (MRN). It allows data regarding a single patient to be kept in a single record, shared between systems and used for subsequent visits and encounters without the need for repeated data acquisition and entry of static data. Staff job assignment is be part of the Client Resource Management System. It should enable all categories of staff to be allocated to work areas, rooms, wards, cubicles, beds, machines etc. according to dates and work shifts. Care providers need to sign in to confirm that they are available. The system should allow for constant updating of staff assignment. The Patient Tracking facility through PMS would also provide real-time status display and reports on attendances, location of patients, status of service provision and discharges Next, The Charging-Billing System would be able to calculate charges based on factors according to policies set by the hospital. It would be able to charge differently based on the service delivery such such outpatient service, emergency service and Inpatient service in addition to scrutinization by financial class. Figure 4 illustrates a typical Patient Management System software which stores and updates patient records. Hence, PMS enables patient’s records to be compiled and accessed in an organised manner. Besides that, subsequent processes like patient administration, clinical support tools and generating reports also is made easy. In addition, it also enables quicker diagnosis with proper relevant treatments available (Netripples, n. d. ). Figure 4: Typical Patient Management System. Source http://hpathy. com/software/hompath-classic8. asp 3. 1. Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS) Pictures Archiving & Communication System (PACS) is majorly used in medical imaging unit. X-ray, echocardiogram, ultrasound machines capture digital images of a patient’s clinical condition. These images are sent to appropriate destinations using this system. It can be imagined as a pipeline network which carries water, which in this case are the images. Every laboratory at Selayang Hos pital is equipped with a high-end resolution computer screen to view these images captured from the machines. This service is provided by Siemens in Selayang Hospital. With the help of PACS, images are viewed on screens rather than the conventional x-ray images which are as bulky as a spreadout newspaper. More importantly, PACS reduces the radiation exposure in both patients and care providers. This leads to a healthier working environment; better image distribution; timeless retrieving of data and images; image quality improvement as well as easier handling of images Dr. Zaharah (n. d. ). Thus it can be understood that PACS is not a stand alone system but a subsidiary support system of Radiology Information System (RIS) described in next section. 3. 1. 4 Radiology Information System (RIS) The Radiology Information System (RIS) is a system, which enables care providers who to capture, store and distribute images by interacting with the machines that produce these images and also the clinicians who request for the images. The Radiology Information System (RIS) is a system, consists of the following major functional areas: 01. Ordering of examination 02. Scheduling of appointments for examination 03. Creation of work lists 04. Tracking of examination and reporting status of cases 05. Image Tracking and Management 06. Clinical Result Reporting, 07. Storage and retrieval of reports To summarise, RIS which belongs to the radiology department, is a huge database which can be used to perform x-ray imaging, echocardiograms, computerized axial tomography (CAT) scans, positive emission tomography scans (PET) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) tests when necessary ( Dr Zaharah , n. . ). The RIS creates and schedules the patient order for an image study. The RIS allocates a unique accession number to the order, sends a message to the PACS and the imaging modality to maintain accuracy in patient demographic details (Figure 5). Figure 5: Integration of RIS and PACS in acquiring and processing of images Source:http://www. pukkaj. info/NewsArchive2007/SendingradiotherapyimagestoPACS/tabid/1111/language/en-GB/Default. aspx) In a fully functional THIS system, RIS must be a high degree of integration between with EMR, PACS and PACS. In this sense PACS is a sub-set of RIS. Radiology images are considered as part of each patient`s EMR. Images need to be treated just like other patient data. Images as data are managed by Picture Archiving and Communications System (PACS). RIS is also linked with scheduling system to schedule appointments for patients. Figure 6 shows the schematic representation of functions and relationship between RIS, PACS and EMR (Abdollah, 2011). Figure 6: Schematic representation of functions and relationships between RIS, PACS and EMR (Abdollah, 2011). 3. 1. Pharmacy Information System (PhIS) Pharmacy Information System (PhIS) operates in the pharmacy department for numerous activities which includes clinical screening, inventory management, prescription tracking etc. PhIS are elaborate computer systems that were structured to meet the needs and wants of a pharmacy division to function effectively and efficiently. Pharmacists will be able to overlook how medications are used in a hospital usi ng insights from this system (Biohealthmatics, 2010). Clinical screening is one of the most important usage of PhIS. Drug interactions, allergies and all plausible drug-related disorders can be monitored using the assistance of PhIS. When a prescription is issued, the system checks for all possible interactions between all the drugs prescribed together to a patient at one time or with any particular food, reported allergies to the drug, and even if the sufficient and appropriate dosage has been given based on the individual’s body mass index (BMI), age, and other physiological factors. Instant alerts and warning messages are displayed if adverse drug interaction is detected (Biohealthmatics, 2010). Inventory Management is a another major component of the PhIS. Pharmacists need to know the drugs available, usage pattern and balance of stock. This inventory can be separate from or be a part of the Procurement and Storage Information System of the hospital’s integrated Management Information System. Continuous inventory monitoring is an essential requirement of a pharmacy in order to ensure that drugs never goes out of stock. Besides, multiple dispensing locations and manual inventory keeping is not only tedious but can also lead to inaccuracy in inventory management (Biohealthmatics, 2010). In addition, prescription management for both in patients and outpatients is also a vital segment of PIS. For instance, when the issued prescription arrives to the pharmacy, the orders are checked and matched against available drugs in the pharmacy and then dispensed accordingly to respective patients. More interestingly, prescriptions that passes through the system that can track the physician prescribing the drug, date of prescription, to whom was it prescribed and when was it was dispensed. Automated label printing which bears directions on how medication should be followed is also possible (Biohealthmatics, 2010). Besides, patient drug profiling can also be achieved through PIS. These are patient profiles and holds particulars of their present and previous medications history, known allergies, family history and other parameters. These profiles are also during clinical screening. A physican who prescribes a particular drug to a patient would be able to instantly see the patient’s profile and decide on whether or not this drug is appropriate (Biohealthmatics, 2010). Figure 7 shows a typical pharmacy information system modal provided by Siemens. This includes relevant information such as patient name, name of the drug, route of administration, dosage and frequency of administration. PIS works hand-in-hand with EMR to detect contraindications due to drug allergy, streamlines workflow in addition to assisting billing and charging in administrative and financial system. Figure 7: Pharmacy information system modal by Siemens Source:http://www. medical. siemens. com/siemens/en_US/rg_marcom_FBAs/files/presskits/SiemensMAC. pg 3. 1. 6 Laboratory Information System (LIS) Laboratory Information System (LIS) manages all the laboratory faculties which includes clinical chemistry, parisitology, hematology, immunology and microbiology in terms of receiving orders, performing tests and producing results. It also provides modules for sending laboratory trials order to the appliances through its multiple instrument interfaces so that the results can then be anal ysed instantly and a reports can be generated. Patient management is an important aspect of LIS. Patient particulars such as the date of admission, consulting doctor, and respective reference number would be maintained by this system. Data pertaining to the patient’s samples including the consulting doctor, corresponding department, specimen type, method of collection and the technician-in-charge of the collection can also be monitored (Nationmaster Encylopedia, n. d. ). In summary, LIS is used for processing and storage of information generated by medical laboratories. EMR, PMS as well as order management system are customized in order to allow interferences between LIS which supports in-patient as well as out-patient services. Moreover, the system produces barcode sample labels which are therefore used for acknowledgment of test samples. In Selayang Hospital, there are around 150 barcodes readers that are being widely used daily (Abdollah, 2011). 4. 0 Impact of Total Information System (THIS) 4. 1 Benefits of Total Hospital Information System (THIS) Total Hospital Information System (THIS) is an enterprise-wide system which spans the organisaton, designed to enhance clinical outcomes, operational efficiency and to improve financial management for healthcare industry. THIS serves as a secured and dependable meticulously integrated system that allows hospital officials to record, store and selectively disseminate clinical and other patient related information to appropriate entities (Netripples, n. d. ). T. H. I. S. provides effective solutions to hospitals which plan on reducing the administrative burden and clinical transactions, in addition to providing compassionate services to their patients. On a typical day in Hospital Selayang, the inpatient admissions reach 150/day whereas outpatient visits would reach upto 1000/day amounting to 250GB of patient records. T. H. I. S has enabled effective management of such high flow of patients, data storage, processing and retrieval. Figure 8 illustrates the daily usage of T. H. I. S shows the heavy reliance and interdependance between Selayang Hospital and the information systems. Figure 8: Daily Utilization of T. H. I. S (Abdollah, 2011). With the presence of THIS, most of the patient care demands can be met because it computerizes the process of collecting, arranging, filing and retrieving patient information. Furthermore, world class patient care can be provided by the hospital when equipped with good decision support system from THIS. Additionally, T. H. I. S. benefits in various other methods such as comprehensive patient record keeping, much lesser paperwork, quicker information sharing means between various departments, more flexible organization, reliable and timely information and adequate inventory management. A user satisfaction survey conducted in 2003 among staffs of Selayang Hospital revealed that T. H. I. S was appreciated and well received among nurses and doctors followed by allied staffs and clerks as depicted in Figure 9. (Abdollah, 2011) Figure 9: User satisfaction survey 2003 (Abdollah, 2011). Productivity wise, Selayang Hospital has evidently shown higher productivity after the successful implementation of Total Hospital Information System (T. H. I. S. ). As Selayang Hospital had incorporated T. H. I. S. from the start of its operation, studies analysing the effectiveness of T. H. I. S. before and after implementation is not possible. However, a comparative study comparing T. H. I. S. n Selayang Hospital with a traditional government hospital, Hospital Klang is currently being carried out. Few early findings from this study shows implementation of T. H. I. S. has managed to reduced time taken for admission by 40%, patient stay by 10% and discharge processes by a remarkable 70%. Qualitative benefits of this system highlighted in this study include easy availability of data, bett er patient record management and improved workflow (Abdollah, 2011). The ability of Pharmacy Information System (PIS) to keep track of the entire drugs inventory within the hospital is commendable. The PIS head manager is also able to make orders when an alert is raised on a particular drug. This therefore ensures proper inventory management and that all drugs are always in stock. In addition to the privileges that pharmacies’ will get through the implementation of T. H. I. S, doctors of the hospitals are also able to reap off its benefits as well. For the clinicians, EMR and PMS aid in clinical management of patients. A medical officer no longer requires the doctor-in-charge to be physically present but still can receive consults from him/her utilizing EMR and PMS. All these systems has indeed helped Selayang Hospital to manage the hospital effectively with efficient decision making. Moreover, T. H. I. S. aids hospital administrators whereby it significantly improves operational control. Lastly, in addition to enhancing patient care, T. H. I. S also increases the profitability of the respective organization. In summary, there are a number of direct benefits of THIS in hospitals. The most important advantage of this system is the ability to meet patients’ demands in a timely manner owing to the automation involved in data collection. Other uses include great reduction in paperwork and more efficient patient particular collection and management. Considering the unwavering benefits from implementation of Total Hospital Information System, it will soon become a necessity in terms of hospital management. 4. 2 Ethical Concerns The number and the magnitude of challenges faced by healthcare organizations are unprecedented. Selayang hospital is no different. Increasing financial bruden, rising public an payer expectations and increasing number of consolidations have placed these hospitals under immense stress. Heavy usage of information systems have provided record-keeping which is otherwise impossible. However, this leads to rapid and easy access to medical records raising issues of privacy against expediency (Boyle, 2001). In Selayang Hospital, these issues are handled with utmost priority. Patients’ privacy and confidentiality is protected through several measures. Only authorised users are allowed to access these information. Authorised users who are found to be misusing their access would be tracked in audit trails and stringent disciplinary actions would be taken against them. Therefore, patients are assured of their personal data protection (Abdollah, 2011). 4. 3 Drawbacks and challenges of Total Hospital Information System (THIS) Like any other information system implementation, in T. H. I. S. , users’ resistance to change is one of the major concerns. This is largely related to individual acceptance of IT application particularly by doctors and nurses. Though this is now not an issue in Selayang Hospital, failures in HIS has been repeated reported over the years. Unrealistic goals, complex user-interface, lack of clarity on the functionality required and lack of sensitivity to the local systems were some of the key reasons contributing towards failure of THIS in many fledgling hospitals (Cassels, 1995). The developing countries face even deeper problems such as inadequate electricity supply, lack of proper infrastructure, unsustainable funding, and the inadequate educational levels of the hospital staffs who are likely to be the primary users of the system rather than doctors in these countries. Other concerns include slow response time, absence of easy login-procedures, and tedious data entry (Chandrasekhar and Ghosh, 2001). Selayang Hospital though comparatively better in IT receptiveness, initial reluctance was present. Even today, reluctance to change and accept an IT application especially the EMR system in a conventional society still persists. Appropriate strategies like IT training and incentives need to be deviced to make both patients and hospital officials more receptive towards these systems (Haslina and Sharifah 2005). 5. 0 Future Plans Following these victorious execution of T. H. I. S, Selayang Hospital is currently looking a step ahead into developing a entirely automated Pharmacy Information System (PIS) with Decision Support System (DSS). Besides, management is also emphasizing on improving reporting and data analysis, enhance clinical documentation module with decision support and introduce mobile computing function to facilitate better hospital management (Abdollah, 2011). 6. 0 Conclusion It is beyond doubt that T. H. I. S has been the backbone in assisting hospital administration to ensure Selayang Hospital runs smoothly. However, without the staunch commitment from top management, physicians and other users and adequate number of IT professionals, this success would have remained as a dream. Thus, information systems only when coupled with good recipience would prove beneficial. 7. 0 References Abdollah, 2011. Hospital Information System in Selayang. [Booklet] September 2011 ed. Selayang Hospital Information Technology Department. Biohealthmatics, 2010. Pharmacy Information System, [online] retrieved from http://www. biohealthmatics. com/technologies/his/pis. aspx [accessed on the 2nd October, 2011] Boyle, P. 2001. Organizations ethics and healthcare: principles, cases and practical solutions. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Cassels, A. ,1995. Health sector reform: key issues in less developed countries, Journal of International Development [online] retrieved from http://www. ncbi. nlm. nih. gov/pubmed/12290761/ [accessed on the 3rd October, 2011] Chandrasekhar, C. P. and Ghosh, J. , 2001. Information an d communication technologies and health in low income countries: the potential and the constraints, Bulletin of the World Health Organization, Vol. 79, No. 9, [online] retrieved from

Planning Assessment Essay

3.1 SUMMARISE KEY FACTORS TO CONSIDER WHEN PLANNING ASSESSMENT When planning assessment you need to gauge a clear idea of what level the candidate is at to see if they are ready to complete your planned assessment. There are many ways of achieving this knowledge. One method is observation in performance or another by taking an initial assessment test which have seven levels with the basic entry level 1 being the first. Once this knowledge has been gained, further knowledge is needed to suit their needs. What is their preferred learning style, is it part of a group or on a one to one basis. You will need to find out their strengths and weaknesses to get the most out of their abilities but also to work around and improve on different area that need to be worked on. When this has all been achieved the learners will need to be given information about the planned assessment. First of all they will need to have an understanding of what they are about to study, explaining what they need to do to meet the criteria set by OFQUAL – the governing body of the qualifications. They will need to understand what is expected of them when attending the course by giving them the code of conduct for them to follow. It is important that the health and safety procedures are explained to ensure their safety throughout their assessment. After this has been completed, the learners will be given the folder to look through and their assessment plan to see how they will complete it. 3.3 EXPLAIN HOW TO PLAN A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO ASSESSMENT By taking a holistic approach to assessment, it can provide the learner with a more in depth report on their progress by covering all the different methods – observations, session plans, witness testimonies, knowledge evidence and professional discussion across all the units in one go. This allows me to understand the different kind of approaches each individual learner feels comfortable with to achieve the highest possible grade. 3.5 EXPLAIN HOW TO MINIMIZE RISKS THROUGH THE PLANNING PROCESS It is the responsibility of the assessor to minimise the risks by making sure all of the health and safety procedures are covered such as risk assessment of the facilities. The assessor needs to gather information that is personal from the learner in order to adapt and provide special needs that they might have. Also the assessor will need to treat all learners equally, ensuring that equality and diversity issue are met. Once this information has been gained, the assessor can then produce an action plan for the learner which is both realistic and achievable so they are comfortable to achieve the best possible results. 4.1 EXPLAIN THE IMPORTANCE OF INVOLVING THE LEARNER AND OTHERS IN THE ASSESSMENT PROCESS Peer and Self Assessment is an effective way to get the learners involved and it gives a clear idea of what the learner is currently at and what action is needed to meet the standards and criteria. This can be done through feedback. Feedback is a vital part of the assessment process as it gives the assessor an idea of if the learner has met the criteria set and if they haven’t, what action is needed to achieve the criteria. If there is a disagreement with the assessments carried out then the learners can follow the organisational procedures that are set in place which include grievance procedures, systems for appeals and confidentiality procedures. 4.2 SUMMARISE TYPES OF INFORMATION THAT SHOULD BE MADE AVAILABLE TO LEARNERS AND OTHERS INVOLVED IN THE ASSESSMENT PROCESS The first thing that should be made available to the learners and those involved in the assessment process is what the reason is for assessment. The NVQ award is structured for a candidate to provide evidence through practical assignments and portfolio evidence that is gained throughout the  qualification. They will also need to know how long they have to complete the course which is up to the assessor. By giving them information on deadlines then it will ensure tasks are not left until the last minute which could affect the standards of the work. One other type of information that they will need to know is what the criteria is for them to achieve the grade. Each qualification has a minimum requirement needed to be met and once they learner knows this, they can work towards meeting it and gaining the qualification. 4.3 EXPLAIN HOW PEER AND SELF ASSESSMENT CAN BE USED EFFECTIVELY TO PROMOTE LEARNER INVOLVEMENT AND PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY IN THE ASSESSMENT OF LEARNING Peer and Self-Assessment can be used effectively within the learners when one of the group has difficulty within a task. Learners can interact with each other and help each other out which would be a lot less intimidating and in some situations embarrassing for shy and insecure learners than an assessor telling them they are right or wrong in front of the rest of the group. 6.3 SUMMARISE THE PROCEDURES TO FOLLOW WHEN THERE ARE DISPUTES CONCERNING ASSESSMENT IN OWN AREA OF PRACTICE If there are disputes concerning assessment in own area of practice then the procedures to follow are as follows: First of all the assessor has to be available to discuss the problem as it could be sorted out quickly and effectively through discussion. If the learner feels they want to take it further then they can take the steps to show their  disagreement which will be listed in their ‘Student Handbook’ given to them at the beginning of the course. This includes a formal written complaint to the assessor’s superior which they will then deal with in an efficient and non-discriminatory way, treating the claim with upmost confidentiality where they will decided whether to uphold or overturn the assessor’s original decision. 7.2 EXPLAIN HOW FEEDBACK AND QUESTIONING CONTRIBUTE TO THE ASSESSMENT PROCESS Feedback and Questioning can help learners improve on a specific task. Feedback provides correction and improvement on a piece of work. Not only can it correct or improve the work but it can be used as encouragement or motivation to a learner especially when they are doing well or think they are not doing well.

Business Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 6

Business - Assignment Example There is other ways/tool also listed. This is a serious threat to the privacy of an individual. It is also unethical for someone’s personal conversation or movements to be monitored. 3 The main issue/concern SWIPE is addressing is about the swiping of driver’s license and using the information obtained to purposes other than mentioned to the license holder. That is, there is greater data encrypted in the cards than one thinks. Many businesses such as bars swipe the cards for various purposes such as determining the age of the customer (bars). But the data obtained can also be used for other purposes such as marketing and illegal selling of data. Hence, there is an issue of privacy here which needs to be addresses. There must strict rules implemented in order to avoid misuse of this information. 4. As mentioned above there are definitely ethical and privacy issues involved. It is general understanding that the information is used only for the purpose intended. But once obtaining the data if it is used for a purpose other than mentioned to card holder, then it is unethical. Also all information available in the card is not necessary to fulfil the intended purpose and hence there is unwanted information that is made available which raises privacy issues. Personally I am not comfortable with such information being accessible to others until and unless it is absolutely necessary. 5. Texas has no data encoded on the cards which contrasts other states such as Louisiana, Arkansas, Tennessee, and Kentucky as they have a lot of data encoded and also intend to add more data to it. The data they currently encode includes Licence number, expiration date, sex, name, etc. This means that the privacy of the card holders is respected but it would be beneficial for legal entities such as polices to have some minimal data

Public Key Infrastructure Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Public Key Infrastructure - Case Study Example dly, there is the idea of encryption where encryption algorithms ensure that the communications are secure and that data remain private as it is sent from one computer to another. Finally, through digital signatures, PKI helps to provide non-repudiation. The concept of non-repudiation helps prove that a particular individual performed a certain operation at a certain time (El-Ashqar, 2012). Therefore PKI can be of great benefit to the organization by guaranteeing the quality, source & destination, the timing and privacy of information. The PKI could help in signing the company’s software by providing code signing certificates. This certification is done by the Certification Authority (CA) unit under the PKI which uses its private key to assign a certificate and signs it with the private key for that certificate authority (Zissis & Lekkas, 2013). The CA in this case refers to the company itself which will be involved in issuing and revoking of the digital signatures. In addition to the private key, the CA has its public key which is published. Therefore, the company may take advantage of this process and assign its software products digital certificates. The public key that is used in the authentication of the code signature can be traced back to the root Certification Authority (Zissis & Lekkas, 2013). Clients make use of the root certificate generated by the CA to verify that the signatures have originated from that certificate authority. This will help the user know that a given software product is from t he stated source or company. This will help show the user that the software is authentic and is from the trusted company. Companies have to choose whether to use an external certification authority (CA) or an in-house CA that is controlled by the organization. Each of these approaches has its own merits and drawbacks. First, when it comes to internal CAs, it is easy for the organization to manage since there is no need to consult another party. Internal CAs

The Women in the Gospel of Luke Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The Women in the Gospel of Luke - Essay Example The Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles are actually two halves of one work written by one author, separated in the New Testament for purpose of orderliness. The first half, the Gospel of Luke deals with the story of Jesus up to the resurrection, most probably based on the eye-witness accounts of Mark. The second half, the Act of the Apostles, provides a historical account of church history up to the time of the apostle Paul's journey to Jerusalem. 2 There are many themes to be found in the gospel of Luke. Among them is what is termed "The Gospel of Women" in which Luke shows the importance of women in the story of Jesus which is peculiar to this gospel. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the attitude of Jesus attributed in the Gospel of Luke towards women and whether this was a reflection of the change in attitude towards women as a result of the teachings of Jesus. Women during the time of Jesus lived extremely restricted lives, in accordance with Jewish law and custom. They were little better than slaves, having little or no freedom and were completely subject to the authority of their men folk, first their fathers and later on their husbands. They were prohibited from talking to strangers or to go out in public unless they were double-veiled. They were not allowed to learn Hebrew scripture nor where they allowed to testify in court trials. Their husbands could divorce them at will but this option was not allowed them. 3 In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus was portrayed as the savior of all men, not only Jews, as he illustrates in the parable of the Good Samaritan. He shows Jesus as openly accepting of gentiles, whom orthodox Jews considered unclean, praising even a Roman centurion for unflinching faith. Luke further shows Jesus befriending the poor, tax collectors, outcasts and sinners.4 In other words, Luke portrayed Jesus as a man who treated all equally, giving special emphasis to marginalized groups, which in Israel at the time women were particularly marginalized in their community. In more ways than one, Jesus advocated the overthrowing of numerous Jewish traditions and customs, and Luke exemplifies more than the other gospels the radical (at the time) idea that women were equal to men in the eyes of Jesus. The following section will discuss in detail the passages in the Gospel according to Luke which illustrates this attitude. Passages pertaining to women in the Gospel of Luke Hebrew laws forbid the teaching of women in worship, yet Luke (10:38-42) tells the tale of sisters Mary and Martha, whom welcomed Jesus into their house, and Mary sat at the feet of Jesus to hear his teachings. When Martha reprimanded Mary for neglecting her womanly duties, Jesus takes Mary's part and allows her to stay. 5 This is an unusual situation at that time, when Jesus not only allowed, but encouraged Mary to learn his teachings and thus become a disciple. Moreover, Mary's forthrightness in seeking to learn was not how Jewish women were taught to behave, knowing only enough of the Torah to find their place in the community. This explains Martha's distress at what Mary did, but Jesus rebuked her and praised Mary. However, Mary was not the only one to be

In the document I upload Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

In the document I upload - Essay Example It would have been long term as it has lead to an anticipated economic growth with up to 2% within duration of 2 years. Therefore, the government should fast track the adoption of laws to avert the expiration of this tax relief and this time make it even more lasting as the testing face of the laws have proved fruitful. To do this they need the support of the major opposition, the Republicans. This is because for many households’ tax rates under the Obama’s administration has been much lower and affordable as compared to the same in Bush administration. This is despite the fact that they were introduced simply as stimulus laws. The extension of such tax cut measures will ease life for the households and extend support to the ailing economy. Second assignment How to avert tax increases if averting tax cliffs will not work The owing automatic rise in the tax rates of the American households have the impact of negatively affecting the lives of the Americans in terms of the ir welfare socially, politically and at most economically. The Obama’s administration is majorly left with the option of allowing the payroll tax systems established 2 years ago to elapse in its efforts to solve the fiscal cliff. This is though likely to have a negative impact on the social security funds by the U.S. wage earner by lowering their share in the said funding system by a clear 2 percent increasing the taxation of the household by $ 1,000 a year for earners of $50,000 annually. This act should though be progressive so that the impact on the wage earner is uniformly felt. The more wealthy individuals should be taxed according to their earnings as the less income earners are taxed the other way round. The government through the support of the opposition republicans has to join hands to in their efforts to fuel the government role of protecting their citizens socially by way of creating a habitable social environment largely dependent on the security measures placed. The government must also put aside their political differences in its efforts to provide a secure political climate for the thrive of the economic activities engaged in by the citizens. Despite the lapse of the payroll tax system, the household composed of the tirelessly working Americans can still work to cover the anticipated loss of 2% if the government unites with the opposition to create a favorable economic climate supporting every bit of economic activity that the American engages in. Taxation is a government initiative that can only be regulated through the formulation of the favorable laws and fiscal tools to enable the functioning of the government. The government and the opposition in such times have to come together and formulate laws, which are not exploitative to the citizens. This will involve the government considering an opportunity costs between allowing the tax rate reverting to the original 6.2% from the regulated 4.2%, which would result into a raise of the gov ernment revenue by about $125 billion in 2013, and the economic welfare of the wage earners. The economic growth that is likely to result from this is quite negligible of a mere

Questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 18

Questions - Essay Example and team’s productivity because supervisors and workers together develop teams that are successful in total quality processes and continuous improvement. As every member is involved in process improvement each gets cash awards, paid from savings and revenue gains, hence collectively work together thus improving productivity and earning incentives (Wyman, 2011; GAO, 2000). Non-monitory incentive programs such as awards, recognition, shields, certificates etc., or assigning prestigious works, autonomy or training opportunities for performance exceeding expectations also increase productivity more than monetary incentives because they provide more motivation to perform better (GAO, 2000). According to Gordon (2004, p. eGovernance is â€Å"about the use of information and communications technology to improve the quality and efficiency of all phases of the life cycle of legislation†. Whereas Indian planning commission states that â€Å"e-Governance is in essence, the application of Information and communications technology to government functioning in order to create ‘Simple, Moral, Accountable, Responsive and Transparent’ (SMART) governance† (Planning Commission of India, 2003: Para 83). In simple terms it means that using information technology to improve the public administration’s organization, efficiency and effectiveness to satisfactorily serve the citizens (Zouridis and Thaens, 2003). eGovernment enables public administration to bring its transactions online and provide customers ease and convenience in transactions dealings with public administration with the use of information technology. However it has been established that it provides only shallow transactions whereas complicated transactions that require regulations and legislations are not provided online, thus reducing the effectiveness of eGovernance. Yet eGovernance at present has become an essential part of public administration and has improved the efficiency and quality of public

Language and ethnicity -Ethnic related speech mitigation and PDI Essay

Language and ethnicity -Ethnic related speech mitigation and PDI effect - Essay Example This paper will also examine the concept of Power Distance Index, and how it affects speech. In addition to this, this paper will explain the difference between high PDI and low PDI countries. This paper will further analyze the success rate based on the PDI of the community. The idea of speech code came about as a result of the coding principle by Basil Bernstein and the programmatic approach that Hymes adopted to communication. The combination of the two concepts saw to the development of the concept that speech code is. Basil Bernstein, a British psychologist, noted that different social classes or social differences can exist within one society. While these differences include language features, they also entail coding principles, which dictate communicative conduct. Coding principle, according to Bernstein, refers to the rule that governs what to say, and depending on the context, how to say it (Sadovnik, 2001). Method According to Bernstein’s theory on coding principle, speakers are directed to rely on shared context of communication, other than only the verbal communication. When this happens, the speaker can communicate more effectively since they are aware that in addition to their words, the signals, and non-verbal cues they use also dictate the meaning they send forth. The coding principles used vary according to the socioeconomic differences of the people involved. Even though, a community shares a similar language, different socioeconomic groups value different ways of communicating; in other words, the coding principle. In his theory, Bernstein claimed that the use, and value placed on the coding of language, is influenced by the socioeconomic conditions (Philipsen, 2007). Three coding principles are usually used in linguistics, and these are informativity, rigidity, and attenuation. Using these three principles, the same set of words may have different meanings to different groups of persons. The structure and interaction patterns that cha racterize a family influence the way the members in focus express themselves. The use of language, and the way it is coded is also sensitive to the social organization of the society, and the correlative differences in the family (Sharifian, 2007). Judith Orasanu and Ute Fischer carried out a study on â€Å"Cultural Diversity and Crew Communication.† This study carried out in 1999 involved dialogue between an aircraft officer, and his first officer. In their study, they established that nationality played an important role in influencing communication. This is evident when the modes of communication of different communities are put into consideration. Communication in Korean and Japanese communities is accentuated with symbols, facial expressions, and other gestures. These are aspects of receiver oriented speech. The main focus is on getting information across to the recipient of the information. In contrast to this, there is transmitter oriented speech. Here, the speaker aim s to get out his point without being overly concerned with whether or not the recipient gets the intended information. This is characteristic with Danish, or Swedish communication. The source of information basically uses communication aspects he feels will get his message out in the best way possible. Focus is on getting the message out, and not across. Performance Distance Index (PDI) A society that records a

Creative Writing with Photo Inspiration Essay Example for Free

Creative Writing with Photo Inspiration Essay

Objectives For An E Business Strategy

Objectives For An E Business Strategy Investigation, critical analysis and formulation of e-business strategy for Under Study who manufacture, maintain, service and support scientific machinery and accessories.   (Jump to) Task A To generate research and formulate an e-business strategy for the company by means of applying five analytical tools in strategic management. Task B Discuss the challenges of adoption of e-business and evaluate the critical success factors for e-business in relation to the company Task C Critically review the process analysis in relation to operations with a view to improving performance. Executive Summary (Synopsis) The aim of the project is to investigate the current state of the company with a view to investment. The intention is to identify and set objectives for an e-business strategy. The company under study has a workforce with over 150 years of experience in manufacturing, maintaining, service and support of scientific machinery and accessories. It is part of a larger group of five privately owned companies. The company aspires to expand its operations into new countries and produce innovative products with exceptional quality however it currently operates with dated and obsolete equipment with no long term business to business agreements, minimal profit margins and no e-business strategy. The report will review a process analysis of the company in relation to expanding its operations into a new country with a view to improving performance. The first part of this report applies five analytical tools in strategic management concluding with an evaluation of a proposed approach. The second part of this report details the challenges of e-business adoption ending with an evaluation of the critical success factors. The third part of this report is a critical review of the process analysis. Task A The objective of this task is to formulate a suitable E-business strategy for the company. Competition has always been central to the agenda of companies. Strategic planning has now become widely accepted as the important task of charting a long term direction for a company. Strategies offer a frame work for understanding position and the underlying forces of competition (M Porter). Reviewing Information Systems (IS) and Information Technology (IT) are used in business to add value and achieve objectives (McKay and Marshall, 2004). Identifying internal and external forces is essential to understanding and defining strategic goals and objectives. The rate of change in both internal and external environments of manufacturing firms is increasing, which necessitates that increased attention be paid to strategic planning and strategy formulation. The approach for this task will mirror that suggested by McKay and Marshal who recommended that internal and external analysis can create an e-v ision. An appropriate devised e-business strategy can then be proposed. McFarlans Strategic Grid In 1993 McFarlan and McKenney provided a strategic grid to examine the strategic role of information technology. The tool is useful in balance decision making. Analysing and understanding the companys information technology and information systems will be vital in terms of how the company does its business currently and how its business model or e-business strategy is formulated for the future. Factory: High operational impact, low strategic impact, this quadrant is about operational improvements that affect large portions of the firm, and are aimed at improving performance or decreasing cost. Turnaround: low operational impact, high strategic impact. This quadrant is about exploiting new technologies to provide strategic opportunities. Strategic: High operational impact, high strategic impact. IT organisations that have most projects in this quadrant understand that IT can both improve core operations of the firm while simultaneously generating strategic options. Application of Model. Figure 1.0 Illustrates the companys position in the McFlaranss strategic grid as strategic quadrant. The company has identified that information technology and information systems are an important part of their future. This has been identified by the companys desire for an e-business strategy. If the company utilised IS IT more then the business will perform more efficiently and potentially gain a competitive advantage. Future investment in IT IS is a necessity for the companys growth. It can not be ignored that the company is positioned close to the turnaround quadrant but on analysis the company has identified its needs for growth thus strategic planning is of higher importance. Pest Analysis When analyzing the macro-environment, it is important to identify the factors that might in turn affect a number of vital variables that are likely to influence the organizations supply and demand levels and its costs (Kotter and Schlesinger, 1991; Johnson and Scholes, 1993). The radical and ongoing changes occurring in society create an uncertain environment and have an impact on the function of the whole organization (Tsiakkiros, 2002). Kotler (1998) claims that the PEST analysis is a useful tool for understanding market growth or decline, and as such the position, potential and direction for a business. A PEST analysis is a business measurement tool. PEST is an acronym for Political, Economic, Social and Technological factors, which are used to assess the market for a business or organisational unit. The PEST analysis headings are a framework for reviewing a situation, and can also, like SWOT analysis, and PorterHYPERLINK http://www.businessballs.com/portersfiveforcesofcompetition.htmHYPERLINK http://www.businessballs.com/portersfiveforcesofcompetition.htms Five Forces model, be used to review a strategy or position, direction of a company, a marketing proposition or a proposal. As PEST factors are essentially external, completing a PEST analysis is helpful prior to completing a SWOT analysis, a SWOT analysis Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats is based broadly on half internal and half external factors. PEST ensures that companys performance is aligned positively with the powerful forces of change that are affecting business environment (Porter, 1985). PEST is useful when a company decides to enter its business operations into new markets and new countries. The use of PEST, in this case, helps to break free of unconscious assumptions, and help to effectively adapt to the realities of the new environment. The results can be used to take advantage of opportunities and to make contingency plans for threats when preparing business and strategic plans (Byars, 1991; Cooper, 2000). Application of Model (P)olitical Factors The company opening in new countries must consider political factors such as regulations and legalities; for example an e-business may not be eligible to trade or have premises in a new territory. Chinese regulations for example have limited Googles search engine, excluding Googles You Tube. In March 2010 China banned Googles search engine only to lift the ban a day after. The company must monitor the new Countrys policies or regulations to ensure the way it conducts business is politically acceptable and thus not limiting any future strategies or goals. Ensuring the selected country has a stable political environment will aid company stability. Many countries have restrictive polices which are designed to protect local manufactures from larger organisations. Such policies often hinder foreign companies from entering into these markets. The company should form a strategic alliance with a local company to circumvent any limitations in opening in a new country. (E)conomic Factors The industry is in growth, this is indicated by the company wishing to expand and develop an e-business strategy. Funding in new countrys can be affected by monetary and fiscal rates. Changing inflation rates and currency fluctuation can determine the profitability of the company. A depressed economy will generally be a luxury which results in a number of organisations going out of business, it can provide opportunities for some (Robinson and et al., 1978; Thompson, 2002). If the company is restricted by political issues this would be considered if an alliance was required to set up operations in a new country. A depressed economy could also give an advantage on labour due to high unemployment. Energy availability and cost will require analysing for suitability in the new country. This could affect the e-business strategy in a negative or positive way. (S)ocio Cultural Factors Recruitment in a new country will have to consider technology limitations due to education. Higher educational standards will raise the probability of technology advancement thus having a competitive edge. Consumers attitudes towards online transactions may negatively influence the e-business strategy however if the new country is emerging as an online leader due to political influences such as investing in IT then this could gain a competitive advantage. Cultural attitudes towards e-business across the globe may affect the company objectives. (T)echnological Factors Safer online transactions will aid online communication thus improving business to business communications and orders. Internet accessibility can determine whether the companys e-business strategy will work. Some locations may have limited services or none at all. This can also be a competitive advantage if the area is in development or an internet provider is expanding. Technology advances could potentially aid the company in being more efficient and lean. Becoming a lean world class business will aid the company in being financially competitive. Government investment in technology and research will aid growth. SWOT Analysis SWOT has an extensive history as a model of strategic and marketing analysis. It has featured in strategy books since 1972. SWOT analysis is a strategic planning method used to evaluate the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats in a project or in a business venture. It involves identifying the internal and external factors that are favourable and unfavourable to achieve that objective. The technique is credited to Albert Humphrey It advocates say that it can be used to gauge the degree of fit between the organisations strategies and its environment, and to suggest ways in which the organisation can profit from strengths and opportunities and shield itself against weaknesses and threats (Adams, 2005). The tool is relatively simple to use but its impact if used academically could be influential in a new business strategy. A weakness is that SWOT, having been conceived in simpler times means it does not cope very well with some of the subtler aspects of modern strategic theory, such as trade-offs (De Witt and Meyer, 1998). Strengths: characteristics of the business or team that give it an advantage over others in the industry. Weaknesses: are characteristics that place the firm at a disadvantage relative to others. Opportunities: external chances to make greater sales or profits in the environment. Threats: external elements in the environment that could cause difficulty for the business. Application of Tool The tool has been applied to the company to establish the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. (S)trengths 150 Years workforce experience. Good company name. High quality production and service. Constantly lowering costs to compete. Informative website Desire to grow the business into new territory. Competent workforce Strategic growth into new country / territory Supply directly to customer After sales service Privately owned International customer base Service and support is world wide (W)eaknesses Limited resources. Website is designed for marketing, no transactions. Limited investment. Bricks and mortar organisation no web transactions Skills shortage or little innovation. Weak marketing with no e-commerce or e- business strategy. Dated processing of supply chain management, lack of information technology and information systems. Profit margins are set to compete for business Still using some dated equipment (O)pportunities Competition is unwilling to take on less important projects. Mergers or strategic alliances in new country IS and IT improvements for competitive advantage enhancing a professional company image. Website sales developing market. International market LTA (long term agreements) with suppliers and customers. Educated general manager. Logistics / transportation. Diversification Up to date technology manufacturing. Potential to open new site. Development of new technology, processes and materials. Faster manufacturing with less power (competitive pricing) Environmental leader Unsaturated market IT director with 20 years experience in e-business (T)hreats Language barriers in potential new country Competitive rivalry in global market for larger contracts. Fluctuation in global monetary policy fiscal/interest rates could leave the company exposed (supply chain). Cheap labour abroad. Fierce competition from larger companies. Possibility of a competitor developing new technology. Porters Five Forces Model of Competition The Porters Five Forces model is a simple tool that supports strategic understanding where power lies in a business situation. It also helps to understand both the strength of a firms current competitive position, and the strength of a position a company is looking to move into. Despite the fact that the Five Force framework focuses on business concerns rather than public policy, it also emphasizes extended competition for value rather than just competition among existing rivals, and the simpleness of its application inspired numerous companies as well as business schools to adopt its use (Wheelen and Hunger, 1998). The original competitive forces model, as proposed by Porter, identified five forces which would impact on an organizations behaviour in a competitive market. These include the following: The rivalry between existing sellers in the market. The power exerted by the customers in the market. The impact of the suppliers on the sellers. The potential threat of new sellers entering the market. The threat of substitute products becoming available in the market. Understanding the nature of each of these forces gives organizations the necessary insights to enable them to formulate the appropriate strategies to be successful in their market (Thurlby, 1998). Application of Tool Rivalry Amongst Existing Firms Strong amount of rivalry within the companys chosen products/industry. Rivalry is evident by the presence of larger businesses in the same industry. Competitive pricing indicates fierce competition. Bargaining Power of Buyers Buyers can approach the company and the competition (larger companies) thus creating competition and fierce pricing strategies. Long term agreements are essential to long term stability. The company accepting minimal profit demonstrates the bargaining power of buyers. The company doesnt hold a niche product thus the cost of a buyer switching supply will be minimal. Bargaining Power of Suppliers Suppliers could strategically integrate forward for example assemble the product and sell direct to customer. The World Wide Web (www.) reduces the possibility of suppliers rates being overpriced and uncompetitive. The company can access the www to research suppliers and costs to ensure the right price is being paid thus forcing the supplier to have less bargaining power. If the cost of switching supplier is high e.g. switching from one component supplier to another though there is no evidence of this to the company, it shouldnt be overlooked. Threat of New Entrants The high set up costs and technology reduce the risk of new entrants. This is indicated by larger organisations as competition. The desire to develop the business into a new country indicates that competition is minimal. Competitors could retaliate when made aware of the company establishing itself in a new country. Threat of Substitute Products The threat of a substitute product is high. The company are manufacturing dated products. New technology could eliminate the need for the dated product thus ending the majority of the companys revenue. The threat of the customer not needing the dated part, designed out of the end product. There is no evidence to support the threat but choosing to ignore it could be costly. McKinsey 7S Model The McKinsey 7S model was developed in the late 1970s and named after a consulting company, McKinsey and Company, which has conducted applied research in business and industry (Pascale Athos, 1981; Peters Waterman, 1982). The 7-S model is a tool for managerial analysis and action that provides a structure with which to consider a company as a whole, so that the organisations problems may be diagnosed and a strategy may be developed and implemented. The 7-S diagram illustrates the multiplicity interconnectedness of elements that define an organisations ability to change. The Seven-Ss is a framework for analyzing organizations and their effectiveness. It looks at the seven key elements that make the organisations successful, or not: Strategy plan of action Structure dictates way the company operates and performs (Waterman, 1980) Systems user friendly as possible (Lynch, 2005) Style important in the performance of strategy (Martins and Terblanche 2003) Skill to maintain competitive edge in technology advancement Staff people make a business successful Shared values common goals working together to achieve them Application of Tool Strategy The company has a desire for growth by entering in to a new country and establishing an e-business strategy. Realisation of companys business strategy and the groups corporate goals requires substantial capital investment in the near future. Structure The structure of the company often dictates the way it operates and performs (waterman et al 1980). No formal alliances. Privately owned. Systems Customer satisfaction the website offers a feedback mechanism Local area network provides administration a range of functional applications. The wider area network enables access to email and the World Wide Web. The company utilises computer aided design (CAD) and has a new stock control system which will drive forward control and the desire for efficiency. Style The company prides itself on quality of products and services satisfying customers has a grate deal of focus. Over engineering a product to achieve superior quality may hinder effectiveness to compete in pricing. Utilising a competitive prising strategy to establish sales. Skill Over 150 years experience. Develops machinery from design to manufacturing with the use of computer aided design (CAD). Educated and enthusiastic general manager Appears to be a lack of creativity/innovation amongst the companys workforce. In house training offered to customers in all aspects of machinery and instrumentation demonstrates a high skill level. Staff New general manager has ethicised the need for a flexible work force and working environment. A new recruitment policy has been recognized as a driver for development. Shared values Service support contracts with emphasis on creating quality products and services. Good relationships with a number of organisations, sector manufacturers and developers. E- Business Strategy Objectives Strategy is designed to transform the firm from the present position to the new position described by objectives, subject to constraints of the capabilities or the potential (Ansoff, 1965). The author recommends the following objectives for the companys e-business strategy supported by the data provided from the analytical tools used; SWOT, Porters Five Forces, Mckinseys 7S, PEST and McFarlans Strategic Grid. To innovate new technology and efficiency through strategic investment, employee motivation and empowerment. Increase efficiency and effectiveness e-procurement Increase revenue from global markets Establish an long term agreement (LTA) E-Business Strategy Evaluation and Alignment with Business Objectives To remain competitive in todays global economy, the company must decide what methods, processes, and technologies will best optimize their operations. They have to weigh the company analysis and take action quickly in this ultra-competitive environment. Innovations and faster product development can also often create a barrier for potential new entrants (Porter, 2004) .The Companys dependence on obsolete products and lack of innovation has been analysed as a threat in Mckinseys 7S analysis and SWOT. The workforce has a wealth of over 150 years experience yet the business relays on obsolete components as its main revenue. It is essential to form strategic alliances with suitable organisations across the globe. Collaboration between the businesses will form the foundation for the development of new products. To aid the process of managing the change the author would recommend a well chosen project management technique or tool be applied especially in the planning stage. A suitable tool would be Critical Path Analysis which was originally created to benefit large defence projects. Two models, SWOT and Mckinseys 7S identified a lack of creativity/innovation amongst the companys workforce. It is important for the organisation to instil confidence among the employees about their future in the organisation and future career growth as an incentive for hard work (Purcell and Boxal, 2003) Emphasis is needed on hiring the best staff, providing them with rigorous training and mentoring support, and pushing personnel to their limits to achieve professional excellence. Creating professional excellence will gain competitive advantage over competitors. Empowered employees become more proactive with ideas and solutions. To overcome pockets of reluctance to change, the companys vision for change must provide an atmosphere of communication where concerns about transformation are not seen negatively but rather welcomed. Achieving empowerment and employee motivation requires continuous articulation and communication of reporting results and monitoring each individuals contribut ion and accountability to the overall companys objective. Leading others to think innovatively and promoting the continual discovery of new solutions and technologies is essential for the company to achieve its goal. Motivation is the art of getting people to do what you want them to do because they want to do it (Dwight Eisenhower) In order to maximise efficiencies across the supply chain the company needs to invest in information technology and information systems, the SWOT analysis has identified efficiency gains in e-procurement. IS and IT efficiencies will offer a competitive advantage also enhancing professionalism of the company and its overall image thus being more attractive to potential customers. Information systems and information technology are used in business to add value and achieve objectives (McKay and Marshall, 2004) The data from SWOT and PEST indicate the companys weakness of not utilising e-commerce thus missing an opportunity. The analysis demonstrates that the website is non transactional and therefore does not generate revenue from new or existing customers. To achieve an increase in revenue from global markets the company must form an e-commerce facility on its already established website. Search engine optimisation and key word density will ensure the company websites place on the World Wide Web. A recommendation would be for an external company to monitor the company website and scan competitors sites, frequently reporting results. Recruiting a specialist company would guarantee the site is in the top 10 results for the companys sector. Engaging in e-commerce will positively reduce risk of falling behind the competition. To address complexities of change, each component must be aligned, along with the enabling technology, (Statoils Data Quality Manager; Hesterbrink, 1999). Product suitab ility will need to be established during the planning stage. The company needs to be cable of adapting its business to thrive in this ever-changing world of e-business. In order to recoup costly investments in new production technologies the company needs to be assured that there will be income in the future to pay for the investment, as a way of reducing the risk in the investment decision. Establishing positive relationships and service are extremely important in winning business. It would be clear with an LTA (long term agreement) that customer is committed to the company. The technology advanced product would be key to a successful business to business (B2B) relationship. The company vision shows the company is committed to delivering to the customer a high quality product, on time and at a competitive price which in its self and with the SWOT analysis shows the need to invest. Securing long term agreements will create a competitive advantage. Task B The objective of this task is to discuss the challenges of adoption of e-business and evaluate the critical success factors (CFSs) for e-business in relation to the company. Critical success factors are the essential areas of activity that must be performed well if you are to achieve the objectives. The concept was developed by D. Ronald 1961 and refined by John F Rockart 1981. The company faces various challenges in implementing e-business. Critical success factors can typically be identified for each individual objective. Financial implications The initial test is financing the change process. The company has previously restricted investment due to the unavailability of resources and the absence of commercial awareness of innovation. Positive changes have been put into operation to overcome the obstacles such as employing an enthusiastic, educated general manager and a IT director with over 20 years experience. Initial costs of implementing e-business are: Preparation or project management and communicating the strategy Consultancy fees for Information systems and Information technology Recruitment is costly when advertising for specialists Equipment and software installation including maintenance / service costs Reorganisation of business to ensure world class lean principles are applied Human implications Implementing an e-business strategy will raise numerous issues within the workforce and business. Essential training will need time allocating. The company will have to capacity plan the impact on the business. Training the workforce to operate the new equipment / tools Creation of new procedures is time consuming Support, emotional and stress often employees dislike change If an alliance is formed will both sites be utilised potential redundancies A formal approach for managing change, beginning with the leadership team and then engaging key stakeholders and leaders should be developed early and adapted often as change moves through the organization the leaders themselves must embrace the new approaches first, both to challenge and to motivate the rest of the organisation. They must speak with one voice and model the desired behaviors. Data Protection Security is a prime concern for the successful adoption of e-business (Chaffey, 2007). Data utilized by the company requires safeguarding against: Fire Fraud or theft Failures in the system data recovery and backups on or off site Electronic espionage Customer information Strategic Alliances Firstly a suitable company needs to be identified for its qualities and business presence. The alliance company will need to compliment the company regards to vision and objectives. Organisational differences will need aligning for example one company may have a strong environmental stance when the other chooses to ignore the issues thus causing friction and possibly undermining already implemented procedures. Once the organisations have formed realignment or restructuring will need to be completed for example in lean world class manufacturing both sites would not require a human resource executive. The alliance formed must be mutually beneficial to both sides thus creating harmony between the two businesses. Long Term Agreements It would be clear with an LTA (long term agreement) that the customer is committed to the company. Developing innovative technology would be required to approach potential new and old customers with the objective of securing an LTA. The technology advanced product or products would be key to a successful business to business (B2B) relationship and long term agreement. The company vision and the acknowledgment of a required investment demonstrates the company is committed to delivering to the customer a technology advanced high quality product, on time and at a competitive price which in its self and with the SWOT analysis shows the need to invest. Securing long term agreements will create a competitive advantage and a secure future. Worldwide Business Worldwide trading is a competitive market with numerous challenges. E-business will encounter cultural variances which will need to be overcome if the implementation is to be fully successful. Operating in a worldwide market will create a fiercely competitive environment. The United Kingdom is known for technology development but not mass production. Technology development is suggested to be skills related. Mass production is suggested to be low cost labour operating with proven processes if a suitable product is developed then a consideration must be applied for outsourcing production to a low cost labour facility which will allow the company to compete in the worldwide market. Technology Small and medium sized businesses are often reluctant to develop into e-business due to resource. The company will have to commit to resourcing the e-business strategy. Implementation of the software will be challenging, adapting the workforce to an automated business process will be difficult. Employees are often reluctant to change. A transformational management style would be beneficial in impleme

Hospitality And Tourism Marketing Strategies

Hospitality And Tourism Marketing Strategies Tourism and hospitality industry has become one of the largest industries in modern and competitive business world. It is a common remedy for development and the world travel and tourism industry supported 234 million jobs (8.7% of total world employment) and contributed 10.3% of world gross domestic product in 2006 (Opening up Trade in Services :Key for Tourism Growth, 2008) . The tourism and hospitality industry has been as a helpful force for world peace; the benefits of mixing together different types of people and different cultures. The travel industry has contributed to the accomplishment of millennium development goals especially in the third world countries. Despite a huge expansion in the travel industry fuelled by opportunities created by the internet and emerging markets consistent profitability for many airlines and travel-related firms remains elusive due to terrorism, recession, the SARS virus, strikes, and the Icelandic ash cloud: the list piles up. Before people tr avel for survival or to better themselves but, now people travel for entertainment, business purpose and amusement. Airship or air-ways business have become easier, faster and cheaper to travel around the globe and the airline industry such as Ryan air plays an important role in the tourism sector. 1.1 Over view of Ryanair airline: Ryanair is an Irish low-cost, first and largest low fares airlines in Europe. From Ryanair case study analysis (february19, 2008) it is shown that Ryanair head office situated at Dublin Airport, Ireland, and has based in London Stansted Airport (the third-busiest airport in the United Kingdom). The late Dr. Tony Ryan and his family have established Ryanair in 1985 with just 25 staff. In July 1985 they had launched their first route from Waterford and London Gatwick which is operated by a 15-seat Bandeirante twin-turboprop according to About Us (1985) www.ryanair.com. To defy the oligopoly market between British Airways (BA) and Aer lingus in Dublin-London route, the newly stabilised Ryanair obtains permission from the regulatory authorities. According to Ryanair website,( About Us ,1986 www.ryanair.com), Comparing the price of the BA and Aer Lingus lowest return fare of  £209,Ryanair launched the first Dublin-London Luton flight in May 1986 for only  £99.So in response to stay in the market those rivals cut down their high fares. Inspite of having three conjugative years growth in aircraft, routes and competitive price, they face a massive loss of  £20m which made the company to follow the model of Southeast Airlines leads a change of its management and structure according to Ryanair website(About Us, History of Ryanair, 1990, www.ryanair.com) .For getting a competitive position in Airline industry, The Ryan family put in an additional  £20m in the company and change their management which is a copy of Southwest Airlines low fares model(A bout Us,1990 www.ryanair.com). Thus they are going to begin their innovative management which generally based on low cost with low fare and starting first low fare business in European airlines sector. Now Ryanair offers lowest fares but high frequency flights, moving in to a single aircraft fleet type. It reduces its Dublin-London Luton flight fares from  £99 to just  £59 return by cutting down free drinks and meals on board. The Easter weekend seat sale fares of  £59 return that launched in 1990 was overcoming customers or passengers demand. A vast of people wanted to get this demanding Easter weekend seat and It was such demanding that in Dawson street there was more than halfway traveller s line for three days to get that bargain (About Us, www.ryanair.com). After taking the Southwest airlines low fare model and establishing cost reduction in their strategy Ryanair is rapidly growing in airline market. Their revenue is increasing rapidly which is shown in their annual report. According to annual report of Ryanair (2003), Revenues have risen increasingly and in 2002 revenue was à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 624.1million.After one year it was increasingly from à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 624 (2002) to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬842.5 million (2003) and over the same time, net profits had increased from à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 150.4 million (35%) to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬239.4 million (59%). Thus Ryanair increasing their business rapidly and get the huge amount of profit. Now Rianair is distinctive from their competitor .Currently introducing a fantastic team which consist more than 8000 people and it operates a massive number of 51,100 flights per year which is more than 1400 flights per day (About Us, History of Ryanair, www.ryanair.com). By operating a fleet of 250 new aircraft which includes short to medium range, single aisle, narrow body jet airliner 737-800, Ryanair becomes the worlds best budget airline (www.ryanair.com). Providing more than 1100 low fare routes from 44 bases across 27 countries, Ryanair connects 160 destinations. According to Ryanair website (www.ryanair.com), Within next 02 years before taking account of planned disposals, Rainair want to introduce 64 new aircraft in their fleet and currently it carries 73.5 million passengers (approx) which is almost 15% {(73.5/63.5100}higher than the last year (63.5m). Safety is a most important priority for the management of Ryanair. Their commitment to deliver great safeties for their pa ssenger and this obligation begins with instructing or training of Ryanairs pilot, cabin crews and maintenance human resources and includes a policy of maintaining its aircraft in accordance with the highest European Airline Industry Standards. 2.0 Marketing Concept: Marketing is a process which helps to find out what consumers want, and then provide it for them. It is a system of business activities which is designed to plan, price, promote and distribute services to target markets, in order to achieve organization objectives. Baker (1992,p.20) pointed that marketing is concerned with the establishment of mutually satisfying exchange relationships in which the judgements as to what is satisfying depend upon the perception of the parties to the exchange. Basically, it involves creating the right product with right price and then putting it in the right place with the right promotion; everything is done for making customers or target market happy. Marketing is identifying the target market and satisfying customers now and in the future. In most organizations, an analytical function, strategic direction and facilitates are tactically set to attract customers. Marketing strategy is important for every business. An effective marketing strategy can help a business to get more profit and also getting high position in competitive business market. Marketing strategy can be the life or death of a business. Having a wrong strategy, business will go down. Beginning an effective strategy is the key of success for business. Marketing strategy is the way and compass of an organisation over the long turn. Effective marketing strategy can bring advantages for the organisation. For creating effective strategy company always organized and proper utilized companies resources within a tough and challenging environment, to assemble whatever market needs, to fulfil what customer wants and also fulfil whatever stake holder expect. Successful strategy always examine the present situation and then set up plan which help to deal with all operational aspects needed to realize the achievement of organisational goal as argued by Jain (2000). Its a plan of action that summarizes what will be done to reach the stated objective. Jain (2000) identified the significant characteristic of strategic marketing as putting emphasis on long-term implications and monitoring the business environment, taking into consideration the corporate culture, business resources and the corporate stakeholders and varying roles for different pro ducts or markets. Marketing Strategy deals with the proper selection of marketing opportunities to pursue, examining and analysing target market and creating a right marketing mix that will satisfy customers in the target market. It basically deals with four essential elements which include sale or promotion, product, place and pricing. 2.1 Marketing strategy of Ryanair: Marketing Strategy is the most important business element for an organisation. It helps an organisation to identify organisations target goal and explain how organisation will achieve the target goal within a stated time frame. Generally all organisations have strategies that would maintain or enhance their competitive benefit in the market, and Ryan Air is never an exemption. There are different types of marketing strategy which is followed by organization or company to create an effective strategy, such as guerrilla marketing and viral marketing. Guerrilla marketing and viral marketing both are followed by Ryanair. 2.2.1 Guerrilla marketing: Guerrilla marketing is a marketing process hit hard, hit fast, get in, and get out and also a tactic which help to focuses on low cost, and fast-to-market, promotions. Guerrilla marketing is a marketing process of alternative ways of pursuing straight goals and an established technique of achieving profits with least amount money. The main aim of guerrilla marketing is to create a unique, appealing and stimulating idea to create buzz (buzz is used in word of marketing), and subsequently go round viral. Tom Richard (2005) pointed that with guerrilla marketing business can be able to increase the amount of traffic which comes from their business without spending a huge amount of money. 2.2.1.1Guerrilla marketing of Ryanair: In Ryanair marketing strategy, they follow guerrilla marketing technique which is unquestionably winning in realistic applications, are still new, fresh and not as clearly explored academically as other marketing technique. Strategy of Ryanair based on cost reduction strategy, minimum standard of service, short haul flight, very low prices and no frills, point to point frequency, all these are designed to achieve their goal and having a competitive position within the airline market. Here I discuss some guerrilla marketing techniques of Ryanair. Cost reduction strategy of Ryanair: Low fares and no frills are the key elements of Ryanairs marketing strategy. Low fares are offered by Ryanair to get large amount of passenger traffic while maintaining a continuous focus on cost-containment and operating efficiencies. Strategy of Ryanair is based on cost leadership strategy, in this strategy management manage and do all value adding activities with the lowest manufacturer of product in business and attract customer with their lowest price. Cost reduction strategy helps them to gain competitive position in airline market. Lowest price help them to get many customers. Their assured aim is to divide into constituent parts of air travel and cut costs in every possible area which help them to offer lowest fare to their passenger than other competitor airlines. A particular part of passengers are targeted by Ryanair and they are just absorbed all their energy on that. Their target customers are the ones who are not capable to travel on a main or highest fare airline. Ryan air has established a relationship with consumers by using low cost product which helps them to sell additional higher-margin products and services that develop the consumers interface with the low-cost product or service. Ryanairs strategy, achieve competitive advantage through cost leadership and differentiation across broad and narrow target market so that superior profits could be generated by charging the market average price while holding costs down and this is consistent with Porters (1985) generic strategies. Being reliable: To deliver the best customer service performance is the strategy of Ryanair. According to the reports of Association of European Airlines (2004) Ryanair has achieved better punctuality than their competitor, less lost bags and smaller amount of cancellations than all of the rest of its peer grouping in Europe. Ryanair achieved all these good will because they are purposeful to carry out their services on powerfully or strongly and operating their services from secondary airports which are not congested. Monthly customer service statistics for September, 2010 was published by Ryanair, substantiate that they deliver Europes No 1 airline customer service to their passengers. For the duration of the month of September 2010, it shows that on time arriving flight of Ryanair is 85% of over 42000, fewer complaint which is 1 complaint per 2,000 passengers and less than 1 missing bag per 3,000 passengers was received. Ryanair are more concern about the safeties for passenger. According to Ryan airs annual report (2009), in their twenty years working history they have not had a single occurrence involving major injury to their passengers or flight crew. Point to point Flight frequency: Ryanair also provides frequent point to point flights on short haul routes and this route allow Ryanair to give frequent service. Ryan air use secondary or regional airports because this Secondary and regional airports are usually not as much of crowded than major airports which helps Ryanair to provide superior rates of on time departures, quicker turnaround times (the time an aircraft expend at a gate loading and Unloading passengers), less terminal delays, more competitive airport entrance and handling expenses according to Association of European Airlines report (2004). Point to point flying allow Ryan air to provide non-stop routes and keep away from the expenses of service for connecting passengers, baggage transfer and transit passenger assistance costs. Faster turnaround time is an important factor for Ryanair to exploit aircraft utilisation. Association of European Airlines published on time performance record of some airlines in their statistics reports and the airlines sta tistics (2004). According to their statistics, for the first six months of 2004 Ryanair arrived within 15 minutes of schedule time which was 92%, on the other hand its main competitors like Lufthansa AG (Lufthansa) 84%, Air France 84%, easy Jet Plc (easy Jet) 82%, British Airways 81% and Alitalia S.P.A. (Alitalia) 80%. Building achievement in the Ireland-U.K. market and increasing service to continental Europe, Ryanair intends to pursue a manageable growth preparation targeting precise markets. Targeting specific market will have opportunities for sustained growth by initiating supplementary routes from the U.K. or Ireland to other locations in continental Europe that are currently served by higher-cost, higher-fare carriers; increasing the frequency of service on its existing routes and this are believed by Ryanair. 2.2.2 Viral marketing of Ryanair: According to Allen.K (2008) viral marketing is a marketing technique that employed the concept of using the social networks of other people so that they can spread and expose their business product and services. Viral marketing strategy is a strategy that encourages individual to pass on a marketing message to others, creating an ever-expanding nexus of internet users spreading the world pointed by Hutchison. T, Macy. A et al (2009). This marketing strategy help organization or company to pass their information by using website, video clips, e-books, brand able software, images or text messages. It also can be word of mouth. Some viral marketing strategy is included here which is followed by Ryanair. Straight marketing technique: Ryanair has been using straight marketing techniques for recruitment and maintenance of customers to widen products and services. Travel agents are not used by Ryan air so that they do not pay agency commissions. Customers book online over the internet which helps the company to save agency fees. According to About Us, History of Ryanair (2000) www.ryanair.com, on January 2000 Ryanair started biggest booking website of Europe which is www.ryanair.com. This largest website helps them to reduce their cost and getting huge amount of booking. After launching the website weekly it was taking over 50,000 booking and this huge number of booking was established within three mounts. This website also allows passengers to get the lowest possible cost hotel rooms, car hire, lowest cost travel insurance as well as cheapest rail services (www.ryanair.com, About Us, History of Ryanair (2000). According to Ryanair website (About Us,2000, www.ryanair.com) the weather report in Skynews gets sponsored by Ryanair, The first airline sponsoring weather news by doing this they reach to millions and thousands of people watching television in their homes and people in hotels all over the European countries. The flexibility of getting Online tickets within the wide time span from 15 days up to 4 hours which is prior to the departure of their scheduled flight. Boarding pass too can be reprinted up to 4 hours before the scheduled flight according to online booking, ryanair.com 2009. Ryanair Magazine: For focusing customer and creating good relation with customer Ryanair publish their monthly magazine. In their monthly magazine, it is generally described directly to the interests and purchasing behaviour of Ryanairs exceptional audience and essentials include charming destination guides, travel tour ideas, property and real estate guides, select hotel reviews, seasonal recreation guides, technology updates and individuality profiles according to www.ryanair.com (advertise with us). Their magazine provide their passenger do not need to pay too much and provide them too get cheapest travel tour, cheapest hotel etc.Ryanair also involve to do some social activities. They are donated all money whatever they raise by selling their charity magazines. Their first charity calendar was published in 2008 which features their cabin crew and it raised à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬75,000 for childrens charity Angels Quest in Ireland (www.ryanair.com). 3.0 Public relation tactics: In every organisation public relation strategy is very important to the success of a business. It helps to communicate with customers all over the world. Public relation (PR) is a relation between company or organization and public which provide a service for the company by serving to provide the public and the media a better thoughtful of how the company works. It helps the company to attain its full potential and provide feedback to the company from the public. This usually takes the form of research regarding what areas the public is most happy and unhappy with. Within the tourism industry, public relation is not solely the work of PR department but also the entire employees. Public relations help an organization to develop its mission and vision and also meet customer or public needs and desires. Most times companies take some tactics to make relation with consumer which help to keep the customer coming back for more time. Ryanair also follow some tactics to create a better relationship with customers. Statistics from Association of European Airline (2004) shows Ryanair topped the list of customer satisfaction. In customer satisfaction figures Ryanair has got the pole position by providing best punctuality, the smallest number of lost bags and the least cancellations .Ryanairs head of communications, Peter (Holiday extras, Ryanair best for customer service,2007) said that the high fare airlines basically cannot contend with Ryanair either on price or on customer service satisfaction. Recently, Ryanair revealed that they have entered into agreements with a number of companies to present advertising space on the seatbacks and overhead baggage storage areas on their planes. 3.1 Relationship marketing of Ryanair: There have been many attempts to define relationship marketing. Berry (1983) pointed that Relationship marketing is attracting, maintaining and in multi service organisation-enhancing customer relationships which help to strengthen the relationship with customer and also transforming indifferent customers into loyal ones. Todays competitive market relationship marketing is important to get more customers. Successful relationship marketing helps business to get loyal customer which is important for business. Ryanair has created relationship marketing with public by providing better service quality such as best punctuality, the least lost bags and least cancelation, creating their own website which provide all information and resent news of Ryanair, publishing their monthly magazine, donating charity and sometime offering special offer. For giving special offer 1st November 2010 Ryanair announce that passengers can book their à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬6 seats for travel and booking their à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬6 seats, passenger can travel on more than 500 European destinations in December and January. If passengers want to get this offer they have to booked these seats until midnight (24:00hrs) Thursday (4th Nov) according to Ryanair news (1st November 2010).This offer announcing by Ryanair to make relationship with thei r customer. For making relationship with public Ryanair donated for charity by selling their calendar. From this calendar they got 100,000 euro and donated this money to Dublins Simon Community which is a charity works with homeless people in Dublin city(About Us,www.ryanair.com). 3.2 Customer loyalty tactics of Ryanair No business exits profitability without customers, which means customers are main element for a business and business would be more profitable when they are loyal. Loyal customer is king buy more, buy longer and tells more people. That customer who doesnt return or doesnt make partnership to the organisation or doesnt spread positive word of mouth has no value to an organisation. If any company or organisation wants to win the market place they must be customer-centered. Creating customer loyalty is important for every company and according to Reichheld (1996) greater customer loyalty brings about superior employee satisfaction and improves returns for shareholders. Richheld (1996) identified that customer loyalty, employee loyalty and investor loyalty are the key for the success of an organisation. That means loyalty is the key element to create relationship with public. Like every company Ryanair wants to encourage its repeat visit. Ryanair needs to drive repeat customer business which will give an extra little help to its loyal customer and at the same time boost its revenue. To maximise the number of repeat customer, Ryanair appointed the well recognised incremental revenue provider for online business-Webloyalty which is revealed from webloyalty news on march 2010 (www.webloyalty.com). Webloyalty has a vast experience in online businesses which work on driving repeat customer business by providing an option, named discount scheme to its online shopper. Customers who are booking online with Ryanair, they will have the option to join shopper discount and rewards. This offer provides passengers the option to join a 30-day free trial of Shoppen und Sparen. It also provide year-round discounts of up to 20 percent at over 400 top online retailers and EUR15 cash back check from Webloyalty for their next Ryanair purchase after joining the program. Martin Child, managing director of Europes Webloyalty (2010) said this model will help Ryanair to reward its repeat customers whilst providing a revenue stream and repeat business to their web pages with minimal effort required by them to implement the programme. Sinead Finn(2009), director of commercial revenue (Ryanair), insisted the passengers of Europes largest low fares airline Ryanair has already save billions each year with the lowest guaranteed fares, now in partnership with Webloyalty across three European markets, even more of our passengers can choose to join membership programs of Webloyalty and save more with ongoing discounts. For keeping to its customer, on Thursday 20 August Ryanair, low fares airlines, has announced details of an amazing flight good deal in Bangor as well as Belfast to commemorate A-level results day (Stakeholder media news August 2009). Europes largest low fares airline Ryanair announced that Ryanair Company will benevolent to give away free of charge flights to A-level students. They give these free amazing flight offers for those students who have gained admission test of those colleges and universities which are situated in their five destinations from George Best Belfast City Airport to East Midlands, Bristol, Liverpool, Glasgow Prestwick and London Stansted,. This amazing offer can get those first students who can come in Major Street Bangor and Belfast at 11.00 am to 14.00 pm next Thursday with their A-level results slip as well as letter of offer to the Ryanair Company. Only these students can win these free flight tickets towards university according to Stakeholder media news ( 2009). From Stakeholder media news (2009) ,Laura McCormack, management member of Ryanair said that University can be costly time for students and their parents, but the special offer of low fare airline, Ryanairs guaranteed means that guardian or parents of students as well as students can fly their house and vacation at the lowest fares. All things are done by them for keeping customer. 4.0 Effectiveness Marketing strategies and Public Relation Tactics of Ryanair: Developing and managing effective marketing strategies are important for company to achieve the broad goal and with effective marketing strategy company can beat with other competitor which helps them to get high position in business market. Effective marketing strategy helps company to satisfy their customer and get the target market. A successful marketing strategy must be tractable. Marketing tactics are essential to create an effective strategy. Marketing tactics are the day-to-day actions that marketers undertake and involve the main marketing decision areas. This tactics help to make relationship with customer. Public relation tactics is the first step for an effective strategy. This marketing strategy helps the company to stand in competitive market and to gain competitive position in the airline market. Effective marketing strategy and public relation tactics is a way which helps company to growing revenue, increasing profits and reducing costs. With providing cost reduction strategy, point to point frequency, punctuality and minimum customer service now Ryanair is getting the largest low fares airlines in Europe. Revenue of Ryanair and increasing number of passenger provide that the strategy and public relation tactics of ryanair is so effective. According to About us, full year result 2010 (www.ryanaor.com), on 1st June 2010 Europes largest low fare airline Ryanair announced their full year Profits, it shows that after tax they get à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬319m profit and last year it was à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬105m profit that means it is increasing 204% when most of the competitors of Ryanair such as Bluewings (Ger), Globespan (UK) have announced sufferers or losses because of global recession .It provide that how effective there low cost marketing strategy is! Today customers are so concern about price and Ryanair use these things to attract their customer. Ryanair knows how to make relationship with their customer, what is their customer wanted, what is their expectation. Todays customers are kings for business so that they are always trying to make relationship with their customer by providing on time service .For making relationship with their customer Ryanair launches largest booking website which is www.ryanair.com. According to Ryanair website (About us, 1995, www.ryanair.com)by their effective strategy Ryanair achieve vast quantity of passengers in their Dublin-London route and go beyond some major airlines like British Airways as well as Aer Lingus. In Europe, Dublin-London is the major intercontinental scheduled route than other routes and Irish Airline Ryanair has turn into largest passenger airlines on their all route that is operated by Ryanair to or from Dublin. That means lowest fares, on time and high frequency of Ryanair co ntinues to win success in every market which is operated between Ireland and the UK. Though Ryanair provide minimum services to their customer, their passenger number is increasing day by day because of their cost reduction strategy. According to Ryanair news (4th September 2010),September 2010 their passenger number is 6.84 million and last year it was 6.12 million, it means it is increasing more than 12%. Their biggest growing number of passengers provide that they are doing successful Airlines business in Europe. 5.0 Recommendation and conclusion: Every organization should try to satisfy their customer by providing product and services to achieve their goal. Customer satisfaction is the main intend of the marketing concept. Beyond any doubt, by their effective marketing strategies now Ryanair is the largest low cost airlines in Europe and achieve recognisable brand name. It can be said that their Low cost or no frills marketing strategies helps Ryanair to be able to gain huge amount of passengers. If the company cannot fulfil customer expectations then this company will go down. It can be recommended that their low cost marketing strategy is so effective. It can be said that their low cost strategy is a fundamental reason for them to get high profit. Making relationship with customer is most important to get long term business and customer loyalty is the most powerful for increasing companies advert, rising companys good will and getting more profit. But Ryanair provide minimum service, getting a position in competitive market they should think about that customer is valuable and it is recommended that they should think to increase customer loyalty.It can be said If Ryanair increase their public relatio n, they will get superior success and also can increase their business in competitive business world. Ryanair marketing strategy is based on cost leadership strategy that mean their main marketing concept is to cut their cost in every possible way and attract customer with their lowest fare. As their business is airlines business which depends with oil price, this oil price is increasing day by day. So, if they want to do their business, it is recommended that they should think about their price strategy and increase the price of their fare to stay in business. 6.0 References and Bibliography: 1. Opening up Trade in Services :Key for Tourism Growth(2008)[Online] Available at http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/38/11/40191324.pdf 2. Laura Lake,(2010)Content Marketing[online] Available:http://marketing.about.com/od/strategytutorials/a/contentmarketing.htm 3. Baker, M. J. (1992),strategic marketing management, New York; Wiley 4. Jain, S. (2000),Marketing Planining and Strategy,6th edition, Cincinnati: South-Western College Publishing 5. Dibb, S.; Simkin, L.; et al (2006)Marketing Concept and Strategies fifth edtion, New York: Houghton Mifflin 6. Brennan, R., Baines, P.et al a(2003)Contemporary Strategic Marketing New York; Palgrave Macmillan. 7. Marketing teacher.com Ryan Air case study[Online] Available: http://marketingteacher.com/case-study/ryanair-case-study.html 8.Strategy-Ryanair-Strategy Available: http://www.ryanair.com/doc/investor/Strategy.pdf 9.Thinking made easy(2008)Ryanair case study analysis [Online] Available http://ivythesis.typepad.com/term_paper_topics/2008/02/ryanair-case-st.htmle: 10. Casestudyinc.com (2010)case study on ryanair, the biggest low-cost European airline [Online]Available: http://www.casestudyinc.com/ryanair-low-fares-airline-case-study 11. Ryanair.com (2010) [Online] Available at http://www.ryanair.com/en/news/ryanair-no-1customer-service-stats-august-2010 12. Smith+co (2009) Ryanair-a branded customer experience?[Online