Shinto and Oral Religions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Shinto and Oral Religions - Essay Example Kojiki is one of the Japanese literatures that had successfully compiled the Japanese mythology and traditional Ancient of Japan including the Shinto Rituals. (Chamberlain, p. i) On the other hand, Nihongi or Nihon Shoki is one of the oldest classical books that tackled the Japanese history (Aston, p. xv). Similar to Kojiki, Nihon Shoki has a series of compiled myths and oral tradition that occurred back in the 8th century (ibid). Oral religion, based on the word ‘oral’, means that a religious practice of a particular religion has been passed on from one culture to another or from one generation to the next generation verbally. Aside from the Kojiki – the records of ancient matters and the Nihongi or Nihon Shoki – the chronicles of Japan which was written back in AD 712 and AD 720 respectively (Chamberlain, p. I; Sakamoto, p. 31), Shinto can be considered as an oral religion due to the fact that there are no other concrete scripture that can be used as a basis of such religion. Shinto is different from oral traditions because the practice of Shinto takes place in four different ways which including: (1) the Shine Shinto which means worship at a public or private shrine; (2) Folk Shinto which includes divination, shamanic healing, abstinence and other forms of purification customs; (3) Sect Shinto which includes the act of participating in one of the thirteen groups of the 19th century; and (4) the State Shinto which includes the act of participating in festivals as a way of honoring the Japanese emperors (Mosher, pp. 168 – 169). Even though there is a strong similarity between Shinto and oral religion, it remains a fact that Shinto can never be considered as an oral tradition due to the fact that the practice of Shrine Shinto, Folk Shinto, Sect Shinto, and State Shinto is being passed on from one generation to another generation based on the actual

Nature of Entrepreneurship course Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Nature of Entrepreneurship course - Coursework Example Everyone can become an entrepreneur as it is the easiest thing to do. Easy in the sense that, one doesn’t have to go to school or use a lot of many to become an entrepreneur. As Seth Godin says, one has to study for very many years to become a neurosurgeon (Seth, 2012). However, you doesn’t have to do such for you to become an entrepreneur. This qualifies the fact that entrepreneurs are born. It is also interesting to know that not everyone can become an entrepreneur, even though anyone is able to become one. The nature of entrepreneurship has some connections with other terms such as monopoly, market, entrepreneurial learning, opportunity and creativity. In this essay, we will discuss the nature of entrepreneurship course with relation to the above mentioned terms that are connected to it. Monopoly is a very important tool for entrepreneurs. For one to become a successful entrepreneur, as Seth Godin says, they must have the power of monopoly on various aspects. Monopoly sets in on the issue of space, product, customers and even idea. When an individual can command the market of a particular location, it means they have a monopoly of supply in that location. This is one of the things that keeps them in business and make them successful as entrepreneurs. Monopoly can also exist in the idea that an entrepreneur has. For instance, Apple is able to do what it does because it has a monopoly of idea of meeting the demands of its customers. It provides products that solve the customer’s problems, hence, making their products most likable in the market against their competitors (Nabi & Holden, 2008). Therefore, the idea of monopoly in entrepreneurship, refers to having control over the unique ways of doing business that makes you what you are in what you do. Entrepreneu rship is basically built by the creation of monopoly that becomes like a brand name in business. People can have great ideas that lead them to becoming great entrepreneurs. However,

TMA06 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

TMA06 - Essay Example It is therefore worthwhile analysing the factors that influenced the behaviour of New Imperialism practiced by the European powers to start with, subsequently followed by the nations of Japan and USA. In particular, we examine the events in Europe and especially Germany during this time and try to find out how it influenced the New Imperialism practice as a whole (Loftus, 2007). To understand the formation of the colonial policy under the German Chancellor of the time, Otto von Bismarck, it is important to consider the situation prevalent then, in terms of the political conditions. Germany as a nation as we know has existed only since 1871, after its formation following many battles and wars, which Bismarck was greatly responsible for. Therefore, as the newest nation of Europe, Bismarck wanted Germany to become powerful and influential. Since the years of 1871, he was mainly responsible for Germany’s passive colonial policy. He rather chose to concentrate his efforts on strengthening the nation and building its industry and economy. This policy continued into the 1880s during which there was a surprising change by Bismarck towards active colonial control for the territories of Africa (Berghahn, 1994). It is also important to understand the political setup of Germany at the time. The country had a parliament called the Reichstag; however the Emperor had the power to veto any decision. The Chancellor was usually the person who has involved with the day to day activities of the parliament. Until the late 1890s Bismarck’s command was unquestioned in the parliament. In order to make decisions, apart from convincing the members of the parliament, he had great power. However, when in 1887, the Emperor Frederick died, his son Wilhelm II became the Emperor (Loftus, 2007). With Wilhelm II’s accession to power, Bismarck faced more opposition from him regarding Germany’s domestic

Role of magazines in the 21st century and how has their form changed Essay

Role of magazines in the 21st century and how has their form changed physically and has this involved a change in the content of perfect beauty - Essay Example American women responded well to the idea of readymade clothing. The ready to wear industry flourished with the help of fashion advertising. Evolution of the fashion saw the change of the concept of "perfect beauty" from the simple innocent look to the exposure of much skin. Other online fashion magazines like the Dwell and Martha Stewart were introduced whose concept of â€Å"ultimate beauty† was majored on body features, the slim and trim hipped-woman. As opposed to the audience in vogue and Haper’s bazar, who are mostly conservative in nature, theirs was a revolutionary woman who exposed most of her skin. Evolution of the fashion in America took many shapes as many designers resulted to designing different types of clothes. Givenchy dressed Audrey Hepburn; her fashion presented the feeling of taller, high, covering high top-knots, long legs, small, midriffs, pretty legs and exquisite clothes. This fashion sense revolutionized to Pierre cardin who exemplified fashion in the school girl look which depicted the perfect young girl look that was simple and portraying the feminine figure. Later, Courreges presented the futuristic ‘space-age ‘collection which had suits, dresses and trousers which were more sculpted as opposed to being sewn. This presented the sophisticated look of the mid-sixties. American designers started designed topless bathing suit which was known as the monobikini and the following year he designed lingerie and consequently seamless dresses. This fashion special influence was the exposure of much skin. The introduction of the internet and the Web 2.0 has enabled many people to share information faster and also share their photographs. This has made many photos of celebrities to be available for copying and enumeration. Such information is shared in different social media like twitter and Instagram. The fashion sense from 2003 and 2013 has changed very much with more

Human Resources and EEO Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Human Resources and EEO - Essay Example umb, scientific management allowed tasks and function to be broken down into specifics to clearly delineate duties for possible quantification and optimization of workers output. Process are now clearly defined as well as how to do it that does not leave any room for intuitive job functioning. Other theorists followed suit such as Maslow, Mayo, McGregor, Vroom and Herzberg venturing on other aspects of human resources such as motivation and efficiency on how could human resource do more and make them happy. Businesses realize that it is important for them to its human resource not only for them to commit and perform but also to keep them in the organisation. Keeping valuable employees motivated in an organisation is not only intended to make them commit and perform but also to keep them over the long haul because they are the organization’s most valuable asset(Guld, 2007). In sum, the following are the theorists who allowed human resource to evolve. Taylor first conceived the idea that workers are mainly motivated solely by wage. He posited that management has to possess the control and knowledge of the methods of production so that it would have a greater control of achieving efficiency in an organisation that includes motivating its workforce (Jaffe 2008). For Taylor, the breaking up functions into small quantifiable tasks is necessary to make the time-piece rate pay possible that will encourage employees to work harder if they can see that they are being paid with more work (Taylor 1911). This theory assumed that employees are more motivated with more pay and confined motivation to solely addressing the economic needs of a business organisation’s employees. Mayo expanded Taylor’s idea of motivating employees by including their social needs that also has to be satisfied while at work (Sarachek 1968). For Elton Mayo, employees are not only motivated by satifying their economic needs but also their needs to interact with fellow employees.

Leadership in Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Leadership in Management - Essay Example Though nowadays, even this statement can be proved false. I say this because the world, in which we are living, has become so advanced that we can even say that leaders can be made. But we will focus our study on a born leader. He is also known as a synonym for Apple Inc. He is Steve Jobs. Steve Jobs was born in 24th February 1955 in San Francisco. He stayed with his adopted parents since he was born because his own parents never accepted him. So since child hood he had a feeling of abundance, which created the fire within him to become a famous leader one day. Jobs co-founded Apple in his parent’s garage in the year 1976. Though he lost the tussle with the board of director in Apple and had to leave, he did not give up (Northouse, 2009, p. 2-4). He decided to start NeXT computers in 1985, which was acquired by Apple Inc. He had a unique quality from childhood to fight with his situations. So in this case also he never sat back to repent on the bitter experiences that he had i n his life. One of the most important qualities of a leader is to face defeat with a smile on face. Apple computer was in a very difficult position when Steve Jobs joined apple as the interim CEO. In the mean while he also bought Pixar, a computer graphics company in1986. Later Walt Disney bought it from him and Jobs became the highest individual shareholder and one of the board members of Walt Disney. This shows that he was a visionary. He was very well aware of the steps that he took and the results of his decisions. He had an excellent team of employees who gave shape to his dreams. He was a very harsh with his words. At many times he spoke harshly with his employees. But they never left him to go for another job. The employees of Apple Inc. would be welcomed at any big company. But the aura of Jobs was such that 80% of his harsh words were accepted to be true. He was considered to be a charismatic leader (New Charter University, 2012). Steve Jobs introduced a series of new produ cts like the Mac OS X, iTunes, iPod, iPads, and iPhone. He was a perfectionist and he was very clear with his product ideas and their performances in the market. So he always wanted that the best technology offered to the world market should a product from Apple. A true leader not only wants to stay ahead of his group but also ahead of everyone. He has earned a lot of recognition, awards and for his achievements. But the more important fact than this is that he has great leadership qualities which made him stand out from the rest. He entered Apple computers when it was on the verge of closure. He not only revived the company but made it a market leader. A far sighted leader can only perform such miracle. Background Leadership means influencing people. It signifies creating a change in the society and in the minds of people and directs them towards achieving a goal. The person possessing these qualities is considered a leader. A good leader is one who follows his followers as followe rs are those who appreciates the quality of a person and considers him their leader. Leaders do not accept the norms of the society as they are they go against the flow, to set their own path. A leader has certain important leadership traits such integrity, self-confidence, intelligence and determination. Steve Jobs possessed all these qualities. Not only did he possessed them but also utilized them to integrate others too. He was always confident about his innovations, determined that they would do well in the market and he was intelligent enough to shape them also in products. Moreover, he always followed an ethical style. I say this because

Ikea report Essay Example for Free

Ikea report Essay Executive summary This report describes the importance of market research, the target market and market segmentation. How a business can use a situation analysis and SWOT to provide a direction for Ikea. This examines how types of customers and buyer behaviour will impact marketing strategies. Evaluates as a key marketing strategy for Ikea as a case study. Analyses marketing strategies can be used to achieve marketing objectives and describes some ethical and legal things that a business must manage and respond to while marketing. Business Overview Ikea is a well-known global brand with hundreds of stores across the world. In order to improve performance, it must assess its external and competitive environment. This will reveal the key opportunities it can take advantage of and the threats it must deal with. Ikea responds to both internal and external issues in a proactive and dynamic manner by using its strengths and reducing its weaknesses. Through this, Ikea is able to generate the strong growth it needs to retain a strong identity in the market. Ikea’s passion combines design, low prices, economical use of resources, and responsibility for people and the environment. The companys products, processes and systems all demonstrate its environmental stance. For example, clever use of packaging and design means more items can fit into a crate, which means fewer delivery journeys. This in turn reduces Ikeas carbon footprint. Ikea believes that there is no compromise between doing good business and being a good business. It aims to go beyond profitability and reputation. Ikea is intent on becoming a leading example in developing a sustainable business. This will create a better everyday life for its customers. Market research When Ikea conducts market research it is important that the business first determines its information needs. The business should have some idea about the type of information it is looking for. It could vary from customer profiles or brand awareness through to attitudes towards certain new products. Once its information needs are established, the business can determine the most appropriate research method. This is primarily done by IKEA group although individual stores would use sales reports in order to  gather data about the types of customers and popular products that are particular to the area or store. The Target Market The target market is a group of customers for whom a particular product has been developed. The business hopes that these people will buy the product when it is made available in the marketplace. Some products appeal to all consumers, while others have limited appeal. A business needs to understand the nature of consumer markets. The three types of markets Ikea appeals to are Consumer, Mass and niche. The products in Ikea produce are universal to all and with their flat pack design they fall into the niche market. Ikea focuses on meeting the customer demands and satisfying their needs. Ikeas main focus is that of the selling orientation. Market segmentation Market segmentation is the process of breaking down a total market into small markets It allows businesses to focus their efforts and resources on a section of the market. By focusing on a particular target group, It would consider the features that consumers of this target group would be looking for in a product, the appropriate promotional strategies to generate awareness of and sustain interest in the product, and the most suitable pricing policies and distribution channels. Market segmentation and product/service differentiation,Demographic segmentation, dividing consumers into groups based on selected demographics, so that different groups can be treated deferent Situation analysis and SWOT Situation analysis is the way in which a business can examine the current position within the market and provides them with direction for their marketing campaign. SWOT is the first stage of planning and looks at the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats involved in a project or business venture. For example, one of Ikeas key strengths is its strategic aim to use no more material than necessary in the production of each item. One particular table, the NORDEN table, uses knotty birch wood. The knots in this wood usually mean it is rejected by other retailers and manufacturers as unsuitable for use. However, IKEA has made the knots part of its design feature. Types of customers. psychographic segmentation, this is based on lifestyle and personality, values and interest, Ikea does not divide the store into sections but you have to walk through the whole store before you can exit, this is a strategy to sell more products. The types of customers vary from people, households, firms, educational institutions, government, clubs and societies, religious organisations. The customers that account for most of Ikeas sale is the bold customer. Ikea is a business that is not aiming towards a purchase occasion but the usage rate of their product, being household items they aim for their products to last well and function to a good quality standard. Ikea has a good user loyalty with a wide range of buyers from the types of customers. Consumers see how affordable Ikea products are and how well they last, as long as they don’t mind putting the product together. The buying process would not be different from Ikea customers but the free yearly catalogue gives purchasers time to plan a trip to Ikea as the Ikea stores are not usually located conveniently due to the large floor space required to house their product. Ikea stores are not usually located outside the inner metropolitan area for this reason. There are psychological, sociocultural, economic and government reasons why people shop or don’t shop are Psychological segmentation Branding. Ikea is ranking 41 in the world’s most valuable brands. The brand name alone is worth 8 million. The brand image for Ikea stands for affordable, contemporary design and its flat pack product range that gives Ikea its identity. The brand name or logo essentially provides a message to the people of the quality and value associated with that product, when they see it they immediately form judgements on the quality, a strong brand name is essentially enhancing the relationship between a business and its customer. Marketing and strategies Product Ikea’s products are tangible, Product matters because it is the reason that customers go to Ikea in the first place. Ikea has the market in flat pack furniture and the unique design attracts customers and meets their needs, this product could include the prestige of owning the product which would also relate to psychological factors. Place Place matters because it is how the customers access the product. The Ikea experience is more than just products, it is a retail concept laid out in such a way that families, singles, couples etc. can enjoy shopping for furniture. A day at Ikea has been described as more of an outing than a shopping trip. Price Price matters because it is at the heart of the Ikea concept. Flat pack furniture cannot compete on price with upmarket, fully assembled pieces, so it is essential that Ikea continues to keep its prices below the competition. Price including pricing methods, market and competition based, Competition based pricing is the commonly used pricing strategy. Promotion Promotion is the most public aspect of marketing and it matters because it helps to drive customers into the stores in order to buy furniture. Ethical and legal. Ikea is recognised as a business that is both legally and ethically a responsible business that looks beyond profit and develops a positive workforce with these practices, advertising is very powerful in developing the wrong or wright idea and misleading advertising is bad ethics. Developing products in 3rd world country is considered unethical because they get payed well below minimum wage. Ikea produces environmentally responsible products, the flat pack design would be argued that it minimizes wastage and the cardboard would be environmentally friendly. The role of consumer law deals with Deceptive and misleading advertising which could be false information about products features and content, false special offers which don’t exist and  overstating the benefits that a product will provide to the consumer. Price discrimination, giving preference to some retail stores by providing them with lower prices than is offered to the competitors of those retailers. The competitor and consumer act aims to discourage the price discrimination in the business environment. Implied conditions and warranties is a great way for a business to ensure the product will last at least the warrantee time, this attracts customers and the consumer expects the business to fulfill their legal obligation to provide a refund or replacement or the product if there is a manufacturing problem within the warranted date, regardless the business by law. Resale price maintenance, this aims to balance the profit maximization of a business, Ikea ensures that the quality of a product in one country doesn’t differ from another. A manufacturer cannot refuse to sell the goods to a retailor if the retailor intends to sell the product for below the recommended price.