Monday, September 30, 2019

Literature review †Anxiety and Depression in the Workplace Essay

Emotional concerns in the workplace are a considerable loss to employee’s health and welfare. They slow down the performance of employee and so they are harmful to the organisational well-being as well. This literature review would put forward a concise introduction on the two frequently occurring emotional concerns in the workplace: anxiety and depression. Anxiety and depression are a usual and adaptive reaction to the individual who is undergoing such emotional problems in our surroundings. They are a normal part of life, and would take place at any time when there are considerable positive or negative changes in one’s life. In general, it is believed that some of the anxiety and depression are challenging and positive one but some are negative where the individuals feel difficult to handle it. Anxiety and depression would take place in personal life as well as work life. This literature review is mainly focused on how an employee who is suffering from anxiety and depression should behave and at the same time how managers should handle the situations when his/her employee is suffering from anxiety and depression. Analyzations and insinuations of such emotional problems are discussed in this review. Moreover, this literature review is endowed with sensible understanding in support of recognizing and dealing with the anxiety and depression in the workplace. This review also focuses on the role of manager as supporter to the employees by taking necessary initiative steps to decrease the possibilities of anxiety and depression in the workplace. Defining Depression and Anxiety: Defining the term ‘depression’ is very complex because of the involvement of intrinsic uncertainty. According to , ‘ depression can be witnessed as a condition of mood, as a special symptom manifesting itself in many different mental disorders, as a syndrome measured by depression rating scales, and as a clinical diagnosis operationalised in diagnostic classifications’. (Weiten, 2001) and (Barlow, 2005), who are the psychology book writers, highlighted the debilitating effect that depression has on an individual which was agreed by different researchers and scholars. Through his findings, Blair stated that depression is severely debilitating and the most common mental health disorder affecting society. This was further detailed in 2000 by Akiskal that irregular depressive mood experienced as low spirits, dejection, and sadness can be a normal reaction to disappointments, adversities, and losses and should be differentiated from depressive disorders, which represent actual psychological illness and are often accompanied by distinct impairment of psychological, somatic, and social functioning . Bender and Furman agreed with Blair and came to the conclusion in 2003 that depression was found to probably be incurable and had raised to become the world’s number one public health problem. An American judge held that depression is a misleading term for an extremely debilitating illness. (Seligman, et al.,) defined anxiety as â€Å" psychological and physiological state characterized by by somatic, emotional, cognitive, and behavioral components†. Davison stated that â€Å"it is the displeasing feeling of fear and concern† . Depression and Anxiety in the work place: In the present status of the economy, anxiety and depression in the workplace are the rising concerns where the employees are facing more and more situations of work overload, no job safety, no job satisfaction, and lack of self-sufficiency. Depression has significant economic impacts relative to lost productivity within the workplace . Workplace anxiety and depression have been exposed to have unfavorable impacts on employees’ health, well-being, workplace productivity, absenteeism, and workplace performance. Lost productivity involves presenteeism, in which the employee is present in the work setting but productivity is reduced due to health concerns or depressive symptoms, or in terms of absenteeism from work . Anxiety normally occurs when an individual senses that he/she is just going to face some circumstances on which he/she will not have control and ability to manage the situations. Particularly, workplace is the main ground where such situations happen to occur. Changes in the company such as restructurings, amalgamations and change in company policies are quite common incidents which take place in an organisation are some of the source anxiety. Now a day’s most of the organisations are trying to cut off their personnel to the least by putting more pressure on employees and overloading them with more work than their capacity to handle are also one of the main cause of anxiety. In workplace, employees are likely to suffer from anxiety in the following situations; when dealing with austere managers, when there are possibilities of downgrading, being tensed whether they can get their job task completed on time, Panic of getting terminated from their job In any organisations, there are certain existing rules, regulations and company policies which all the employees are enforced to stick on to. At times, these systems of the company can also cause anxiety and depression to an employee when there is some clash of pursuits between acting based on what he/she thinks is right and what the current system of the company states. Moreover, this situation can be pointed up further when the employees have to pact with customers or with the bond with their colleagues. Generally all the employees try to relieve their own anxiety and depression either by adjusting with their work environment or by resigning their job. To overcome such situations, individuals as well as organisations can take some initiative steps to ease the harmful impacts of anxiety and depression, or to prevent it from coming up in the initial stage. Effect of Depression and Anxiety: The course of adjustment to work environment results in employees’ anxiety and depression. Workplace stress is usually caused by employees’ acuity about their position in the organisation and includes the role of variance and role of vagueness. An employee’s perception of his/ her position in the workplace comes up from the job designation, interpersonal bond models, as well as from the emotion of discreteness and relation to others. Workplace depression states several behavior performance and behavioral shortfalls of an individual in the workplace (Lerner, et al., 2004; National Institute of Mental Health, 2011; Wallace, 2011; Wang et al., 2008). An employee who is suffering from anxiety and depression is affected psychologically, physiologically, cognitively. Some of the psychological effects are aggressiveness, evading societal situations, tapered forbearance to hand stress, loosing temper, becoming impatient deprived motor control. Physiologically, employee can suffer from fast heart beating, clammy hands, often headaches, muscle inflexibleness and aches, difficulties in breathing, indigestion, high blood pressure, frequent mood swings, change in eating habits, falling sick regularly and changes in weight. Anxiety would cognitively affect an individual’s capability of focusing, memory power and motor skills. Sometimes, an individual may not recall the names of the person whom he/she know or fails to remember what task he/she wanted to do. Depression and anxiety in the workplace would even effect the organisation in terms of financial loss. It was anticipated that 12 billion dollars was lost by the business and industry from lost output, 12 billion dollars was lost from non-attendance, for direct treatment costs business lost 26.1 billion dollars, and 5.4 billion dollars was lost due to death (Greenberg, et al., 2003; Lerner, et al., 2004). How employees should control their anxiety and depression? There are more possibilities of retaining the talents and experiences of the depressed employee for the organisations, if he/ she takes break for sometime from the work and then return back in a suitable and meaningful role. This would also decrease the possibilities of such occurrence of such situations. Every employee should know how to identify the situations of anxiety and depression and need to make use of personal coping strategies and develop. Employee can use the following methods in coping with their stress ; Meditating – learning Yoga Laughing therapy Spending some time in their hobbies on regular basis Sharing of feelings with their close ones Relaxation techniques – profound breathing, progressive relaxation, listening to relaxation music, massage therapy and hot baths Maintaining balanced diet Depressed employees need enough sleep Avoid consuming caffeine Exercising or joining in dance, swimming classes etc. These techniques will help in muscles relaxing; slowing down the heart beats and reduce emotional problems. This will also help them to concentrate and focus on things and manage anxiety and depression without any difficulty. Role of Organisation as supporters: First of all, the organisation should concentrate on the following question to determine where they are going wrong. i. Is there any circumstance that triggers employees’ anxiety in the workplace? ii. Is there any changes taking place in the organisation frequently? iii. Do the new rules and policies are threatening the employees? iv. Is there any terminations frequently done in the company that trigger the anxiety level of the employees? Successful organisations would assist their employees to defy the bigger demands, reduce their panics and negative levels in the market and the country as a whole. To overcome the emotional problems of the employees, the organisation should start implementing some strategies that can be useful in reducing the effect of depression and anxiety. The approaches are as follows; Company should allow the employer and employees to informal and frank communications so that both can have an opportunity of expressing any apprehensions. Company should have the best policies and procedures in the workplace ensuring the employees’ well-being. Company should send a message stating its support for each employee’s emotional concerns to all the employees. Organisation should aware of the work pressures handled by the employees, percentage of absenteeism and employees’ illness. They should also review their present policies and systems and indentify the positives and negatives of the same so as to change the policies suitable to the organisation. They should implement mental health policy which shows the commitment of the employer of taking care of all the employees who work for the organisation. This will prove that organisation identifies and agrees to the importance of psychological issues of the employees. Companies should make sure that all the employees feel their importance in the organisation and accept them as a part of the organisation. This will also help to reduce the stress level of the employee. They should implement management training and development with regards to anxiety and depression in the workplace. Training should be provided to employees about anxiety and depression. They should learn to identify the symptoms of depression on their own.. This will indeed help the employee’s to know recognise their problem at ease and prevent the circumstances before getting poorer. Manager should also be trained about depression and anxiety so as to be aware about the behavioural changes in the depressed and anxious employees and provide them assistance when need. To decease the situations of depression and anxiety among the employees, quite a lot of researchers have shown that organisations that implement training approaches to the managers tend to avoid practicing the following; Setting unrealistic short task deadlines Giving multifaceted job tasks to the employees without decision making authority Giving repetitive and tedious jobs only to the employee who is capable to doing thing much more than it Deprived management practices where managers are not supportive to the employees and takes unfair decisions. Not giving recognition and not congratulating for good tasks achieved by the employees Organisation should focus on employee engagement; implement programmes like Employee Assistance Programme (EAP), Stress Management Programme. Role of Employers as supporters: Different people are affected by depression and anxiety in different ways. Some people who experience anxiety or depression would manage to handle the situation and would continue with their work. But some people would definitely need a break. In such situations, there should be someone in the organisation to support the employee to return back to the workplace and this is possible only by the employers. Employers are required to realise the basis of such type of psychological problems, prevention of such emotional problems, and the array and efficiency of different treatments related to such problems. Employees can improve their performance of the work with the correct extent of anxiety. But if employee’s level of anxiety goes beyond the right extent, then there are possibilities of interference of anxiety with the employees’ performance of the work and their efficiency level. Employers are required to be familiar with various levels of anxiety or depression to facilitate the employees’ with an atmosphere that brings out their most excellent performances. How to identify anxiety or depression in the workplace? Employers should be conscious of the symptoms of depression and anxiety in the workplace. They should also try to identify the changes in the behavioral aspects of their employees. Some of the symptoms are as follows ; Irreconcilable or decreased productivity, Absenteeism, unpunctuality, or often nonappearance in the job site, Increased mistakes, decreased work excellence, Postponement, failure to reach targets, Extraction from collaboration, teamwork, or unnecessary arguments with colleagues, Over perceptive, over-responsive feelings, Becoming too besieged to work, Showing less interest in the work, Decreased work performance or deliberation procedures, Problems in focusing or recalling work responsibilities, Exhaustion and diminished energy level, Lessened attention, and Impaired educational and professional achievement How employers should deal with depressed or anxious employees? Employers should follow the below steps to deal with depressed or anxious employees. They should try to get some knowledge in regards to anxiety and depression, so as to obtain some ideas on what type of emotional problems the employees are undergoing and in what way they can support them. If the employees hesitate to respond to the questions, the employers should lend a hand to them to bring out their fears by showing care and supporting them. This would help to decrease their level of anxiety. Once the feasible ideas are identified, they should have informal meetings with their employees; listen to their problems and determine how to help them and offer support and encourage to them completely. Employees’ feels that their experiences are sensible. If they feel that they are depressed due to particular work related problems, then the employers should try to listen to their views in a laissez-faire manner and take action aptly. If any employee is acts in a different way, then the employer as well as co-workers should keep in mind that this is an outcome of his/her ill health and understand that it is not their fault. While taking these steps, it is the responsibility of the employers to maintain confidentiality about the health issues of depressed employee from other employees. Employers should inform other staffs in case of any changes in the work allocations without letting down the privacy of depressed employee. This would reduce the possibility of tittle-tattle among the other employees. Employers should be in contact with the employees when they are absent to the work and they can also provide a chance to them to present their views on tasks that are likely to happen in the office, in spite of their absence. They should provide them assistance personally and practically. For example, take them out with other staffs after office hours, encouraging them in their work, advising them eat well, inviting them to have lunch together. Employers should try to make their employees to feel more comfortable in the workplace by inviting them as well in the meetings, work related societal events to support them for speedy recovery from depression and anxiety. All the above steps would help the employee to get rid of their depression and anxiety and concentrate on their work. This will also help the employee to increase their motivation level and self esteem. Moreover, these steps will also help the managers and the organisation to be successful by increase in productivity and company profits. Conclusion: Various finding proves that depression and anxiety has negative impacts on individual, as well as organizations. This impact continues to be raising concern in the economy. Most of the people who are suffering from depression are working without taking any breaks with the anxiety of being terminated. Some try to control their depression by the awareness. Either directly or indirectly, depression has been the reason for many death by high blood pressure, heart attacks etc. Most of the workers are suffering physically and emotionally in the workplace due to harmful workplace atmosphere. From this literature review it is proved that these situations can be managed by individuals or by the management or by the organisation to reduce the psychological illness of the employees. Changes should be done from the hierarchy level and hence it is essential for the managers to identify that they have moral responsibility and authority to protect the physical and mental health of their employees . If the organisations follow the strategies and approaches mentioned in this literature review that and prevent employee from the emotional problems, facilitate required treatment, then the company can increase the net gains in productivity. References 1. Canadian Mental Health Association. (2009). Coping with too much stress. Retrieved 2012, from http://cmhanl.ca/education/publications/cwtms/index.php. 2. Angela, S. (2010). Anxiety and Stress: How Poor Performance and Absenteeism Affect the Workplace. Florida, USA: Dissertation.com. 3. Akiskal, H. S. (2000). Mood disorders: clinical features. In B. J. Sadock, & V. A. Sadock, Comprehensive textbook of psychiatry (7 ed., Vol. 1, pp. 1338–1377). Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. 4. Barlow, D. H., & Durand, M. V. (2005). Abnormal Psychology: An Integrative Approach. 5. Bender, A. (2009). Depression in the workplace: Recognition and response. Benefits Canada 33 , 41. 6. Bender, K., & Furman, R. (2003). The Social Problem of Depression: A Multi-theoretical Analysis. 30 Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare , 123 . 7. Blair, D. A. (1999). Employees Suffering from Bipolar Disorder or Clinical Depression: Fighting an Uphill Battle for Protection Under Title 1 of the Americans with Disabilities Act. 12 Seton Hall Law Review , 1347. 8. Clark, J. (2002). Stress: A management guide. London: Spiro Press. 9. Cox, A. A., Ness, K. M., & Carlson, R. F. (2010). International perspectives on depression in the workplace. Retrieved 2012, from http://counselingoutfitters.com/vistas/vistas10/Article_04.pdf. 10. Cox, A. N. (2008). Depression in the workplace. Retrieved from VISTAS 2008 Online: http://counselingoutfitters.com/vistas/vistas08/Cox.htm 11. Davison, G. C. (2008). Abnormal Psychology. Toronto: Veronica Visentin. 12. Eyers, K., & Parker, G. (2011). Tackling Depression At Work: A Practical Guide for Employees and Managers. New York: Routledge. 13. Frew, J. (2004). Motivating and leading dysfunctional employees. In J. C. Thomas, & M. Hersen (Eds.), Psychopathology in the workplace: Recognition and adaptation (pp. 293-311). New York: Brunner-Routledge. 14. Greenberg, P. E., Kessler, R. C., Birnbaum, H. G., Leong, S. A., Lowe, S. W., Berglund, P. A., et al. (2003). The economic burden of depression in the United States: How did it change between 1990 and 2000? Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 64 , 1465-1475. 15. Healey, J. (2006). Anxiety and depression. Thirroul, N.S.W.: Spinney Press. 16. Hayes, J. (2011). Dealing with Anxiety and Depression in the Workplace. Retrieved 2012, from http://www.ibectraining.ie/IBEC/Training/IBECTAD.nsf /vPages/Information_Centr

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Brothers Grimm

Intro: Fairy tales are things we know to be true. We are believed that if we have a hard life to grow into, a â€Å"prince† one day will come and give us a kiss and make it all better. â€Å"bring us back to life† if you will, as we grow up we open our eyes to the possibility of landing flat on our face and throwing up a poisonous apple and dealing with life on our own before our â€Å"prince† comes to save us. Thesis: Betrayal and Jealousy may throw a pity party for the step-mother. The betrayal of a husband and insecurities in yourself will bring out the worst in you.Meaning of the poem: The poem â€Å"The Envious Heart† was written by Helane Levine Keating, was written in inspiration by the quote portraying the tale of Snow White, by the Brothers Grimm, â€Å"Then her envious heart had rest, so far as an envious heart can have rest. † written by the Brothers Grimm. This poem is how negativity ruins us all. How broken promises and wanting to be en ough of something or perfect at anything will destroy our once kind hearts. As betrayal was showed in the quote â€Å"He said he rarely saw her, although she was his daughter. Giving a fair meaning of how she thought it would just be her king and her and no one would interfere, her jealousy was shown when she stated â€Å"When they're together she's his queen, the black-eyed slut, calling him daddy. † letting the worse of her become her words. The mirror held great representation throughout the poem, she said that the mirror made her feel invincible; all she sees in the mirror is â€Å"her sneering face, her wide lips mimicking mine. † No matter how pretty the step mother may have been she never acknowledged herself but rather the step daughter.She felt disrespected and less then what the king had promised her. She was a step mother coming into a new family and her insecurities ate at her until it became her. To better understand where she is coming from, I’ll tell you about the Brothers Grimm version of Snow White. The Brothers Grimm story of â€Å"Snow White† tells a tale about a queen’s wish for blood red lips, black as ebony hair and white as snow skin. Sadly after her wish was granted, the Queen and newly mother passed away. Her kind married a new queen after a year of her death. The new queen who could not tolerate anyone else who might rival her beauty†. The story shows a mirror which claimed to be magical. â€Å"Mirror, mirror on the wall, who in this realm is the fairest of them all. † which would make her so happy when the mirror replied with â€Å"You, my queen are the fairest of them all. † The Brothers Grimm, Snow White's step mother grew so much hate towards her step daughter and the envy in her heart â€Å"grew so dense that she no longer had any peace, day or night†, she hired a huntsman to kill her, and that huntsman who didn't want to kill, let Snow White go as she promised to nev er go home.That's where in the tale the seven dwarfs come in. Snow White found their home and stayed in the seventh dwarf’s bed. When they found her they were stunned by her beauty, Snow White told them about the huntsman trying to kill her and of her step mother. So the dwarfs told her to be their house lady, doing all their chores (Cooking and cleaning) the secrets of her life was kept. Until her step mother asked her â€Å"Magical mirror†, if she was pretty and it replied â€Å"†¦ eyond the mountains, where the seven dwarfs swell, Snow White is thriving, and this I must tell: Within this realm, she's still a thousand times more fair† leading the step mother to set out to kill Snow White once and for all. She disguised herself and sold a lace to Snow White, and then tied the lace around Snow White; she tied it so tight Snow White fell down as if dead. When the dwarfs found her later on, they untied her lace and Snow White began to breathe again.The queen found out from her â€Å"Magical mirror† that Snow White recovered and thought of another plan to rid of her. She got a combed and made it poisonous. She went out to the house once more and set out to comb Snow White's hair. Snow White fell unconscious. When the dwarfs came back and saw her they removed the comb from her hair and Snow White lived. Once again the queen asked her mirror and once again Snow White was the fairest. Finally, leading to the famous poisonous apple.Leading to Snow White's death and her Magical Mirror finally said â€Å"You, my queen are the fairest of them all. † The dwarfs set up a grave above the ground. Clear so, that everyone could see and her name in gold with â€Å"princess† written on it, the placed it at the top of the mountain. Many years passed and it looked like Snow White was only sleeping. Later a prince found her, saw her beauty and had to have her. While his servants were transporting her back to his kingdom the piece of a pple stuck in her throat fell out and she was unpoisioned, and alive.The prince rushed by her side and told her his love for her. They got married and at their wedding, the step mother put on these shoes that made her dance until she fell down dead. The Brothers Grimm's version of Snow White starts off so similar in comparison to Snow White the Walt Disney adaptation. I mean it sounds familiar right? Snow White and the 7 dwarfs, step mother obsessed with being the â€Å"fairest of them all†, there's a difference between the â€Å"love will solve everything† we were all told to believe in and the story written by the Brothers Grimm.In Disney, the prince kisses her and they all live happily ever after. This poem is a representation on the story, but in a different point of view, see; the story that has always been told weather it's the Grimm Brothers or the Walt Disney story the step mother is the villain. Yet in this poem you see more than the one sentence of â€Å"a y ear later, the king married a new queen†. You see the jealousy for Snow White in a different light and betrayal from the king.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Benefits and challenges of labour migration

The countries in question can be classified according to their status as sending or receiving country in correspondence to their level of social and economic development. Workers move between them, cascading from poorer to richer countries. In each of the countries, they mainly take jobs in labour-intensive sectors with low skill requirements and low pay. These are most of all construction, agriculture, hotel and catering as well as domestic services. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Migrants defines a migrant worker as a â€Å"person who is to be engaged, is engaged or has been engaged in a remunerated activity in a state of which he or she is not a resident†. But there is considerable conceptual difficulty in defining a migrant. Migration of labourer takes different forms. In one end, the place of working and residence of the labourer may be different, and the distance covered by daily commuting. At the other end, the worker’s may move permanently from their places of birth or usual place of residence, maintaining little or no contact with their places of origin. Between these two ends, people move away for differing periods of time. Based on how long they are away from their place of origin, the migrants are distinguished as ‘permanent’, ‘semi-permanent’ and ‘temporary’. Labour migration belongs to temporary migration, which is likely to stay away from their places of origin for more than a few months in a year. The temporary migrants are also known as ‘short duration’ migrants, ‘seasonal’ migrants or ‘circulatory’ migrants. The decision to migrate for economic reasons can have both positive and negative consequences. Migrants may secure a better income, have access to better social services, and be able to provide a better education for their children or benefit from the enrichment of becoming a member of a transnational community at ease in different cultures. However, migration may also cause family disruption when family members have to stay behind, and may involve sacrificing a familiar lifestyle and becoming a â€Å"stranger† in a new country. The complexity of the present day migration stream has intensified with distinctions between migrant workers, trainees, tourists, refugees and displaced persons becoming increasingly blurred. The term â€Å"migrants† appears to be broader than the term ‘migrant workers’ and is increasingly used in international discussions of human rights. The traditional explanation of migration as a movement from poor to rich nations is too simplified. There are both economic and non-economic factors affecting these flows. International migration has contributed to growth and prosperity in both host and source countries. Migrant worker remittances represent the second largest international monetary trade flow, exceeded only by petroleum. Migrants also provide a valuable source of semi-skilled and unskilled labour to many industrialising countries and provide a source of highly skilled labour to advanced countries, thereby assisting the latter in maintaining economic competitiveness. Labour migration policies differ from other migration policies directed at migration flows that may also have an impact on labour markets, for example refugee and family reunification, in the sense that they do not have humanitarian objectives but apply economic criteria with a view to responding to labour market needs. Governments at all points on the migration spectrum increasingly recognize the potential of regulatory mechanisms to maximize the positive impact of labour migration. Many sending and receiving countries are developing their regulatory capacities to manage labour mobility by considering the interests of respective governments, societies, and the migrant. Positive tensions for receiving countries: raise total output and incomes in the rich, host countries; increase efficiency in the use of the world’s resources all around, in rich and poor countries; increase the supply of entrepreneurship and stimulate the creation of small business; increase savings, investment, and human capital formation in the rich countries; accelerate the pace of innovation; increase the flow of remittances to poor countries; alleviate the economic problems associated with the aging population in rich countries. Globalization is a major driving force of international labour migration. Globalization has made migration much easier through better communications, dissemination of information through mass media and improved transport. Countries are at different stages of demographic transition, with developing countries typically having younger populations than developed countries. One of the most frequently cited costs of migration is so-called ‘brain drain’ — the loss of educated workers with valuable skills, which can impose large losses on governments that bear the costs of education and training. Brain drain is potentially a concern for all economies, both developing and developed, with some developed economies experiencing significant rates of skilled emigration. The greatest global concern in the area of international labour migration is the unprecedented rise in irregular forms of migration that has occurred in recent years. The numbers of unauthorized migrant workers are increasing in virtually every part of the world. A large proportion of labour migration occurs illegally, aided and abetted by a clandestine and often criminal industry. Increasingly, governments of both sending and receiving countries are developing regulatory mechanisms to manage labour migration. These include selective recruitment policies by countries needing labour, and strong marketing and overseas employment strategies by countries supplying labour. Migrant workers benefit host countries in a number of ways. The overall economic impact of all migrant workers to the UK for example suggests that they make a positive net contribution of around  £2.5 billion to the public accounts. There are huge implications for sending countries as a result of out-migration, the most crucial of which are the loss of expertise and skills. This brain drain is particularly acute in developing countries, especially where the move abroad is permanent. Public services, such as health, education and social services, are losing large numbers of skilled workers to migration. Structural changes and decreasing investment in the public sector has increased the pressure on public sector workers to migrate, as shown by trends in the health and education sectors. Although many economic migrants work in relatively low-paid jobs they regularly send money home to their families and relatives. However, it is difficult to estimate the scale of these remittances to sending countries because of the often informal manner in which they are returned, but there is little doubt that they contribute to the national income of the countries involved, and act as a stimulus to longer-term economic growth. Migrant workers who return home bring experience and knowledge from working in another country. This benefits the home country as a whole by adding to its pool of talented workers, particularly where the skills are relevant to the needs of the home economy and the migrant workers are willing to use them upon return. It also benefits the individual worker who will have developed through contact with people possessing a range of human, intellectual and professional skills. Access to educational and language courses in the host country should open up opportunities for career promotion at home and assist the personal development of each worker. Bibliography International Organisation for Migration. 2005. World Migration 2005. Costs and Benefits of International Migration. Kothari, U. (2002). Migration and chronic poverty. Chronic Poverty Research Centre. Institute for Development Policy and Management. University of Manchester. Working Paper No. 16. Linard, Andre. (1998). Migration and globalization: The new slaves. Brussels: ICFTU, July. Stalker, Peter. (2000). Workers without frontiers: The impact of globalization on international migration. International Labour Office, Geneva. World Economic and Social Survey. (2004). International migration trends Chapter11. World Health Organisation. Health and Human Rights Publications Series. Issue No.4 (December 2003). International Migration, Health and Human Rights. Benefits and challenges of labour migration The countries in question can be classified according to their status as sending or receiving country in correspondence to their level of social and economic development. Workers move between them, cascading from poorer to richer countries. In each of the countries, they mainly take jobs in labour-intensive sectors with low skill requirements and low pay. These are most of all construction, agriculture, hotel and catering as well as domestic services. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Migrants defines a migrant worker as a â€Å"person who is to be engaged, is engaged or has been engaged in a remunerated activity in a state of which he or she is not a resident†. But there is considerable conceptual difficulty in defining a migrant. Migration of labourer takes different forms. In one end, the place of working and residence of the labourer may be different, and the distance covered by daily commuting. At the other end, the worker’s may move permanently from their places of birth or usual place of residence, maintaining little or no contact with their places of origin. Between these two ends, people move away for differing periods of time. Based on how long they are away from their place of origin, the migrants are distinguished as ‘permanent’, ‘semi-permanent’ and ‘temporary’. Labour migration belongs to temporary migration, which is likely to stay away from their places of origin for more than a few months in a year. The temporary migrants are also known as ‘short duration’ migrants, ‘seasonal’ migrants or ‘circulatory’ migrants. The decision to migrate for economic reasons can have both positive and negative consequences. Migrants may secure a better income, have access to better social services, and be able to provide a better education for their children or benefit from the enrichment of becoming a member of a transnational community at ease in different cultures. However, migration may also cause family disruption when family members have to stay behind, and may involve sacrificing a familiar lifestyle and becoming a â€Å"stranger† in a new country. The complexity of the present day migration stream has intensified with distinctions between migrant workers, trainees, tourists, refugees and displaced persons becoming increasingly blurred. The term â€Å"migrants† appears to be broader than the term ‘migrant workers’ and is increasingly used in international discussions of human rights. The traditional explanation of migration as a movement from poor to rich nations is too simplified. There are both economic and non-economic factors affecting these flows. International migration has contributed to growth and prosperity in both host and source countries. Migrant worker remittances represent the second largest international monetary trade flow, exceeded only by petroleum. Migrants also provide a valuable source of semi-skilled and unskilled labour to many industrialising countries and provide a source of highly skilled labour to advanced countries, thereby assisting the latter in maintaining economic competitiveness. Labour migration policies differ from other migration policies directed at migration flows that may also have an impact on labour markets, for example refugee and family reunification, in the sense that they do not have humanitarian objectives but apply economic criteria with a view to responding to labour market needs. Governments at all points on the migration spectrum increasingly recognize the potential of regulatory mechanisms to maximize the positive impact of labour migration. Many sending and receiving countries are developing their regulatory capacities to manage labour mobility by considering the interests of respective governments, societies, and the migrant. Positive tensions for receiving countries: raise total output and incomes in the rich, host countries; increase efficiency in the use of the world’s resources all around, in rich and poor countries; increase the supply of entrepreneurship and stimulate the creation of small business; increase savings, investment, and human capital formation in the rich countries; accelerate the pace of innovation; increase the flow of remittances to poor countries; alleviate the economic problems associated with the aging population in rich countries. Globalization is a major driving force of international labour migration. Globalization has made migration much easier through better communications, dissemination of information through mass media and improved transport. Countries are at different stages of demographic transition, with developing countries typically having younger populations than developed countries. One of the most frequently cited costs of migration is so-called ‘brain drain’ — the loss of educated workers with valuable skills, which can impose large losses on governments that bear the costs of education and training. Brain drain is potentially a concern for all economies, both developing and developed, with some developed economies experiencing significant rates of skilled emigration. The greatest global concern in the area of international labour migration is the unprecedented rise in irregular forms of migration that has occurred in recent years. The numbers of unauthorized migrant workers are increasing in virtually every part of the world. A large proportion of labour migration occurs illegally, aided and abetted by a clandestine and often criminal industry. Increasingly, governments of both sending and receiving countries are developing regulatory mechanisms to manage labour migration. These include selective recruitment policies by countries needing labour, and strong marketing and overseas employment strategies by countries supplying labour. Migrant workers benefit host countries in a number of ways. The overall economic impact of all migrant workers to the UK for example suggests that they make a positive net contribution of around  £2.5 billion to the public accounts. There are huge implications for sending countries as a result of out-migration, the most crucial of which are the loss of expertise and skills. This brain drain is particularly acute in developing countries, especially where the move abroad is permanent. Public services, such as health, education and social services, are losing large numbers of skilled workers to migration. Structural changes and decreasing investment in the public sector has increased the pressure on public sector workers to migrate, as shown by trends in the health and education sectors. Although many economic migrants work in relatively low-paid jobs they regularly send money home to their families and relatives. However, it is difficult to estimate the scale of these remittances to sending countries because of the often informal manner in which they are returned, but there is little doubt that they contribute to the national income of the countries involved, and act as a stimulus to longer-term economic growth. Migrant workers who return home bring experience and knowledge from working in another country. This benefits the home country as a whole by adding to its pool of talented workers, particularly where the skills are relevant to the needs of the home economy and the migrant workers are willing to use them upon return. It also benefits the individual worker who will have developed through contact with people possessing a range of human, intellectual and professional skills. Access to educational and language courses in the host country should open up opportunities for career promotion at home and assist the personal development of each worker. Bibliography International Organisation for Migration. 2005. World Migration 2005. Costs and Benefits of International Migration. Kothari, U. (2002). Migration and chronic poverty. Chronic Poverty Research Centre. Institute for Development Policy and Management. University of Manchester. Working Paper No. 16. Linard, Andre. (1998). Migration and globalization: The new slaves. Brussels: ICFTU, July. Stalker, Peter. (2000). Workers without frontiers: The impact of globalization on international migration. International Labour Office, Geneva. World Economic and Social Survey. (2004). International migration trends Chapter11. World Health Organisation. Health and Human Rights Publications Series. Issue No.4 (December 2003). International Migration, Health and Human Rights.

Friday, September 27, 2019

Why Is Job Analysis Important Personal Statement

Why Is Job Analysis Important - Personal Statement Example There has to be an identified need in the organization that will have to be fulfilled through the recruitment efforts. (Williams, 2002, p. 40) A job analysis is the most important tool that is used by an organization in order to identify this gap that it has to fulfill. A job analysis is, therefore, the process in which the HR department identifies a vacancy to be filled and all the important components of that vacancy. It identifies the vacancy, the needed skills to work effectively in that vacancy, the work components and tools needed the factor to consider when appraising the performance of that job, and many other components. A job analysis is, therefore, a full description of the job that acts as the guide in the recruitment and selection proceeds. It lays about all the important aspects of the job that can be used to benchmark the suitability of the candidates for the job. A job analysis is not only important in the recruitment and selection process but it is also important in the future. All these important components that are needed in the performance of certain job can all be obtained from the job analysis. A job analysis is will be able to capture the important components in a job which enables the selection process to identify the needed skills from a suitable candidate to fill a job vacancy. A job analysis is will, therefore, be an important tool in the recruitment and selection exercise. It will provide an organization with insight into the qualities that are needed in a candidate to fill that particular job vacancy.

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Remote Sensing and Image Processing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Remote Sensing and Image Processing - Essay Example Moreover, these events also include images and pictures that are captured via satellites that are powered with remote sensing technology. The advantage of remote sensing is that it can detect objects in real time along with providing coverage of an expanded area within a short period of time. However, remote sensing can be divided in to two types i.e. active remote sensing and passive remote sensing. The active remote sensing provides opportunity to be utilized at any time throughout the day and regardless of any season. Moreover, active remote sensing also facilitates the inspection of wavelengths that are not effectively illustrated by the Sun. In addition, it also takes charge of the illumination on the targeted object. On the other hand, passive remote sensing requires the Sun, in order to brighten the objective or the target. Moreover, this type of remote sensing uses reflected waves to measure the distance. As (Smith 2010) states that remote sensing based on active methodology needs a significant amount of energy source for illuminating the target. The data for the process of task that was associated with the vegetation estimation exposure was gathered from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR). In order to achieve a detection of vegetation, band rationing of the value of Infra-Red (700-1300nm) by Visible Light (400-700nm) is utilized. By using these values and methods, the albedo effects will be eliminated along with issues related to shadows that emerge from the images that are processed. Moreover, this method will also facilitate high quality visibility for vegetation in images. Moreover, a task that is related to classification of information classes, Churn Farm image is the best option. Likewise, data available in this image is gathered by an airplane in the year 1984 from the NERC ATM scanner. Likewise, the image includes four bands and sketches the sites that are associated wit h agricultural land use. Moreover, integer represents the cover type for specific land cover type, in this way; probable training sites can be marked for each type of land cover. Task 1 - Vegetation Index Methodology This task utilized a methodology including calculation of Ratio Vegetation Index (RVI) and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). The NDVI will be used for the image of Lake Nakuru Thermatic Mapper (TM). Likewise, for data associated with TM, two bands are utilized i.e. band 3 and band 4. Band 3 calculates the red light and band four calculates the red infra light. Outside the scope of the town named as Nakuru, a small salt ware lake named as ‘lake Nakuru’ is located. Likewise, the lake is famed for the spectacle, as approximately one million flamingos comes to it for feeding themselves with green algae located in the warm water areas of the lake. Moreover, pelicans often come here to feed themselves with cormorants that are also available deep in t he lake (Smith 2010). Steps Implemented Steps are demonstrated in points below: Considering as a Raster Layer, open the image file named as nakuru.img. In the available options, select the option to view the image with channel 4 that will be associated with green gun and red gun. However, channel 2 will demonstrate blue gun. From the main menu options tab, select the option

Working with and Leading People Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Working with and Leading People - Essay Example Leadership is all about leading some followers. Management is much more focused towards managing people in organizations. Leadership has the concept of followers but management has the concept of subordinates. For leadership, vision is very much important but for management achieving different goals are important. Leadership is generally transformational, but management in general transactional. Leadership is very much focus towards transforming lives of followers. It believes indecisive changes in the lives of followers but on the other hand, managers are much more concerned with assigned tasks. They are not that much interested in subordinate’s lives. Leadership brings innovation into the system but managers, administer and govern those systems. Leadership develops different new things but management maintains those things. Leadership inspires people but management believes on controlling people. Leadership has a long-range view but management has a short-range view. Leaders hip does the right thing but management does the thing in right ways. Leadership creates but management imitate those creations. Leadership is a very vast concept but management is less vast concept than leadership. Leadership is all about leading from the front in case of management performance is the ultimate thing.Late Steve Jobs the founder of Apple computers is the example of the leaders who developed the idea of Apple computers. Indra Nooyi current CEO of PepsiCo is a good example of management personality.

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Warfare Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Warfare - Essay Example This kind of warfare more closely resembles the kind of decentralised wars from the earlier periods of human history (Thornton, 2007). The 4GW system indicates that the nation state structure has had to relinquish its monopoly on well defined combat forces as the nature of conflict often forces them to return to modes of conflict displayed in pre-modern times. The warfare displayed in the 21st century clearly demonstrates the presence and eventual dominance of the non-state actors in theatres of war. Often conflict is characterised as violent struggle between at least one non-state actor and other state actors. This is far more similar to pre-modern times such as the slave uprising against the Roman Republic under Spartacus. Certain elements of the 4GW make it far more different than other modes of conflict and are described in detail below. In general terms the conflicts in the 4GW system are complex and based on long term commitment to violence (Hammes, 2006). As an example, the Se cond World War which claimed the greatest number of lives on the planet continued for a mere six years while conflicts in the 4GW regime can continue for a decade or more such as the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, the US campaign in Iraq and Afghanistan etc. Moreover the use of terrorism as a tactic of such prolonged campaigns is a defining feature of 4GW conflicts. Terrorism can be seen continuing even after the expected end of conflicts in the 4GW period and this in turn often sparks the conflict again (Schmid & Jongman, 1988). The presence of terrorist activities makes such conflicts and their ends rather unpredictable. As an example, the rebellion of the Tamils in Sri Lanka continued for decades without respite and the interlaced periods of cease fire between the Tamils and the Sri Lankan military were often disrupted by acts of terrorism that reactivated the state of war. In order to support the activities required to engage in 4GW, it is necessary to use a decentralised pre sence on the part of the engaged parties. This is often achieved using non-national or trans-national bases that are highly decentralised (Hoffman, 2006). As is often the case in such circumstances, the leadership of the violent non state actor lies in another state while the actual conflict proceeds in another state. The presence and adept handling of communication equipment has enabled the relaying of information over large distances and in such situations with reliability. This ensures that the central leadership can operate from foreign theatres of operation in order to avoid danger near the battlefield. The evolution of recent wars has made this precept of 4GW all the stronger (Juergensmeyer, 2000). More often than not the central leadership is composed of multiple nationalities, ethnic and racial identities working together to achieve common objectives. This enables the leadership to be split up into multiple locations which makes it harder for enemy combatants to close down o nto the central leadership and disassemble it (Rodin, 2006). The leadership is often small in size unlike the conventional tactics employed in nation state armies. The leadership is highly varied as mentioned before and so a network of communication must exist in order to manage the theatre of conflict. One important

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Why Illegal Immigration is Messing Up the United States Research Paper

Why Illegal Immigration is Messing Up the United States - Research Paper Example The country has in place very stringent laws governing the movement of persons through its borders. Those relocating to the country meet specified standards and certification by the authorities of the country to do so. However, there are those hell bent on resettling in the United States and would do anything to. They thus look for unwarranted means of getting into the country without verification from the legal systems. Among the most common ways of getting into the country are hiding in the ships and freight vehicles that transport goods through the countries borders. Some of the illegal immigrants get into the country legal for short visits only to refuse to leave back for their native countries. Such people affect the country negatively in a number of ways. A stable economy caters for all those within its borders. However, some immigrants have bad intent. These people are not welcome in the country and are always deported whenever apprehended. To avert deportation, they do not th erefore seek services from the state facilities, which is practically impossible. This makes them a bother to those around them (Haines 78). The country has a number of health guidelines to be met by immigrants. Those coming into the United States undergo a number of tests and are only accorded citizenship after satisfying the testing officers. This keeps the country safe from the outbreak of such communicable diseases as yellow fever, malaria, and Human Immunodeficiency Virus among many others. However, the proliferation of the illegal immigrants goes against theses standards and end up in the country with different contagious diseases. This strains the government’s resources in trying to contain the spread of some of the diseases that it had previously eradicated. As explained above, illegal immigrants are not welcome in the United States of America; they cannot ever find employment in any government and private organization since they do not have any identification documen ts. Among the immigration laws is the requirement of all immigrants to possess at least some level of formal education in their native countries. This regulation makes it easier for such people to get employment or further their education once in the country. However, the illegal immigrants flaunt all these rules thereby making it hard for them to secure employment once in the country. To get a source of livelihood, these immigrants engage in illicit trades such prostitution, drug peddling, and robbery. This leaves the country’s security in a fix since they cannot easily apprehend the culprits as they are not even in the country’s databases. Trade on drugs is a menace in the country accounting for the rise of crime in a mummer of cities. Drug barons use similar entry mechanisms used by illegal immigrants to get their drugs into the country. Furthermore, most of those used by the drug peddlers to foster their illegal trade are the illegal immigrants who are in most case s stranded and without jobs. They thus do anything to get a living; the most common of which is drug peddling. Drug is a menace in America. Addiction results in the incapacitation of American population who could have otherwise worked to earn descent livelihoods for their families. This negatively affects the economy of the country through loss of person-hours and capital as addicts are admitted into rehabilitation schools for the correctional therapies (Levy 132). Illegal entry of persons into the country leads to the rise of corruption which is a vice that affects the integrity of security personnel. Some of the illegal immigrants bribe their way into obtaining legitimate identification papers in the country. Some of these could be

Monday, September 23, 2019

The Constitution and Problems of Interpretation Formalism vs Realism Essay

The Constitution and Problems of Interpretation Formalism vs Realism - Essay Example Although it has declined, it still continues to be influential in how the law is looked at (Tamanaha, 2009). Conversely, legal formalism is a rule and law-based perception of decision-making. According to this law, judges base their decisions on whatever the law says as opposed to what the law must be. This was the widespread view in the early on years and still is perceived by many as the appropriate way of deciding cases. While observing the constitutional law, legal formalists have the perception that it should be construed by its original implication (Tamanaha, 2009). Present day legal formalism is especially prominent within two parts, constitutional law together with statutory interpretation (Tamanaha, 2009). According to the constitutional law, formalism is integrated with â€Å"originalism,† the perception that the constitution has to be interpreted in concurrence with its â€Å"original meaning.† Conversely, within statutory interpretation, formalism is integra ted with the â€Å"plain meaning† theory whereby the statutes have to be interpreted in order that the words and phrases contain their ordinary denotation (Tamanaha, 2009). Plain meaning methods also are integrated with the perception that the legislative history must not be used, particularly if it would end up in an interpretation, which varies from the statute’s text. ... Other realists contend that judges must sometimes invalidate statutes depraved policy or establish judge-made rules thereby serving the ends of upright policymaking. It is easy seeing how realists are capable of criticizing legal formalism. In an instance whereby a formalist judge adheres to the statute’s plain meaning, that might result in its application even in instances where it will be harmful and converse to the intents of its drafters (Tamanaha, 2009). Moreover, other realists contend that legal formalism was, in fact, fraud; apparently, judges do not adhere to the plain meaning, rather, the so-called formalist judges decided on the basis of their own policy inclinations and then dressed up the outcomes in the language of legal formalism. Although ideology performs the work, it is the responsibility of legal formalism to ensure that it looks pretty (Tamanaha, 2009). In spite of the realist critique, of late, legal formalism has been formulating a comeback. The main reas on for the rejoinder is the realization that intense versions of realism make it extremely difficult to understand what the law is according to the decision of a judge regarding a certain case (Tamanaha, 2009). The point of hard law, i.e. determinates legal rules that draw comparatively â€Å"bright lines†, is that they give certainty, stability and logic to the law. Purposes present less guidance, and there is a possibility of various judges having different views concerning what the true objective of the rule might be (Tamanaha, 2009). These two points of views are at conflicting ends of the legal scale; in one perspective, with legal realism, there are

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Celebrity Endorser Influence Essay Example for Free

Celebrity Endorser Influence Essay Celebrity Endorser Influence on Attitude Toward Advertisements and Brands Bahram Ranjbarian Associate Professor of management, Department of Management The University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran E-mail: Bahram1 [emailprotected] Zahra Shekarchizade Master Student of Business Management, Department of Management University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran E-mail: [emailprotected] Zahra Momeni Master Student of Business Management, Department of Management University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran E-mail: [emailprotected] Abstract Purpose- This study aims to analyze the celebrity endorser influence on attitude toward advertisements and brands. Design/methodology/approach – A theoretical model is developed and tested with a sample of 193 students in University of Isfahan in 2009. Structural equation modeling was used with LISREL 8.50 and the maximum likelihood (ML) method. Findings – The findings show that attitude toward celebrity endorser can influence on attitude toward brand directly or indirectly. In indirectly approach, attitude toward advertisement is as a mediator between attitude toward celebrity endorser and attitude toward brand. On the other hand, attitude toward celebrity endorser has not significant effect on purchase intention. Originality/value – This paper provides a model connecting attitude toward celebrity endorser, attitude toward advertisement and attitude toward brand that has been examined and validated using a sample of students in University of Isfahan. Paper type- Research paper Keywords: Endorsement, Celebrities, Brand, Attitude, Advertisement Introduction Today one of the most prevalent forms of retail advertising is through using of celebrity endorsement (White et al, 2007). In fact celebrity endorsers are being used in about 25 percent of all television advertisements in order to promote brands (Erdogan et al, 2001).These endorsers are being paid by about 10 percent of advertisers budgets (Agrawal and Kamakura, 1995). Marketers invest huge amounts of money in contracts with celebrity endorsers each year, since they believe that celebrities affect the process of selling of their brands or products (Katyal, 2007). A celebrity endorser is a wellknown person (e.g., actors, sports figures and artists) because of his successes in a special field other than the endorsed product class (James, 2004). Celebrity endorsers are used by firms who want to 399 European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 13, Number 3 (2010) support a product or service (Amos et al, 2008). Since presence of celebrity endorsers affects purchase decisions of consumers positively, producers and retailers have always preferred to use celebrity endorsements in order to sell their products (Stafford et al, 2003; Erdogan, 1999; Kamins, 1990). Kaikati (1987) believes that using of celebrities in advertisements could have many benefits and advantages including: 1) facilitating of brand identification 2) changing or impressing the negative attitude towards a brand 3) repositioning an existing brand 4) global marketing or positioning of a brand or product 5) affecting purchase intentions of consumers. Although using of celebrity endorsers as brand messengers is impressive, but it could have some risks. For instance, celebrities who are known to be guilty because of negative events (e.g., accident) may have harmful effects on the products that they endorse (Lou ie and Obermiller, 2002). Studies reveal that using of attractive celebrity causes to increase attitude towards advertisements. Such attitude towards advertisements is defined as mental states which are used by individuals to organize the way they perceive their environment and control the way they respond to it (Haghirian, 2004). There is a considerable correlation between desirable attitudes with regard to advertising and rating of certain advertisements by respondents as being likeable, irritating, delightful, etc (Bauer and Greyser, 1968). Celebrity endorsers enhance awareness of a companys advertising, create positive feelings towards brands and are perceived by consumers as more amusing (Solomon, 2002). Thus using of a celebrity in advertising causes to influence brand attitude and purchase intentions of consumers in a positive way. Celebrity endorsement has a strong effect on consumers memory and learning approach too. Most consumers are not in a purchasing situation when they are encounter with message of the brand. Marketers use celebrity endorsement in order to help better storage of information in consumers minds which they can easily remember in purchasing situations (Schultz and Brens, 1995). However, there are many studies about celebrity endorser, but it seems that there are limited researches about the relationship between celebrity endorser and attitudes. The purpose of this study is to specify the impact of using celebrity endorsers in Iranian advertisements on attitudes of students in University of Isfahan toward those ads and brands. Literature Review Some properties such as likeability, expertise, trustworthiness and similarity cause a celebrity endorser to become a source of persuasive information and this creates a sense of certainty which has been revealed in many studies (Suranaa, 2008). Also physical attractiveness of the endorser is considerable in effectiveness of a message (Khatri, 2006). Acceptance of a message by a receiver could be influenced by celebrity endorsers as believable sources of information about a product or a firm (Amos et al, 2008). Using of celebrity endorsers to support products is explained by balance theory principles too. According to this theory, successful companies establish an emotional relation between the observer and endorser and a relation between endorser and brand too (Mowen, 2000). Before proceeding conceptual model, we describe the main constructs of this study. Celebrity Endorser McCracken (1998) has defined celebrity endorser as any individual who enjoys public cognition and who uses this cognition on behalf of a consumer by appearing wit in an advertisement. Moreover, celebrity is used as testimonial, endorsement, actor or spokesperson by the firm. Research has demonstrated that celebrity endorsement affects consumers feelings in general and it could affect the attitude of consumers towards the advertisement and brands too. This could result in enhancing of purchase intentions and as a result enhancing of sales. Some properties like credibility, physical attractiveness and likeability of celebrity endorser influence the ability of one person to impact other person (Amos et al, 2008). Source credibility is referred to identifying of communicators positive properties which influences acceptance of a message by the receiver (Ohanian, 1990). This consists of two main dimensions of expertise and 400 European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 13, Number 3 (2010) trustworthiness. Source expertise refers to the degree which a communicator is perceived to be a source of valid assertion (Roozen, 2008). Source trustworthiness refers to faithfulness and reliability of the spokesperson (Khatri, 2006). Source attractiveness is the personality, likeability and similarity of endorsers to the receiver, thus to the perceived social values of the source (Solomon, 2002). Physical attractiveness of the source include being attractive, beautiful, elegant and charming. According to the studies in this ground, expertise dimension is more significant than physical attractiveness for matching of a brand with a suitable endorser (Brian and Michael, 1998). Likeability is referred to the positive or negative feelings that consumers have towards a source of information. We can define likeability as affection for the source because of its physical appearance and behavior (Erdogan, 1999). Though some research results reveal effectiveness of celebrities as endorsers (Freiden, 1984), but other researches suggest that celebrity endorsement may have different degrees of effectiveness depending on other factors like the fit between the celebrity and the advertised product (Till and Shimp, 1998). Celebrity Endorsers Effect on Aad and Ao Marketers are especially interested in consumers attitudes towards advertisements and brands. Essentially, attitudes are our predispositions with regard to things. An attitude shows whether we like something or not. Attitudes have three basic components: affective, cognitive and behavioral. Affective is related to our liking or feelings about an object. Cognitive is referred to beliefs about an object and behavioral component regards actions we take about that object (Severin and Tankard, 2001). Attitude towards advertisement is defined as a learned tendency to respond in a consistently desirable or undesirable approach toward advertising in general (Haghirian, 2004). On the other side, attitude towards the advertisement (Aad) is whether the consumer likes an advertisement (Ad) or hates it. Determinants of Aad consist of attitude towards the advertiser, assessment of the Ad execution itself, the mood evoked by Ad, and the extent to which the Ad affect viewers encouragement. Assessment of brands could be influenced by attitudes towards Ads. Of course what causes an advertisement to be impressive will change noticeably cross-culturally (Arnold et al, 2004). In performed studies, Aad is focused on as a mediator of advertisers effects on brand attitudes and purchase intentions (Suhere and Ispir, 2009). In recent studies, this issue has been proved that using of celebrity endorsement has a positive impact on attitudes of the consumer towards products and brands with which they are associated brand (Seno and Lukas, 2005). Agarwal and Malhotra (2005) have defined brand attitude as consumers general evaluative judgment of a brand based on brand beliefs. Such beliefs concern product-related attributes, like practical and experimental benefits. A successful endorser is able to enhance intentions and preferences towards brands directly or indirectly. An endorser who has major source factors of credibility (like expertise, trustworthiness and effectiveness) is able to impress purchase intentions of the consumer considerably (Liu et al, 2007). Information from a credible source can impress ideas, attitudes and behavior through a process called internalization (Belch and Belch, 1993). Internalization occurs when the receiver is motivated to have an issue. The receiver learns and accepts the idea of the credible spokesperson, since he supposes that information of this person represents an accurate position on the issue. Therefore, if such spokesperson who is known to be an expert endorses a product, consumers will more probably have a desirable idea about that advertisement and brand and they will consider it in their shopping list the next time they go shopping. Researchers have used the identification process of social influence in order to explain the effectiveness of celebrity endorsers (Basil, 1996). This theory suggests that if an individual identifies with another individual, then he is more likely to accept an attitude or behavior of that individual or a group. The internalization process of social influence is occurred when an individual accepts influence because the induced behavior is congruent with his value system†. An individual accepts the influence, since it provides a solution to a problem (Daneshvary and Schwer, 2000). In the elaboration likelihood model (ELM), individuals level of motivation to process central message arguments is represented which is one of its key factors that affects the relative impact of 401 European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 13, Number 3 (2010) central and peripheral processing (Petty and Cacioppo, 1986). When applied to an adverting context, ELM suggests that consumers motivation to centrally process brand-relevant aspects of an advertisement is enhanced, the impact of central processing on brand attitudes should be enhanced, the effect of peripheral processing on brand attitudes should be reduced and the effect of brand attitudes on purchase intentions should be enhanced (Lafferty and Goldsmith, 1999). In this theoretical model, the endorser serves as cue just during peripheral processing. Therefore, the effect of the endorser should be reduced while central processing is enhanced. Mackenzie and Lutz (1989) have stated that advertiser credibility is a central processing cue more than any other thing. Credibility of the source is considered important in influence acceptance. A consumer will accept the accurate influence (information) and apply it if t here the source is perceived to be credible. It is accepted because it is demand by ones own values. Therefore, a products endorsement by a credible source may impress purchase behavior (Danwshvary and Schwer, 2000). As a result, celebrity endorsement can increase the process of recalling and consume assessment of products (Khatri, 2006). On the other hand, celebrity endorsement has a severe effect on learning approach and memory. Researchers in the field of marketing and social psychology have studied the manner of impressing of purchase decision by celebrity endorsements. Various hypotheses have been proposed including having recall of the product by celebrity endorsement, celebrities have credibility on expertise that makes the product more desirable or increases perceptions of quality; the celebrity endorsers image is transferred to the product so that those who use the product are associated with the image. Experiments suggest that celebrity endorsement can increase recall and consume assessment of the products in certain situations (Clark and Horstman, 2003). Most of the times, making connection with the brand message is occurred when consumers are not in a purchasing situation. Marketers use celebrity endorsement so that information will be kept in consumers minds better and in the case of purchasing situation, they can easily retrieve it (Surana, 2008). A successful endorser strategy can enhance the level of consumers recalling towards product information, reinforces consumers recognition to endorsed brands, positively influences consumers attitude to low-involved products and even enhance consumers purchase intention and preference towards brands (Liu et al, 2007) Therefore, hypothesizes of the study are as follows. H1: Attitude toward ad is positively affected by attitude toward celebrity endorser. H2: Attitude toward brand is positively affected by attitude toward celebrity endorser H3: Attitude toward brand is positively affected by attitude toward advertisement. H4: Intention to buy is positively affected by attitude toward celebrity endorser Method Data Collection Information was obtained from randomly selected students from University of Isfahan through survey questionnaires during September- November 2009. University of Isfahan is one of the major universities in the fields of science, human science and engineering. A total sample of 193 participants was obtained. The sample was composed of 137 women (71 percent) and 56 men (21 percent). A cluster sampling procedure with age and degree as main control variables was applied. The age of the respondents ranged from 19 to 30 years, with a mean of 24. All questionnaires were self-administered by the participants without interference from researchers. Measures The study uses multi-item scales to measure the constructs in our model. All items in the questionnaire were measured on a five-point Likert-type scale anchored from â€Å"strongly disagree† (1) to â€Å"strongly agree† (5). Some of the measures were available in the literature, though most were adapted to suit this European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 13, Number 3 (2010) particular context. To measure attitude toward celebrity endorser we used ten items. Attitude toward advertisement and attitude toward brand were measured with six items and five items, respectively. In order to measure reliability of questions in the questionnaire, 30 questionnaires have been pre-tested through pilot studies. Then, amount of confidence coefficient has been calculated by method of Cronbachs alpha for which 0.83 % is obtained. This number shows that the applied questionnaire enjoys confidentiality or in other words the necessary reliability. Results Measurement Model Measurement model Structural equation modeling with LISREL 8.54 and the maximum likelihood (ML) method was used to analyse the data.. LISREL is a structural equations modeling technique that traces structural relations in a set of data (Eriksson et al, 2004). Structural equation modelling was used because it allows to estimate multiple and interrelated dependence relationships and unobserved factors can be represented in these relationships. Additionally, measurement error in the estimation process is accounted for (Hair et al., 1998). The model is assessed with the comparative fit index (CFI), standardised root meanresidual (SRMR), root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA), and Akaike’s (1987) information criterion (AIC). The measurement model provided a good fit to the data: (CFI = 0:98, SRMR=0.058, RMSEA = 0.015 and AIC =396.22). All values of CFI, SRMR, and RMSEA meet the standards suggested by Hu and Bentler (1999): 0.95 for CFI, 0.08 for SRMR, and 0.06 for RMSEA.There are no Guidelines for the AIC but lower values indicate better fit. The fit of the structural model is good and is reported in Table I. In the following we will test our hypotheses and consequently report the standardised path coefficients. As shown in Table I, three of hypotheses are empirically supported and one of them is not confirmed. The effect of attitude toward celebrity endorser on attitude toward advertisement is significant (standardised path coefficient = 0:49). This shows that the higher the attitude toward endorser, the more the attitude toward advertisement. Attitude toward celebrity endorser also have significant effect on attitude toward brand (standardised path coefficient= 0.24), but this effect is comparatively weaker than its effect on attitude toward advertisement. On the other hand, the effect of attitude toward advertisement on attitude toward brand is significant (standardised path coefficient = 0:56). This clearly shows that attitude toward advertisement has the highest standardized path coefficient and therefore has the strongest influence on attitude toward brand. The results show that the effects of attitude celebrity endorser on Purchase intention is not significant (standardised path coefficient = 0.11). This means that attitud toward celebrities, does not necessarily always translates into purchase intentions. Discussion The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship among attitude toward celebrity endorser and attitude toward advertisement and brand. Effects of a celebrity endorser on respondents assessments about advertisements and products endorsed by celebrities have been studied previously. There are some interesting findings for using of celebrity endorsers in Iranian advertisements. Attitude towards a celebrity endorser has a direct positive effect on attitude towards advertisement. Attitude towards advertisement has important effects on attitude towards brands, too and its effect is comparatively stronger than the effect of celebrity endorser. But the effect of attitude toward celebrity endorser on purchase intention is not considerable. Results of this study demonstrate that attitude towards celebrity endorser has an indirect effect on attitude towards brand. This result confirms outcomes of the previous research by Agarwal and Kamakura (1995), Till and Busler (1998), and White et al (2008). When there is a fit between the    European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 13, Number 3 (2010) endorser and the endorsed product, endorsers image helps construct the image of the brand in consumers minds. In fact, using of an attractive endorser has a positive impact on consumer attitudes towards a brand, because attractive endorsers have a tendency to get more attention than less attractive ones. On the other hand, experience of celebritys negative information can have an undesirable effect on the endorsed product. Transfer of negative information between the celebrity endorser and the endorsed product could be facilitated through cognitive relational pathway. We have considered social position of artists because people have more positive attitude towards artists. So, they distribute attitude towards artists to attitude towards endorsed brand. The association between attitude towards celebrity endorser and attitude towards advertisement has been shown in numerous studies, as the relationship between sports celebrity endorsements and retail products adverting are reported (White et al, 2008) and sports celebrity endorsements are being used in advertisements to impress brand selection. It is recognized in one study that attitude towards advertisement is considered as an interagent that influences attitude towards brand (Suhere and Ispir, 2009). Results of our study reveal that attitude towards advertisement is as an interagent between attitude towards celebrity and attitude towards brand. In our opinion, Iranians are interested in artists and know them as credible sources. So, ads makers use artists as celebrity to impress viewers attitudes towards advertisement and thereupon attitude towards brand. According to previous studies about the effect of the celebrity endorser on purchase intentions, such as Kamins (1990), Ohanian (1991), Liu et al (2007), we expected that positive attitude towards celebrities impressed purchase intentions. But results of this study confirm research outcomes of OMahony and Meenaghan (1997). According to this study, attitude towards celebrities does not necessarily always interpret in to purchase intentions. It seems that Iranians consumer tendency for buying is influenced by other various items such as age, gender, income and education too. Limitation This study has some limitations. The primary limitation of the present research relates to generalizability. The sample was restricted to students in University of Isfahan and this limits our results to be generalized, too. Another relevant consideration is that numerous girl students in university of Isfahan are more than its boy students. Also, this study relied exclusively on questionnaires to assess influence attitude toward celebrity endorser on attitude toward advertisements and brands, whereas this relationships need to be more investigated. On the other hand, this paper could not estimate effect of attitude toward celebrity endorser on purchase intention. In addition, our results are relational and not causal; therefore, it can not be concluded from this study whether attitude toward advertisement and brand is only cause or result of attitude toward celebrity endorser. Conclusion In this study the goal was to indicate the influence of using celebrity endorsers in Iranian advertisements on attitudes of students in University of Isfahan toward those advertisements and brands. The result of this study showed that the positive and significant relationship between attitude toward celebrity endorser and attitude toward advertisements and brands. By analyzing the output resulting from testing hypotheses, it can be concluded that attitude toward celebrity endorser has directly or indirectly influence on attitude toward brand. Consequences suggested that attitude toward advertisement was as a mediator between attitude toward celebrity endorser and attitude toward brand. On the other hand, attitude toward celebrity endorser hadn’t significant influence on purchase intention. So, future researches should put more effort into making strong believable explanations for how celebrity endorsers are able to have significant influence on consumer intention for purchase. References [1] [2] Agrawal, J. and Kamakura, W.A. (1995), â€Å"The economic worth of celebrity endorsers: an event study analysis†, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 59 No. 3, pp. 56-62 Agarwal, J. and Malhotra, N.K. (2005), â€Å"An integrated model of attitude and affect: theoretical foundation and an empirical investigation†, Journal of usiness Research, Vol. 58 No. 4, pp. 483-93. Arnoulds, E., Price, L. and Zinkhan, G. (2004). â€Å"Consumers†. Boston: Mc Graw-Hill. Basil, M.D. (1996), â€Å"Identification as a mediator of celebrity effects†, Journal of Broadcasting Electronic Media, Vol. 40, fall, pp. 478-95. Bauer, R. A. and Greyser, S. A. (1968). â€Å"Advertising in America: The Consumer View†. Boston: Harvard University. Belch, G.E., and Belch, M.A. (1993), â€Å"Introduction to Advertising and Promotion: An Integrated Marketing Communications Perspective†, Irwin, Homewood, IL. Clark, R.C. and Horstman, I.J. (2003), â€Å"Celebrity Endorsents† (www.bu.edu/ e.con/seminar/micro/pdffav) celebendorse.bu.pdf. 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(1984), â€Å"Advertising spokesperson effects: an examination of endorser type and gender on two audiences†, Journal of Advertising Research, Vol. 24 No. 5, pp. 33-41. Haghirian, P. and Madlberger, M. (2005), â€Å"Consumer attitude toward advertising via mobile devices an empirical investigation among Austrian users†, in Proceedings of the European Conference on Information Systems, Regensburg, Germany, May 2005, (accessed on 4/26/2006). Hair, J.F., Anderson, R.E., Tatham, R.L. and Black, W.C. (1998), â€Å"Multivariate Data Analysis†, 5th Ed., Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ. Hu, L.-T. and Bentler, P. (1999), â€Å"Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: conventional criteria versus new alternatives†, Structural Equation Modeling, Vol. 6 No. 1, pp. 1-55. Kaikati.J.G. (1987),â€Å"Celebrity advertising, a review and synthesis†, International Journal of Advertising, 6.93-105. Kamins, M.A. (1990), â€Å"An investigation into the ‘match-up’ hypothesis in celebrity advertising: when beauty may be only skin deep†, Journal of Advertising, Vol. 19 No. 1, pp. 413. Lear,K.E, Runyan,R.C. and Whitaker,W.H. (2009), â€Å"Sports celebrity endorsements in retail products adver tising†, International Journal of Retail Distribution Management, Vol. 37 No. 4, pp. 308-321. Katyal, S. (2008), â€Å"Impact of Celebrity Endorsement on a Brand†, Chillibreeze writer, available at www.chillibreeze.com/articles/ accessed on 12th, July. Khatri, P. (2006), â€Å"Celebrity Endorsement: A Strategic Promotion Perspective†, Indian Media Studies Journal Vol.1 No.1. July-Dec. 405

Friday, September 20, 2019

Pakistan is one of the top cotton producing countries of the world

Pakistan is one of the top cotton producing countries of the world Executive Summary Pakistan is one of the most top cotton producing country of the world. Pakistan has the tendency to produce the best quality cotton in the world, because of that Pakistan exports its cotton to different buyers across the globe. Garment and textile industry of Pakistan needs a lot of investment to flourish its production plants to give more and more to the country and others in the globe as well. Currently country being in inflation affected the entire industry. As prices of all products have gone high, companies are forced to produce less. The political situations in our country have made the industrial sector bare losses. The policies and laws are hindering the activities of the industry. Because of that the other competing countries are getting an edge over Pakistan. More research needs to be done in this sector to avail all the possible technologies to make our textile and garment industry better. Other than that our needs to start producing end wearable garments and then export them to increase the exports and increase awareness of the local brands. Currently popular textile is working on producing jean for renowned brands of the world. Government needs to make efforts to establish the garment industry in Pakistan. Table of Content Contents Contents 2 Introduction: 4 Industry Scenario: 7 Industry Facts and Figures 7 Problems in industry 7 Technology being implied 8 Business Model Analysis 8 SWOT Analysis: 12 Strength: 12 Weakness: 13 Opportunity: 16 Threats: 18 SWOT Analysis (Summary) 19 Strengths: 19 Weaknesses: 19 Opportunities: 19 Threats: 19 PEST Analysis: 20 20 Political Outfit: 20 20 Economical Analysis and Performance: 20 Social Liabilities and Duties: 21 Technological Requirements and up gradation: 22 PORTER Five Forces Model: 23 1.Bargaining power of customers (demand scenario): 24 24 Factors 24 2.Bargaining power of suppliers (supply scenario): 24 24 3. Threat of new entrants: 26 26 4. Threat of substitutes: 27 5. Competitive rivalry: 28 Contribution to Exports: 30 Conclusion: 31 References: 32 Garment Industry of Pakistan Introduction: Textile and Garments is considered the most important sector of Pakistans economy and the largest industry with a 46% share of total manufacturing. Accounting for 67% of exports, employment for 40% of the workforce and a 10.20% share in GDP confirms the importance of this sector. Pakistans large available human resource pool offers an important incentive for further growth of this labor intensive industry. Contribution of Textile Garment Sector Percentage Contribution Total Manufacturing 46% Total Exports 67% Employment for Workforce 40% Total Share in GDP 10.20% Although Pakistan is the fourth largest cotton producer in the world with strong spinning and weaving infrastructure, the value added sector (cotton products) has a small share in exports. The main reason is shortage of training facilities able to enhance skills and produce competent middle managers having in-depth knowledge of processes and hands-on experience in contemporary technologies. Garment manufacturing is a major growing sub-sector of the textile value chain. It consumes the majority of the workforce in Pakistans textile and garments industry and has been contributing towards the high growth-rate in exports as figures shows it is 67% contributing in export of Pakistan. However, the garment industry is now suffering from some acute problems in productivity, in quality, in management marketing skills and thus facing a serious threat of a reduced share of international markets. According to the World Banks report on the impact of Quota Elimination in Pakistan, the effect on apparel exports from Pakistan will be negative due to stronger competition from other countries. The implication would be serious if no action is taken to improve productivity and efficiency. In the garments sector, Pakistans productivity is estimated to be only 37% of the benchmark established by China. Compared to this, Indias garments sector productivity is better, at 46%. For Pakistan, raising productivity by improving production process efficiency is key to reap benefits after the Multi-Fibre Agreement was abolished. If Pakistan is able to increase its productivity in textiles and clothing by 60% and reach Chinas productivity level, the gain would likely be over US$ 1 billion per year. Keeping in view the emerging trend in the global market, there is a huge potential for Pakistans garment sector. However, to be competitive in the global market after the removal of the quota regime in January 2005, it is imperative to have efficient and cost effective production systems with minimum wastages to attract buyers. The TUSDEC need assessment which included discussions/interviews with the key garment exporters clearly revealed the need for urgent reforms in the textile industry and especially in garment manufacturing and exporting as this is the most value added sector. This need had never before been felt as intensely as now, in the major garments clusters located in Lahore, Karachi, Sialkot, Faisalabad and Multan. In unison they expressed that the existing infrastructure of textile garments institutes in the country is not able to fulfill the requirement for skilled human resources to meet the immediate demand. The need assessment showed that an intervention for fast-track capacity building of the garment industry to meet the challenges posed by the ever-changing demand of international markets was justified. To cope with this dire need, it was proposed to hire foreign experts on long term basis to upgrade the knowledge and skills of the workers employed in the garment industry. Industry Scenario: As quoted by Chairman of All Pakistan Textile Mill Association, Textiles are the most important industry in Pakistan. It accounts for approximately 40 percent of manufacturing employment, over 60 percent of total exports, and over 30 percent of value-added production. Pakistans textile industry, based on locally grown cotton, produces cotton yarn, cotton cloth, and made-up textiles and apparel. Industry Facts and Figures As data cited at web published edition of aptma, Pakistan had a total of 503 spinning mills with an installed capacity of 10,437,000 spindles and 155,104 rotors. The weaving industry has 53 integrated units (composite units with spinning and weaving in one unit) with an installed capacity of 14,130 looms; 512 shuttle less weaving units with an installed capacity of 13,340 1ooms; and approximately 30,000 units in the power loom (shuttle loom) sector, with an estimated 225,253 looms. In PFY-97 it additionally had 670 finishing units with a production capacity of 3,460 million sq. meters of fabric per annum, 700 knitwear units with 15,000 knitting machines, and 4,000 garment units with 160,000 industrial and 450,000 domestic sewing machines. Exports of all textiles in PFY-97 totaled a value of USD 5.4 billion. The major buyer of textile clothing and accessories was the United States, which purchased USD 309.2 million of goods. (Michelle, Pakistan Profile, January/February 2007) Problems in industry Pakistans excessive economic reliance on the textile industry now necessitates the upgrade of its low value-added textile products to higher value-added products and the development of additional export markets. The Government of Pakistan (GOP) has reportedly constituted a textile commission to examine the problems of the textile industry and guide its future planning in the effort to turn this vital sector of the country economy into a healthy and internationally competitive industry. The upgrade to value-added production will require more sophisticated machinery. Trade sources believe that given favorable rupee/dollar parity, the textile industry may be expected to grow by as much as 10 to 15 percent annually over the next 2-3 years. Technology being implied In PFY-98 Pakistan offered an import market of USD 213 million for the sale of textile machinery, equipment and parts. Statistics for domestic production are not available, but trade sources report that manufacture, which is geared to demand, is at the present time negligible. The market has declined drastically over the last six years. In PFY-93, Pakistan imported USD 789.2 million worth of textile machinery. Imports fell in subsequent years to USD 352.7 million in PFY-94, USD 294.9 in PFY-95, USD 187.0 million in PFY-96 and USD 129 million in PFY 97. Given improved financial conditions, the import market share is expected to increase by 10 percent annually over the next three years. (Citied at website of aptma.) Business Model Analysis The textile industry is today based almost entirely in the private sector as the inefficiency of the public sector units has forced the GOP to privatize them. The three remaining textile units in the public sector are integrated units and are to be offered for privatization in the very near future. Pakistans textile spinning industry is presently in a crisis. As a result of poor cotton crops, the withdrawal of cotton subsidy and the export of raw cotton, the industry, whose feasibility has been based on the use of low-priced cotton, is no longer viable. Pakistans weaving sector has an installed capacity of 14,130 looms in integrated weaving mills; 13,340 looms in shuttless weaving units; and approximately 200,500 to 225,250 looms in the power loom sector. The looms installed in the integrated units are old and less than approximately 40 percent are working. The independent weaving units are a relatively new phenomenon in the Pakistan market, and have been created as a result of market demand, government incentives and the move towards higher quality products. Pakistans finishing industry is comprised of approximately 670 units, the majority of which are independent units and complimentary to the weaving industry. Their installed capacity is old and needs replacement. The integrated units are reported to have a capacity utilization of only 35 percent of installed capacity as most of their machinery is also old and uses outdated technology. (Citied at Directors Review of aptma.) Competing Countries Export Share of Market- Trend Analysis Country 1980 1990 2000 2005 Variance 2000 2005 China 4.0 8.9 18.2 26.9 8.7 Turkey 0.3 3.1 3.3 4.3 1.0 India 1.7 2.3 3.1 3.0 (0.1) Mexico 0.0 0.5 4.4 2.6 (1.8) Bangladesh 0.0 0.6 2.0 2.3 0.3 Vietnam 0.9 1.7 0.8 Pakistan 0.3 0.9 1.1 1.3 0.2 Sri Lanka 0.3 0.6 1.4 1.0 (0.4) Thailand 0.7 2.6 1.9 1.5 (0.4) Source: United States Department of Agriculture Global Market Shares Top 15 Retailers worldwide: S. No Retailer Origin Market Share USD Millions 1 Wal-Mart Stores Inc. USA $219,000 2 Carrefour Group FRANCE $61,565 3 Royal A hold HOLLAND $57,976 4 The Home Depot, Inc USA $53,553 5 The Kroger Co. USA $50,098 6 Metro AG GERMANY $43,357 7 Target USA $43,355 8 Albertsons USA $37,931 9 Kmart USA $36,151 10 Sears USA $35,843 11 Safeway UK $34,301 12 Costco USA $34,137 13 Tesco UK $33,614 14 JCPenny USA $32,004 15 Aldi Einkauf GERMANY $31,310 (Source: Stores/Deloitte Touch Tomahatsu) SWOT Analysis: Strength: Raw material Base: Pakistan has high self sufficiency in raw material and is the fourth largest producer of cotton. Abundant use of cotton resources has made the Textile industry of Pakistan move towards the area of industrialization. Labor: Cheap labor has always been the backbone of the economy of Pakistan. Cheap and ample supply of labor strengthens the industrial and agriculture sector of the country. Around 39% of the labor force works in the textile sector. As Karl Marx said that we have to use the army of labor present in the country for productive means. Thus cheap and abundant labor means low cost of production. Rich Heritage: Due to cultural diversity and rich heritage, designers come up with new different and attractive designs which are appreciated worldwide. Our culture comprises of Sindhi, Punjabi, Balochi and Pushtoo values. Also we are also influenced by the Indian culture through the media exposure, which of course gives the Pakistani designers an inspiration and taste of Karnataka, Rajhastani styles, etc. This varied culture and fusion among these two neighbours gives inspiration to the designers to give their best in terms of styles, creativity and fashion. Domestic Market: The recent shift of the population from the agrarian society to the urban areas, increased income levels and growth of the population raised the domestic demand. This means more factories more manufacturing units, more supply and more labor. Weakness: Research Development: Developed countries are using the technology of genetic engineering and biotechnology to increase the quality and quantity of their cotton production. They are able to grow colored cotton, organic cotton and several different varieties cotton to added value to the textile chain. In Pakistan, there is very some research done on small scale by private companies to invent modified cotton fibers. Practically no efforts are being made by the APTMA in the RD of the textile industry to enhance the quality of its products, upgrade the technology used, and encourage effective methods of production in order to compete internationally. Instead the industry suffers lack of latest means of production and falling cotton crop output every year. Due to low quality of cotton crop, profitability decreases and the farmer switch to the other crop such as sugar cane, maize and thus the cotton production decreases. More Dependence on Cotton: As the textile sector is heavily dependent on cotton production, low cultivation of cotton will deteriorate the textile industry. On the other hand, Pakistan lacks expertise in the development, production and marketing of synthetic products and fabrics required for items like swimwear, skiwear and industrial apparel. So far Pakistan has been unable to diversify in the export of textiles and is heavily dependent on single fibre that is cotton and its blends. This dependence on single crop economy is restricting the diversification of exports from Pakistan. Labor Productivity: Despite of the abundant supply of the labor, productivity of the labor is very low. According to a study by Federal Adviser on textiles, the regional competitors of Pakistan take75 minutes to complete and produce one piece of cloth whereas we take 133 minutes for the same work. We also waste 30% in finishing and 12% in washing. European buyers recommended that we should cut our costs up to 45%in sewing by getting more efficient. Labor productivity can be improved by giving the labor appropriate training with the advancement of technology so as to make them more efficient and with lower wastage of resources. In China an average 70 hours of training are given to labor to enhance their expertise. Poor Infrastructure: The important resources and infrastructure, such as adequate of supply of water, continuous supply of electricity and gas, efficient logistics and transportation, tax structure, raw material supply are all basic requirements for the development of an industrial base. However, on the other hand, the industry is faced with rising charges of the energy sector, which increases the cost of production, making it difficult to compete with the other regional rivals. Poor Quality Standards: With the exception of big and leading units who comply with global quality standards in textiles, most of the medium and small sized units can not ensure the reliable and consistent quality standards. Some of these textile units import second hand machinery from China, India, Korea, and Taiwan with no checks and balances on the quality of the machinery parts and tools. Preference is only given to the cheap and workable machinery with no concern of the quality of the machine, therefore, resulting in poor quality of the end product. The industry can generate more profit by adding more value to the product, as value can be measured in terms of quality, increased per unit price, etc. Pakistans textile industry should focus on latest material handling techniques and should train workers. The inability to timely modernize the equipment, machinery and labor has led to the decline of Pakistani textile competitiveness. Unstable Political Situation: Political unrest, strikes and terrorism have critically affected the economy of Pakistan. Frequent changing of the government has adversely maligned the policies of the textile sector. According to the World Trade Review Pakistan has failed to take necessary steps needed to meet post Multi-Fiber Agreement (MFA) challenges for its textile industry owing to lack of political will by the successive governments. In 1978 World Bank surveyed the Pakistan textile industry and reported many deficiencies in this sector. It also gave certain measures to resolve these issues, but unfortunately all these problems still persist and the industry is still unable to keep its pace with the international market. Successive governments lacked the will to reform human resources and adapt the marketing techniques that resulted present scenario in this industry. System Orientation And Supply Chain: Nowadays, customers are very systematic in their work and the expect the same professionalism from their vendors. Unfortunately, we lack this capability and are not competent to struggle in the international business, thus losing many opportunities. On the other hand supply chain management is rarely implemented. We are disorganized, disconnected and dis torted. Time management is very much important aspect in the business and buyers expect on time delivery to match the retail launch of the Spring/ Summer or Autumn/Winter seasonal collections on time . Delayed delivery of export orders result increase in cost due to fines by the buyers and at times losing business altogether due to the breach the order con-tract. Opportunity: Pakistan Textile City: Pakistan Textile City in Port Qasim, Karachi with an area of 1250 acres, will be completed in 2011 as a private public sector joint venture. The main purpose of the textile city is to provide the textile industry with the world class infra structure to meet the global competitiveness and challenges and as to provide value added textile industrial zone. Its main features include one way window operation, constant supplies of gas and water, and uninterrupted power supply. Marketing: Targeting the unexplored export markets with the help of aggressive sales and marketing will pave the way for the textile growth. Its all about hunting your opportunities with the handful of colorful lollipops. If we make investment in our sales force and train them in the fine art of marketing textile products, we can capture a much bigger market share from other smaller competitors. Collaboration with Foreign Companies: No company in the world can afford to ignore the strategic and competitive benefits of making partnership with another company to strengthen the market position. By making partners with the foreign companies, we will be able to learn a lot from them in terms system orientation, supply chain and it would be feasible to import latest technology. We can also reduce our costs, comply with the inter-national standards, and add value to our products, easiness in marketing our products in different foreign regions, improved labor and thus catching up with our regional competitors. Re-engineering of Production System: Information technology has a crucial role in manufacturing sector. Acquiring state of the art machinery is though very much expensive, but a very fruitful and necessary measure to stay competitive in the long run. It is the level of trust; the exporter builds with its customers by giving them flawless products, made on state of the art machinery. Once this trust is developed, there is no other way than any unforeseen exception that you may lose a customer to another competitor. Therefore, it is highly recommended to produce with great efficiency, minimizing the wastage of the raw material, energy resources and thus reducing the cost of production. Producing high Value Products: Its better to export yarn than raw cotton. Similarly its better to export finished fabric than to export grey fabric (raw fabric). Furthermore its very much feasible to export readymade garments than to only fabrics. What makes the latter better is the value added and subsequent increase in per unit price. Therefore, the textile industry should focus on the finished products so as to create more value in their products and reap larger margin of profits. The industry should also diversify into other areas such as technical textiles and nonwovens in order decrease its dependence on conventional and commodity textiles, which is highly sensitive to per unit price and volume for the profit margin. Image Building of Pakistan to Attract FDI: Security measures should be taken to facilitate the buyers and investors to visit Pakistan for investments. Secure business environment must be needed to attract golden sparrows to facilitate business dealings and building positive image of Pakistan that they can rely upon. Reducing the Cost of Business: China and India are much cheaper in labor, raw material and utilities as compared with Pakistan. Rising inflation also increase the cost of production. We have to control these unnecessary costs if we have to survive in the middle of the two giants of the textile sector in the world. Threats: New competitors: Pakistan is facing new competitors in textile sector such as; Bangladesh Vietnam Turkey Though we cannot avoid competition but we can always stay ahead of them by reforming our strategies and educating our entrepreneurs so as to move one step forward in every aspect. Phasing out of quota System: As the quota system is ruled out by WTO, there is a threat by the Chinese and Indian manufacturers to gain most of the market share. We have high costs, low labor productivity and inefficient production processes. Fashion life Cycle: Fashion changes rapidly now a day. Media has so much penetrated in our daily lives that we easily adapt our-selves as it wants us to. This has resulted in shortening the fashion lifecycle thus increasing the fashion risk. Now the buyer does not want to wait long for his consignment because he is insecure that by the time it will reach to him he will lost its demand due to change in fashion. Therefore, they prefer to buy from neighboring countries even at higher cost to get their products instantly rather than to wait weeks or months for their consignments to reach them. SWOT Analysis (Summary) Strengths: Raw material Base Labor Rich Heritage Domestic Market Weaknesses: Research Development More Dependence on Cotton Labor Productivity Poor Infrastructure Poor Quality Standards Unstable Political Situation System Orientation And Supply Chain Opportunities: Pakistan Textile City Marketing Collaboration with Foreign Companies Re-engineering of Production System Producing high Value Products Image Building of Pakistan to Attract FDI Reducing the Cost of Business Threats: New competitors Phasing out of quota System Fashion life Cycle PEST Analysis: Political Outfit: Textile industry, and all other business in the field are subjected to very high risk due to unstable political outfit, this restricts joint ventures in the industry. We only have only one example of joint Venture in the industry that is Lucky Tex SITE with J. Rosenthals and Sons of England. As the political outfit is extremely unstable and does not guarantee any consistency over the span of time, therefore attracting foreign investment in the sector is very limited, and only confined to term financing, or credits. Economical Analysis and Performance: Till not so long ago, the Pakistan textile industry was one of the key drivers of growth and employment generation. The plight of the textile exports continued during the first four months (July-October) of current financial as they fell by around one percent during the period. The export of textile products came to $3.539 billion in the period under review, which is 2008 against $3.573 billion in the corresponding period of previous year. At a time when growth in export is badly needed to plug the widening trade deficit, the dismal performance of the largest export earning textile sector is causing serious problems for the state in its efforts for registering quantum jump in export earnings. Complaining about the high cost of production of textile products due to expensive raw materials and high rates of utilizes the textile associations are clamoring for incentives in the shape of RD support to enable them to compete in the international market. The breakup shows that almost all the categories in textile group performed dismally during the period under review. (Pakistan Textile Journal, October2008) (Microeconomics of competitiveness, Textiles cluster in Pakistan, 2007) Social Liabilities and Duties: 160 million population growing @ 3% Growing trend of urbanization Viable middle class Increasing literacy among females Per capita income growing @ 14% = $ 652 GDP growth = 2% Retail whole sale trade is 18.4 % of GDP Stock exchange crossed 8000 points million of expatriate workers Technological Requirements and up gradation: Pakistan textile industry is blessed with state of the art machinery, and local entrepreneurs remain well updated in this scenario. Thou, there is no or limited government support in up gradation programs at the moment, but previously from 2003 to 2005 this sector has enjoyed multiple benefits on import of technology and machinery in terms of GOPs program for BMR, so that industry could be geared up to meet challenges of WTO, once the quota regime was over. PORTER Five Forces Model: One of the worst hit sectors during the skyrocketing interest rate scenario in the late 90s and early 2000s, the debt-laden Pakistan textile industry has spun many turn-around stories since then. Aided by lower interest rates, restructuring packages from financial institutions and the recent dismantle of quotas; the sector is today well poised to capture growth opportunities. In 2008, the sector contributed 20% to industrial production, 9% to excise collections, 18% of employment in industrial sector, nearly 20% to the countrys total export earnings and 4% to the GDP. The textile sector employs nearly 35 m people and is the second highest employer in the country. Infect, it is estimated that one out of every six households in the country directly or indirectly depend on this sector. Here we analyze the sectors dynamics through Porters five-factor model. (Thompson, Strickland III,Strategic Management, Concepts and Cases. 15th Edition) Bargaining power of customers (demand scenario): Factors HUFA MUFA Neutral MFA HFA 1 2 3 4 5 Number of Important buyers Few X Many Threat of Backward integration High X Low Product supplied Comodity X Speciality Switching cost Low X High % of buyers cost High X Low Profit Earned by Buyer High X Low Total 15 2 4 0 4 5 Score 2.50 Global textile clothing industry is currently pegged at around US$ 440 bn. US and European markets dominate the global textile trade accounting for 64% of clothing and 39% of textile market. With the dismantling of quotas, global textile trade is expected to grow (as per Mc Kinsey estimates) to US$ 650 bn by 2010 (5 year CAGR of 10%). Although China is likely to become the supplier of choice, other low cost producers like Pakistan would also benefit as the overseas importers would try to mitigate their risk of sourcing from only one country. The two-fold increase in global textile trade is also likely to drive Pakistans exports growth. Pakistans textile export (at US$ 15 bn in 2005) is expected to grow to US$ 40 bn, capturing a market share of close to 8% by 2010. Pakistan, in particular, is likely to benefit from the rising demand in the home textiles and apparels