Procurement Policy Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Procurement Policy - Case Study Example rights to a startup company's new drugs which was later turned into a new corporation worth $500 million a year. The end result of this engagement was that Merck sold 50 percent of its shares in the new corporation to Astra (Ghauri, 2001, p. 40). In so doing, consumers are able to acquire life-saving and life-altering pharmaceuticals in a timely manner. At the heart of this alliance is the notion that in order to effectively and efficiently manage a business such as Merck, there is a need for strategic supply management. In recent years Merck has embodied a strong shift from a predominantly domestic supply management strategy to one which has entailed global management strategies. This strategy operates under the assumption that procurement policy is central to the success of the company. This strategy can be characterized by two main elements: Arnold (1989) illustrated one of the most concise conceptualizations of the global supply management strategies utilized by Merck by delineating four very distinct procurement policy development stages. These stages are as follows: 1. The Traditional Procurement Policy. In this phase, the scope of the procurement policy is narrowly define and limited to domestic sources. ... One important characteristic of this phase is the understanding that there is no attempt to link the procurement strategy with the other components of the business process. Essentially, the traditional procurement process is somewhat haphazard and does not represent any long-term business strategy (Rai & Eisenberg, 2003). 2. International Purchasing. The second phase of the procurement policy is one which expands the supply sources to non-domestic sources. The underlying intent of this phase is to reduce the production cost by acquiring the necessary materials at a lower cost. During this phase, there is a systematic exploration of foreign sources with the aim of realizing a price advantage over its competitors by purchasing the raw materials at a lower cost without adversely affecting the quality of goods, the level of service provided to consumers and the delivery as well as the availability of goods. An example of this can be seen in the very presence of Merck in Japan. This can be both positive and negative with the positive implications very evident and a negative implication whereby there is limited American investment within the Japanese economy. Essentially, Merck's presence in Japan is solely for the purposes of acquiring materials at a low cost and exporting those materials for economic gain within the United States (Chen & Drysdale, 1995, pp. 141-142). 3. Strategic Procurement Policy. During this phase, the procurement policy of the organization becomes an integral part of its overall business strategy. It is utilized as a means of gaining a significant advantage over its competitors. One important component can be seen in the fact that global sourcing is exploited in such a manner as to improve the

Proposing a Solution Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Proposing a Solution - Essay Example Notably, cyber attacks do have the potential to create an extreme economic damage as well as, social impact that are disproportionally costly to the nation or organization at risk. Therefore, it is essential to establish workable approaches to maintaining the security of the communication and technological systems. The advent of the security challenges created another aspect of terror, an establishment that many nations are yet to consider as a possible channel for terror attacks. However, in the U.S. after the memorable 9/11 attack, the subject of security evolved into a critical matter that none of the congressional representatives or the general population would take lightly (Werner 16). It is notable that the cyber attack in all its aspects targets the essential applications and databases within any of the government or public institutions creating havoc against that nation (Levy, Michelle & Raymond 77). The media drama is as subjective as any physical bombing incidence, considering the psychological implications involved in the attack. The cyber attack can create an element of distrust and unstable relations among the populations. The cost to the nation is the absence of coordinated systems, which can bring the entire internet system of the nation down. This creates more chances for advan ced physical attacks on the country. The U.S. is at a heightened level of cyber threats considering the milestones it has made in the telecommunications and technological fields. An eminent attack in the entire systems of the nation would render a cyber apocalypse to the nation, bringing down all essential infrastructure required in daily activities of the government, business entities and the general population (Werner 16). At the helm of the escalating risks to the national security in the country, the cyber environment threats are equally evolving, as

Cold Fusion Essay -- essays research papers

Cold Fusion: The Continuing Mystery In March of 1989, a discovery was made that rocked the scientific world. Stanley Pons and Martin Fleischman had announced that they were able to create and sustain a cold fusion process. After intense media attention, and corresponding interest in future test, the subject seemed to have faded away. Future tests proved inconclusive, and when the quick promise of easy energy didn’t materialize, most quickly forgot the subject. Little is said about the continuing research in the scientific community to further our understanding of the free energy enigma. Is it science fiction, on the border of legitamete science, or is it a practical field worthy of serious attention?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Cold Fusion is the merging of two dissimilar metal hydrides. The process is exothermic, and can generate energy in one of two ways. Energy can be input in to a system and multiplied, or energy alone can be generated although in a much smaller amount. For example, one watt of energy can be input and 3 watts recovered. Some systems are capable of producing hundreds of watts per individual watt. The actual physics of the reaction is not completely understood. Some claim it is merely a chemical reaction not yet understood, while others are convinced it is a nuclear reaction.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One example is a cold fusion cell which used .04 grams of metal hydride. It produced 86 megajoules over a two month period. A similar chemical reaction would have required 2,000 grams of chemicals to produce the same amount of energy. Another interesting point regarding this cell was the fact it had to be deliberately shut down. There was no sign of the reaction tapering off.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The skepticism regarding cold fusion stems from two separate studies, one done by MIT, and the other by the Energy Resources Advisory Board. The MIT study has been palled by attacks on the methods used to present the information. The chief science writer at the Institute denounced the study and resigned. The report contained altered graphs and an unclear method. The ERAB report was inconclusive, but presented to congress in a such a way as to present all of the negatives in order to maintain funding for their existed programs, instead of transferring research money to others.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Numerous labs across the... ...clear reaction at all. Some think that the process is merely a chemical reaction not yet understood by today’s laws of chemistry. This presents numerous gray areas in the understanding of the reactions taking place in the experiments. If indeed it is a chemical reaction then there is some flaw in our understanding of chemical reactions. The lack of nuclear byproducts when in theory there should be lends strong credence to this belief though. Only continued experimentation and new exploration will help explain the mystery.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The use of cold fusion would be a boon to mankind. It’s use would solve all energy delimmas currently facing the petroleum dependant modern society. Elimination of pollution, economy, and ready availability of raw materials would be a tremendous improvement over today’s combustion engines and chemical cells. More so than any other alternative energy solution, cold fusion presents a source that is truly renewable and, if it lives up to it’s hypothesis, a large enough amount of power. No other means to date has proven it’s practical use on a large scale. Cold fusion could be the solution to the problems of global warming and pollution.

What is the Victorian attitude

The typical Victorian woman was expected to bear her husband children, to ensure her family's happiness, to be suppressed and to show minimal emotion. Hence, true love was not as common as present day, especially for the upper class, who were being constantly being scrutinized by society. These attitudes are explored in ‘Jude the Obscure', ‘Sonnet VI' from Sonnets from the Portuguese, and ‘Jane Ere'. The main attitude towards love in Victorian society was that it was a career move for men, and a way for a woman to secure her position in life and the security of her children.Hence it was important to put love last to marry well, as your future depended on it. The Victorian novel ‘Jude the obscure' partially rejects this idea. In the case of Suede's marriage to Rubella, although there was some original attraction, due to Rubella's flirtatious nature, Jude quickly realizes that Rubella is not the one for him. However before he can break up with her, she tells him she is pregnant, and therefore he marries her, as it is the only noble thing to do.Again in Cue's marriage to Mr.. Philologist, it is not a career move. Philologist is belly in love with Sue, however his love is requited, and Sue only loves him as a friend. However, perhaps as a reaction to Jude confessing that he was married to Rubella, Sue acts rashly and marries Philologist. In both cases, the main objective of the marriages where not to progress in society, but on the other hand, neither were because of love either, therefore this attitude towards love is only partially rejected.Sue and Suede's relationship is built on true love, in that sense this attitude is fully rejected, however they have no intention of getting married, and due to the volatility of their characters, Cue's n particular, it is uncertain how long their relationship will last. Elizabeth Barrett Borrowing's sonnet also rejects this attitude of marriage being a necessity in society, and love was more of an afte rthought. Throughout the sonnet, she uses very beautiful and positive imagery when describing her emotions towards Richard. â€Å"l shall command/ The uses of my soul, nor lift my hand/ Serenely in the sunshine as before. The use of â€Å"command† suggests that she is in control, however she then talks about the â€Å"uses of [her] soul† it changes her meaning a bit. It could be interpreted as her thoughts Of him controlling her. Or it could also mean that all she can think about is him, and nothing else, and she can't control her thoughts. The next part paints a positive image, about no longer having to block out the sunshine, this may be construed as her having to stop thinking about him. The sunshine could be referring to Richard, or his love for her, or her love for him.The â€Å"lift my hand† may be referring to her blocking her love for him, or his advances towards her, in both interpretations she blinds herself to Richard. However the message is that she is partially committed and feels it is right, and she no longer has to stop herself from thinking about him or blocking his advances towards her. Browning rejects this attitude to love, and presents an argument that love can be true love. ‘Jane Ere' also rejects this attitude, and Jane chooses true love over this opportunistic love. SST. John, Cane's cousin, proposes to her even though he doesn't really love her.He believes that she can fulfill the duties he needs for his wife to do as he embarks on his journey to India as a missionary. Jane doesn't love him either and therefore turns down his proposal, much to his annoyance. â€Å"God and nature intended you for a missionary's wife†¦ A missionary's wife you must shall be. You shall be mine: I claim you -? not for my pleasure, but for my Sovereign's service. † SST. John's proposal is far from romantic, and in comparison with Rochester, has no love, or any emotion. The whole proposal is imperative, commanding Jane to agree and be his wife.He uses â€Å"God† and â€Å"nature† to suggest that this is God's plan, and it is only natural that Jane play out this role and fulfill her duty. SST. John says it is not for his pleasure, telling the reader that he has no romantic feelings towards Jane. He then goes on to say it is for â€Å"my Sovereign's service†, thus agreeing with the attitude of love, as marrying Jane would propel him in society and his career, and love is not of importance. Jane rejects SST. John's proposal because it would have been a loveless marriage, whereas she agrees to Rochester's proposal because of their mutual romantic love for each other.In the Victorian era, this would have been very uncommon, as most people put love last for marriage, Cane's effuse of this however shows that not everyone in Victorian society accepted this, and some craved for true love. Marriage was supposed to be a way of securing a future and a necessity of advancing yourself. Due to the laws at the time, marriage was a very final affair, to divorce or to separate was extremely frowned upon by society and even when that occurred there would be complications for both parties and children, e. . If divorced, any children would be declared illegitimate immediately. This made a lot of women nervous about making any commitment to their suitors. This idea is explored extensively in ‘Jude the Obscure', with Sue Bridgehead constantly questioning society attitude towards marriage. She challenges the accepted norm, that the institution of marriage is more of a trap than a declaration of love. She criticizes society's inability to accept the breaking of this commitment that most people are emotionally unequipped to fulfill.She strongly feels that the contractual nature of the agreement will kill the little spontaneity and romance that existed before the marriage. She says â€Å"It is foreign to a man's tauter to go on loving a person when he is told that he must a nd shall be a person's lover What is interesting with this is that although she constantly talks about women being the ones who have to adhere to society's standards and sacrifice all individuality, here she uses â€Å"he†. This may be to effectively convey her reasoning to Jude and get her points across in a way that he'd understand.Also she refers to â€Å"man's nature†, implying that it is unnatural and against human nature to be confined to these legal obligations. This opinion of hers is further reinforced by her horror when visiting the squalid egotist office, as well as her aversion to having a church wedding. This shows her abhorrence to the legality of getting married, and comes into play when she refuses to marry Jude, although they lead a happy unmarried life together for a few years. In Borrowing's Sonnet VI from ‘Sonnets from the Portuguese' she also mentions this wariness of marriage.She begins the sonnet with this uncertainty, â€Å"Go from me. Ye t feel that I shall stand/ Henceforth in thy shadow. † The first phrase is an imperative; however she follows this quickly with a pivot, â€Å"Yet'. This shows that she is torn between loving him or not, as it is a massive risk. Structurally, Browning has placed this right at the beginning of the sonnet, signaling to the author that this has ensures has plagued her mind for a long time, and it's the first thing she thinks about.Also it could suggest that since the very start, she has been unsure as to whether she loves him, and she knows the consequences of committing right from the beginning. This emotion is typical of many of Browsing earlier sonnets from her series â€Å"Sonnets from the Portuguese† as it is the beginning of their arthritis and she is still uncertain whether this is the man for her. This decision will influence her whole future, so she is very tentative in her feelings towards Richard Browning.Charlotte Bronze also explores this concept In Jane Ere, after Mr. Rochester proposes to Jane, she goes into much deliberation and a lot of dialogue is exchanged between them before she agrees to give herself to him, as his bride. â€Å"rare you in earnest? Do you truly love me? Do you sincerely wish me to be your wife? † This quote is made entirely of questions, as she is unsure if she can trust what he is saying to be rue. She uses strong adverbs such as â€Å"truly/' and â€Å"sincerely' as she wants to be entirely sure of his devotion to her.

A View of Vivaldi’s Concerto for Two Violins - 1725 Words

Antonio Vivaldi is a famous Italian baroque composer, known by most Suzuki violin students who study his concertos or by audiences everywhere who have heard and love his composition of the Four Seasons. Having grown up as students of the Suzuki Violin Method, we recognize this composer and have experience performing his pieces. In addition to his many concertos written for solo violin, Vivaldi composed many concertos intended to be performed by two solo violins, accompanied by a small orchestra. Because we are both violinists, we chose to analyze the second movement of Vivaldi’s Concerto for Two Violins in A minor, RV 522, included in his L’Estro Armonico works. According to Michael Talbot, of Grove Music, as well as the liner notes†¦show more content†¦This concerto is made up of three movements, with the second movement entitled Larghetto e spiritoso in between two Allegro movements. Originally intended for two solo violins, violin I, violin II, viola, ce llo, and bass, this piece has been transposed in various forms and is now commonly performed with two solo violins and piano. While the other two movements are lively and exciting, the second movement provides a great contrast. It is in a different key and has a completely different feeling, one of heaviness and melancholy, though its chord progressions and harmonies make it appealing to audiences. This composition in its entirety gained Vivaldi his greatest popularity as it spread throughout Europe and became a standard for 18th century composers. In his compositions, as with this work, Vivaldi often borrowed chord patterns and structure from his other pieces. Unlike the other movements, which are in A minor, the second movement changes key to D minor. In this way there is a modulation between movements, however, within the movement there are no modulations. There are several variant qualities of the leading tone and dominant triads; both normally appearing in the same measur e throughout the piece. Examples of these variant qualities are in measures 2, 6, and 10. Interestingly, several times throughout the piece, the violin will play a C# against a variant quality dominant triad in the piano. An example of this is in measure 10. In the

Research Questions On The Association Between Loan Lending...

Question 1 1. What were the research questions that guided this study? Why is it important to study this topic? What prior research did the authors review to provide context for their study? According to the article,There were four research questions used to guide the study. The first question that was used to examine the studied was the association between the cumulative amount of different analytic sample due to the nature of the analysis. This student loans borrowed over the course of schooling and psycho-y and directly say that it was looking for an association between the psychological function (here this mean s state or condition) of individuals who had borrowed money for schooling (their annual borrowing, sort of on a scale). Second, what is the association between annual student loan borrowing and psycho-monic position, and the addition of factors such as wealth, loans,logical functioning among students who are enrolled in college?.Also, the third question was analyzing , whether the association between loans as they obtain them during school, as well as during the student loans and psychological functioning varies by enrollment repayment period after graduatio n. Thus, these loans may be conferring 2-year versus 4-year colleges. Fourth, there was an investigation whether the association between student loans and psychological functioning will be stronger for those who did not obtain a college degree than those who did? It was important to focus on student loans

Passion And Moral Judgement Essay - 1396 Words

Passion as the Criterion for Moral Judgment nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Ethics is the study of human conduct or in other words the study of moral behavior. All humans use ethics in their daily actions and decisions, but not many have the opportunity to probe into the core of ethics. When Socrates said in 399 B.C., â€Å"The unexplained life is not worth living† he was encouraging man to examine his way of life and ways of moral decision making. Ethics not only aims to discover the rules that should govern a moral life, but the goods one should aim to acquire in their life time. Ethics aims to explain why and how man acts the way he does and to shape the way man lives and acts,. Some philosophers say that reason is the criterion for making†¦show more content†¦Actions may be to blame in certain situations, but they cannot be called reasonable or unreasonable. If reason rules moral actions there would be no wrong in society because all people would follow the same moral code of conduct, but because man acts from his experience, passions, and sentiments not all men follow the same rules. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Many philosophers disagree with Hume’s idea of passions guiding human moral judgments. Among Hume’s strongest opposition would be the ancient philosophers Socrates and Plato. Both men believed that reason was the basis for moral judgments. Socrates’ thesis on reason was that only reason could lead man to truth and understanding. For Socrates rationality was the basis for morality. Plato believed that only through reason could man arrive at true knowledge. He thought that reason is an integral part of morals and its role is to gain knowledge and wisdom to fulfill the soul. Plato believed that human nature is reason and hence reason is good because human nature is good. Humans of today have proved Plato wrong; not all human nature is good. Plato also stated that, â€Å"Opinion without knowledge is always a shabby sort of thing. One who holds a true belief without intelligence is just like a blind man who happens to take the right road.â₠¬  Plato held intellectual knowledge and reason with the highest regards. He also believed that there is a fight between passion and reason, but HumeShow MoreRelatedPlato s Allegory Of The Cave1008 Words   |  5 PagesDescriptive ethics, or morals, consist of different people, groups, and societies that have standards. It is the philosophical study of what morality is and how it requires us to behave. Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, is his best effort to explain how we should live in society. Defining ‘what is morality?’ can be quite impossible with the many different theories and concepts on what it means to live morally. However, the overall concept of ethics relates to â€Å"right† versus â€Å"wrong† actions. 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In addition to the passionate approach to doing things, charismatic leadership also encourages risk-taking and thinking outside