Free Essays on Saturn

Introduction How did Saturn become a strong brand in only a few years? What were the key decisions, policies, and programs? Below is a description of some areas of strategy that were potential contributors. The goal is not only to describe what was done but also to suggest the logic behind the strategies, why they were pursued, and how they were intended to contribute to the brand. Although certainly some elements of the Saturn strategy may have been critical, it was the union of the total program rather than the power of any single element that led to its success. THE MISSION: A WORLD-CLASS PRODUCT From the beginning, the driving concept behind Saturn was to create a world-class compact car that could match or exceed such Japanese imports as the Honda Civic and the Toyota Corolla in quality. The car needed to have the reliability, safety, feel, appearance, and overall excellence that people expected in the top imports while remaining competitive in price. This quality was one of the defining dimensions of Saturn's corporate culture and brand identity. Too often there is an illusion that brands can be created by advertising without a product or service that really delivers quality and value. In reality, the product drives the image. The Edsel of the 1950s would have been a symbol of quality today if it had been an excellent product in that key first year; some very good Edsel advertising and marketing was wasted because of a shoddy product. The Volkswagen Beetle phenomenon of the 1960s very likely could have been transferred to the Rabbit in the mid-1970s if it were not for the initial mechanical problems that plagued the Rabbit during its early years. These problems doomed the effort to use advertising and the rabbit symbolism to transform the Beetle equity to the Rabbit. Saturn did not make the mistake of the Edsel or the Rabbit; its product was good from the outset. Reviews in car magazines provided objective judgments th... Free Essays on Saturn Free Essays on Saturn Introduction How did Saturn become a strong brand in only a few years? What were the key decisions, policies, and programs? Below is a description of some areas of strategy that were potential contributors. The goal is not only to describe what was done but also to suggest the logic behind the strategies, why they were pursued, and how they were intended to contribute to the brand. Although certainly some elements of the Saturn strategy may have been critical, it was the union of the total program rather than the power of any single element that led to its success. THE MISSION: A WORLD-CLASS PRODUCT From the beginning, the driving concept behind Saturn was to create a world-class compact car that could match or exceed such Japanese imports as the Honda Civic and the Toyota Corolla in quality. The car needed to have the reliability, safety, feel, appearance, and overall excellence that people expected in the top imports while remaining competitive in price. This quality was one of the defining dimensions of Saturn's corporate culture and brand identity. Too often there is an illusion that brands can be created by advertising without a product or service that really delivers quality and value. In reality, the product drives the image. The Edsel of the 1950s would have been a symbol of quality today if it had been an excellent product in that key first year; some very good Edsel advertising and marketing was wasted because of a shoddy product. The Volkswagen Beetle phenomenon of the 1960s very likely could have been transferred to the Rabbit in the mid-1970s if it were not for the initial mechanical problems that plagued the Rabbit during its early years. These problems doomed the effort to use advertising and the rabbit symbolism to transform the Beetle equity to the Rabbit. Saturn did not make the mistake of the Edsel or the Rabbit; its product was good from the outset. Reviews in car magazines provided objective judgments th...

50 College Problems Every Student Will Understand

50 College Problems Every Student Will Understand While there are endless college problems that every student will understand, here are the top 50 that the majority of us have had to deal with, or currently are. Social ineptitude and the personal challenges to overcome it. The intense pressure that comes from family to excel and succeed; to make huge choices under duress. Putting on weight in the first half of freshmen year, then struggling like hell to get it off before summer. Being forced to take elective classes or other types of classes that have absolutely nothing to do with your chosen career path. The price of college does not equal the worth of a degree to any sane degree. BTW, we know how to reduce costs for loans. The pressure to date during college, even if it’s not a priority. How hard it is to impress professors and build valuable connections with them. How difficult it is to make up for early GPA mistakes. Essays Every. Single. Day. Actually, with this one we can help. Being the only one in your entire dorm building that’s studying on a Friday or Saturday night. Juggling so many responsibilities at once. Dealing with the pressure to drink too much or do things that are unproductive just to impress people. Navigating college social culture in general. Having to listen to people moan and complain about their classes too much. Accidentally getting branded with the wrong crowd. When all the seats at the lecture are taken, so you’re forced to park it in the aisle. Signing up late for classes you really need and finding out their full. Why is the college website so confusing and hard to navigate? Parking is too expensive! Roommates from hell that you’re stuck with for a whole year. Dorm hall monitors with power trips and an ego problem. Teacher’s pets that make it hard to stay focused in class. Facebook, Insta, Snapchat. When you picked the wrong university, and it turns out to be nothing more than an expensive and glorified community college. Overly sexual roommates that are either always having sex or masturbating. People that barely have to do anything or study and they still get better grades. Professors that bring their personal problems with them to class and your grade ends up paying the price. Roommates that always leave for the weekend but forget to turn off their alarm for Saturday mornings. When all efforts to get some quality studying in at the library turns into nothing more than a gauntlet of people watching. It’s a senior year, and you still have yet to like your major. The class sounded so awesome, but then it turned out that the professor has this strange accent you can barely understand. Having to actually study when you study abroad. That one day you walk to class looking your absolute worst, and every sexy person on campus happens to be walking the opposite direction. When you spend hundreds of dollars on books only to then end up dropping out of the class because it wasn’t what you thought. You’re in college, and you turn 21, but you’re so broke you can’t even afford to buy a six pack. The amount of debt most graduates have to deal with after school. The current job market of the modern world is distressing, and yet there is more pressure than ever to get the same old degrees. Being caught up in other people’s college relationship and school drama to the point that it starts to get in the way of your own college experience. When you spend all Sunday cramming for a test you thought was on Monday but that day turned out to be a holiday, or the professor cancels class. When you feel like you should highlight just about every single sentence in the book. When what you thought was a big city college turns out to be the only thing in town. When you’re in a subjective class studying subjective things but the professor acts as thought their opinions are universal. Friday night and early Monday morning classes are the worst. Rejection letters that just won’t stop coming and really make no sense. Rent. Listening to people go on and on about their experiences while studying abroad, none of which can be proven. Rent-a-cops giving students a hard time. Dealing with the financial aid department. Cafeteria food is too fattening but tastes so good. Check out some recipes for easy to cook food for students. When everyone knows that person you adore is a complete loser. So many problems, some funnier and more annoying than others, can pop up. What do you think, is there anything we missed? What kinds of college problems are you tackling and how did you overcome them?

Incresing Motivation, Satisfaction, and Performance Essay

Incresing Motivation, Satisfaction, and Performance - Essay Example The plan is organized into three phases, with the first starting in January and ending in March, the second starting in April and ending in June while the third spans from July to December. The plan is fundamentally based upon the assumption that making workers’ satisfied makes them motivated for work and enhanced their performance. The plan January to March: The first phase would be subdivided into three phases, each phase representing one month starting from January. In January, an in-depth analysis of the literature will be made to make myself aware of the numerous motivational theories and models. One of the most used motivational model is the Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs depicts some of the basic needs of every human being. The model emphasizes that an individual’s motivation is linked with the fulfillment of these needs. The model also stresses that once a lower level need has been satisfied, the individual tends to gain the satisfaction with respect to the higher level needs until he/she starts to self-actualize which is actually a stage, when motivation comes into play (NetMBA, 2010). In February, I would develop a questionnaire and take sufficient time to modify that in order to get exactly what I require from the people through it. One of the most useful tools to measure the level of satisfaction that people maintain in an organizational environment or members of a team generally maintain is the staff survey (Chapman, 2009). In addition to the information retrieved from the questionnaires, the whole process of consulting the staff and making them feel involved in a research lends them a feeling of satisfaction as well as increases their motivation and performance in the long run. Finally, the questionnaire would be distributed among the respondents and collected. March will be the phase of data analysis and evaluation for the potential satisfaction and motivation driving factors. I would see if the members with lesser satisfaction were as motivated for work as the members with more satisfaction. The questionnaire will assess each respondent’s level of satisfaction and motivation on a five point likert scale with 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 representing least satisfied, somewhat satisfied, satisfied, very satisfied, and extremely satisfied. The pattern would be inverse for motivation with 1 representing extremely motivated and 5 representing least motivated. By the end of the first phase, I would have measurable results telling me how members’ motivation and satisfaction levels compare with each other in a group setting. This phase will also rank some of the key drivers of satisfaction and motivation according to the team members’ responses to the questionnaires. April to June: Having established the influence of motivation upon satisfaction level and the inverse for the team members, I would assess ways to fulfill their demands with respect to the previously ranked driving factors. â€Å"Motivatio nal incentives act like stimulants and encourage employees to be positive minded and hence be more effective in their work† (Davoren, 2011). Money is one of the most fundamental stimulants for performance in all kinds of work settings, including individual and group work. That is why, managers frequently introduce monetary rewards as incentives for people to display better performance at work. Rewards may be given to individual employees by way of an increase in their pay or

Rapid Appraisal of Articles About the Pressure Ulcer Article

Rapid Appraisal of Articles About the Pressure Ulcer - Article Example The study of Kordestani et al. (2008) aimed to compare the wound healing rate and incidence of infection in wounds treated with either bioactive dressing (dressing with hydrophilic mucopolysaccharide, chitosan) or conservative treatment (gauze) (p. 323). Data were collected from 85 patients with diabetic ulcers but due to attrition, only 54 patients were analyzed. The result of the study found out that a statistically significant difference (p

Hemingway Code Hero Essay -- essays papers

Hemingway Code Hero In this novel A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway, Hemingway brings about the evolution of Frederick Henry being converted into a code hero in realistic ways. Frederick Henry achieved the six code hero characteristics by the end of the novel with the help of Catherine, a code hero herself. All the characteristics seem to follow the path of a manly person who is continuously striving to live his/her life to the fullest. Throughout this novel, Frederick Henry's behavior matures to the code hero in which Hemingway desires to be. In the start of the novel, Frederick Henry was into over- sensual pleasures and could not control himself until he had spent much time with Catherine and learned how to discipline himself. Henry "had drunk much wine" and roamed from whore house to whore house near the beginning of the novel. He had no control over himself nor could hold his liquor or contain himself from easy women during this time. Henry finally disciplined himself near the end of his stay at the Ospidale Maggoire. The nada concept had been a part of Henry's life from the beginning. Henry stood up nights because the night is a representation of evil and death to him. If he is not asleep, he can avoid having to deal with it. Henry also is accompanied by Catherine during nights at the Ospidale Maggoire. To Henry there "was almost no difference in the night except that is was an even better time" with Catherine. Catherine, who is already a code hero...

Marriage and Happiness Essay

Humans are in search of two things: love and happiness. Whether it is from kids or significant others, people strive to reach feelings of connection in fear of being alone. In Gilbert’s, â€Å"Does Fatherhood Make You Happy? † and Crittenden’s, â€Å"About Love,† the authors question the roots of personal happiness. By comparing and contrasting Daniel Gilbert and Danielle Crittenden, it can be concluded that oneself does not solely determine happiness. The presence of children and significant others serve as major factors in emotional feelings of love and pride contributing to feelings of happiness. Gilbert’s, â€Å"Does Fatherhood Make You Happy† discusses how kids have an effect on a parent’s life along with their happiness. Starting his essay off by exchanging ideas in which children decrease the happiness of a parent by adding stress into their life, he ends with thoughts that kids make us happy nonetheless, since they are a product of two partners. For instance, Gilbert proclaims that the happiness children bring into a couple’s life may exhibit a small impact. In his words, â€Å"Children may not make us happy very often, but when they do that happiness is both transcendent and amnesic† (Gilbert 985). Children have the capabilities to make any individual happy. Gilbert’s point initially is that married couples start off blissful with each other, worrying only for themselves. Over time when the mates produce offspring, they progressively become unhappy, from when their kids are in diapers to when they hit adolescence. Research conducted by psychologists revealed that couples reach initial happiness when their kids grow up and move along with their lives. Gilbert refers to such a thought to show readers the truth of what really happens in parenthood. He states, â€Å"Our children give us many things, but an increase on our average daily happiness is probably not among them† (Gilbert 986). Parents withhold an unconditional love for their kids going beyond measures. Being patient and kind is in every parents’ nature to love and care for their children. A simple â€Å"I love you† can erase moments of despair. Crittenden’s â€Å"About Love† argues that people have been in search for autonomy, defined as the need to be oneself. Crittenden believes that in this newfound generation, humans are on a quest for independence yet they are also on a journey to find love. She also believes postponing â€Å"true feelings† such as trust, faith, and honesty can be like a prison (1010). If individuals are not able to display such emotions, they will trap themselves in their own prison. Crittenden’s point of view assumes that not being able to live for one person can be a negative and positive thing: â€Å"A woman will not understand what true dependency is until she is cradling her own infant in her arms†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (1009). She shows creating and maintaining a family helps women find their identity. She starts her essay off with views of being in search of autonomy, and ends with statements that women want the family aspect as well as children in life to complete them. Crittenden states: We all want the warm body next to us on the sofa in the evenings; we want the noise and embrace of family around us; we want at the end of our lives to look back and see that what we have done amounts to more than a pile of pay stubs, that we have love and been loved, and brought into this world life that will outlast us (1008). To love and be loved amounts to more than just fulfilling another lone soul, helping humans create lives and opportunities of happiness. People are often too fearful of taking responsibility of not only themselves, but of others. In Crittenden’s words, â€Å"Too often, autonomy is merely the excuse of someone who is so fearful, so weak that he or she can’t bear to take on any of the responsibilities that used to be shoulder by much younger but more robust and mature souls† (1008). Fear of commitment, and bearing others serves as a block in the road to find happiness. Gilbert and Crittenden both assert in one way or another that individuals attempt to find a source of happiness by raising a family, or taking responsibilities from others. On one hand, Gilbert overlooks what I consider an important argument about the happiness a kid brings. Objecting with his proposals, I argue against Gilbert, as children do indeed stimulate joy. Believing that the impact of happiness kids deliver is rare and trifling is ludicrous. How could you ever disagree with what makes an individual happy? Happiness is within the eye of the beholder. It becomes apparent that kids make their parents smile, laugh, and show emotions no one else can achieve. My thoughts come to more common ground with Crittenden as she argues that letting go the fear we hold and opening our hearts to love would help individuals reach a sense of happiness. I strongly agree with this argument because we won’t fully understand what happiness can truly reveal until we can make others beside ourselves happy. Having someone to share goals, dreams, and aspirations with creates a new bond. Being able to witness another person be proud of what you accomplished can help you acquire personal happiness. I wholeheartedly endorse what Crittenden refers to as strengthening a muscle by using it (1009). We train our muscles such as our heart to be strong. If we are not able to put our heart into use, we will never know how to express feelings of love and merriment to others. Growing up, getting married, and having children is what most women envision in the future. The risk of commitment and willingness to be open is scary, but it’s a risk worth investing in. Many people argue that looking for love is only a petty excuse to get away from loneliness. They assert that relationships only create madness, kids are a waste of time, and families make you lose sanity. However, if one were to argue against my beliefs I would assure them finding a partner is not as daunting as it sounds. Along with kids are put on this earth for a reason: to bring joy. Finally that family is always there for love and support. Love finds a wonderful place in this world to make humans experience acceptance. As Crittenden would point out, â€Å"the moment we say, ‘I Do,’ we have answered one of the great, crucial questions of our lives: We now know with whom we’ll be spending the rest of our years†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (1009). Content with the emotional connections, the commitment of love opens a whole new spectrum of happiness. Although many individuals argue that being alone is far off better, having someone to love and care for is a beautiful experience. My discussion of love and happiness is in fact addressing the larger matter of what really is happiness. Assuming the bigger picture, one will define personal happiness as surrounding themselves with a big family with a husband and five kids. Another may define bliss as merely two soul mates being together forever. Many others will define joy as autonomy and coming home to a lone household. These conclusions have significant applications on Gilbert’s idea of a couple being satisfied without kids, as well as Crittenden’s point of considering someone to love and be open to. Humans are able and willing to find their own personal happiness. To love and be loved is one of life’s greatest aspects to being able to complete an individual. Works Cited Crittenden, Danielle. â€Å"About Love. † What Our Mothers Didn’t Tell Us: Why Happiness Eludes the Modern Woman. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1999. 1008-010. Print. Gilbert, Daniel. â€Å"Does Fatherhood Make You Happy? † Stumbling On Happiness. N. p. : HarperCollins, 2006. 984-86. Print.

The Importance of Jade in Precolumbian America

Jade occurs naturally in very few places in the world, although the term jade has been often used to describe a variety of minerals used since ancient times to produce luxury items in many different regions of the world, such as China, Korea, Japan, New Zealand, Neolithic Europe, and Mesoamerica. The term jade should be properly applied to only two minerals: nephrite and jadeite. Nephrite is a calcium and magnesium silicate  and can be found in a variety of colors, from translucent white, to yellow, and all shades of green. Nephrite doesn’t occur naturally in Mesoamerica. Jadeite, a sodium and aluminum silicate, is a hard and highly translucent stone whose color ranges from blue-green to apple green. Sources of Jade in Mesoamerica The only source of jadeite known so far in Mesoamerica is the Motagua River valley in Guatemala. Mesoamericanists debate over whether the Motagua river was the only source  or ancient peoples of Mesoamerica used multiple sources of the precious stone. Possible sources under study are the Rio Balsas basin in Mexico  and the Santa Elena region in Costa Rica. Pre-Columbian archaeologists working on jade, distinguish between â€Å"geological† and â€Å"social† jade. The first term indicates the actual jadeite, whereas â€Å"social† jade indicates other, similar greenstones, such as quartz and serpentine which were not as rare as jadeite but were similar in color and therefore fulfilled the same social function. Cultural Importance of Jade Jade was especially appreciated by Mesoamerican and Lower Central American people because of its green color. This stone was associated with water, and vegetation, especially young, maturing corn. For this reason, it was also related to life and death. Olmec, Maya, Aztec and Costa Rican elites particularly appreciated jade carvings and artifacts and commissioned elegant pieces from skillful artisans. Jade was traded and exchanged among elite members as a luxury item all over the pre-Hispanic American world. It was replaced by gold very late in time in Mesoamerica, and around 500 AD in Costa Rica and Lower Central America. In these locations, frequent contacts with South America made gold more easily available. Jade artifacts are often found in elite burial contexts, as personal adornments or accompanying objects. Sometimes a jade bead was placed within the mouth of the deceased. Jade objects are also found in dedicatory offerings for the construction or ritual termination of public buildings, as well as in more private residential contexts. Ancient Jade Artifacts In the Formative period, the Olmec of the Gulf Coast were among the first Mesoamerican people to shape jade into votive celts, axes, and bloodletting tools around 1200-1000 BC. The Maya achieved master levels of jade carving. Maya artisans used drawing cords, harder minerals, and water as abrasive tools to work the stone. Holes were made in jade objects with bone and wood drills, and finer incisions were often added at the end. Jade objects varied in size and shapes and included necklaces, pendants, pectorals, ear ornaments, beads, mosaic masks, vessels, rings, and statues. Among the most famous jade artifacts from the Maya region, we can include funeral masks and vessels from Tikal, and Pakal’s funeral mask and jewels from the Temple of the Inscriptions at Palenque. Other burial offerings and dedication caches have been found at major Maya sites, such as Copan, Cerros, and Calakmul. During the Postclassic period, the use of jade dropped dramatically in the Maya area. Jade carvings are rare, with the notable exception of the pieces dredged out of the Sacred Cenote at Chichà ©n Itzà ¡. Among Aztec nobility, jade jewelry was the most valuable luxury: partly because of its rarity, since it had to be imported from the tropical lowlands, and partly because of its symbolism linked to water, fertility, ​and preciousness. For this reason, jade was one of the most valuable tribute item collected by the Aztec Triple Alliance. Jade in Southeastern Mesoamerica and Lower Central America Southeastern Mesoamerica and Lower Central America were other important regions of the distribution of jade artifacts. In the Costa Rican regions of Guanacaste-Nicoya jade artifacts were mainly widespread between AD 200 and 600. Although no local source of jadeite has been identified so far, Costa Rica and Honduras developed their own jade-working tradition. In Honduras, non-Maya areas show a preference for using jade in building dedication offerings more than burials. In Costa Rica, by contrast, the majority of jade artifacts have been recovered from burials. The use of jade in Costa Rica seems to come to an end around A.D. 500-600  when there was a shift towards gold as the luxury raw material; that technology originated in Colombia and Panama. Jade Study Problems Unfortunately, jade artifacts are hard to date, even if found in relatively clear chronological contexts, since this particularly precious and hard-to-find material was often passed down from one generation to another as heirlooms. Finally, because of their value, jade objects are often looted from archaeological sites and sold to private collectors. For this reason, a huge number of published items are from unknown provenience, missing, therefore, an important piece of information. Sources Lange, Frederick W., 1993, Precolumbian Jade: New Geological and Cultural Interpretations. University of Utah Press. Seitz, R., G.E. Harlow, V.B. Sisson, and K.A. Taube, 2001, Olmec Blue and Formative Jade Sources: New Discoveries in Guatemala, Antiquity, 75: 687-688