The Literary Criticism of Agnosticism

Definition and Properties of Metallic Bonding

Definition and Properties of Metallic Bonding A metallic bond is a type of chemical bond formed between positively charged atoms in which the free electrons are shared among a lattice of cations. In contrast, covalent and ionic bonds form between two discrete atoms. Metallic bonding is the main type of chemical bond that forms between metal atoms. MARK GARLICK/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Getty Images Metallic bonds are seen in pure metals and alloys and some metalloids. For example, graphene (an allotrope of carbon) exhibits two-dimensional metallic bonding. Metals, even pure ones, can form other types of chemical bonds between their atoms. For example, the mercurous ion (Hg22) can form metal-metal covalent bonds. Pure gallium forms covalent bonds between pairs of atoms that are linked by metallic bonds to surrounding pairs. How Metallic Bonds Work The outer energy levels of metal atoms (the s and p orbitals) overlap. At least one of the valence electrons participating in a metallic bond is not shared with a neighbor atom, nor is it lost to form an ion. Instead, the electrons form what may be termed an electron sea in which valence electrons are free to move from one atom to another. The electron sea model is an oversimplification of metallic bonding. Calculations based on electronic band structure or density functions are more accurate. Metallic bonding may be seen as a consequence of a material having many more delocalized energy states than it has delocalized electrons (electron deficiency), so localized unpaired electrons may become delocalized and mobile. The electrons can change energy states and move throughout a lattice in any direction. Bonding can also take the form of metallic cluster formation, in which delocalized electrons flow around localized cores. Bond formation depends heavily on conditions. For example, hydrogen is a metal under high pressure. As pressure is reduced, bonding changes from metallic to nonpolar covalent. Relating Metallic Bonds to Metallic Properties Because electrons are delocalized around positively-charged nuclei, metallic bonding explains many properties of metals. ImageGap / Getty Images Electrical Conductivity - Most metals are excellent electrical conductors because the electrons in the electron sea are free to move and carry charge. Conductive nonmetals (e.g., graphite), molten ionic compounds, and aqueous ionic compounds conduct electricity for the same reason - electrons are free to move around. Thermal Conductivity - Metals conduct heat because the free electrons are able to transfer energy away from the heat source and also because vibrations of atoms (phonons) move through a solid metal as a wave. Ductility - Metals tend to be ductile or able to be drawn into thin wires because local bonds between atoms can be easily broken and also reformed. Single atoms or entire sheets of them can slide past each other and reform bonds. Malleability - Metals are often malleable or capable of being molded or pounded into a shape, again because bonds between atoms readily break and reform.  The binding force between metals is nondirectional, so drawing or shaping a metal is less likely to fracture it. Electrons in a crystal may be replaced by others. Further, because the electrons are free to move away from each other, working a metal doesnt force together like-charge ions, which could fracture a crystal through the strong repulsion. Metallic Luster - Metals tend to be shiny or display metallic luster. They are opaque once a certain minimum thickness is achieved. The electron sea reflects photons off the smooth surface. There is an upper frequency limit to the light that can be reflected. The strong attraction between atoms in metallic bonds makes metals strong and gives them high density, high melting point, high boiling point, and low volatility. There are exceptions. For example, mercury is a liquid under ordinary conditions and has a high vapor pressure. In fact, all of the metals in the zinc group (Zn, Cd, Hg) are relatively volatile. How Strong Are Metallic Bonds? Because the strength of a bond depends on its participant atoms, its difficult to rank types of chemical bonds. Covalent, ionic, and metallic bonds may all be strong chemical bonds. Even in molten metal, bonding can be strong. Gallium, for example, is nonvolatile and has a high boiling point  even though it has a low melting point. If the conditions are right, metallic bonding doesnt even require a lattice. It has been observed in glasses, which have an amorphous structure.

Lengthy police interrogations are more likely to result in innocent Essay

Lengthy police interrogations are more likely to result in innocent defendants falsely confessing to crimes - Essay Example This paper seeks to discuss false confessions by defendants and the interrogation process. False confessions can be categorized into three main categories namely: voluntary false confessions, compliant false confession, and internalized false confession. Voluntary false confession is a result of the individual’s free will without interference by the police. In some cases, this is always done with the aim of diverting attention away from the real criminal. Compliant false confessions refer to false confessions that are given due to some pressure, mostly to avoid implied punishments or promised rewards. Internalized false confessions refer to those that individuals give voluntarily as a result of being made to believe that they committed the crime by use of certain interrogation techniques. There are some techniques that the police use during interrogation and interviews that might lead to acquisition of false confessions. The most common ones are deception and the Reid techniqu e. The Reid technique refers to a method of questioning individuals that involve trying to determine their credibility and to get confessions from them. Those who are in support for this technique argues that it can be very useful in the acquisition of confessions from suspects who are not willing to confess to a crime they committed. However, the use of this technique during police interrogation can lead to the acquisition of highly flawed information from crime suspects. The Reid technique of interrogation involves interrogators telling a suspect that they are sure that the suspect committed the crime. This technique of interrogation is always characterized by the interrogator’s monologue rather than the usual question and answer sessions. The main aim of this technique, therefore, is gradually getting a suspect to acknowledge that presumed truth about the allegations made against the suspect (Nbau, 2013). This assertion can lead to suspects making either compliant false co nfessions or internalized false confessions. Such situations can lead to cases where interrogation serves injustice instead of giving justice to both the suspect and the victim. Deception is a technique frequently applied and accepted in police interrogations. Deception techniques are always employed with the aim of getting evidence from suspects. There does not exist any regulation or law that forbids the police and investigators from making misleading statements, deceiving the suspects on the strength of their case, or lying that they have a witness who saw the suspect committing the crime (Lassiter, 2006). All these are always aimed at getting suspects to confess to a crime. It can be productive only if the suspect being interrogated is indeed guilty. Deception techniques used in police interrogations are widely different. The main aim of interrogating or interviewing a suspect is always to get factual information relating to a crime, or getting the suspect to confess to a crime they committed. The various deception techniques used during police interrogation include: distorting the meaning or denying Miranda rules that are always guaranteed to all suspects, distorting the seriousness of the implications of the crime, threats, promises about less jail sentence in the case of collaboration, and claims of the existence of a valid witness. All of these forms of deception are considered to be

Landscape in the style of Mi Fu Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Landscape in the style of Mi Fu - Essay Example The subjugation of the Northern Song dynasty by the Yuan Dynasty failed to infiltrate the Chinese culture. The Mongol empire fell short in experience with regards to administration of the complex Chinese empire. Consequently, they slowly adopted political and cultural models of the Chinese. Nonetheless, the repercussion of the Mongol Empire was significant. The empire refused to recognise the Chinese literati. Most of them resigned to pursue personal interests and as such a culture of self-expression in painting was birthed and that of nature done away with. Through the learned scholar-artists, brushwork become the new calligraphy and assumed an independence that exceeded its function as a tool of developing representational forms. This period made variations in expressions to move beyond landscape to political expressions of the political frustration that was bombarding the Chinese during that era. Nonetheless, Kao K'o-kung’s work is associated with earlier work in (1051-1107 ) as observed by the characteristics similar to art by Mi Fu (1052-1109). Mi Fu’s most recognised work is his calligraphy as well as the landscape painting. His artwork was a termination of previous paintings common in the Song dynasty. During the Song era, landscape artwork in China relied on lines for its portrayal of the world. It was in his depiction of the mystic river along with the hills and Lake District in Henan province however that led Mi in the development of extreme moist washes as well as horizontal texture strokes.

American Indian Literature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

American Indian Literature - Essay Example Thus, his ability to defend his people allows him to be seen as a hero by his tribesmen, and this also allows him to be revered and celebrated by his people. Since warriors were so important to all Native American tribes, throughout their literature, we see the concept of the warrior as a hero, or as a powerful individual, bustling throughout this literature. Take, for example, the story of "Lucy, Oklahoma" in which "medicine men" become warriors, by way of witchcraft, on behalf of one of their abused kin. Medicine men are revered in Native American cultures, too, aren't they Of course they are-however, they are not usually seen as the heroes of battles-this is reserved for the warriors. If these medicine men are going to do their tribe justice and take revenge, they must fight. So, even though they are revered members of the tribe, we see that the status of the warrior in the tribe is even more revered-and thus, again, these men, in order to be heroes and to defend their tribe's ideals, must become warriors. The status of the warrior in the Native American tribe is therefore revered and even holy. The ability of the warrior to defend his tribe and assure the tribe's survival, as well as the tribe's own respect and prestige (as is the case in "Lucy, Oklahoma") becomes very important to the tribe's own pride and honor.

The different types of video modeling

The different types of video modeling Video modeling is an evidence based practice used to teach a variety of socially relevant behaviors for children with Autism. Many times children with Autism are visual thinkers and learners. They learn best when information is presented to them visually rather than orally. Using video modeling, the children are provided with a visual model of a peer, adult, or themselves engaging in the targeted behavior they are expected to learn. After watching the video several times, the children are provided with an opportunity to imitate and generalize the behavior observed on the video. A number of studies have shown that video modeling increases play conversations between children with Autism and adults and peers. Since children with Autism struggle with social skills, it is beneficial to teach them to initiate play with others. Video modeling produces faster acquisition of the behavior and greater generalization in children with Autism than live modeling and without the use of reinforcements or prompting. Studies have confirmed that with video modeling, verbalization and play actions was maintained over time. Video modeling can be implemented from early childhood to adulthood and taught by professionals and parents in a variety of settings. It can be used in the classroom and at home by the parents to teach new skills the child needs to be successful. A benefit of using video modeling is that it allows for parents, teachers, and people collaborating with the child to use the same method to teach targeted skills. It is difficult to learn and master a skill if the child is practicing different ways with different people. Because children with Autism have difficulties generalizing it is important to work together to teach targeted skills the same way. Video modeling allows for caregivers to do this. By everyone working together the child can learn the initial skill quicker and then work on generalization systematically. The child will experience success when everyone is working together, using the same video, and teaching the same skill the same way. Video modeling procedures have been used successfully to teach a variety of adaptive behaviors such as social, play, self care, and academic skills. Types of Video Modeling There are several types of video modeling that are used with children with Autism. The most common types of video modeling include basic video modeling, video self-modeling, point-of-view video modeling, and video prompting. Basic modeling involves recording either an adult or a peer modeling the targeted skill. The child watches this video at a later time. Video self-modeling records the child with Autism displaying the targeted skill. The child then watches themselves in the video at a later time. The point-of-view video modeling shows a video recorded from the perspective of the child with Autism. Video prompting is used when teaching a step by step skill. It is recorded by breaking the targeted skill into steps and pausing after steps to give the child with Autism an opportunity to practice each step. Many studies have found great success when combining models. Research A study by Macdonald (2009) evaluated the effects of video modeling has in teaching children with Autism to engage in reciprocal pretend play with their peers without disabilities. The play included verbal interactions and cooperative play. The study consisted of two pairs of children, one with Autism and a peer without Autism. The pair was shown a video consisting of two adults acting out the sequence of pretend play. The children were directed to play and their responses, actions, and verbalizations were recorded. Both pairs demonstrated successful gains of play actions and increased verbalization between peers. The performance was maintained over time. The results of this study concluded that video modeling produced sequences of reciprocal pretend play between children with Autism and their peers without Autism. In this study, video modeling was an efficient strategy for teaching cooperative play. The appropriate play skills were gained with short exposure of the video and in the absence of reinforcements and prompting. A study conducted by Allen et al. (2010) examined the effects video modeling had on teaching vocational skills to four young men with Autism. The participantsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ ages ranged from 16-25 years old. Video modeling was used to teach the four adolescents to wear a WalkAround Mascot costume and entertain the customers in a store. The video for the training showed a mascot performing in a scripted and naturalistic setting. The participants watched the video twice and were then taken to the store to imitate for 10 minutes the behavior seen in the video. According to the results of this study, all participants learned to use the vocational skills after watching the video model. The young men enjoyed the experiment and reported they would be interested in continuing to perform at the store when the experiment would be over. Allen (2010) states à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“video modeling was an effective way to teach adolescents and young adults with ASDs to perform a vocational task in a soc ial settingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ . A study designed by Nikopoulos and Keenan (2007) was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of video modeling on building sequences of social behaviors. The study included three boys with Autism from the ages of 6.5-7 years old. The boys were given common objects that included a ball, a table, two rags, a vacuum cleaner, a plant pot, and a jacket. These objects were selected because of familiarization and to avoid instructions of using the objects appropriately. The participants were shown the video and data was collected after 5 minutes by observing behaviors in the areas of social initiation, reciprocal play, imitative responses, and object engagement. The study data suggest that the participants were successful in building a sequence of social behaviors. All of the students performed the activities in the same sequence as presented in the video. The participantà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s showed generalization across peers and the appropriate behaviors were maintained after the 2 month fo llow up period. Research proved that video modeling was successful for children with Autism in this study. In the presented studies, video modeling has proven to be effective on children and adolescent with Autism. Results from these studies have demonstrated success across different settings and with the application of different skills. The results have also indicated that video modeling teaches skills at a rapid pace and with short exposure to the videos. In conclusion, video modeling procedures have been used to successfully teach many types of skills and behaviors in the areas of academics, social, self-care, daily living, community, vocational, and play. When used effectively research has shown to produce more rapid acquisition and greater generalization than live modeling. Video modeling has also shown that prompting and reinforcement are not necessary to help children acquire the targeted skill. Video modeling is a great tool because of the visually cued instruction that allows children with Autism to learn by observation.

Customer Satisfaction Towards E-Banking Services: a Case Study on Ific Bank Ltd.

Prelude In a constantly changing world of today, where past is replaced by dynamic present and the dynamic present is being replaced by more challenging future, the old ways of doing things is no longer valid. Change is permanent and a reality. Those who are not able to keep pace with the changes are destined to loose the race. Science and technology is changing the way financial institutions perform their transactions. Today’s banks are shaking by these technological changes. Life has never been so easy, comfortable, and luxurious. Science and technology have brought our life to this stage. But a new technology brings with it not only the potential for success but also a never-ending series of questions regarding its design, its value to its users, ultimate use and acceptability. E-banking is the waves of the future. It provides enormous benefits to consumers in terms of case and cost of transactions, either through internet, telephone or other electronic delivery channels. For many consumers, electronic banking means 24-hours access to cash through an Automated Teller Machine (ATM) or Direct Deposit of paychecks into checking or savings accounts. But electronic banking now involves many different types of transactions. E-banking is a form of banking where funds are transferred through an exchange of electronic signals between financial institution, rather than exchange of cash, cheeks or other negotiable instruments. With the expansion of global Information and Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure and the internet, e-banking is set to play a pivotal role in the national economy, proper software, infrastructure, cyber low and skilled manpower are important for the implementation of e-banking in a country. The concept of e-banking includes all types of banking activities performed through electronic networks. E-banking includes activities like payment of bills and invoices, transfer of funds between accounts, applying for a loan, payment of loan installments, sending funds to third parties via emails or internet connections regardless of where the client is located. Since e-banking offers some smart services benefiting both banks and customers compared with traditional banking system, it has become imperative to make necessary room for the scheduled banks to flourish e- banking. Since e-banking offers some smart services benefiting both banks and customers compared with traditional banking system, it has become imperative to make necessary room for the scheduled banks to flourish e-banking. Among others, attractiveness of e-banking includes: ? it lowers transaction cost; ? provide 24-hour services; ? ensure increased security and control over transactions; ? reduces fraud risk; ? performs higher volume of transactions with less time; ? increases number and volume of value payment through banks; ? llows remote transactions facilities that replace physical presence of a customer in a bank branch and; ? increases transaction speed and accuracy. On the other hand, traditional banking is time-consuming and more costly and therefore, e-banking is replacing traditional banking all over the world. Especially with the increasing acceptability of digital signatures around the world, e-banking has made life much easier and banking much faster and more pleasant, for cus tomers as well as for bankers. Problem Statement Customer satisfaction is required for the banking sector to raise profitability, business growth and success. Customer perception is very important to add value of the banking services and products. E-banking is the waves of the future. It can provide speedier, faster, reliable services to the customers for which they are relatively happy. It provides enormous benefits to consumers in terms of case and cost of transactions, either through internet, telephone or other electronic delivery channels. A new technology brings with it not only the potential for success, but also a never-ending series of questions regarding its design, its value to the user, its ultimate use and acceptability. Although there has been significant effort made to eliminate paper-based payment transactions, the basic way of handling payments by consumers has not changed. The study has been undertaken to evaluate the reaction of the customers towards the e-banking services. Research Objectives E-banking services provide smart replacement of traditional banking services and benefit both the bankers and the customers. But in Bangladesh, due to presence of some constrains, e-banking is not flourishing as it should do. The main objective of this research study is to find out the reaction of the customers towards the e-banking services. In this context, the specific objectives would be to observe – ? The types of e-banking facilities a bank, in this case IFIC Bank Ltd. , offers to its customers; ? The factors that satisfy the customers in receiving e-banking facilities offered by the bank; ? The constraints the customers face in adopting e-banking facilities; ? The expectations and recommendations of the customers towards e-banking services. Literature Review A. E-Banking in Bangladesh In Bangladesh, e-banking facilities are yet to be fully developed although some technology driven products and services have been in operation over the last few years. The existing technology driven products and services offered by the traditional banks are ATM services, debit card and credit card, transactions through POS terminals, inter-branch online transactions through individualized online closed network of individual bank, limited customer services provided through internet and membership of SWIFT allowing scheduled banks to conduct wireless transactions especially e-transactions. All these technology based products and services have obviously unlocked the way to step toward e-banking. Moreover, as a part of modernizing national payment and settlement system, Bangladesh Automated Clearing House (BACH) that includes Bangladesh Automated Cheque Processing System (BACPS), and Bangladesh Electronic Fund Transfer Network (BEFTN), is being implemented under the â€Å"Remittance and Payments Partnership† (RPP) project of the Bangladesh Bank funded by DFID-UK is expected to speed up the adoption of e-banking as well. E-banking at per international standard is yet to develop in Bangladesh. At present, several private commercial banks (PCBs) and foreign commercial banks (FCBs) offer limited services of telebanking, internet banking, and online banking facilities working within the branches of individual bank in a closed network environment. As a part of stepping towards e-banking, the FCBs have played the pioneering role with adoption of modern technology in retail banking during the early 1990s whereas the state-owned commercial banks (SCBs) and PCBs came forward with such services in a limited scale during the late 1990s. Moreover, the banking industry as a whole, except for the four specialized banks (SBs), rushed to offer technology based banking services during the middle of the current decade. Online Banking: Transactions in online banking are performed within closed network for which the customer use specialized software provided by the respective bank. International standard online banking facilities are expanding in Bangladesh. At present, 29 scheduled banks offer any branch banking facilities through their respective bank online network that provides facilities like transaction through any branch under the respective bank online network; payment against pay order or pay order encashment, demand draft encashment, opening or redemption of FDR from any branch of the same bank; remote fund transfer, cash withdrawal, cash deposit, account statement, clearing and balance enquiry within branches of the same bank; and L/C opening, loan repayment facility to and from any branch of respective bank under its own online network. Inter-bank transactions or transaction between inter bank branches are yet to expand. Under the modernization program of the National Payment and Settlement System, Bangladesh Automated Clearing House (which includes Bangladesh Automated Cheque Processing System and Bangladesh Electronic Fund Transfer Network) came into effect from September 2009 followed by implementation of online banking at per international standard in near future. Internet Banking: Internet banking refers to the use of internet as a remote delivery channel for banking services which permits the customer to conduct transactions from any terminal with access to the internet. It is the WWW through which banks can reach their customers directly with no intermediaries. Internet banking in true sense is still absent in Bangladesh. Only 7 out of 47 banks are providing some banking services via internet that include account balance enquiry, fund transfer among accounts of the same customer, opening or modifying term deposit account, cheque book or pay order request, exchange rate or interest rate enquiry, bills payment, account summary, account details, account activity, standing instructions, loan repayment, loan information, statement request, ,cheque status enquiry, stop payment cheque, refill prepaid card, password change, L/C application, bank guarantee application, lost card (debit/credit) reporting, pay credit card dues, view credit card statement, or check balance. The core banking activities like fund transfer to third party, cross border transactions and so on are still uncovered by internet banking offered by the scheduled banks in Bangladesh. Mobile Banking: Mobile banking (also known as M-banking or SMS banking) is a term used for performing balance checks, account transactions, payments etc. via a mobile device such as a mobile phone. Mobile banking is most often performed via SMS or the Mobile Internet but can also use special programs called clients downloaded to the mobile device. The standard package of activities that mobile banking covers are: mini-statements and checking of account history; alerts on account activity or passing of set thresholds; monitoring of term deposits; access to loan statements; access to card statements; mutual funds/equity statements; insurance policy management; pension plan management; status on cheque, stop payment on cheque; ordering check books; balance checking in the account; recent transactions; due date of payment (functionality for stop, change and deleting of payments); PIN provision, change of PIN and reminder over the internet; blocking of (lost/stolen) cards; domestic and international fund transfers; micro-payment handling; mobile recharging; commercial payment processing; bill payment processing; peer to peer payments; withdrawal at banking agent; and deposit at banking agent. Despite huge prospects, only a few banks adopted mobile banking in Bangladesh during the last year. Tele Banking: Tele banking refers to the services provided through phone that requires the customers to dial a particular telephone number to have access to an account which provides several options of services. Despite huge potential, telebanking services have not been widened enough in daily banking activities in Bangladesh. Only four banks so far provide a few options of telebanking services such as detail account information, balance inquiry, information about products or services, ATM card activation, cheque book related service, bills payment, credit card service and so on. Funds transfer between current, savings and credit card account, stock exchange transactions etc are still inaccessible through telebanking in Bangladesh. B. Prospects of e-Banking in Bangladesh E-banking is now a global phenomenon. Apart from the developed countries, the developing countries are experiencing strong growth in e-banking. The government’s emphasis on building a digital Bangladesh, setting up ICT park, raising allocation for developing ICT infrastructure, waiving taxes on computer peripherals and other measures including the automation program of banking sector led by the Bangladesh Bank and competition among the scheduled banks in improving customer services have accelerated the prospects of e-banking in Bangladesh. Bangladesh Bank is implementing the RPP project for modernizing national payment and settlement system. The BACH including BACPS and BEFTN has started functioning from September 2009 followed by the development of inter-bank online network. The project plans to go for real time gross settlement (RTGS) by 2012. It has been made mandatory for all head offices of the scheduled banks to be connected with Bangladesh Bank for satisfying BACH and BEFTN. These efforts would allow the scheduled banks to be connected to each other for conducting inter-bank online transactions in near future and this would smoothen the introduction of e-banking in Bangladesh. Internet services came to Bangladesh with connectivity in 1996. Digital telephone exchanges have been established in 389 upazilas and 17 growth centres. Work is underway to cover the rest of the upazilas under digital exchange system. Meanwhile, Bangladesh has joined the information super-highway by connecting itself with international submarine cable system in 2006. A total of 159 Internet Service Providers (ISPs) have now been connected with this system of which 64 are actively providing services. Internet connection is slow with bandwidth range 32 kbps to 56 kbps for dial up and 64 kbps to 8 mbps for broadband. The establishment of internet exchange is under implementation. Encryption laws to accept electronic authentication of transactions has been enacted in 2006 and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) has been legalized. Under this scenario, as a part of government decision of building digital Bangladesh, the existing capabilities of ICT sector is likely to increase rapidly in bringing all upazilas under internet services and this will contribute in widening the scope of e-banking throughout the country. Although all branches of FCBs and 99% branches of PCBs were computerized by December 2006, the average for all bank branches was 37% since only 4% and 16% of SBs and SCBs respectively were computerized. Out of a total of 6,565 branches in 2006, 2,426 were computerized of which 651 branches of 22 PCBs and 7 FCBs together were providing any-branch-banking facility under respective bank online network. During the period, the number of ATM booths and POS terminals stood at 478 and 4,647 respectively covering important merchant outlets in six divisional cities and some other important district towns in Bangladesh while 43 banks became the member of SWIFT and 25 banks adopted router connection. Since about 50% of total bank branches belong to SCBs spread throughout the country including the rural areas, ICT penetration is crucial for this category of banks. The recent corporatization of the NCBs, would influence the banks in this category to be competitive through improving their service quality incorporating the use of modern technology. Although all these are positive developments, more attention is needed to enhance ICT capabilities of the banking system especially the SCBs for successful implementation of e-banking all over the country. Although e-banking has bright prospects, it involves some financial risks as well. The major risk of e-banking includes operational risks (e. g. security risks, system design, implementation and maintenance risks); customer misuse of products and services risks; legal risks (e. g. without proper legal support, money laundering may be influenced); strategic risks; reputation risks (e. g. in case the bank fails to provide secure and trouble free e-banking services, this will cause reputation risk); credit risks; market risks; and liquidity risks. Therefore, identification of relevant risks, and formulation and implementation of proper risk mitigation policies and strategies are important for the scheduled banks while performing e-banking. In Bangladesh, despite huge demand from the business community as well as the retail customers particularly the urban customers, the expansion of e-banking is beset with several infrastructural, institutional, and regulatory constraints such as unavailability of a backbone network connecting the whole country; inadequacy of reliable and secure information infrastructure especially telecommunication infrastructure; sluggish ICT penetration in banking sector; insufficient legal and regulatory support for adopting e-banking and so on. In Bangladesh, telephone connectivity is inadequate, cost of PCs are still beyond purchasing capacity of most people, internet connection is costly, IT literacy is yet to reach satisfactory level, banking sector lacks skilled IT personnel, and huge investment requirement for establishing technology based banking services are prime drawbacks. Despite the constraints, efforts by the Bangladesh Bank in modernizing the country's payment system and commitment by the government in building ‘Digital Bangladesh’ have brought competition among the scheduled banks to improve banking services and rapidly adopt e-banking on a wider scale. Research Design Since the research is conducted to find out the factors that satisfy the customers towards e-banking, the constraints they face in adopting e-banking facilities and their expectations and recommendations towards e-banking, the research is particularly suited as an exploratory research. Data Collection Methods For the purpose of the study both primary and secondary data have been used. Primary data have been collected from the customers through depth interview with the help of a questionnaire, which is attached with this report in Appendix I. In case of secondary data, the data has been collected from the websites, brochures, annual reports, and manuals of IFIC Bank Ltd. Sample Design The target population for the study was all the customers of IFIC Bank Ltd. who receive e-banking services from the bank. Elephant Road Branch of IFIC Bank Ltd. is selected as the sampling unit. All the customers of the branch who have used e-banking services constituted the sampling frame. A sample size of 30 customers has been selected. The sample was selected using convenience sampling. Analysis Qualitative analysis of the facts found through depth interview of the customers and secondary data collected through other sources is done throughout the research. This qualitative analysis is totally a judgmental analysis of the researcher. Here, no quantitative analysis is done. To find out the reactions of the customers towards e-banking services it is tried to find out whether the customers use the e-banking services frequently; people of which occupation use the service frequently; if the customers are comfortable with using the e-banking services or not; if they are satisfied what factors make them satisfied; if the customers are facing constraints, what type of constraints they are facing; what the customers suggest to diversify away those constraints; and lastly what the customers expect more from the bank regarding e-banking services. Overview of IFIC Bank Ltd. International Finance Investment and Commerce Bank Limited (IFIC Bank) is a banking company incorporated in the People's Republic of Bangladesh with limited liability. It was set up at the instance of the Government in 1976 as a joint venture between the Government of Bangladesh and sponsors in the private sector with the objective of working as a finance company within the country and setting up joint venture banks/financial institutions abroad. The Government held 49 per cent shares and the rest 51 per cent were held by the sponsors and general public. In 1983 when the Government allowed banks in the private sector, IFIC was converted into a full-fledged commercial bank. The Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh now holds 35% of the share capital of the Bank. Leading industrialists of the country having vast experience in the field of trade and commerce own 34% of the share capital and the rest is held by the general public. The Bank’s mission is to provide service to the clients with the help of a skilled and dedicated workforce whose creative talents, innovative actions and competitive edge make its position unique in giving quality service to all institutions and individuals. The bank is committed to the welfare and economic prosperity of the people and the community, for it drives from them the inspiration and drive for onward progress to prosperity. The bank wants to be the leader among banks in Bangladesh and make indelible mark as an active partner in regional banking operating beyond the national boundary. In an intensely competitive and complex financial and business environment, we particularly focus on growth and profitability of all concerned. Milestones in the development of IFIC BANK |1976 |Established as an Investment & Finance Company under arrangement of joint venture with the govt. of Bangladesh. | |1980 |Commenced operation in Foreign Exchange Business in a limited scale. | |1982 |Obtained permission from the Govt. to operate as a commercial bank. | |Set up a its first overseas joint venture (Bank of Maldives Limited) in the Republic of Maldives (IFIC's share in Bank | | |of Maldives Limited was subsequently sold to Maldives Govt. in 1992) | |1983 |Commenced operation as a full-fledged commercial bank in Bangladesh. | |1985 |Set up a joint venture Exchange Company in the Sultanate of Oman, titled Oman Bangladesh Exchange Company (subsequently| | |renamed as Oman International Exchange, LLC). | |1987 |Set up its first overseas branch in Pakistan at Karachi. | |1993 |Set up its second overseas branch in Pakistan at Lahore. |1994 |Set up its first joint venture in Nepal for banking operation, titled Nepal Bangladesh Bank Ltd. | |1999 |Set up its 2nd joint venture in Nepal for lease financing, titled Nepal Bangladesh Finance & leasing Co. Ltd. which was| | |merged with NBBL in 2007 | |2003 |Overseas Branches in Pakistan amalgamated with NDLC, to establish a joint venture bank: NDLC-IFIC Bank Ltd. , | | |subsequently renamed as NIB Bank Ltd. | |2005 |Acquired MISYS solution for real time on-line banking application. | | |Core Risk Management implemented. | |2006 |Corporate Branding introduced. | |Visa Principal and Plus (Issuer and Require) Program Participant Membership obtained. | |2008 |Observing 25th Anniversary of Customer Satisfaction. | |2009 |64 Branches offering Real Time On-line banking facility. | Services Offered by IFIC Bank Ltd. Corporate Banking IFIC Bank is providing a wide range of financial services, offering specialist advice and products to corporate clients to meet diverse demands of changing market scenario. Products and services for commercial and business customers include: Working Capital Finance, Project Finance, Term Finance, Trade Finance, Lease Finance, Syndication Loan etc. Retail Banking Retail Banking is mass-banking facility for individual customers to avail banking services directly from the wide branch network all over the country. The bank provides one-stop financial services to all individual customers through its innovative products & services to cater their need. With a view to provide faster and more convenient centralized online banking services, now, all its branches have been brought under the real time online banking system. IFIC Bank offers a wide variety of deposit products, loan product & value added services to suit the customer’s banking requirements. Products and services for individual customer include: Consumer Finance, Deposit Product, Card, NRB Account, Student File, SMS Banking etc. SME Banking The growth of Small and Medium enterprises (SMEs) in terms of size and number has multiple effects on the national economy, specifically on employment generation, GDP growth, and poverty alleviation in Bangladesh. At present, Small & Medium Enterprise sector is playing a vital role in creation of new generation entrepreneurs and ‘Entrepreneurs Culture' in the country. Experience shows that borrowers of small enterprise sector prefers collateral free loan since normally they cannot offer high value security to cover the exposure. To facilitate SME sector of the country, IFIC Bank provides collateral free credit facilities to the small & medium entrepreneurs across the country whose access to traditional credit facilities are very limited. The bank is offering 15 different products for selected target groups, such as – Easy Commercial Loan, Retailers Loan, Muldhan Loan, Women Entrepreneur’s Loan (Protyasha), Transport Loan, Working Capital Loan, Project Loan, letter of Contractor's Loan, Bidder's Loan, Working Capital Loan, Project Loan, Letter of Guarantee, Letter of Credit Loan against Imported Merchandize (LIM), Loan against Trust Receipt etc. E-Banking Services Offered by IFIC Bank Ltd. Since the beginning of its journey as a commercial bank in 1983, IFIC Bank has been giving great emphasis on the adoption of modern technology. It became the pioneer in the field of automation by introducing computerized branch banking right in the same year. Subsequently, all the branches were brought under similar automated platforms with upgraded software applications to offer all the critical banking features. At present all 82 domestic branches are fully computerized under networked environment. The Bank has taken up a new project with Misys International Banking System Inc. (UK) to further upgrade its banking operation to state-of-art world class on-line banking solutions to provide faster and even more convenient centralized services to the clients. Besides, the Bank is also operating fully on-line Automated Teller Machine (ATM) services under the banner Q-Cash at a number of locations in Dhaka and Chittagong. The ATM facilities are available to the customers at Q-Cash booth. At present, there are five ATM booths of the bank. IFIC Bank Ltd. or achieving customer satisfaction and for surviving in this competitive market has concentrated on offering different types of e-banking services to its customers. Different e-banking services offered by the bank are fully online branch banking facilities, credit card, debit card, prepaid card, SMS banking facilities etc. IFIC Credit Card IFIC Bank VISA Credit Cards are issued in two types namely Gold and Classic for both local and international use. The Local Cards can be used at any ATM displaying VISA Logo for withdrawal of cash and at any POS displaying VISA Logo for purchase of goods & services within Bangladesh whereas the International Cards can be used at any ATM and POS displaying VISA logo anywhere in the world. International credit card is a dual currency card and as such one can use the same plastic at home & abroad. Classic cards are for lower limits and less costly. IFIC credit cardholders can enjoy 20 to 50 days interest free period depending on the date of transaction and the date of statement generation. Interest free period will not be allowed for cash advance. The customers can repay any amount not less than the minimum payment due within the due date and keep account regular to enjoy revolving credit facility. Customers can enjoy credit facility at lower interest rate of 2% per month. Customers can enjoy cash withdrawal facility up to 60% of the credit limit through ATMs. One can enjoy up to 100% of your credit limit through Bank POS from any branch of IFIC Bank Limited. First two supplementary cards are free. Customers can select any two from their near & dear persons and give them supplementary credit cards. They can also enjoy and share their credit limit. They can also allow specific limits for them within their credit limit. No interest will be calculated on the amount other than cash advance if the total billing amount is paid within the payment due date. In case of part payment or no payment, interest @2% per month will be applied from the date of transaction on daily product basis until the outstanding balance is fully paid. IFIC Debit Card IFIC Bank VISA Debit Card can be used at any ATM displaying VISA Logo for withdrawal of cash and at any POS displaying VISA Logo for purchase of goods & services within Bangladesh. ATM transactions are to be secured by Personal Identification Number (PIN) known by the concerned customer only. POS transactions will not require PIN. However, all the transactions are to be authorized by the system electronically. IFIC debit card is issued against any individual savings/ current account maintained with any branch of IFIC Bank Limited. The designated savings/current account can be operated by using the debit card without using cheques any time. The customers are not required to pay any charge for transactions at Merchant Point of Sale (POS) for purchasing goods and services. For cash withdrawal from ATM/Branches, a little charge may be applied. No interest will be calculated on cash withdrawal or purchases. No minimum amount due and no hassle of payment of monthly bills. IFIC Prepaid Card IFIC Bank VISA Prepaid Card can be used at any ATM displaying VISA Logo for withdrawal of cash and at any POS displaying VISA Logo for purchase of goods & services within Bangladesh. ATM transactions are to be secured by Personal Identification Number (PIN) known by the concerned customer only. POS transactions will not require PIN. However, all the transactions are to be authorized by the system electronically. Prepaid card is safer than carrying cash and more convenient than writing cheques. IFIC Prepaid card is issued by the branches instantly on filling-up the Application Form and making initial deposit. There is no need to have any account with the Bank. Prepaid card are suitable for the customers who does not maintain any account with IFIC. No interest will be calculated on cash withdrawal or purchases. No minimum amount due and no hassle of payment of monthly bills. Bank POS are available at all the branches of the Bank. Any IFIC Card Holder can withdraw cash from any branch of IFIC Bank Ltd. through Bank POS. Credit Card Holders can withdraw cash up to 100% of their credit limit. SMS Banking IFIC Bank Ltd. atered the demand of time in the era of modern banking technology through SMS Banking Service. It is indeed a fast, secure, convenient, economical and quickest way of banking. The service is available round the clock seven days a week. Customers can check their balance, account inf ormation, or even get your mini account statements through IFIC SMS Banking Service by using their mobile phones. Services available by SMS banking are as follows: Account Service ? Balance Enquiry ? Mini Statement Request (Last 5 Transactions) ? Foreign exchange Rate enquiry ? Fixed Deposit Rate enquiry ? Interest Rate enquiry ? Branch Location enquiry ? PIN Change ? Bank Product Information ? Greetings Loan Installment Notification (overdue) ? Any other Massage Card Services ? Current Outstanding Balance ? Mini Statement Request ( Last 5 Transactions) ? Minimum Payment Due ? Payment Due Date ? Payment Due Alert ? Transaction Notification Analysis The concept of e-banking includes all types of banking activities performed through electronic networks. In Bangladesh, despite huge demand e-banking is not flourishing as it should do. On the other hand, customer satisfaction is required for the banking sector to raise profitability, business growth and success. Customer perception is ve ry important to add value of the banking services and products. Through this study it is tried to find out whether the customers are appreciating the e-banking services offered to them or not; factors that satisfy them in receiving e-banking services from banks; the constraints they face regarding this matter and what they expect from the banks regarding e-banking services. For conducting the research, data from both primary and secondary sources are collected. Primary data are collected by doing depth interview of the customers with the help of a questionnaire, which is given in the Appendix I. This research study is based on the case study on IFIC Bank Ltd. The sampling unit is the Elephant Road branch of the bank and 30 regular customers of the branch are used as sample for conducting the research. To find out the reactions of the customers towards e-banking services it is tried to find out whether the customers use the e-banking services frequently; people of which occupation use the service frequently; if the customers are comfortable with using the e-banking services or not; if they are satisfied what factors make them satisfied; if the customers are facing constraints, what type of constraints they are facing; what the customers suggest to diversify away those constraints; and lastly what the customers expect more from the bank regarding e-banking services. The research is an explorative research. That is why only qualitative research has been done on the facts found through depth interview and on the basis of secondary data collected. Nature of Respondents The research is conducted based on the opinion of 30 regular customers of IFIC bank Ltd. , Elephant Road branch. Of the respondents 4 customers are businessman, 15 are service holders, 4 are students, 5 are housewives, 1 is teacher and 1 is a retired banker. Among the respondents, 11 respondents are female and the rest of them are male. Types of E-banking Services Used by the Respondents IFIC Bank mainly provides 5 kinds of e-banking services, namely, online transaction, debit card, credit card, prepaid card, SMS banking service. Other than these ATM booths and POS terminals of the bank or other ones having VISA logo provides e-banking services to the customers. Among the respondents, all of them use online transactions; 23 customers use debit cards; 10 customers use credit cards; 11 customers use SMS banking facilities. Among the customers no one uses prepaid card service. Frequency of Usage of E-banking Services by the Respondents Among the respondents, 9 customers use e-banking services highly frequently; 13 of them use with medium frequency and 8 of them use with low frequency. Businessmen and some of the service holders use e-banking services highly frequently. Some service holders and students use with medium frequency and lastly rest of the service holders and housewives, generally, use with low frequency. Factors Satisfied the Customers regarding E-banking Services IFIC Bank has started offering e-banking services to its customers only recently, which is not more than 2 years. So the customers, who do regular transactions in the bank, are very satisfied with the type of e-banking services they are receiving from the bank. All the customers of the bank can enjoy online banking facilities. Even two years before there was branch banking system. So, the customers had to go to branch to branch for their transaction making purposes. But now, with the introduction of online banking, they can do their transactions from any branch in Bangladesh without any encumbrance. Recently, all the 82 branches of the bank are providing online banking services to the customers. So, the customers are feeling it convenient to uses e-banking services. Usage of debit and credit cards has made customers life easy. People do not have to go to branches to withdraw money. Rather they can use the ATM booths of the bank or other ones showing VISA logo and withdraw money. They can also check their account balances and get mini statements of their accounts using ATM booth. Customers can use POS terminals showing VISA logo to purchase goods and services and pay bills. SMS banking also has made customers life easy. They can use their mobile phones for balance checking, getting any kind of relevant enquiries or for making relevant requests. So, the customers are feeling it is easy to use e-banking services as it saves a lot of time and cost. Some customers feel it is safe to use e-banking facilities. A lots of paperwork and manual work has been eliminated with the introduction of e-banking services, which reduces the chance of errors. According to above analysis, it is found that the factors for which customers are satisfied with e-banking service are convenience, availability of quick services, easy services and safety. Constraints Faced by the Customers Many of the respondents have said that they are facing constraints using e-banking services offered by IFIC bank. Some customers say that they cannot depend on the e-banking services, like debit cards, credit cards. They have the fear of security. They have some misconceptions regarding these services. They say that, it would be easier for others to do fraudulent activities with their accounts or cards if they use them. For this reason, some customers do not use these services although they bear the cards. Some customers have lack of awareness regarding the benefit of e-banking services. They are not aware of safety, easiness and benefit of using e-banking services. Some customers have lack of dependency on e-banking services. They rather feel it safe to do TT rather than doing online transactions. They do not understand the speediness of using e-banking services and like traditional and manual work. Some customers find it costly using e-banking services. Cost of using debit cards and credit cards are very high according to them. Again, the bank has only 5 ATM booths of its own and POS terminals are available only in the branches, which does not bear extra cost, but they are only few in number. Other organizations’ ATM booths and POS terminals cost extra charges which the customers do not like to bear. According to above discussion, it is found that the constraints the customers face are fear of security, lack of awareness, lack of dependency, and cost. Expectations and Recommendations of the Customers Regarding E-banking Services According to the customers, the expectations from the bank and recommendations for the bank are as follows: ? The bank should install more ATM booths of its own to different locations to make it available, easy, convenient and less costly for the customers to use the facilities. ? The bank should have some programs to create awareness and increase dependency about the products they offer to customers. The bank can distribute brochures, leaflets to its customers informing them about advantages of using the services. The bank can also send letters to the customers informing about the products. Some customers have requested that it would be better if the letters are sent in Bangla rather than in English. ? As some customers think that using e-banking services are costly for them, the bank may reduce the cost of these services or may give some discounts. ? The bank should concentrate more on the safety of the services. ? The bank should do more advertisement about their products. Some customers are not even aware about the SMS banking service and the prepaid card service is offered by the bank. ? The bankers should be more helpful in making the customers aware and understand about the new e-banking services offered by the bank. Conclusion Customer satisfaction is required for the banking sector to raise profitability, business growth and success. Customer perception is very important to add value of the banking services and products. E-banking is the waves of the future. It can provide speedier, faster, reliable services to the customers for which they are relatively happy. It provides enormous benefits to consumers in terms of case and cost of transactions, either through internet, telephone or other electronic delivery channels. A new technology brings with it not only the potential for success, but also a never-ending series of questions regarding its design, its value to the user, its ultimate use and acceptability. The research has been undertaken to evaluate the reaction of the customers towards the e-banking services. The research was an exploratory research. Qualitative analysis of the data collected from both primary and secondary sources are done. Primary data was collected by doing depth interview of the customers of Elephant Road branch IFIC Bank Ltd. Sample size was 30. According to the analysis the factors for which make customers satisfied with e-banking service are convenience, availability of quick services, easy services and safety. The constraints the customers face from receiving e-banking services from the bank are fear of security, lack of awareness, lack of dependency, and high cost. The customers expect that the bank should be more careful and concentrate on informing the information about the newly launched products to its customers to increase awareness and dependency on those products. The bank should make the services more convenient to the customers. And it should also take care of the security matters of the customers. ———————– Target Population: All the customers of IFIC Bank Ltd. who use e-banking services offered by the bank Sampling Unit: Elephant Road branch of IFIC Bank ltd. Sampling Frame: Name of all the customers of the branch who have used e-banking services Sample Size: 30 Sampling Technique: Convenience Sampling Exhibit 1: Sample Design

Macbeth William Shakespear Essay

The tragedy â€Å"Macbeth† written by William Shakespeare portrays Macbeth as a man who was once a great hero, that falls victim of his ambition for power. This ambition is induced by factors including Lady Macbeth, the witches prophecies and the guilt and remorse felt by Macbeth in regards to the deed he was to commit. These are the factors that contribute to the downfall of Macbeth. Lady Macbeth is characterized as an ambitious woman who can manipulate Macbeth easily. This is shown in (Act 1 Scene 5 line 25) when she says â€Å"That I may pour my spirits in thine ear†. She manipulates his self esteem by playing with his masculinity and his bravery. Lady Macbeth feels she does not have the strength to commit the deed herself and therefore becomes successful in altering Macbeths ambitions. She says ‘unsex me here' (Act 1 Scene 4; line 39) meaning that she could never have to position of power and rank that she pushes Macbeth to strive for. Through the laguage technique of Euphemisms, Shakespeare shows that Lady Macbeth has difficulty coping and facing reality. An example of this is the text is referring to the murder of King Duncan as ? the ‘deed'. Lady Macbeth describes the action of murdering King Duncan through the words ‘to catch the nearest way'. The use of this euphemism to describe the action of killing Duncan can be seen as though she is trying to hide the harsh imagery of blood and violence in the action of murder. This is an example of Lady Macbeth’s diminishing sense of conscientiousness. The composer also uses vulgar language to express Lady Macbeths character. She says ‘Screw your courage to the sticking place' in order to further manipulate Macbeth. Shakespeare uses the three witches to set the dark sinister tone of the play. They resemble fates, who sinisterly manipulate human lives and subsequently end them. Sakespeare creates a mysterious and ominous atmosphere, indicating that ‘Fair is foul and foul is fair’ which suggests a change of values. â€Å"And oftentimes, to win us to our harm,The instruments of darkness tell us truths. â€Å"(Act 1, Scene 3, Lines 134 & 135) The comparison of the witches to â€Å"instruments of darkness† reveals their truly foul nature. Shakespeare is implying through Banquo that the prophecies of the weird sisters will only bring about Macbeth's downfall. In addition, since Macbeth listens to the witches, he can be considered an â€Å"instrument of darkness† himself. The witches prophecies are very powerful in their manipulation of Macbeth. Through equivocation, the composer expresses the theme of appearance vs real by making the Witches prophecies appear to be a good thing to Macbeth but in reality, they trick him into damning himself. The witches speak in rhyming couplets throughout the play, which separates them from the other characters. In act 1 scene 3 the witches greet Macbeth as ‘Thane of Glamis’, ‘Thane of Cawdor’ and as ‘King of Scotland’. This prophecy leads Macbeth to genuinely think about being in control and having power. The audience views the witches as evil, having the capability of casting terrible events. However the witches cannot force Macbeth to do anything that he does not want to do. They merely revealed the future and chose to confront Macbeth at a time when he is most vulnerable, after the battle where he is feeling very proud of his achievements. Consequently, the witches certainly did have a role to play in Macbeth’s downfall, but if Macbeth had been more concerned with morality and ethics and less concerned about having power, control, and becoming king, he would have ignored the witches’ prophecy. Prior to the murder of King Duncan, Macbeth is plagued by worry and almost aborts the crime. It is in Macbeths soliloquy, where the audience is made aware of Macbeths uncertainty about whether or not he should go through with the murder. â€Å"Is this a dagger which i see before me The handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee† (Act 2 Scene 1 lines 41 ; 42) This extract shows how Shakespeare explores the theme of good and evil and how Macbeth is torn between the forces of good preventing the deed, and the forces of evil which seem to be aiding him in his crime. In this scene, Macbeth also says â€Å"A dagger of the mind, a false creation Proceeding from the heat oppressed brain? †. Macbeth wonders if this vision of the dagger comes from his feverish mind. He also decides that he is imagining things. He is not able to distinguish reality from imagination. It is obvious that Macbeth would like to think that the dagger is imaginary, but the guilt he feels at the thought of committing the evil deed is enough to make him think the dagger is real. Although the murder has not yet taken place, Macbeth starts to feel guilt and remorse and is concerned of the consequences that may occur if he does murder King Duncan. His weakness is ‘valuating ambition' meaning that following the deed, Macbeth will suffer the consequences. The appearance of blood on both the hands on Macbeth and Lady Macbeth is an image that represents the guilt and fear of their brutal crime. In the use of personification, Macbeth imagines that the stones of the castle are alive and talking. His fearful imagination makes him afraid that the stones on which he walks will speak out and give him away, following the deed. Perhaps the turning point of the novel in which Macbeth kills Banquo; his loyal friend due to the paranoia felt after the deed had been committed. Shakespeare uses an aside to express how Macbeth's character begins to deteriorate. This aside is crucial because it foreshadows future events to come. â€Å"Hear not my steps, which way they walk, for fear† This text shows how the composer has used various language techniques such as commas and punctuation to break up the phrases into regular patterns, creating dramatic effect. Shakespeare also uses irony to show how it is ironic that Macbeths quest for power and happiness would leave him weak and alone. Shakespeare uses this variety of techniques to portray how insanity had finally take over Macbeth and pushed him over the edge. In conclusion, it is evident that Macbeth is an ambitious man who is corrupted by the power he gains. The key influences that induce Macbeth into a down spiral are lady Macbeth, the witches prophecies and his own feelings of guilt. In the end it is Macbeths tragic flaw, vaulting ambition, which leads to his downfall.

A Research Report on Marketing Strategies of the Business Essay Example

A Research Report on Marketing Strategies of the Business Essay Example A Research Report on Marketing Strategies of the Business Essay A Research Report on Marketing Strategies of the Business Essay A Research Report on Marketing Strategies of the Business| Muhoo [Pick the date] | Table of Contents 1Introduction2 2Market ProfileError! Bookmark not defined. 3Macro-environmental Analysis of Victoria’s Basement3 4Micro-environmental Analysis of Victoria’s Basement4 5Market Segmentation5 5. 1Demographic Segmentation:5 5. 2Psychographic segmentation:6 5. 3Behavioural segmentation:7 6Target Market7 6. 1Purchasing Pattern and Purchasing Power7 6. Brand Positioning Based on Target Segment8 7Marketing Mix9 7. 1Product9 7. 2Price9 7. 3Promotion9 7. 4Place9 7. 5Process10 8Recommendations10 8. 1Use of Technology10 8. 2Customer Service10 8. 3Store Decoration10 8. 4Advertising about Expansion11 9Conclusion11 10References12 * Executive Summary Victoria’s Basement is a small business which started its journey in the Queen Victoria Building and successfully grew into its current status of holding 5 locations around Sydney of significant sizes.From an outside perspective it is easy to conclude that the main ingredient of the success of Victoria’s Basement is its prime location in the Queen Victoria Building. However, a detailed research into various marketing aspects of the business reveals that the store’s product mix, target market, and promotions are significant contributors to the success of the store. A macro-economic and micro-economic analysis of Victoria’s Basement reveals that the business has utilized some of the main advantages of being in Sydney CDB area and being close to railway station has given it additional exposure to its customers.It also shows that technology is the business’s main opportunity to grow and that the threat to the business from rival businesses is the biggest threat to the business. Also, studying the market segments suggest that tourists and adults of age range 20-35 years are the target market segment of the business which is also being assisted by online selling strategy. Exploring the marketing mix of the business detailed its business marketing strategies and illustrated how each aspect is playing role in the current success of the company.Finally, based on all the research done, some recommendations have been made on what are some of the aspects that the business could improve on. Use of technology, improvement of customer service and increasing advertisement about other locations than the QBV store are the main areas of improvements to the company. Introduction Victoria’s Basement is a business whose large comic advertising signs grab attention of any pedestrian walking through the Queen Victoria Building, a historic building that gets the most foot traffic among all the buildings around the Town Hall area of the Sydney CBD.Victorias Basement has been well established for over 10 years, However the foundations were laid more than 20 years ago when the Kalanderian Brothers opened their first Mr Tablecloth store on November 1986 in Sydneys historic and restored Queen Victoria Building. This research is carried out on the business atmosphere, marketing strategies, marketing mix and target market of Victoria’s Basement, with a recommendation based on those studies about any further improvement that the business can make to attract more consumers.The company definitely has gained some forte by being in a prime location, where it gets at least 50% of the foot traffic from Town Hall railway station. Town Hall is Sydneys second-busiest station on the CityRail network. About 70,050 people move through the station each weekday and the number is increasing every year (Malkin amp; Dick, 2005). Also, Victoria’s Basement has expanded its strength in the market because of its product mix, exposure to different market segments and advertising strategies. Macro-environmental Analysis of Victoria’s BasementIn this part of the report, the marketing environment would be discussed in brief for the Victoria’s Basement. The PESTEL framework could be adapted to analyse the macro-environmental forces for the company. Table 1: Macro-Environmental Analysis for QVB Factors| Descriptions amp; Analysis| Political amp; Legal| * Free trade policies of multiple countries could provide QVB [hence, Victoria’s Basement] good busin ess opportunities for exporting their products to the foreign markets (Whaples, 2011) and also importing products at cheaper rates. Legal regulations including taxations, consumer protection legislations, and employee protection legislations in NSW would also matter in deciding how business is operated. If Victoria’s Basement is considering expanding to other states, the business will also encounter difference in taxation and local legislations to adapt to. | Economic| * Global economy recovered from the financial crisis had allowed the buying power to increase (Coffee, 2012). Therefore, more people are able to spend on luxury home wares and kitchenware. Global high level of unemployment would still make the costs for labour lower than expected (Coffee, 2012). Therefore, Victoria’s Basement can employ people at lower rates, hence reducing the fixed cost of operating business. Also, the imports are remaining cheaper due to cheap production labour from other countries. | Socio-Cultural| * Emergence of DIY (Do It Yourself) allowed more consumers to be more in favour of cooking and baking at home (Pearce, 2012) * Emergence of usage of social media in the current society had allowed social media to be the newest and very efficient marketing tool. Emergence of online retailing allowing retailers to develop new sales channel within the global market. | Technological| * Increased RFID technologies with electronic price labels allowing customers’ self-service in the retailing stores (Hancke, 2011) which the store is not utilizing yet. Also the store is not yet using anti-theft devices. * The more advanced information and communication technology (ICT) and transportation technology could allow globalization to be more possible and management being more efficient and cost-effective. Micro-environmental Analysis of Victoria’s Basement In terms of the micro-environmental analysis, the Porter’s Five Forces framework could be adapted for th e company. Table 2: Micro-Environmental Analysis for QVB Factors| Descriptions amp; Analysis| Buyer Power| Medium. The bargaining power from customers would be strengthened from the increasing competition in the market providing the similar products in the industry, and the buyers’ switch costs for different brands would be low.On the other hand, the bargaining power from customers would be weakened from the fact that there was no buyer association established in the world for the industry. | Supplier Power| Low. The bargaining power from suppliers would be lowered because there were multiple suppliers for the materials and services (steel, plastics amp; business services such as logistics) in the market, and the switch costs for suppliers would not be high. | Threats from New Entrants| Medium.The threats from new entrants would be strengthened because there were no barriers set for in the market and the capital and technological requirements were low. On the other hand, the threats from new entrants would be lowered because the market is matured with stable growth of the consumption of products being sold by Victoria’s Basement| Threats from Substitutes| Low. There was very low threat from the substitutes because the number of substitutes is restricted in the CBD area for similar product mix.Woolworths Group and Coles Group also sell kitchen and home wares but the diversity of product is significantly low in comparison to Victoria’s Basement. | Threats from Rivalry| High. The threats from rivalry is strengthened because the number of competitors in the global market is large, and multiple retailers, such as large retailers (David Jones, Myer etc. ) and specialized retailers (Ikea, Harvey Norman, etc. ) are all competing in the market. Product differentiation was low with products providing the similar functions, and the switching costs for customers from different brands would be low.Therefore the threats from rivalry are high. | Market S egmentation In order to develop a marketing strategy, it is very important for a company to understand its exposure to customers. If the company can understand its customer base then only it can plan its business and marketing strategy as well as what their target consumer sector would be. Victoria’s Basement has exposure to consumers according to the basis of Demographic, Psychographic and Behavioural patterns. They have segmented their products and positioned them according to consumer segments.The purpose of the dividing the market into small segments is to make it simple to address the needs of smaller groups of customers and try to analyse that different products are being carried to appeal to consuming habits from different segments. We can categorize the market segmentation for Victoria’s Basement consumers into three different bases: Demographic Segmentation: Every year, more than 2 million international visitors come to the Sydney metropolitan area. It is esti mated that a further 483,000 people travel to the city on any day to shop, be educated, conduct business or simply to be entertained.This is in addition to the 385,000 people who arrive every day to work in the local area. More than a third of these working people are classed as professionals, with another 17% of them classified as managers (City of Sydney, 2013), which justifies their ability to be attracted and ability to purchase quality and luxury home ware and kitchenware brands. The median age of the City resident is 32, which is 3 years below the average for the rest of Sydney. Almost half the Citys residents are aged between 18 and 34.Two-thirds of the population increase in the past 5 years has occurred in this age group. From the above statistics, the exposure of a typical business in Sydney CBD can be approximated as presented in Figure 1. As we can see, the largest consumer group that Victoria’s Basement has exposure to is the 45% group which is the age group of 2 0-34 old Young Adults and Visitors. Figure 1: Demographic Segmentation of a business in Sydney CBD Psychographic segmentation: Psychographic segmentation refers to dividing the consumers into groups based on personality, value, social class and lifestyle.Victoria’s Basement has products that are appealing to lifestyle of the sophisticated multicultural consumers, as Sydney has a huge amount of visitors who come to visit city every day for shopping, relaxation and even for entertainment. On average, individual residents in the City earn a weekly median wage of $717, compared to $518 elsewhere in Sydney. A quarter of residents aged 15 or more have a weekly income of over $1300 a week, while another quarter receive less than $250 per week (City of Sydney, 2013).Therefore, Victoria’s Basement can attract those customers that are choosy, maintain high social status and stylish daily life but also those who want to maintain a stylish standard of living but are in financial c runch. As it is a commercial area, it is very easy to target both stylish luxurious and also stylish but economic customers. As a result we see that victoria’s basement has salt and pepper sets that are $4 a set and also designer salt and pepper sets that are $39. 95 a set (Victorias Basement, 2013). Behavioural segmentation:Behavioural Segmentation refers to splitting customers in terms of buying patterns based on occasions, uses, and benefits. Victoria’s Basement is not only a very popular shop but also a mark of tradition in Queen Victoria Building (QVB). The QVB itself arranges different entertainment events to attract tourists and city visitors which add to the image of QVB. The people who visit QVB due to special occasions are mostly visitors. It is a behavioural pattern that when people become part of a special event, they want to bring back a token as part of their experience.So, visitors think that because they had been to a historic building, they need to buy at least something that would remind them of their visit; hence, they end up buying products from the most historic store in the QVB, Victoria’s Basement. Target Market Based on study of the different market segments in the above discussion, it can be concluded that the age group of 20-34 years old are the main demographic target of Victoria’s Basement. Psychographic and behavioural pattern of this age group suggest that visitors and comparatively wealthier residents living near city area form the majority of the target consumers of Victoria’s Basement.In the next discussions we will discuss more in depth about the behaviour and buying pattern of these target segments. Purchasing Pattern and Purchasing Power It is necessary to classify the target segment in order to identify those with sufficient purchasing power, authority, and willingness to buy. Based on that, a Victoria’s Basement should strategize their marketing mix. Usually women make 90% of home improvement decisions and they can pay for quality and variety of products. Based on that we can estimate that majority of the target consumers are female.In addition to that female from other age ranges (35+) also add to the gender segment. Women are more likely than men to express concern about consumption’s broader impacts and to act upon those concerns’ (Luchs amp; Mooradian, 2012), which justifies the necessity of Victoria’s Basement to pay attention to quality and brand. Workers in Sydney get the second biggest bang for their buck in a survey of prices and earnings in 73 cities, conducted by the global investment bank UBS. The results show that Sydney ranks second only to Zurich in domestic purchasing power the quantity of goods and services you can buy with the average wage.Sydneys relatively high wages and moderate costs explain the surprise ranking (Irvine, 2009). Compulsive buying is a prominent behaviour among this target segment of 20-34 years old a dults. The Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that the total balance on credit and charge cards has risen an average of 17 per cent over the five years since 2002 and the Australia’s credit card bill has hit a record $42. 698 billion in December 2007. In today’s society, status is regarded through the ownership of status products rather than through personal, occupational, or family reputation.Thus, in their effort to come out best in this social comparison and possession, individuals must demonstrate their social power by displaying their wealth through the ability to purchase goods and services (material objects)’ (Phau amp; Woo, 2008). Keeping the above behavioural patterns in mind and also the fact that there are more than 20,000 retail stores in the Sydney CBD area (City of Sydney, 2013), Victoria’s Basement need to pay attention to the right pricing pattern with facilities to pay through credit cards to keep their target segment loyal to the stor e.Brand Positioning Based on Target Segment Victoria’s Basement has had an interesting history in Australian retailing from its poor beginnings in 1986 to its new position entirely riding on the tourists pouring into the city. The shop run their peak business during summer time as a lot of tourist come to Sydney during that season. The contents of the shop are such that it also attracts people other than tourists. That is how they run their business during all seasons.During off season, they try to remain in focus by advertising 80% off’, One Day Offers’, Super Saturdays’, Secret Sales’, half yearly Stock take’ and Mid-Season sales’ in addition to catalogue offers to keep their sales floating and to keep the Brand Equity up. Moving forward, the team at Victoria’s Basement is trying to limit their dependence upon price based promotions, which have been slowly damaging their brand positioning, and return to status of a premier re tailer brand. Recent survey has shown that people want the souvenir shop in delocalized area.In that realization, they have opened 5 shops in suburbs which are away from the city but close to where households are. They have also started selling their items online over the internet. Their popularity is increasing day by day hence their business strategy is changing because becoming more available within the reach of general people will maximize their customer base. It will regain their ability to project a more sophisticated image and targeting more sophisticated consumers. Marketing Mix Product Victoria’s basement is popular for its product brand line-up.If we compare in the marketing mix framework then we can find that its wide range of products are all of very popular brands, which is one of important reasons for its rapid success. Brand automatically ensures that the product quality is also really good. Some of the popular brands in their collection are Wedgwood, Royal Dou lton, Villery and Boch, Waterford, Dan Samuels, and many more. Branding can build an expectation about the business services or product and can encourage the business to maintain that expectation, or exceed them, bringing better products and services to the market place.Presentation of their product is a important part of good marketing which is one of the areas of improvement that Victoria’s Basement has to note. Currently because they have a lot of products but limited sales area, the presentation in QVB store is more like a basement bargain store. However, their other stores have much better product presentation. Lastly, their return policy is very simple like other big retail giants. Price Price is the most important part of their continued allegiance from targeted customers. Victoria’s basement offer cheaper price than any other business with the same product.This made them popular in the short period of time. They have a wide range of discount which starts from 1 5% to 75% (approximate). This magnetize customer more towards this shop. However, they need to keep in mind that extreme low pricing sometimes damages the brand value. Promotion Victoria’s basement is very advanced about their business promotion. As mentioned earlier, they maintain sales promotion in special events such as charismas, New Year, mother’s day etc. As part of advertising their promotions, they distribute catalogues all around the city area and nearby residential areas as well.Also, they have big sale events at every store opening, promoting new business entry in that area and informing customers about their entry. Place Victoria’s Basement originated from their prime and most important location in Queen Victoria building. According to Sydney Morning Herald in 2005, Town Hall is Sydneys second-busiest station on the CityRail network. About 70,050 people move through the station each weekday and the number is increasing every year’ (Malkin amp; Dick, 2005). Even if half of these people walk through the QVB as of 2013, we can estimate that the QVB store has exposure to more than 40,000 foot traffic per day.Since 2002, Victoria’s Basement expanded to areas like Auburn, Artemon, Castle Hill and Alexandria which are densely populated residential areas but these households have above average income and more space inside the house. Obviously, homeowners with expendable income will be attracted to shop in such store if it is conveniently located within their reach. Process Victoria’s Basement is only using traditional POS terminals that are not interconnected among all other stores or to their supply chain management.As a result customers have to wait in long queues and can only shop what is available at that store. However, Victoria’s Basement is also offering online selling with option of bridal registry. This is definitely a good process to reach customers that are too far away or too reluctant to travel to their stores. Also, it opens their consumer base to gift-shoppers, specially when people use the bridal registry facilities. Recommendations Use of Technology The biggest area of improvement that Victoria’s Basement has is in its use of technology.They are not using any anti-theft device, making the merchandise prone to vandalism. Even though they have security guards in store, considering the fact that their target consumers are majorly tourists, it might be highly uncomfortable and depreciatory to customers that are not use to bag-check culture in Australia. Also, since they have expanded to multiple branches, they need to improve on their supply-chain management by incorporating IT to be able to assist customers with better information about product availability. Customer ServiceVictoria’s basement is employing very small amount of customer service representatives in the stores for which customers are often unable to decide which product to purchase. Also, since majority of their target consumers are tourists, the customer service should be able to advice purchases. For example, items with liquids in them of more than 300ml will not be allowed to pass through screening if placed in hand luggage, purchase of more then $300 in a single receipts will make them eligible to get tax refund at the airport while departing, etc. Store Decoration This recommendation about store’s decoration is mostly applicable for the QVB tores. Due to lack of space, the products are placed on the floor and shelves in a very compressed pattern, allowing limited area for shoppers to walk, stand to look at products, and move with strollers/wheelchairs. Only based on lack of accessibility, customers often prefer to go to other bigger brands (David Jones and Myer), although the price is cheaper in Victoria’s Basement. Also, if customers accidentally bump to a shelf or a product that is fragile, they often end up breaking or damaging the product. The store often makes the customer pay for the broken product, causing dissatisfaction among customers.Advertising about Expansion Until this research was carried out, none of our group members were aware of the fact that Victoria’s Basement has 4 other locations that are even bigger than the QVB store even though some of us have shopped at the store many times. This is evidence of the fact that Victoria’s Basement doesnot have enough advertisement going on to promote their other locations. Promoting other locations in the QVB store might be a good strategy for the business since some customers go to the QVB location in the belief that they cannot get such items at a place closer to them for that comparable price.Conclusion With minimal expense of advertising, technology, and employee engagement, Victoria’s Basement has been successfully able to increase their brand equity to become a considerable competition in the homeware/kitchenware market. They have marketing advanta ge of being in prime location and having been associated with image of a historic building as Queen Victoria Building. However, to be able to continue its growth at the present globalised market, they need to move towards technology and customer service to give better retail experience to shoppers while retaining its Brand image.

University of the District of Columbia Admissions Data

University of the District of Columbia Admissions Data University of the District of Columbia Description: The University of the District of Columbia is a historically black, public university located in Washington, D.C. (learn about other D.C. colleges). It is the only public university in the District of Columbia and one of the few urban land grant institutions in the United States. The nine-acre main campus is situated in northwest D.C., just a short distance from many of the Washington metropolitan area’s cultural and recreational offerings. UDC offers more than 75 degree programs for undergraduate and graduate students, including popular programs in business administration, accounting, biology and administration of justice. The university is especially proud of its education program, including its Center for Urban Education. Academics are supported by a 14 to 1 student / faculty ratio. The university also includes the UDC Community College, a branch of the university that grants associate’s degrees, and the David A. Clarke School of Law. Campus life is active at UDC, wi th more than 50 student clubs including the Aviation Student Association and Video Game Association, and a host of fraternities and sororities. The UDC Firebirds field ten men’s and women’s varsity athletic teams in the NCAA Division II East Coast Conference. Admissions Data (2016): UDC Acceptance Rate: -University of the District of Columbia has open admissionsTest Scores 25th / 75th PercentileSAT Critical Reading: - / -SAT Math: - / -SAT Writing: - / -Whats a good SAT score?ACT Composite: - / -ACT English: - / -ACT Math: - / -Whats a good ACT score? Enrollment (2016): Total Enrollment: 4,318  (3,950 undergraduates)Gender Breakdown: 43% Male / 57% Female46% Full-time Costs (2016 - 17): Tuition and Fees: $5,612  (in-state); $11,756 (out-of-state)Books: $1,280  (why so much?)Room and Board: $16,425Other Expenses: $4,627Total Cost: $27,944  (in-state); $34,088 (out-of-state) University of the District of Columbia Financial Aid (2015  - 16): Percentage of New Students Receiving Aid: 75%Percentage of New Students Receiving Types of AidGrants: 65%Loans: 30%Average Amount of AidGrants: $6,756Loans: $5,530 Academic Programs: Most Popular Majors:  Accounting, Biology, Business Administration, Corrections, Economics, Graphic Design, Health Education, Social Work Transfer, Graduation and Retention Rates: First Year Student Retention (full-time students): 56%Transfer-out Rate: 30%4-Year Graduation Rate: 13%6-Year Graduation Rate: 33% Intercollegiate Athletic Programs: Mens Sports:  Soccer, Tennis, Lacrosse, BasketballWomens Sports:  Tennis, Track and Field, Cross Country, Lacrosse, Basketball Data Source: National Center for Educational Statistics If You Like the University of DC, You May Also Like These Schools: Virginia State University: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphDelaware State University: Profile  George Washington University: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphVirginia Union University: Profile  American University: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphGeorge Mason University: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphTennessee State University: Profile  Clark Atlanta University: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphShaw University: Profile  Norfolk State University: Profile   University of the District of Columbia Mission Statement: mission statement from  udc.edu/about/history-mission/ The University of the District of Columbia is a pacesetter in urban education that offers affordable and effective undergraduate, graduate, professional, and workplace learning opportunities. The institution is the premier gateway to postsecondary education and research for all residents of the District of Columbia. As a public, historically black, and land-grant institution, the University’s responsibility is to build a diverse generation of competitive, civically engaged scholars and leaders.

Market Research For (Verismo Machine) by Starbucks Essay

Market Research For (Verismo Machine) by Starbucks - Essay Example The company introduced Verismo with the intention of becoming a market leader even in single serve coffee making segment (Barth, 2012). Verismo machine is a single serve coffee maker which makes coffee and espresso. As a pod is dropped into the machine, it comes out as coffee or espresso, which contains the signature taste and aroma of Starbucks coffee (Starbucks Corporation, 2012). The machine is available in different model which ranges from  £149 to  £349. The model ranges from basic to high-end ones. The pods of powdered milk and coffee are also sold by Starbucks, which is used by the customers to produce excellent coffee at lesser cost then the store (Money Watch 2012). The biggest competitor of Verismo in the single serve coffee maker segment is Nespresso, which was launched by Nescafe, Nestle. Verismo’s first advantage is that bears the name of Starbucks, which is a market leader in coffee making. Starbucks is claiming that Verismo offers the same taste and aroma as coffee is served in its stores. Customers pay higher price for a cup of coffee in Starbucks because of their quality, and if they are getting it through a machine which is a onetime investment, customers would surely opt for it. Secondly, the product indeed has been highly appreciated by users because it do offer the quality which it promises and the cost per cup of coffee is also found to be less that having it at a Starbucks store (Clay, 2012). Verismo Machine by Starbucks was a huge hit in the market and the company sold over 150,000 machines in the first quarter of its launch. Howard Schultz in Starbucks’ first quarter’s conference said that they were planning to take Verismo to a multi-billion platform, which depicts that Verismo started really well in its initial year (Warman, 2013). Verismo is counted as a threat in the single serve coffee segment by the market leaders like Nespresso, or Green Mountain.

Diagnosis human Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Diagnosis human - Essay Example The medication of 11 percent of school age children including Ted’s own son is fascinating especially considering that the psychiatrists prescribe such kind of medication even before examining the patients. Human problems and sufferings have become part of pathology and monetized in pursuit of shortcuts to the solution instead of advancing our survival ability. As far as I am concerned, medication is only meant to ill some conditions that may need repair and this does not apply to broken heart. Indeed, enduring the intolerable is at times part of life hence should not be treated as an illness that require medication. It is impractical and irresponsible if medication is prescribed for patients who have not been physically examined. It is certainly unfortunate because every kind of medication under normal circumstances would require thorough examination of the patient. It makes it hard to find out the kind of problem a patient suffers from and this inflicts more pain to the pati ent. What if a wrong medication is done? Perhaps it will be blamed on whoever administered the drugs. There are numerous drugs that have been prescribed and recommended by psychiatrists but their effectiveness is questionable. The truth is whether attention deficit hyperactivity disorder has exact cure or it purely trial and error. ... It is a problem within us which cannot be solved by overdosing but by understanding the challenge. Ted Gup posits that he had unintentionally conspired with a system that undervalues discussion remedy by believing in medication that unconsciously does not even offer the best therapy. He admits that self medication is vital and very much adequate in dealing with some disorders. It is actually important to address challenges as they come instead of assuming them because they may later affect our lives or one another’s life in a way that although we will regret, it will be too late. Ted admits that he did not tackle his son’s problems from the onset: No one made him take the heroin and alcohol, and yet I cannot help but hold myself and others to account. I had unknowingly colluded with a system that devalues talking therapy and rushes to medicate, inadvertently sending a message that self-medication, too, is perfectly acceptable (Ted Web). Parents and guardians should take absolute responsibility in taking care of their children as well as closely watching their steps and actions. Children are influenced by their peers’ behaviors. Closer look and advice of children should be properly addressed and dealt with by the society too. Earlier observation of children’s conditions may make the people responsible to understand the conditions. Understanding the culture in which young people grow is fundamental as far as children’s behaviors are concerned. Some of the conditions and challenges affecting children and even the grownups in the society is some of the old dangerous culture that promotes the use of unapproved drugs. The culture of using off label drugs which are not tested and approved should be left out. The environment in