Home Depot Essay Example for Free

Home Depot Essay Today’s market is characterized by highly competitive organizations which are all vying for consumer’s loyalty. Firms are faced with the challenge to maintain their own competitive edge to be able to survive and be successful. Strategies are carefully planned and executed to gain the ultimate goal of all: company growth. However, external factors are not the only elements which influence growth. Today most companies find that it impossible to create any kind of sustainable competitive advantage based on product alone. It is common knowledge that every one of the successful companies sought and found a precise understanding of how it could create a customer-centered competitive advantage. Along with the changing business world, customers change as well, becoming more demanding and knowledgeable than before. In turn, company management had shifted their focus on their clients or customers so as to stay successfully in business. This transition meant that organizations have to completely reformulate their conventional business aims and purposes from being process-focused to customer-centered. Hence, in order to bring out exceptional customer services within the company operations, the management should employ fine-tuned organizational restructuring. Moreover, employing proactive customer commitment involves the consideration on culture and infrastructure (Lowenstein, 1997). Organizations that capitalize on customers active participation in organizational activities can gain competitive advantage through greater sales volume, enhanced operating efficiencies, positive word-of-mouth publicity, reduced marketing expenses, and enhanced customer loyalty (Lovelock Young, 1979; Reichheld Sasser, 1990). Rather than going after every potential source of revenue, companies eliminate useless assets that do not add value for customers’ satisfaction. Business organizations implement bureaucratic policies and procedures for the benefit of the staff, customers and the company in general. According to Bowers, Martin Luker (1990), if consumers somehow become better customers that is, more knowledgeable, participative, or productive the quality of the service experience will likely be enhanced for the customer and the organization. Company Profile The Home Depot is the worlds largest home improvement retailer and second largest retailer in the United States. From one store to $73. 1 Billion in sales, Home Depot has come a long way in a short time. This organization is very familiar to this writer as he was employed here for a few years after leaving the Marine Corps and was his first civilian job. Home Depot stands out more than many organizations that this writer has worked for because it was his first civilian organization and many adjustments had to be made. The company distributes everyday jobs to participants and creates rules, policies, measures, and hierarchical organizational charts to organize various actions. Home Depot ought to continually amend their structures to become accustomed to the atmosphere shifts, technology changes, organizational grow, and leadership changes. Furthermore, structure is also a means to high-performing teams. Mindful awareness to structure and roles in teams will make the team much more successful. When it comes to leadership, structural leadership contributes a critical role in shaping organizations. It can be influential and stable, even though it is more restrained and less heroic leadership compared on other frames. Structural Change In the traditional supply chain management used by businesses that import materials for production, a lot of people, time and money are invested upon to ensure that the demands of the manufacturers will be handled in the specified date and time required. Before being able to place an order of shipment of raw materials, several transactions are consulted between the supplier and the manufacturer that eats up their valued time. The supply flow normally includes the intention of order, quotation, confirmation, delivery, payment and handling of receipts. Great amount of time is consumed in the mere planning of the purchase orders of a manufacturing company. And since most of the time the transactions involve not only a single supplier, especially in the case of huge international producers, manufacturers deal with sub-suppliers with several forwarders from which a number of consolidations are exchanged. The workload and time that the inventory managers handle defines the proceeding business processes that will follow that predicts and maintains the success and profit of the whole business organization. That is why, efficiency counts! The best suppliers continuously update and upgrade their service deliveries in order to answer the demands of their customers. Customers have the ever-increasing demand on getting their hands into the products which can lead to change in supplier if expectations are not met. This is the reason why suppliers who are also industry leaders trend toward more reliable delivery services across their customers. However, problems of delivery are usually attended by most companies through with either quick fixes that do not work or complete and comprehensive designs that take too long and are expensive. The Implemented Plan of Changes Customer Satisfaction Along with the changing business world, customers change as well, becoming more demanding and knowledgeable than before. In turn, company management had shifted their focus on their clients or customers so as to stay successfully in business. This transition meant that organizations have to completely reformulate their conventional business aims and purposes from being process-focused to customer-centred. Rethinking and reformulating the organization on the other hand, entail the consideration of several factors such as various processes, technology, the environment as well as the success factors of people (Cohen and Moore, 2000). Hence, in order to bring out exceptional customer services within the company operations, the management should employ fine-tuned organizational restructuring. Moreover, employing proactive customer commitment involves the consideration on culture and infrastructure (Lowenstein, 1997). Online Marketing The tremendous growth of technological advancement has become the driving force of contemporary industries. The diffusion of the internet has revolutionized the business arena. The use of the Internet is changing high-tech marketing overnight while different industries have been trying to use it as part of their marketing strategy. It has not only reconfigured the way different firms do business and the way the consumers buy goods and services, but it has also become an effective instrument in transforming the value chain from manufacturers to retailers to consumers, creating a new retail distribution channel (Appelbaum et sl, 1998). E-marketing is a powerful tool used by different business organizations around the world. It is defined as the process of achieving marketing objectives through the use of electronic communications technology. Smith and Chaffey (2001) have provided a 5Ss’ mnemonic for how the internet can be applied by all business firms for different e-marketing tactics. These 5S’s are selling, serve, speak, save and sizzle. E-marketing is also known to be the online marketing strategy utilized by different company whose objective is to be the best company in their field. In various countries worldwide, more and more business firms have been using e-marketing strategy in order to be competitive. From books, foods and beverages, automobiles and other products and services, various firms, irregardless of their company sizes, are trying to survive by means of e-marketing strategy. Aside from being a promotional medium, the internet is a tool for marketing communications as well. Due to its interactive nature, the internet is an efficient method used in communicating with the consumers. Hence, several companies are beginning to realize the advantages of using the internet as a tool for communication. Companies then started to concentrate on designing web-related strategies and employing interactive agencies that will facilitate their development of specific company web sites as part of their integrated marketing communication strategy. There are companies however, that are effectively using the internet by incorporating their web-related strategies with the other areas of their IMC strategies. The approach now becomes integrated and more strategic. On-line marketing is considered to be the most expensive yet seems to be the most comprehensive marketing strategy that every company wants to implement and apply. At present, people, particularly those in the business arena, tend to engage themselves within the trend of rapidly growing technology so as to stay competitive. Upon surfing the internet, various companies have put up their official sites online for customers and potential consumers to view. Online or e-marketing is the latest marketing approach for any firm who wants to effectively market its products and services. In addition, e-marketing enables the company to be known worldwide since more and more people are able to access information derived from the internet. Within the business world, where competition is strict, internet marketing is one essential marketing strategy applied by most industries. Service Delivery Service intangibility means that services cannot be seen, tasted, felt, heard, or smelled before they are bought. For example, people undergoing cosmetic surgery cannot see the result before purchase. Airline passengers have nothing but a ticket and a promise that their luggage will arrive safely at the intended destination, hopefully at the same time. They draw conclusions about the quality from the place, people, price, equipment, and communications that they can see. Therefore, the service provider’s task is to make the service tangible in one or more ways. Although there are also times when product marketers try to add intangible offers, service managers try to add tangibles to their intangible offers. Physical goods are produced, then stored, later sold, and still later consumed. In contrast, services are first sold, then produced and consumed at the same time. Service inseparability means the services cannot be separated from their providers, whether the providers are people or machines. If a service employee provides the service, then the employee is part of the service. Because the customer is also present as the service is produced, provider-customer interaction is a special feature of service marketing. Both the provider and the customer affect the service outcome. Service variability means the quality of services depends on whom provides them as well as when, where, and how they are provided. For example, some hotels – say, Marriot have reputations for providing better service than others. Still, within a given Marriot hotel, one registration-desk employee maybe cheerful and efficient, whereas another standing just a few feet away maybe unpleasant and slow. Even the quality of a single Marriot employee’s service varies according to his or her energy and frame of mind at the time of each customer encounter. Service perishability means that services cannot be stored for later sale or use. Some doctors charge patients for missed appointments because the service value existed only at that point and disappeared when the patient did not show up. The perishability of services is not a problem when the demand is steady. However, when demand fluctuates, service firms often have difficult problems. For example, because of rush-hour demand, public transportation companies have to own much more equipment than they would if demand were even throughout the day. Thus, service firms often design strategies for producing a better match between demand and supply. For instance, hotels and resorts charge lower prices in the off-season to attract more guests. Restaurants hire part-time employees to serve during peak periods.

Brutus vs Antony Essay examples -- essays papers

Brutus vs Antony The most predominate and important aspect In the play Julius Caesar, by William Shakespeare are the speeches given to the Roman citizens by Brutus and Antony, the two main charaters, following the death of Caesar. Brutus and Antony both spoke to the crowd,using the same rhetorical devices to express their thoughts. Both speakers used the three classical appeals employed in the speeches: ethos, which is an appeal to credibility; pathos, which is an appeal to the emotion of the audience; and logos, which is an appeal to the content and arrangement of the argument itself. Even though both speeches have the same structure Antony’s speech is significantly more effective than Brutus’s. Both speakers used an ethical appeal to the crowd and established their credibility first. Brutus starts off by saying he was Caesar’s friend, and he loved him, but because Ceasar was â€Å"ambitious† he had to â€Å"slew† him. Brutus knew that everyone in town thought he was an honorable man and he used that to establish his credibility, unlike Antony, who was thought to be a play boy, not serious about anything. He had to work harder to gain the crowd’s attention. The first sentence out of his mouth was that he was here to â€Å"bury Caesar, not to praise him† which is a great way to start since most of the people didn’t like Caesar at the time and didn’t want to listen to some silly friend of Caesar’s say wonderful things about him. Antony also mentioned many times that their hero Brutus is an â€Å"honorableâ€Å" man. This also helped get the crowd to listen to him, because they had just heard Brutus and were all fire d up about the wonderful things he had said. So both the characters start off their speeches the same, gaining credibilit... ...d how fickle the crowd was, he made sure that they were really listening to him and really going to be his followers. Two times Antony called the people back from running away in anger and said another thing to deepen the seed he had planted in them. Although both gentlemen used the same three persuasive appeals in their speeches, one was obviously more effective. Antony did a more sufficient job of getting his point across. He understood what he would have to od to win the crowd. He used the three appeals, ethos, pathos, and logos, to his advantage and evn though Brutus also used the same three appeals, his speech did not impact the Roman countrymen nearly as much as Antony. Both speeches had the same structure and used the same rhetorcial devices but Antony’s speech was much more influencial and because of that, he help build the great history that is Rome. Brutus vs Antony Essay examples -- essays papers Brutus vs Antony The most predominate and important aspect In the play Julius Caesar, by William Shakespeare are the speeches given to the Roman citizens by Brutus and Antony, the two main charaters, following the death of Caesar. Brutus and Antony both spoke to the crowd,using the same rhetorical devices to express their thoughts. Both speakers used the three classical appeals employed in the speeches: ethos, which is an appeal to credibility; pathos, which is an appeal to the emotion of the audience; and logos, which is an appeal to the content and arrangement of the argument itself. Even though both speeches have the same structure Antony’s speech is significantly more effective than Brutus’s. Both speakers used an ethical appeal to the crowd and established their credibility first. Brutus starts off by saying he was Caesar’s friend, and he loved him, but because Ceasar was â€Å"ambitious† he had to â€Å"slew† him. Brutus knew that everyone in town thought he was an honorable man and he used that to establish his credibility, unlike Antony, who was thought to be a play boy, not serious about anything. He had to work harder to gain the crowd’s attention. The first sentence out of his mouth was that he was here to â€Å"bury Caesar, not to praise him† which is a great way to start since most of the people didn’t like Caesar at the time and didn’t want to listen to some silly friend of Caesar’s say wonderful things about him. Antony also mentioned many times that their hero Brutus is an â€Å"honorableâ€Å" man. This also helped get the crowd to listen to him, because they had just heard Brutus and were all fire d up about the wonderful things he had said. So both the characters start off their speeches the same, gaining credibilit... ...d how fickle the crowd was, he made sure that they were really listening to him and really going to be his followers. Two times Antony called the people back from running away in anger and said another thing to deepen the seed he had planted in them. Although both gentlemen used the same three persuasive appeals in their speeches, one was obviously more effective. Antony did a more sufficient job of getting his point across. He understood what he would have to od to win the crowd. He used the three appeals, ethos, pathos, and logos, to his advantage and evn though Brutus also used the same three appeals, his speech did not impact the Roman countrymen nearly as much as Antony. Both speeches had the same structure and used the same rhetorcial devices but Antony’s speech was much more influencial and because of that, he help build the great history that is Rome.

Сhapter of autobiography

Now we have reached October 2004. From this date to the present, I am still greatly affected about what has happened to my family and I. Although October was the month in which my pain and heartache started, two years later on Saturday 24th June 2006 was the day that many things ended. Equally, it was the day that many other things and experiences begun. Monday 11th October 2004 â€Å"Come on Bex, up you get.† â€Å"Yeah, ok mum, just five more minutes. Please?† â€Å"No. Now!† With that, I peeled off my covers and rolled out of my bed. I stood up and pulled back my curtains. The sun was glistening and the leaves on the trees were swaying in the morning breeze. â€Å"Bye, I'll see you after school. Love you† â€Å"Bye mum. Love you too.† So, there I was strolling off towards school for yet another long day. â€Å"BRRRRRING!† At long last, the end of another exhausting and dragging Monday at school. Lumbered with bags and files, I started my journey towards home. When I, eventually reached my house, I recognised Siobhan and Ruth were running about frantically. I asked what their problem was; they replied with the words, â€Å"Mum's gone.† I was so confused; I had no idea what they were doing or what they were talking about. Suddenly, it clicked. Mum had been ill for quite a while now, which had been extremely odd, as mum hardly ever got ill. If she ever had the flu she would still be up and down, being her busy old self, helping people, caring for people, being there for people. When we had all calmed down, we retired to the front room. Siobhan picked up her phone and tried to call Mum, Ruth did the same and phoned Dad, I also called someone, my Uncle John. He had been at home all day looking after mum, due to the fact that she wasn't feeling to good. The three phones rang and rang. No one answered. Not Mum, not Dad and not even John. Yet again, panic had struck in the Heneghan house. Siobhan then noticed my Mum's flowery coffee cup, placed upon the table in front of me. She walked over and dipped her finger into the coffee. It was stone cold. The panic in the house was growing by the second. No note, no text, no phone call. Nothing! The three of us just sat there, we knew that the only thing any of us could do was wait. That night as Dad returned home, he sat us down and explained where Mum was. Immediately we all got in the car and drove to Huddersfield Royal Infirmary. We sat tight listening to what we were being told about our critically ill Mum. After having found some active cancerous cells in recent blood tests, she had been called into hospital at once. The doctors explained that she had Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia and needed an immediate transfer to St. James' Hospital in Leeds. Mum remained there for two months, in the Leukaemia unit on ward 68, room 5. Two months seemed like a long time for Mum to be away from home, but the fact that I wouldn't get to see her much, as we lived a twenty five minute drive away, seemed totally irrelevant. I thought to myself, as long as she's in the best place for her, then that's all that truly matters. Isn't it? Saturday 25th December 2004 Christmas day had arrived. Could I have possibly been more wrong about my earlier prediction? It certainly was one huge issue that Mum hadn't been there for the previous two months. It was unbelievably hard for my Dad, both my sisters and I. With cooking, cleaning, ironing, washing and various other jobs to do, the four of us were finding it an enormous struggle. Being thirteen, I had never really done many of these â€Å"jobs† before and some of which were new to me. I realised how much I had taken my Mum for granted and had relied on her for thirteen years of my life. Now, it was time to grow up. Friday 31st December 2004 New Years Eve and also, the day Mum was allowed to return home. Lumbered with bags upon bags of tablets, medicines and dressings, Mum, emotionally, unpacked her bags and remained on a strict diet of only certain foods and liquids. Weeks passed and finally, there was a phone call saying that they had found someone whose bone marrow matched Mum's and that she was now ready to start the transplant process. At this, Mum repacked her things and, once again we kissed her goodbye. Friday 25th February 2004 The day of the transplant. Mum was now being treated in the BMTU (Bone Marrow Transplant Unit) back in St. James' Hospital and was to remain there until further notice. With long daily visits from her husband and her three girls, Mum made a rather speedy recovery and returned home, again, on Friday 8th April 2005. Although this time, it was for good. Or so we thought! The family was told it would be about eighteen months until Mum would be in the all clear. With weekly check-ups, four months had past. Next, the check-ups were every fortnight, eight months had passed. Now, the check-ups were monthly and sixteen months had passed. It was now May 2006. Two more months to go and then Mum would be fully recovered. Thursday 25th May 2006 Apparent side effects and symptoms were starting to happen to Mum. These had come from her, now small, dose of tablets and medicines. We were told that these symptoms she was experiencing had never been obvious in any patient before, yet they were happening to my Mum. They were happening to my family. They were happening to me. Who could I turn to? Where could I go? I couldn't, I had to be strong. I had to be there for my Dad and my sisters but most of all, for my Mum! Within the next few weeks of Mum being in intensive care, in the BMTU, things got rapidly worse. Mum started to deteriorate; her platelets became lower, as did her blood count, also part of her memory. One of the worst things I have ever experienced in my whole life was when I went to visit my mum. She was drugged up with large amounts of morphine and her other medications. This made Mum's memory and mind very vague and distant. As I was visiting, I walked into her room. She stared at me blankly, just looked straight through me. She had no idea who I was. I walked over to her, stroked her hair and kissed her on the head. She peered up at me. â€Å"Who are you?† she asked me. I burst out into tears and ran out of the room. It was the worst feeling I have ever had. My heart just sunk like an anchor on a ship. I couldn't come to terms with the fact that my own Mum didn't know who I was. Eventually, I pulled myself together and managed to go back in to support my Mum and to be there for her every single step of the way. Saturday 17th June 2006 The whole family were called. We had been told that Mum would have just a few more hours to live. My heart started to bleed viciously. I felt so sick. It was too hard to think about the fact that these few precious moments could be the last ones I would ever share with my Mum. Once again, Mum managed to prove the doctors wrong. She hung on in there for yet another week with my dedicated Dad at her bed side, all day and all night. Saturday 24th June 2006 Heartbroken and alone, Dad returned home with the expected news. She was gone! It was over. Mum was in no more pain. Her suffering had ended. She was fast asleep, resting in the place that was best for her. I was fourteen when it happened and it was now time to start living my life without my Mum. It was right in the middle of my school exams. I did them. She never left my mind of course, but with my friends, family and also a huge help from my teachers, I did them. I had to; I knew it's what she would have wanted. Even now I still hear her sometimes, waking me up in a morning. Shouting me down for my tea. Telling me to clean my bedroom. It hurts and I know full well that it always will, but at the same time, it has made me so much stronger. I could never forget my Mum, no matter how unhappy I may be at times, no matter how much pain and heartache this ordeal has caused me. I know, deep down, that she will never leave me. She will always be looking down, watching over me and will always stay in my head and in my heart. For eternity she will be a marvellous Mummy, wonderful wife, devoted daughter and fantastic friend. I miss her so much, words cannot describe. Wherever you are Mum, I love you!

The Area And Behavioral Assessment And / Or Treatment

Description of the area and behavioral assessment and/or treatment. In the classroom many different anxieties are present whether educators know it or see it. It is not something a child might share but their actions speak larger than words. There are three main anxieties that are present in the classroom,There are three main anxieties that are present in the classroom, these include separation anxiety: When children are scared to be alone .Social anxiety: When children are scared and nervous of specific areas and lastly,Selective mutism: When children have a hard time speaking in different settings ( typically in front of the classroom).Along with these various names and labels, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental†¦show more content†¦12). They are considered to be one of the most common and wide-spreading mental illnesses† Anxiety is treated with cognitive behavioral therapy. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is the most used for anxiety.Cognitive behavioral therapy helps with negativity and â€Å"bad† feelings. Cognitive behavioral therapy has two main components these include : â€Å"Cognitive therapy examines how negative thoughts, or cognitions, contribute to anxiety.Behavior therapy examines how you behave and react in situations that trigger anxiety.The basis of cognitive behavioral therapy is that our thoughts—not external events—affect the way we feel†(Arbor,2011,p.12). In other words, different situations can have different reactions and vise versa. Each clinical area focuses on different parts of the brain that may trigger anxiety and it s symptoms. Summary of evidence and research. â€Å"Although anxiety disorders are both common and distressing, many people with anxiety disorders don t seek professional help and may live with these distressing and impairing conditions for decades.† (Arbor 2011,p.22) Cognitive behavioral therapy is considered highly effective because unlike medicine it tackles all parts of the brain and also focuses on outside factors that can be promoting anxiety. Also, therapy can help unfold the underlying