Interview with Zara Dane Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Interview with Zara Dane - Article Example Certainly, the good times will help fuel the writer’s muse, but at the end of the day, the good times tend to swallow up the productive times whole. So, when a friend of mine mentioned that she had knew someone who was a friend of an obscure horror writer, and that she had met with her to discuss her craft, I was envious.And yet, I found myself in just such a situation recently, being given the singular pleasure of meeting with Zara Dane, American ex-pat thriller/horror author extraordinaire, now living in Manchester. I admit, I have certain prejudices. All week, I have been fantasising about what our meeting will hold. Her reputation as a fiction writer who specialises in the horror genre precedes her. Will we meet within the gates of a cemetery at midnight? Am I to expect similarly odd behavior? Will she be†¦a friendly person? The last question is answered after a brief conversation with her on the telephone. My suggestion to meet at a local eatery is turned down, and i nstead I am graciously invited to her home. I’m first met by a small, but beautiful historic two-story in Manchester. Those familiar with Dane’s work are aware of her entrancing way of interweaving beauty, sensuality, innocence and corruption into her tales of murder and mayhem, and her abode certainly gives a very similar impression. Its brick exterior is a warm, but fairly subdued pink, (a tribute to the home she left behind in New Orleans, US) the color of flushed cheeks. Feminine, but not cloyingly so.... This is my first time meeting Zara, and I am instantly captivated by her green eyes and mischievous smile. My first impression upon meeting her is that I have met one who is not really from this planet. Social, hospitable, intelligent, all of these things describe her, but there is somethingwhat is it I leave the outside with its shouting children, scorching asphalt and the smell of heavy, French cooking from nearby restaurants, and enter into a place of coolness, serenity and iced sweet-tea. We settle down on her dark green sofa in preparation for time spent doing a question and answer session, when the ice is very much broken by a loud racket coming from upstairs. Dane excuses herself and takes a moment to shout at her uproarious dog who has been sequestered to one of the upper rooms. A strange mix-the, calm, Victorian surroundings, that one would normally associate with a very buttoned-down, proper personality (and impeccably clean! So much for messy artists) that are the home to this vivacious, creative, almost eccentric, auburn-haired woman who is outfitted entirely in black, right down to her boots. Zara returns, friendly and flustered, and apologises profusely, then offers to refill my tea. I decline, then awkwardly plunge into my first question, considering all of the perversity and horror of your storiesdid you have a normal life growing up Zara laughs. "Oh, my, I guess you could say that. My dad is a lawyer, my mum is a professor. I grew up in a fairly well-to-do neighborhood and attended a horribly competitive private school. I got good grades, was on the swim team and things like that, but I was in a very, very unhealthy situation. I had very caring friends,

The impact of Brand Extension on Brand Personality. Caterpillar and Dissertation

The impact of Brand Extension on Brand Personality. Caterpillar and Burger King - Dissertation Example of Brand Extension of Burger King 34 Table 2: Success of Brand Extension of Caterpillar 35 Table 3: Model Summary of Burger King 36 Table 4: ANOVA and Coefficient Table of Burger King 36 Table 5: Model Summary of Caterpillar 37 Table 6: ANOVA and Coefficient Table of Caterpillar 38 Table 7: T-Test Table 39 Abstract This research investigates the impact of brand extension on the personality of a brand and for this purpose; two companies are selected to conduct this report. One of the companies is Caterpillar and the other is Burger King. This Impact of brand extension can be either negative or positive and this research test out the positive impact or negative impact of the brand extension of these two brands on their brand personality. The main objective of this research is to find the brand extension impact on the brand personality of Caterpillar and Burger King in such a way that each dimension of brand personality compared with the variable of brand extension. The approach that us ed in this research is Quantitative Approach and data is collected with the help of the Survey Questionnaire. The sample size of the research is 50 and respondents are selected from two areas of London that are Edgere and Wembley. The results are tested with the help of SPSS and Regression analysis. It is concluded from the result that the brand extension has a positive impact on the overall brand personality of the any company. The two companies taken in this research have a positive impact on their brand personality due to their brand extension. Chapter One: Introduction 1.1 Background The strategy in which companies bring in products to the marketplace, with which they can make use of an existing brand name, is called brand extension. Brand extension of an existing brand has possible... The paper tells that the strategy in which companies bring in products to the marketplace, with which they can make use of an existing brand name, is called brand extension. Brand extension of an existing brand has possible advantages based on customer awareness and opinions concerning the existing product that is sell under that particular brand name as evaluated to introduce a new brand name. Brand extension is a very important brand approach to make the most of the value of brand influence. Brand extensions and brand personalities have become the most essential research areas since 1990 in the field of brand management. We try to tell the effect of the interaction between brand personality and similarity on brand extension evaluations. The customer’s evaluation for the brand determines the success of that brand. The success of the brand is very unsure and unsuccessful brand extensions can harm the parent brand that results in the significant loss of brand equity. The use of well-known brand names for launching the new product is one of the most commonly in use brand strategies. The brand extensions that are successful, depends on the customers perception of fit or similarity between the new extension and the parent brand. The studies reveal the relations between the parent brands and the extension groups: factors that affect the parent brand will affect the extension as well. Similarly, factors that control the extension group will affect the parent brand. Customers-evaluating brand extensions may modify their core values about parent brands, which may lead to a stronger or weaker brand positioning

Early Childhood Studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Early Childhood Studies - Essay Example This paper stresses that the process of children with special needs is tied with the Reformation of Europe which saw the promotion of childhood as a unique state in a person’s life where s/he has to be segregated and taught things that will be beneficial to him or her in life. The Industrial Revolution did not come up with any rules and regulations that directly affect or influence children with learning disabilities. Thiis report makes a conclusion that the main framework of relevant laws today have its roots in the Education Act 1944 which sought to promote children with special needs’ requirements and their identification. Also, the institution of laws and regulations relating to the identification of children with special needs and helping them got a major boost with the Warnock Report which came up in 1978 and was implemented in the Education Act of 1981. These rules created a framework that supported the medical and physical assessment of children with special needs in order to keep them in special schools. These assessments were regulated and they were given various yardsticks and guidelines. The author approves that these rules were later modified by the Labour Government and this was complemented by the Human Rights Act 1998, which allowed the UK to create rules and regulations that relating to children with special needs that was in sync with the existing regulations. The SEN And Disability Act of 2001 was complemented by the 2004 SEN Strategy that was meant to remove barriers towards achievement and enhance investments into various charitable organisations that were focused on persons with disabilities.

The Darwinian Principles of Adaptation and Natural Selection Research Paper

The Darwinian Principles of Adaptation and Natural Selection - Research Paper Example The computer Industry has experienced an extraordinary dynamic rate of change. Some of the mighty pioneers of the industry such as IBM and newcomers like Compaq have suffered through their failure to keep up with drastic technology and market change. However, in 1990 Hewlett Packard has changed tack. It has recognized and even anticipated profound changes in the distribution channels through which competitors sell. Hewlett Packard used to sell around a dozen state-of-art measuring devices each month to highly sophisticated specialists. Now it controls the largest market share in LaserJet and distributes to mail order workhouse allover the world. It has become an adaptive Paragon. Social changes reflect in terms of people’s aspirations, needs, and way of working. Social changes have taken place because of the several forces like the level of education, urbanization, feeling of autonomy and international impact due to new information sources. These social changes affect the beha viour of people in the organization. Political and legal factors broadly define the activities, which an organisation can undertake, and the methods, which will follow by it, is accomplishing those activities. Any change in these Political and legal factors may affect the organizational operation. While assessing change forces, in a group process, there are some forces favouring and some opposing to maintain equilibrium. He assumes that in any situation there are both driving and retaining forces which influence any change that may occur. Action for change comprises three stages unfreezing, changing, and refreezing.

Ethics Challenge and Communicating in Practice Essay

Ethics Challenge and Communicating in Practice - Essay Example A budgetary slack is a premeditated allowance for excess spending as overstated expenses or understated income (Stevens 1). Atkins and Granger make liberal use of this budget-making technique when making sales and expense projections. Budgetary slacks alleviate the effects of deviations if they occur. A more shifty use of the technique is to make it easier for managers to achieve targets, especially where sales performance results in bonuses and appraisals (Stevens 1).   In the case of Atkins and Granger, altered projections can result in less motivation to achieve more in their areas of responsibility as they can alter the figures to give the impression that they are performing beyond the projections. On another note, if the two staff can alter the financial figures at will, then there is a serious risk of the pair falsifying account figures to serve selfish interests (Stevens 1). The Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) requires its members behave ethically, and in ways that are responsible, honest, fair, and objective (IMA 1). IMA categorically opposes the use of confidential information for unethical and illegal motives. Overall, management accountants should cultivate restraint in situations that pose conflicting interests. IMA also requires that management accountants evade activities such as the budgetary slack that may jeopardize efficient execution of some activities. A budgetary slack presents ample opportunities for information asymmetry (Stevens 1).  

Strategy and Competition of Swissair Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Strategy and Competition of Swissair - Essay Example The rapid expansion which was supposed to bring Swissair out of its financial worries only served to make the situation worse eventually leading to liquidity problems for the company. Further, the manner in which Swissair spent money and made investments clearly shows that the management often had other interests in mind rather than the best interests of the company. Â  The SWOT Analysis of the company shows that while the strengths of the business were exploited, the weaknesses and were not accounted for and those weaknesses eventually led to the threats to the company becoming realities. The SWOT analysis created with the information presented in the case study shows the elements as follows. Â  Porter’s 5 Forces shows an interesting picture for the airline industry and it is clear that it is not easy to be a new entrant into a market which is dominated by heavy competition and rising costs. Profit margins for many airlines are becoming thinner as fuel costs and taxes are increased internationally which means the only determinant of new entrants is how easy or difficult it is for them to secure significant lines of capital. Even with price competition, an airline which has a strong brand name might be able to charge a premium for the same services as other airlines. Getting that brand name, however, requires continued service quality and a long history of excellence. The power of suppliers is also quite high since Boeing and Airbus dominate the supply side while the power of the buyers is quite low with regard to them simply needing planes if they are to call themselves as an airline. The threat of substitutes becomes low when we consider international travel but it remains quite high when local and regional travel is considered.

'Can managers influence the culture of their organizations Discuss Essay

'Can managers influence the culture of their organizations Discuss with reference to at least one example.' - Essay Example Organisational culture can be a source of competitive advantage for a company. Leadership style is one the determinants of organisational culture and it can influence various dimensions of organisational culture. Managers, executives, board of directors and the people who can lead the organisations to achieve the set directions are the leaders and they have potential to influence the culture of organisations. The aim of this essay is to determine whether managers influence the culture of organisations or not, if yes, then how? Early researchers have always been interested to determine the role of managers in organisations. Most of them have studied the impact of organisational culture on effectiveness of managers. Ghiat and Willey conducted a study in which they explored the ineffectiveness of organisations in Algeria as a result of influence of personalities and styles of managers. Their findings depict that effectiveness of managers is determined by the local culture in which organ isation is set (Davies, 1989, pp.26). The competition among the businesses and organisations is increasing and today leaders appear to the major assets for organisations which have the potential to influence the organisations. ... managers) are responsible to shape the culture (Ambler, 2009). It is the influence of the managers on the organisational culture, which makes them the change agents in organisations. Managers face the challenge to determine the most effective culture for organisations and how to effectively change the culture (Baker, 2002). Baker argues that it is the responsibility of managers to ensure the existing culture of organisation relevant to present and future while ensuring some continuity with the past. The example of WMATA shows the importance of a manager in an organisation and what problems an organisation can face when a manager fails to support the organisational culture. Governor of WMATA Board, O’Malley has announced that WMATA is planning to keep Richard Sarles as an interim General Manager/Chief Executive Officer of company rather than permanent GM (Alpert, 2011). Actually the company has been facing cultural issues such as administrative structure of organisation has bec ome very strict, departments do not communicate with each other, skilled change agents are lacking the ability to achieve important tasks and employee turnover has increased. Sarles is the General Manager of company and he has been more involved in making relations with local officials and bodies and he has also launched a track progress report system however, he has been unable to solve the issues which company is facing. Moreover, the culture of company has been transformed into a secretive culture with poor relationships with press. Therefore, company is considering Sarles as an interim manager for a few years because he is already at retirements and company