Marketing Management Case Analysis Metabical Coursework

Marketing Management Case Analysis Metabical - Coursework Example Prior to putting together the dynamics of the marketing plan, all the alternatives of positioning and setting up the USP of the brand will be discussed in detail and analyzed and the best alternative will be selected around which, the marketing plan will be created. The marketing plan would include the Marketing Objective, target market analysis and demand forecast, and the communication plan (the Marketing Mix: 4 P’s) will be set for Metabical. Keeping the external and internal factors in mind, a Contingency Plan will be set which will include all the possible hindrances and unforeseen events which the business could face. The end of the report will have control and procedures which will explain how the marketing activities will be monitored and measured. Situational Analysis Internal Analysis: Metabical has Food and Drug Administration’s approval as being an effective weight-loss drug amongst its competitors. It is claimed by the company’s Chief Marketing Offic er Bernard Long that Metabical is a new and improved version of all the other drugs for weight-loss in the market with dramatically reduced side effects. ... This way, the drug even controls the diet of the consumers. External Analysis: The market for drugs like Metabical is a lucrative one. Nearly 65% of the adult population of the United States is considered as overweight. Out of this 65%, the segments of those who are in between the BMI of 25 and 30 is a virgin market which is not targeted by any drug. Even in this market, there was only one drug called Alli which was approved as an Over-the-Counter (OTC) for weight-loss by the Food and Drug Administration. However, this drug was only a lighter version of a heavier drug called Xenical and also had strong side-effects. Because of these concerns, the drug industry went through perusal by the FDA and a dietary supplement ephedra was banned owing to reported cases of sudden cardiac arrests and other life threatening dangers of the side-effects caused by these drugs. Metabical on the other hand, is FDA approved and is also tested for its effects with the conclusion that Metabical has light side-effects as compared to its competitors. Besides the drugs in the market, there were also herbal dietary solutions available which needed no regulations. However, these were less effective and required strict diet control whereas, Metabical being a drug itself, could produce better results in 12 weeks time. With a green signal from the FDA, Metabical therefore is ready to enter the market and launch a fully fledged campaign for not only the consumers, but for businesses and doctors as well as it is a prescription drug. This channel available to market Metabical presents a strong opportunity to itself and an edge amongst the competitors which impose high risk side-effects. Research shows that the market of Metabical lies aound 12% of the total

Aims and Objectives to Ensure Learning Outcomes Article

Aims and Objectives to Ensure Learning Outcomes - Article Example Portfolio development emphasizes linking theory and practical experiences, stresses the significance of reflection and analysis on practice. As a mentor, the initial exercise would be to assist the student in practice to identify their current learning needs. While we attempt to understand and measure the student’s existing knowledge and learning curve, as a mentor we also need to be aware of the learning outcome to be able to exactly fulfil the backlogs or deficiencies in the student’s capacity to capture their learning. Knowing how exactly the learning outcome can be identified and validated, the student would ideally be encouraged to follow steps accordingly as these are proven and tested methods and not conducted at random. Bearing the context and purpose in mind, the gradual movement from theory to practice, considering relevant Guidelines for Professional/ Career Development in the subject field a framework is developed. The program and portfolio is a thought thro ugh process based on the current understanding and existence knowledge of the student, keeping in view the learning outcome, efforts that would be invested to ensure that all activities relevant to the learning outcome is diligently performed, assess what exactly is required to enable the professionals or students learn in relation to the pre-planned outcome. All the while as a student mentor, they would need to learn all aspects in relation to the expected outcome, chalk out a plan describing what the student mentor intends to do, in terms of setting some goals for achieving this particular outcome. It is also important to rely on appropriate resources that would be required to conclude this exercise.

Efficiency and Competitiveness by Information System of Marston Tools Assignment

Efficiency and Competitiveness by Information System of Marston Tools - Assignment Example The industry faces a high level of competitive rivalry. The threat of new entrants is high given the increased competition from manufacturers overseas. There is also competition from lower cost substitute products. Changes in the manufacturing technology have been copied by manufacturers in countries where the same manufacturers have the added benefits of lower materials and labour costs. As a result the industry has been flooded with lower cost substitute products. Because of the availability of these substitute products, the customers have more bargaining power. This means that Marston Tools must be able to maintain a high level of manufacturing quality in order to remain competitive. By integrating information systems strategy with business strategy, the company will be able to achieve this objective. When it comes to acquiring and developing the right business information systems, Porter’s five forces should be assessed in terms of how they impact upon the company’s profitability. As the previous analysis indicates, the industry is characterized by changes in the products and manufacturing technology. This increases the competition. ... The company’s information strategy should be formulated accordingly. As mentioned before, the industry experiences changes in the products and manufacturing technology. Porter’s five forces analysis reveals that these changes can easily be copied by manufacturers overseas who also have the added benefits of lower materials and labour costs. Therefore Marston should not define operational effectiveness in terms of continuously improving the manufacturing technology leading to proprietary content or distinctive processes (Kotler and Armstrong, 2005). Rather it should be defined in terms of delivering unique value to the customers in the form of higher quality. Therefore when it comes to the design and acquisition of information systems, the management should focus upon creating a system that is aligned to the strategic objective of delivering high quality to the customers. In this manner the company raises switching costs thus lowering the bargaining power of buyers. The company operates in an industry which has a high threat of new entrants, a high threat of substitute products and high bargaining power from the buyers. Value chain Currently the company is operating a computer-based system of production scheduling and control. This enables the company to facilitate coordination of different departments by creating a production schedule based upon orders received and sales forecasted. However the company is still facing problems in guaranteeing customer delivery dates and this is affecting sales. Therefore the new business information system should address this problem. However the implementation of the information system will affect both primary

Organization Culture Development and Success of the Organization Essay

Organization Culture Development and Success of the Organization - Essay Example The intention of this study is organization culture as a USP or â€Å"Unique Selling Point† of a firm that differentiates itself from its counterparts. Organizational culture means the way human resource in an organization acts and performs its duties. The culture in an organization is usually developed by top leadership which is translated to the production workers or managers at the lower level of the hierarchy. Any organization that fails to develop a unique culture fails to communicate its value to its customers and hence loses its vividness in the eyes of its customers. In the 21st, the concept is more important than ever before because of the intensive competition by firm. Not only the firms in the same country are fighting for a same job, but outsourcing has included the foreign firms also in the fight for a job that comes to the market. In the midst of so heavy competition, it has become increasingly important for firms to â€Å"Break through the clutter†. No fi rm can break through the clutter or become vivid unless it has something other than that the conventional competition is offering. Many firms, as a result, have increased their focus on organizational culture. Many are trying to develop a culture that will help them gain an edge over their competition. Organizational Culture, apart from helping an organization in all of these, also help helps an organization in developing the ideal characteristics of its workforce overtime without having to incur the heavy training expense that also entails loss of productivity and may lead to boredom and job turnover. It is also suggest by organizational behavior experts to develop a long term strategy based on an organizational culture in order to achieve firm’s targets and goals. The long term strategy can be supplemented by incorporating several training regimes that are used to make sure that the organizational culture has been properly engraved into the conscience of the workers and eve ryone in the organization is following the same culture that is yielding synergy and resulting in achievement in difficult tasks and goals which are not possible unless everyone in the organization is following the same culture. (Jin, Drozdenko, & Bassett, 2007) Organizational Culture leads to more efficiency in the organization. In fact, organizational culture improves the efficiency because it gives the sense of direction to employees and tells them how they are supposed to act in a variety of situation. This reduces their response time and helps them focus on the customer satisfaction more that leads to very satisfactory results. This increases organization wide efficiency of the human resource and all the staff in the organization allocates more time to core competencies. This also increases job satisfaction which leads to customer satisfaction and towards profitability of the organization. (Denison & Mishra, 1995) Organizational Culture also affects the knowledge management pra ctices of an organization. Knowledge management is extremely important for an organization as concluded by Toyota Motor Company, UNIX, Microsoft and Mercedes-Benz. One cannot imagine an organization to achieve success if it does not pay any heed to the technology development and knowledge management flows within the organization. It is extremely difficult to assume the success of the organization without the technology factor playing its part. Hence, indirectly organizational culture plays an important role in the development of an organization and its technology management and knowledge management practices which are now considered vital for the success of the organization. So much so that even the large organizations are making their old staff who seemed incompatible to technology are training them to make them work on the technology of the new era. Of course all of this is not possible without organizational cu

Darwin Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Darwin - Essay Example So it could be well said that these two articles is contemplating and criticizing Darwin’s intellectual and scientific quality along with his sense to respect theological values. Darwin intelligently investigated about human evolution and he came to a conclusion that God created few animal species and they by natural selection progressed to become humans. Everyone knows the fact that our closest DNA match agrees with apes. The intelligent level and social existence of apes match with human beings on a great level. But in the journal article by Cosans there is a contradiction on the fact where theology entangls with evolution. In this article Cosans put forward the statements mentioned by eminent anatomist Owen, where he suggests that God has no power in the human evolution theory. Considering the journal by Cosans, it cannot be stated that Darwin only concentrated on evolution as a divine process. He studied the subject visiting many earth zones and found that life originated from microorganisms and it went on to evolve into animals and ultimately in to intellectual beings. Darwin here is not prophesying on facts which he has not researched on. He has investigated on organisms like bacteria to apes to understand human evolution. Now in the journal by Cosans ,we can find that Owen retaliates on the fact that human evolution can be seen from a theological perspective.Owen as an anatomists look at the flaws of Darwin’s scientific research conclusion. Darwin here looked at creations and the mystery hidden behind its life and evolutionary process which has morphed them to become animals and later into human being by natural selection Here in this journal titled† Was Darwin a creationist† a question is raised by Cosans whether Darwin itself is adding divinity with evolutionary process or is evolutionary theory with a theological perspective is a

Realist style Essay Example for Free

Realist style Essay The winning spirit of our modern painting derives from Courbet. He was the individualist with strong elbows (George W. Chrystal, 1908). Courbet began the pragmatist movement when he exhibited his own paintings. By 1850 Romantic painting had become remarkably affluent. Courbets painting based around what he witnessed at the funeral of his grand uncle became the first masterwork in the Realist style. People were uninterested with romantic and classical paintings. There was a strong desire among many people for a unique painting, which sensibly portrayed the real world. When Courbet attended the funeral of his great uncle at Ornans, He was inspired and later painted the massive canvas, Burial at Ornans. It was one of the exceptional subjects in art illustrates an event with funerals. For his painting, he picked people as a model who had been to the funeral and created the new style. It leaves an impression of realistic style at the people of Ornans (Rubin 1997). People have mostly negative ambience with death and dying. Gustave Courbet’s underlying principle behind creation of such realistic painting is to utilize artistic talent as a way toward self-awareness and to transform the customs, the ideas. Courbet did not want to commune any religious message with his work. Courbet viewed this work as not just a funeral for his uncle, but in authentic truth a funeral for romanticism as a style (Rubin, 1977). Courbet’s paintings are generally viewed as realist one, increasingly concentrating on innocuous landscapes and seascapes for a bourgeois clientele. He had become extremely prominent during 1870 for his unique work. He captured middleclass marketplace by producing his painting on large scale. Forgers also started flooding the market with fake ones. In the United States, Courbets art was exhibited more than a dozen times by the mid-1870. The results were mixed: sometimes he churned it out; sometimes he didnt (New York Times). Courbet pushed towards a realistic style and created different, rare look as compared to other paintings in general like classical or romantic. Gustave Courbet painted in a way, which allowed artists to paint the world around them as they saw it, rather than making it complicated to understand. Courbet established the right of the artist to be contemporary and unconventional, to be free from the need of adding an elevating sentiment or an imposed message to the representation of realism (Nochlin 1976). Courbets painting of a young man and an old man breaking stones was a work of pragmatism which still had a trace of romanticism. He depicted the idea and the event without romanticizing it, just showing the workers engaged in their daily activity (Kleiner 2001). I am above all a total realist, he confessed on one of his many proclamations (Arthur C. Danto, 1989). Work- cited 1) Arthur C. Danto; Courbet; Magazine Title: The Nation. Volume: 248. Issue: 3. Publication Date: January 23, 1989. Page Number: 97. 2) George W. Chrystal, Julius Meier-Graefe, Florence Simmonds; Modern Art: Being a Contribution to a New System of Aesthetics. Publisher: G. P. Putnams Sons. Place of Publication: New York. Publication Year: 1908. Page Number: 219. 3) Kleiner, F. et al; Gardner’s Art Through the Ages. Eleventh Edition. Harcourt, Inc. , Orlando, Florida; 2001. 4) Nochlin, L. Gustave Courbet: A Study of Style and Society. Garland Publishing Inc. , New York; 1976. 5) Rubin, J. Courbet. Phaidon Press, London. 1997.

Analysis of Beyoncés Formation Video (Black Lives Matter)

Analysis of Beyoncà ©s Formation Video (Black Lives Matter) Beyoncà ©s Formation Video (Black Lives Matter)A Literary Analysis Research Paper Abstract Beyoncà © is one of the singers most recognized in the world and United States of America. She assumed a political role since some events aroused against Afro-American People, related with racism and police brutality. She created the musical video Formation to transmit a message to the people in favor of black lives matter. Keywords: Beyoncà ©, Video, Black Lives Matter, Illuminati, Creole, Alabama, Louisiana, Black Culture, Rapper Beyoncà © launched in 2016 her album Lemonade, including one controversial song, the number twelve in the list whose name is Formation. This unique song is accompanied with an award winning, well-produced and elaborated video, released on purpose, next to the birthday anniversary of Trayvon Martin and Sandra Bland, whose deaths are well remembered by Afro-American people as victims of brutal law enforcement and racism. Beyoncà ©s Formation messages are about many more things than simple racism and police brutality. This song delivers messages about feminism, Creole culture, Beyoncà © pride, Black pride, Black power, sexism, LGBT, Hurricane Katrina rememberings, and Beyoncà © intention to dispel the rumor that she is an Illuminati. This video masterfully reveals to faces of Beyoncà © at the same time, as an Entertainer and an Activist. (Caramanica Wortham, 2016). All Formation messages could be classified in major and minor messages. This writing only deals only with major messages, and minor will be ignored. The major messages are one of this two possibilities: direct and explicit messages, or in the other hand are ambiguous, subliminal or hidden messages. This visual and musical work apparently deliver inconsistent sentences with multiple meanings, but that aspect is irrelevant to the first time viewer, because the video is very rich on visuals and plays sticky rhythms that distracts him from the powerful hidden and subliminal messages. This video is holistically great, verified by its numerous well written articles and awards received. Under a rigorous and serious analysis, many messages emerge with multiple meanings. Specially two types of messages could be identified: first, direct or non-ambiguous messages, and second, ambiguous messages with multiple or hidden meanings. Any person, not necessarily an expert will be able to recognize that the lyrics and visuals of this video were semantically engineered by a linguist or carefully designed by an expert on semiotics. Some messages are direct and non-ambiguous like: The Hurricane Katrina aftermath, the Police signs, Beyoncà © pride, Black pride, Black power, Creole Culture, and the effort to dispel the rumor that Beyoncà © are an Illuminati. On the other hand, there are ambiguous messages delivered with multiple or hidden meanings about sexism and LGBT. Those messages appear to the viewer to have multiple interpretations, but the final meaning decision is left free to the particular audience, their will, their virginal minds or the predominant psyche of the individual. Every sentence has two interpretations: the vulgar and the non-vulgar, the formal and the non-formal, the explicit and the implicit message. One of the first message delivered is about the Hurricane Katrina, when the video starts with a living phrase of a killed rapper, whose name was Messy Mya. The voice of the rapper expresses: What happened at the New Wilins? (beyonceVEVO, 2016), then the video shows up many scenes related with New Orleans Katrina floodings. Along the video are Police signs delivered with an apparent neutral connotation, but at the end they suggests indirectly a judgement to the collectively subconscious mind, who has been extensively influenced by the media with the events on police brutality. Beyoncà © is laying at the top of a New Orleans white and blue car, with the word police, partially submerged in the flooding water, sitting squatting, while the back scene displays a neighborhood with flooded houses. Some police departments may considered that scene disrespectful. In other scene, after a sequence of images of New Orleans daily living, the observer can see the word police at the back of a man that resembles a guard. Once again, the video attracts the mind of the viewer to the word police. It is unforgettable the scene when the young boy is dancing with a New Orleans Style, in front of an anti-riot line of policemen and they rise their hands, after that the camera shows a graffiti in the wall with the legend Stop Shooting Us (beyonceVEVO, 2016), this could be interpreted in many ways, but one of them, is the triumph of the weak using non-violent methods, over those that represent the governmental power By the end of the video, the police car got totally submerged under the water, with Beyoncà © lying at the top, drowning, giving the impression that the police problem is a lose-to-lose situation. This is confirmed by some critics affirmations that Beyoncà © is not trying to defame the police. (Logan, 2016). Black power is depicted when Beyoncà © shows up in an elegant long black dress with a big black hat, agitating his hand with a piece of his long hair in circles surrounded by Afro-American guys, also dressed in etiquette black clothes, at the door of an antebellum house, the image evoked in the mind of the viewer is about the power and the way that wealthy and powerful black people lives. The Black power is also depicted in the scene that shows a lonely black cowboy with a golden necklace. An explicit message occurs when Beyoncà © try to defeat the rumors affirming that she is an illuminati, using a unique phrase: Yall haters corny with that Illuminati mess (beyonceVEVO, 2016). The video exhibits some dual interpretations with sentences like this: Paparazzi, catch my fly and my cocky fresh (beyonceVEVO, 2016). This message could be interpreted as a sexual reference or a pride reference. Also there are some explicit sexual references, like: When he fuck me good, I take his ass to Red Lobster, cause I slay (beyonceVEVO, 2016), and there are ambiguous, hidden or second meaning sexual references, when she said: I got hot sauce in my bag, swag (beyonceVEVO, 2016), this sentence has two simultaneous interpretations: first as a reference to Creole culture in which women carries hot sauce in their purses, or a female sexual reference. The controversial word swag may be used in this video as a synonym of promotional items, stylish confidence, or with a sexual orientation reference, also this word correspond to a very well-known LGBT word that means secretly we are gay. But the most incredible fact is that the word slay is mentioned 49 times along the video, probably, with the meaning of extraordinary or killer performance, but lets consider that is also a well-known urban sexual reference. Beyoncà © pride is evident when she expresses Im so reckless when I rock my Givenchy dress (beyonceVEVO, 2016), or Im so possessive so I rock his Roc necklaces (beyonceVEVO, 2016), or Earned all this money, but they never take the country out me (beyonceVEVO, 2016). It is unavoidable that The Black and Creole culture message earned a strong reference in this video, with direct and explicit sentences like this: My daddy Alabama, momma Louisiana (beyonceVEVO, 2016), You mix that Negro with that Creole, make a Texas bama (beyonceVEVO, 2016), I like my baby hair with baby hair and afros (beyonceVEVO, 2016), I like my Negro nose with Jackson Five nostrils (beyonceVEVO, 2016). There is a direct reference to feminism and women leadership when she says: Okay, ladies, now lets get in formation (beyonceVEVO, 2016). In the second middle of the video there is a black man holding in his hand a newspaper named The Truth, whose cover story displays the phrase More than a Dreamer with the photo of Martin Luther King, suggesting that his Leadership was bigger than his famous discourse I have a Dream. The final conclusion is evident. Beyoncà ©s Formation video direct and indirect messages are multiple and not only about simple racism and police brutality, but also was produced with the intention to reveal some paradoxical aspects of the southern living in the United States. This well acclaimed by the critics video was produced by professionals with the same intention as the Black Lives Matter movement, probably become his Anthem. WORKS CITED [beyonceVEVO]. (2016, December 9). Beyoncà © Formation. [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDZJPJV__bQ. Caramanica, J. , Morris, J. and Wortham, J. (2016). Beyoncà © in Formation: Entertainer, Activist, Both?. New York Times, Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/07/arts/music/beyonce-formation-super-bowl-video.html?_r=0 This is a critical review of Beyoncà ©s Formation Video is made by three recognized critics, in the form of a dialog. They suggest that Beyoncà © is an activist and at the same time she is an entertainer. This source is reliable because its Currency (2016), Relevance (Critical review), Authority (New York Times, Best Recognized journalists), Accuracy (Content reliable and credible), and Purpose (the point of view appear objective and impartial). Logan, B. (2016). No, Beyoncà © is not bashing the police: Heres what her new song Formation is really saying. Business Insider. Retrieved from http://www.businessinsider.com/the-messages-in-beyonces-formation-2016-2. This article corresponds to a review of Beyoncà ©s Formation Video and clears out to the audience that Beyoncà © is not ridiculing the police. In the opposite side this video is a call for peace and an altruist apology to the black culture in America. This source is reliable because its Currency (2016), Relevance (Critical review), Authority (Business Insider, Recognized journalists), Accuracy (Content reliable and credible), and Purpose (the point of view appear objective and impartial). Macpherson, A. (2016). Beyoncà ©s Formation review a rallying cry that couldnt be more timely, The Guardian, Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2016/feb/08/beyonce-formation-review-super-bowl-rallying-cry-black-consciousness This article corresponds to a review of Beyoncà ©s Formation Video that states that the world tour is timely deliveries. This source is reliable because its Currency (2016), Relevance (Critical review), Authority (The Guardian, Best Recognized journalists), Accuracy (Content reliable and credible), and Purpose (the point of view appear objective and impartial). Hoby, H. (2016) Beyoncà ©: Formation tour review defiant, victorious and glorious, The Guardian, Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/apr/28/beyonce-formation-tour-review-defiant-victorious-and-glorious. This article corresponds to a review of Beyoncà ©s Formation Video that states that this is the event of the year, masterfully produced. This source is reliable because its Currency (2016), Relevance (Critical review), Authority (The Guardian, Recognized journalists), Accuracy (Content reliable and credible