Analysis on Causes and Symptoms of Job Stress in the Workplace

Job stress poses a significant threat to employee health and consequently to the health of an organization. This report will provide information on the causes of stress, the resulting symptoms, the consequences to employers, and the programs employers can implement to reduce the adverse effects of stress in the workplace. It is important for both employees and employers to recognize and understand stress and its causes. Often times employers confuse job challenges and job stressors. Most employees view a job challenge as a motivating factor, which enables them to grow within their positions. This motivation has the potential to produce positive results for both employees and employers. However, when challenges become demands, employees often resort to the fight or flight response of our primal ancestors. At the sight of a dangerous encounter, the hypothalamus sends a message to the adrenal glands and within seconds the heart is pumping at two or three times the normal speed, sending blood to the major muscle groups with soaring blood pressure. In most cases, the employee does not have the opportunity to fight or flee, and as a result the increased energy is internalized and over time manifests itself as stress. Stress is not an illness, however prolonged exposure to stressful conditions can increase the risk of injury or disease. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health ( ¡Ã‚ §NIOSH ¡), job stress can be defined as â€Å"the harmful physical and emotional responses that occur when the requirements of the job do not match the capabilities, resources, or needs of the employee†. For instance, management style, interpersonal relationships, work roles, career concerns, work-life issues, sociocultural atmosphere, and environmental conditions may all be considered stressors. The following illustrations represent extreme cases, but a common thread between all of the examples is lack of communication, lack of resources, and lack of control. Typically, people are affected by an assortment of these stressors and at a variety of levels. Many employees suffer from stress caused by managers who expect results without establishing clear goals. An example would be an office head that is responsible for increasing profitability and decreasing overhead, without receiving a budget from the home office. At the end of the year, the office head's performance cannot be considered objectively. Consequently, his or her incentive compensation becomes subjective. Interpersonal Relationships In many organizations, workers have little decision-making power. For example, a customer service representative is responsible for fielding incoming calls. Inevitably, the calls are primarily from angry customers concerned about a late shipment. The representative has no control over the shipping department and in fact has virtually no communication with that department. After listening to the customer's complaints over a period of time, the representative has several suggestions which management could implement in the shipping department that may improve customer satisfaction. Unfortunately, management is not interested in the ideas of a customer service representative. And as a result, the representative is attacked daily by angry customers whose concerns could have been prevented. Work Roles Some employees suffer from stress caused by excess responsibility and a shortage of time. An example of which might be a salesperson who has a broad scope of responsibilities with little support and a full travel schedule. In many instances, the salesperson is unable to meet unrealistic reporting deadlines because of excessive travel. Career Concerns Other employees may stress about an impending reorganization and its potential consequences. For example, management hires a consulting firm to evaluate departmental effectiveness and profitability. The employees may feel that management views their work as substandard and is formulating a reduction in forces plan which could ultimately affect their jobs. Work-Life Issues Often workplace stress is caused by balancing personal and professional responsibilities. For example, a nurse who also has to care for an aging, dependant parent. Sociocultural Atmosphere Some employees are subjected to an atmosphere of gender bias and/or sexual harassment. For example, a woman works as a real estate broker, which is a male-dominated field. She is constantly subjected to sexual innuendo. She is even made to look incompetent in client meetings by her male counterparts who ask ridiculous and irrelevant questions. Environmental Conditions Employees are required to perform in adverse working conditions which often cause signs of stress. For instance, a mill worker is subjected to the constant humming of machines. Repeated exposure to stressful situations such as those mentioned above often cause symptoms such as difficulty concentrating, sleep disturbances, irritability, and boredom. Other warning signs may include upset stomach, job dissatisfaction, muscle tension, and low morale. Studies have shown that stress in the workplace has been linked to some of the leading causes of death, including heart disease, cancer, lung ailments, workplace accidents, cirrhosis, and suicide. According to the Encyclopedia of Occupational Safety and Health, studies suggest that psychologically demanding jobs which allow employees little control over work process increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. It is also widely believed that job stress produces an increased risk of back and upper extremity musculoskeletal disorders. Furthermore, several studies suggest that a variety of mental health problems, from burnout to depression, have been linked to job stress. Although more studies are needed, it has become a mounting concern that on-the-job injuries are on the rise due to job related stress. According to the Journal of Occupations and Environmental Medicine, healthcare expenditures are nearly 50% greater for workers who report high levels of stress. Furthermore, the American Institute of Stress estimates that more than 75% of all doctor visits are for stress-related complaints or disorders. People also spent nearly $11 billion last year on stress management programs, products and services. Although stress poses a variety of health concerns to individuals, organizations also suffer its consequences. According to the National Safety Council, it is estimated that one million workers are absent on an average workday because of stress related complaints. Furthermore, to the American Institute of Stress reports that 40 percent of employee turnover is related to job tension. A study published in the Journal of Group Dynamics: Theory, Research, and Practice, found that when workers are under stress, they tend to lose their group perspective and focus on their own personal goals to the detriment of their colleagues. In a study of 100 naval personnel, each three-member group was subjected to a decision-making task simulation under varying stressful conditions. As expected, those operating under the highest level of stress performed worse than those operating under normal circumstances. Furthermore, the study indicated that the higher the stress level, the subject acted from a more individual perspective, which ultimately deteriorated team performance. In addition, the 1995 Workers Compensation Yearbook reports: In 1960, a Michigan court upheld a compensation claim by an automotive assembly-line worker who had difficulty keeping up with the pressures of the production line. To avoid falling behind, he tried to work on several assemblies at the same time and often got parts mixed up. As a result, he was subjected to repeated criticism from the foreman. Eventually, he suffered psychological breakdown. By 1995, nearly one-half of the States allowed worker compensation claims for emotional disorders and disability due to stress on the job [note, however, that courts are reluctant to uphold claims for what can be considered ordinary working conditions or just hard work] (NIOSH). Given that job stress is estimated to cost U. S. industry $300 billion annually as assessed by absenteeism, diminished productivity, employee turnover, and consequently legal fees and insurance premiums, it is important for employers to implement programs that promote a low stress atmosphere in the workplace. The American Psychologists Association recommends the following organizational changes to help prevent job stress:    Other elements of a healthy company include open communication, employee involvement, health-enhancing work environments, community responsibility, and institutional fairness. Many companies have taken a variety steps to promote this type of atmosphere. For example, Harley-Davidson, the Milwaukee-based motorcycle manufacturer, implemented the use of work groups in its Capital Drive plant in 1995. Since then, there has been a â€Å"steady decline in worker's compensation claims† which resulted in higher profits for the company. According to John Gillard, president of PACE Local 7-0209, workers feel they have more control over their jobs because they have a voice in day-to-day operations. Honeywell offers employee assistance counselors and stress management classes. The Leo Burnett advertising agency in Chicago, has a on-site massage therapist once a week, while National Semiconductor of Santa Clara, California provides an on-site fitness center that offers yoga and karate among other things. While some companies suffer the consequences of stress in the workplace, others like Massachusetts based WFD, Inc. (â€Å"WFD†), profit from it. WFD offers innovative services that assist employers in facilitating the needs of their employees thereby producing measurable business results such as customer loyalty and satisfaction, revenues and profits and shareholder value. WFD's services include employee commitment audits, work-life strategy consulting, community investment and dependent care strategy consulting, and workplace flexibility consulting.

Opposites Attract

Opposites attract, similar to how magnets are drawn to each other. This tragic love story sheds light on Romeo and Juliet, a pair of star-crossed lovers. The play Romeo and Juliet, written by William Shakespeare, features a love story between the two main characters, Romeo and Juliet and takes place in Verona, Italy. There are two rival families, the Capulets and the Montagues, and Juliet and Romeo are the â€Å"star-crossed lovers† from the two opposing families. In Act II Scene II, Romeo is talking to Juliet on the balcony immediately after they meet.Here, Shakespeare reveals Romeo’s and Juliet’s personalities in the scene. Shakespeare reveals a passionate and impulsive side to Romeo, while on the other hand, reveals a hesitant and cautious side to Juliet. Shakespeare reveals that Romeo has a passionate, as well as impulsive love for Juliet. In the balcony scene he says to Juliet, â€Å"My life were better ended by their hate, than death prorogued, wanting of thy love. †(82) This suggests that Romeo is saying that he would choose death over Juliet not loving him, and reveals his fervent love for Juliet.Also, he boldly states, â€Å"Therefore thy kinsmen are no stop to me. †(72) He declares this because he is so deeply in love with her. He has the courage to say this even when he knows that Juliet’s relatives want to kill him because he is a Montague. Romeo’s impulsive behavior is suggested when he asks, â€Å"Th’ exchange of thy love’s faithful vow for mine†(134). Even though Romeo had just met Juliet that night, he proposes that they get married, which reveals that he is impetuous. Romeo is characterized as passionate but impulsive, which leads him rushing into decisions, and ultimately his death.Juliet is shown to be hesitant and cautious because is mature beyond her age. She is cautious about Romeo’s love for her, almost skeptical of it, because she says to him, â€Å"And if thou dost love, pronounce it faithfully† (99). This shows that she wants to be reassured that he truly loves her. When Romeo proposes for them to marry, she responds â€Å"It is too rash, too unadvised, too sudden† (125) which shows that Juliet thinks that they should be careful, because she believes their love is developing too quickly.She then compares their love to what it could be, â€Å"Too like the lightning, which doth cease to be† which means that like lightning, their love can disappear as fast as it appeared. She is worried that this will happen to them as well. Her cautious and hesitant behavior balances out Romeo’s character and actions. Shakespeare suggests that Romeo and Juliet are very different in character. Romeo is quick to act, while Juliet takes her time and thinks of the possible outcomes. Their personalities create a perfect balance.Although they complete each others’ personalities, their young and sudden love is like the always ch anging and tumultuous ocean. The two lovers should not rush into their love because their love for each other, as Juliet says â€Å"Follow thee my lord throughout the world†, foreshadows that Juliet will ultimately follow Romeo into death because of their love. Love holds the power to make people do extraordinary things but sometimes may lead to irreversible consequences, such as death.

Feminist and Womanist Criticism of African Literature: a Bibliography

Feminist and Womanist Criticism of African Literature: A Bibliography By Sharon Verba July 20, 1997 Those women who struggle without giving up hope, herald the impending change†¦ : change in attitude for both men and women as they evaluate and re-evaluate their social roles†¦. -Rosemary Moyana, â€Å"Men & Women† Rereading, willful misreading, and de- and re-coding are tools used in African literature and womanist or feminist discourse to challenge â€Å"canonized ‘literature'† that tends to black out Black and blanch out Woman. -Kofi Owusu, â€Å"Canons Under Siege† T]he collective effort has to emerge from the ranks of those whose life is theorized. -Sisi Maqagi, â€Å"Who Theorizes† Feminist criticism of African literatures is a steadily growing field. The following bibliography includes articles and essays in English and French which examine African literatures (fiction, poetry, drama and oral literature) from a feminist or womanist per spective. It does not include, unfortunately, criticism in other languages — such as Wolof, Xhosa, Zulu, Portuguese, German, or Arabic — due to my own inability to read those languages.Also, authors whose works are originally written in languages other than French or English, such as Ngugi wa Thiongo's plays and the novel, Devil on the Cross, and Nawal al Sa'dawi's works, may be under-represented in this bibliography, as criticism often tends to be written in the language of the work being addressed. The first sections of this essay will present overviews on two key issues for those interested in both feminism and African literatures: the current ebate over the role of feminist criticisms in addressing African literatures, and an examination of the changes which have developed over the past decade in the ways feminist criticism approaches African literatures. This examination will trace these changes from 1985-1996 by considering articles which represent the ongoing ev olution of feminist criticism in this field. Finally, this essay also includes a section which explains my methodology and sources in compiling the bibliography, and a section offering hints for future searches, especially of online indexes. Feminist Criticism and African LiteratureMany issues of concern to feminist/womanist thought are raised and addressed in these articles. (1) Among the issues taken up in the state of feminist theory and criticism are the importance of feminism as a literary critical method; the representation and mis-representation of women in literary texts; the education of women; the access of women to the economic means of survival; motherhood; women in the domestic sphere; women as part of their communities; women's role in politics and revolution; sexuality; and the direct treatment of women by men, and men by women.Underlying this array of specific interests are questions of gender in representation and of the reality or realities of life for women in Afr ica–past, present, and future. The arguments found in the articles in this bibliography present a multiplicity of views, a few of which may even be anti-feminist, but all of which make gender a basis of discussion, and all of which offer much for the consideration of feminist thought with respect to African literatures.The state of feminist literary criticism/thought in Africa â€Å"now† is the direct focus of several of the articles, although all of the articles could be said in some degree or another to be a part of this particular debate. I put â€Å"now† in quotations, because these articles cover a broad range of time–1980-1996– and those which focus on this particular topic present an evolving discourse. Two collections of essays in particular are noteworthy for their presentation of a range of ideas on feminism and literary criticism in Africa: Ngambika: Studies of Women in African Literature (1986) and South African Feminisms: Writing, Theo ry and Criticism 990-1994 (1995). Ngambika includes twenty articles which focus on the representation of women in African literature. Taken together the articles provide an invaluable overview of the types of feminist criticism being applied to African literatures in the mid 1980s, although most do not focus on the issue of feminism as a critical method. One essay in this collection proves a notable exception. In the collection's introductory essay Carole Boyce Davies(2) does write of the tension found in the works of many critics of African literatures, especially female critics.These critics, she says, work out of a growing awareness of the requirement to balance both â€Å"the need to liberate African peoples from neo-colonialism and other forms of race and class oppression, coupled with a respect for certain features of traditional African cultures,† and â€Å"the recognition that a feminist consciousness is necessary in examining the position of women in African societi es† (1).Davies then outlines the issues of women writers in Africa (including the relatively small number of women writers) and the presentation of women in fiction written by African men, as well as the development of an African feminist criticism. In her treatment of the latter concern, she lists four major areas which African feminist critics tend to address: the development of the canon of African women writers, the examination of stereotyped images of women in African literature, the study of African women writers and the development of an African female aesthetic, and the examination of women and the oral tradition (13-14).While Davies acknowledges the objections African women writers and critics have to the term â€Å"feminist† and discusses womanist theory, she focuses on the idea of a developing African feminist theory which will not only perform the balancing act mentioned at the beginning, but continue to address the major issues she has outlined. Seven years later, in the 1993 publication A History of Twentieth-Century African Literatures, Davies and Elaine Savory Fido contributed a chapter entitled â€Å"African Women Writers: A Literary History. In it, they examine African women writers and their writings, focusing especially on the styles and genres used by these writers. Included is a brief segment on â€Å"Feminism and African Women Writers† as well as a separate section on â€Å"Criticism and African Women's Writing. † In the section on feminism, they note the continued reluctance of many African women writers and critics to be labeled as feminists because of the overtones of westernization the term carries, but they also point out that most African women writers are committed, in the words of Omolara Ogundipe-Leslie, â€Å"as a writer, as a woman and as a third world person† (339).This triple commitment encompasses much of the politics of African feminism, as well as womanism, whether the labels are accepte d or not. Fido and Davies conclude: â€Å"The role and history of feminist politics or activism on women's rights in Africa is a discourse which African women are studying and clarifying for themselves† (339). One of the places in which this discourse can be seen is South African Feminisms: Writing, Theory and Criticism 1990-1994.South African Feminisms presents a collection of articles on feminist literature and criticism, including and expanding the debate on feminist criticism of African literatures which was part of the special issue Current Writing: Text and Reception in Southern Africa 2 (1990). M. J. Daymond's introduction gives a good overview of the issues raised in the collection, including the debate over feminist criticism and the development of an African feminist theory.The section â€Å"Theory and Context† includes eight articles originally published from 1990-1993. Taken together, these articles constitute an excellent sampling of some of the issues and trends in African feminist criticism, including Sisi Maqagi's â€Å"Who Theorizes? † in which she questions the ability of white critics, African or non-African, female or male, to develop a theory which will adequately address the issues of black African women, rather than appropriating those issues, and the voices which raise them.Jill Arnott, in an article entitled â€Å"French Feminism in a South Africa? Gayatri Spivak and the Problem of Representation in South African Feminism,† contends that difference, which can often lead to misrepresentation, can also at times lead to accurate and insightful work: â€Å"to power a genuinely dialectical interaction between two vigilantly foregrounded subject-positions,† but only with an awareness of the position of ifference and a consciousness of the act of representation (87). Desiree Lewis, in â€Å"The Politics of Feminism in South Africa,† counters that such a conscious and effective use of difference may we ll be impossible, as long as there is a political climate in which white female academics are attempting to hold on to their power within the academy, at the expense of black women.In the same article she also points out that unless black working class women can make their statements about the current â€Å"oppressive orthodoxies† and do so without creating, as she argues Western feminism has, another oppressive orthodoxy, there may be no way out of the current impasse. Changes in Feminist Criticism of African Literature Although some of the articles included in this bibliography, like those above, examine feminist literary criticism as a topic, most focus on literary concerns: texts, authors, or issues.In the seventeen years this bibliography spans there are shifts in the coverage these concerns are given. Critical analyses of individual authors naturally both broaden and deepen over the years, especially as an individual author's body of work grows or is reclaimed from obsc urity. In general, in the 1990s there are fewer works of criticism that examine several authors and more which focus on individuals and their work than there were in the 1980s. Also, the topics focused upon subtly shift over the years. Images of women in the works of†¦. † could be the subtitle for many of the articles written in the 1980s as feminist critics examined representations, or misrepresentations, of African women in literary texts. At the same time these critics raised the question of the role of African authors, male and female, in expanding and/or correcting such representations. These concerns are still addressed; indeed, the feminist criticism on these topics is, like the criticism of specific authors, expanding and deepening.To highlight these changes, I shall examine here some of the collections and representative individual articles which have been produced over the years, beginning with the landmark collection Ngambika, which was published in 1986, follo wed by Women in African Literature Today in 1987, articles by Kofi Owusu and Elleke Boehmer in 1990, the 1990 issue of Current Writing: Text and Reception in Southern Africa, Essays on African Writing 2: Contemporary Literature published in 1995 and The Marabout and the Muse: New Approaches to Islam in African Literature in 1996.All of the articles in the first section of Ngambika overtly tackle the issue of the representations of women in the works of African authors. Carole Boyce Davies writes one of these articles: â€Å"Maidens, Mistresses, and Matrons: Feminine Images in Selected Soyinka Works. † In it, she argues that Soyinka often offers only stereotyped images of women which fall into one of three categories: the foolish virgin in rural settings, the femme fatale in urban settings, and the masculinized matron.Those characters which fall in the latter category, in Davies' opinion, come closest to being non-stereotypes, but even they are drawn with â€Å"no depth† (81). The â€Å"foolish virgins† and the â€Å"femme fatales,† Davies argues, fill only the roles of stereotypes and symbols, possessions or trophies to be won away from Western influences by African traditions, or, more threateningly, these women are seen as dangers which can distract and destroy.Davies acknowledges that Soyinka sometimes shows women briefly in a positive light but notes that â€Å"throughout Soyinka's works one finds the kernel of positive portrayal of the female image which is never fully realized† (85). Davies concludes with the argument â€Å"that the artist has the power to create new realities;†¦ women as neither victors nor victims but partners in struggle† (86). Davies' article is representative of the criticism which examines the image of women in African literatures. That is, she carefully addresses the concerns of the author (i. e. he need for recognizable symbols) as she argues against the relegation of women solely to symbolic roles, asking for characterizations which do not â€Å"[reinforce] a negative perception of self to the female viewer/reader and, concomitantly, a condescension in the appraisal of women on the part of the male† (78). In the years following the publishing of Ngambika, several journals and monograph series devoted to African literatures published issues on women as authors of or characters in African literatures. One of the first was the Women in African Literature Today issue of African Literature Today (Vol. 5). Like Ngambika, this issue contains many excellent articles, almost all of which are written from a feminist perspective. I would like to discuss two of these articles as representative not merely of this particular collection, but of the feminist criticism on African literatures being published at this time. In â€Å"Feminist Issues in the Fiction of Kenya's Women Writers† Jean F. O'Barr list three main categories of feminist concerns in the fiction of Kenyan woman writers: â€Å"how female children become women; †¦ what marriage means for women;†¦ here women's work fits into their lives† (57). O'Barr notes that the women authors she analyzes â€Å"all write from the woman's point of view, sharply underscoring the idea that the female perspective †¦. may be different from the male perspective on the same topic† (58). O'Barr analyzes the works of Kenya's female authors from a sociological approach, hoping to establish a stronger image of the social lives of Kenya's women than is possible from the works of male authors. She concludes that Kenya's women find themselves in a quadruple bind: â€Å"they see themselves performing traditional roles†¦ ithout traditional resources†¦ while at the same time they are undertaking modern activities†¦ while being denied access to modern support systems† (69). While O'Barr looks at the fiction of Kenyan women in order to locate the reality of w omen's lives, Katherine Frank attempts in the controversial article â€Å"Women without Men: The Feminist Novel in Africa† to find a radically feminist future for African women. Frank endeavors to place African women writers into the Western feminist mold by speaking of their work as a more radical extension of the Western feminist tradition.In speaking of â€Å"the contemporary British or American novel† she claims â€Å"our heroine slams the door on her domestic prison, journeys out into the great world, slays the dragon of her patriarchal society, and triumphantly discovers the grail of feminism by ‘finding herself,'† (14). She argues that in comparison African novels by women go far beyond their Western counterparts, refusing to â€Å"dabble in daydreaming about enlightened heroes or reformed, non-sexist societies,† (15). Frank finds that the â€Å"feminist† writers of Africa portray women not only as taking on active and shared roles wit h men, but as finding â€Å"a destiny of their own. †¦ destiny with a vengeance,† (15). Frank contends that Mariama Ba, Flora Nwapa, Buchi Emecheta and Ama Ata Aidoo's novels are, in their feminisms, â€Å"more radical, even more militant, than [their] Western counterpart[s]† (15). But Frank's interpretations place African heroines on a path which is not different, but rather the same, if more intense, than the one taken by the British and American heroines she notes above. Frank stresses that in these novels women find only pain and degradation in their relationships with men, but on their own and in their relationships with other women they find â€Å"female solidarity, power, independence† (33).In her interpretation, Barr neglects to note examples in which the future is shared by men and women. For example, when she speaks of Mariama Ba's So Long a Letter, she focuses on Ramatoulaye and Aissatou's friendship and the â€Å"world they create apart from me n,† (20). While this in itself glosses over the complex (and by no means completely negative) relationships these women have with the men in their lives, she also does not speak of Ramatoulaye's daughter and son-in-law, and the hope Ramatoulaye finds in their relationship.In this article, Frank does not acknowledge a difference between demonstrating that a woman's worth is not inextricable from her relationship with men, that a woman can take care of herself, as Ramatoulaye discovers, and an actual desire to live a life without men. However, controversial as some of her interpretations are, her essay effectively outlines the some of the subtle feminisms of African women novelists.Katherine Frank's stance is one which falls into the category of â€Å"radical, feminist-separatist ideology† which Kofi Owusu defines and rejects in his article in Callaloo entitled â€Å"Canons Under Siege: Blackness, Femaleness, and Ama Ata Aidoo's Our Sister Killjoy†(1990). While Fra nk sees Aidoo's character Sissie as moving towards an autonomous, self-determining life without men (Frank 32), Owusu finds Aidoo to be â€Å"in tune with the ‘old' (Achebe's ‘vast corpus of African traditional stories') and the ‘new' (‘modern feminist theory') (357).Owusu sees Aidoo, and other female writers, not as bridging a gap between Western and African thought but creating something new out of both and challenging the canons that would ignore either black or female concerns. Much of Owusu's article analyzes â€Å"the discontinuities as well as continuities between womanist-feminist perspectives, on the one hand, and African literature, on the other† (342), allowing Owusu to regard Aidoo's work as one which â€Å"give[s] a sense of structural and linguistic irony which is functional. †¦ signify[ing] a couple of things: the need for, and very process of, revamping† (361).Here, the canons need to be reformed in recognition of both race and gender, not one or the other, or one without the other. While Kofi Owusu focused on Aidoo's linguistic and textual manipulations, the question of the image of women in African literature continues to be a highly examined topic. Elleke Boehmer explores the construction of women as mothers, whores, representations of national pride, or finally, as spiritual advisors and supporters, but not as individuals actively and crucially involved in political activity.In â€Å"Of Goddesses and Stories: Gender and a New Politics in Achebe's Anthills of the Savannah,† Boehmer analyzes Chinua Achebe's efforts to include women in his re-vision of the future and questions whether women remain a â€Å"vehicle† of transformation rather than actual women with an active role in the future of the country, that is, whether â€Å"woman is the ground of change or discursive displacement but not the subject of transformation† (102).She concludes that Achebe has still idealized women but that his creation of a female character with an important yet undefined role for the future has opened up space for women to have active and involved roles, side by side with men, in the building of the future. Like Davies' article on Soyinka from Ngambika discussed earlier, Boehmer's work recognizes Achebe's literary prowess and commends his willingness to make women positive symbols, but in the end laments the lack of depth in his female characters.Although South African Feminisms was published in 1996, many of the articles in it come from the 1990 issue of Current Writing: Text and Reception in Southern Africa, which was dedicated to â€Å"Feminism and Writing. † This issue continued the trend of publishing articles debating not only the appropriateness of feminism in an African context but also the challenges of applying it to African literatures, as well as articles focusing on women writers or women's images in literature.In â€Å"A Correspondence Without Theory: T sitsi Dangarembga's Nervous Conditions,† Brenda Bosman addresses the psychological dislocation forced upon the women of the heroine's family by â€Å"Englishness,† the term used by her mother to describe the process of assimilation which various members of the family undergo. However, one of the most interesting aspects of the article is Bosman's explicit attempt to find a position from which to speak, as a white South African woman, to –not for, or of– Dangarembga.She writes her article in the form of a letter to Dangarembga, and acknowledges that she might not have succeeded in finding a legitimate position: â€Å"you may find†¦ despite all my conscious efforts, I have nonetheless submitted to the voice of my education†(311). Considering the problematics of education in Nervous Conditions, this could be seen as a double entendre, but her article shows a conscious attempt to find a place from which to speak comfortably, an increasingly difficu lt matter for some African feminists.The last two articles I will discuss reveal change in the field of feminist criticism of Africa on two levels: both are located in collections of essays on African literature which can be considered â€Å"general,† and both are examples of the further increase in variety in the forms of feminist criticism of African literature. Although very good collections of critical essays focusing exclusively on women and African literature are published, it is important to note that few, if any â€Å"general† collections are now being published without the inclusion of at least one, if not several essays which address feminist concerns.In Essays on African Writing 2: Contemporary Literature (1995), there are three articles which are written from a feminist perspective. One of these is Belinda Jack's â€Å"Strategies of Transgression in the Writings of Assia Djebar. † In it she explores the means by which Djebar writes for Arabic women o f Algeria in the language of the colonizer.Jack distinguishes Djebar's writings by arguing that her â€Å"texts are not written in the French language but a French language† a language which no longer belongs to the colonizers because of the deliberate shifts Djebar makes (23). Jack also notes that Djebar also transgresses against Islam in her choices of subject matter, especially sexuality, again firm in the knowledge that while such speech may be a transgression, it is only a transgression because with speech (or writing) comes power.The last article I wish to discuss also focuses on Assia Djebar and her concerns with Islam. The Marabout and the Muse: New Approaches to Islam in African Literature (1996) contains four articles which approach literature from a distinctly feminist perspective: one on Somali women's Sittaat (songs sung for and to notable women in Islamic history), one on the tradition of female Islamic writers in Nigeria, and two which examine Djebar's Loin de Medine.In â€Å"Daughters of Hagar: Daughters of Muhammad† Sonia Lee argues that through her early fictional exploration of women in Islam, Djebar is attempting to make a space for Islamic women â€Å"to reclaim the true law of God† (60). Lee finds that Djebar's historical training combined with her literary skills allow her to â€Å"[oscillate] between the actual and the probable, thus underlying the real subject matter of the novel, †¦. the problematic of Islamic collective memory with regard to women† (51). The above articles typify the growing expansion of feminist approaches to African literatures.While feminist criticisms continue to broaden the literary canon by bringing literature by African women to critical attention and continue to address the representation of African women in literatures, the methods used by such criticism in relation to African literatures continue to evolve. As feminist critics, both African and non-African, use sociological, linguistic, psychoanalytic, historical and other approaches to broaden the examination of African literatures, at least some Western feminist critics are also trying to incorporate a heightened awareness of their own positions with regards to the authors and literatures they discuss.Methodology This bibliography is, in every sense of the word, selective. African authors were included if an article (in English or French) could be located which discussed him or her from the angle of feminism, womanism, or the treatment of gender. Authors were not excluded or included on any other basis, including race and gender. Interviews were included for many of the female writers because such interviews often are a main source of feminist thought (their own) on their works.The sources I used to find these articles were the bibliographies of African literature located in the journal Callaloo (1987-89 and 1990-93), the MLA Bibliography, the African studies bibliographies for the years 1995-96, the CD-Rom resource Women's Resources International, 1972-August 1996, as well as various library catalogs for monographs, whether collections or single-authored. In addition, I scanned the bibliographies of articles and books to find other relevant citations.There are several good bibliographies which focus, at least in part, on feminist criticism of African literatures from the 1970s through the mid 1980s. Brenda Berrian's Bibliography of African Women Writers and Journalists, Carole Boyce Davies' â€Å"A Bibliography of Criticism and Related Works† in Ngambika, and Barbara Fister's bibliography on criticism in Third World Women's Literature in combination cover this earlier period very thoroughly.I did not use these bibliographies to compile this one; to avoid excess duplication, I have focused on criticism published from 1980 on and simply cite these earlier bibliographies at the end of this one, although I am sure some duplication has occurred. This bibliography is organize d by authors and also includes a section on general works, which is organized first by those which cover African literatures without focusing on a specific country, region or author, then by region, and then individual countries.Works of criticism are placed in this section if they refer to several authors/works from the continent, a particular region, or country. If an article focuses on four or fewer authors, it is included under the name of each author. The bibliography includes articles on eighty-seven individual authors, as well as general articles on Africa, East Africa, North Africa, West Africa, Algeria, Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, Somali, South Africa, and Zimbabwe; it cites more than four hundred articles and monographs.It is interesting to compare the authors found in this bibliography with the ninety-five authors found in the biography section of Hans Zell's A New Reader's Guide to African Fiction (1st ed. , 1971; 2nd rev. ed. ,1983). The authors in Zell's work are o ften considered the early canon of African literatures. Only twenty-five authors appear in both the current bibliography and Hans Zell's Guide. There may be several reasons for this difference. Many of the authors included in my bibliography were not then considered a part of the canon of African literature; and a few had not even published at the time Zell's work appeared.Carole Boyce Davies also offers an insight which may explain the lack of overlap. She notes in her introduction to Ngambika that one of the priorities of African feminist literary criticism is â€Å"the development of a canon of African women writers and a parallel canon of critical works with the final aim of expanding the African literary canon† (14). The Guides were compiled in the early years of this expansion, and it is quite possible that today the lists would be more reflective of each other.At the same time, many African women writers actively rebuke attempts to place African men on the defensive, a rguing that a critical approach to literature (as well as other social, political, and cultural expressions) must explore the strengths of both African women and African men. While feminist criticism does focus on male authors, it more often strives to bring to the forefront of literary discussions the works of female African authors and the strong, individualistic portrayals of women they offer.Future Search Hints The issues discussed above make feminist criticism of African fiction an exciting and dynamic field. They also make it a very complex field to research. There are several issues to keep in mind when beginning research in this area. One of the most difficult to overcome is the lack of coverage of this area in mainstream indexing sources, such as the MLA, especially when one looks for early works, which were often carried in journals not then indexed by the MLA.Other sources which do cover these journals, such as the excellent bibliographies periodically offered by Callaloo on studies of African literature, do not offer separate sections for feminist criticism, and it is necessary to assess which ones are relevant by the titles or, at times, the authors, of the articles. For my own part it should be noted that it is entirely possible that I have missed articles which should appear in this bibliography.Many of the best sources are only available in print, such as International African Bibliography, Current Bibliography of African Affairs, and Cahiers d'etudes africaines, which are more time-consuming to search, but well worth the effort. As the discussion above indicates, the term â€Å"feminism† can be extremely limiting when it is being used as a descriptor in either online or print indexes. For this reason, it is advisable to keep other terms in mind when searching for articles, whether in print or electronic resources, such as the keywords/descriptors â€Å"Gender† and â€Å"Womanism/Womanist†.It is important, as well, not to l imit searches to the term â€Å"African. † While some articles are indexed with this descriptor, those articles which deal with a specific author may be listed under that author's country instead, as of course are those which deal with the literatures of a specific region or country. Finally, especially when searching for articles in online indexes, it is useful to keep in mind specific topics, such as â€Å"sexuality,† â€Å"motherhood,† and â€Å"politics† combined with â€Å"women† or â€Å"female. â€Å"

Body Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Body Art - Essay Example Skulls, bones and other body parts engraved as a tattoo on human body is the distinctive and weird trend; that depicts neither beauty nor ugliness but depicts the kind of evil which is intrinsically a part of human nature. Tattoos are also made to replace ornaments, like a delicate and beautiful flower sequence on the neckline can replace a necklace or the same between should blade off the back depict the veracity of female beauty. These tattoos depict beauty and art on an artistic human body (naturally human body is a marvel) and at the same time a hidden message for the on lookers that the female has ornamented her body with vivid colors to signify her style and also signifies her choice and liberty. However, in the professional arena, they are never appreciated nor encouraged. They are a symbol of rebellion, distinctiveness and undisciplined individuals. These individuals can be troublesome and cannot take significant responsibilities. These are all the assumed notions of professi onal recruiters, but if these tattoos are kept under clothes they aren’t much of an issue to the world. The criteria of any society are if something is made irrational, forbidden and unlikable than the norms of such society will always decline its importance and discourage those individuals who chose them. However, if they are a part of a culture than such trends become most popular and highly applicable. Like body piercing and tattoos in African tribes are highly appreciated or polygamy in some societies is also encouraged.

Racism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Racism - Essay Example Even with the thought the foreign workers are crucial in his country's economic well-being, the student still felt bothered and frustrated. What is more significant is that many students agreed with the fellow and his statement. The Singaporean experience is an excellent example of race relations. Its population is small and the dynamics of the relationship within its society is easily recognized because of it. Any conflict or significant development immediately comes to the surface. Today, more than a quarter of its population is composed of foreign residents, who, for their part, come from various countries and cultures. (Chong 2010, p. 145) By inviting all these peoples into the country, the Singaporean government is forcing them to live side by side each other in addition to living within the Singaporean community. The student's perspective at NTU told much about racial prejudice. As a citizen, he expects to be put above the rest, particularly in the governmental agenda. With the sizable number of foreigners, however, his economic and political influence in policy networks is threatened. This aggravates his personal racial biases. The result is unfortunate if we are to imagine how this student and similar Singaporeans would interact with other nationalities.

Cleaning and Maintenance of Capital Kitchen Equipment Assignment

Cleaning and Maintenance of Capital Kitchen Equipment - Assignment Example In our discussion, we shall consider dishwashers, ovens, refrigerators, ranges/cookers and ventilation equipment. We shall further look at how best we can maintain the equipment to ensure they retain quality. Imagine washing 1,000 dishes manually. A lot of time will be spent scrubbing the dishes, which leads to fatigue. You may have to employ the services of more than one person. You will need plenty of soap. If in a busy setting, such as hotels with a large turnover of the customers, it may end up being a major expense. Many people with such needs end up acquiring a dishwasher. Unlike manual cleaning, a one-time purchase makes the cleaning more efficient. A dishwasher is mechanical and cleans many dishes at once. It uses electric energy. It has rotating sprays of hot water that clean the oily and greasy dishes. Detergent and water is sprayed at first to clean them, after which it is drained and clean water sprayed to rinse them. A heating element in the washer is then used to dry th e dishes (Sforza, 2014). Ovens are heat-insulated machines that can achieve very high degrees of heat. They are used in both a domestic and a commercial and industrial setting. In a domestic setting, they are machines used for cooking. They can also be used to heat the house, bake and even dry some materials. In a commercial setting, ovens are used for large-scale baking, pottery, metalwork, amongst other activities involving a lot of heat but have to be customized for these duties (Sforza, 2014).

Confucianism, Daoism, and Leagalism in China Essay

Confucianism, Daoism, and Leagalism in China - Essay Example Daoism is another ancient religion of China, which promotes the concepts of peace and harmony. If we talk about Legalism, we can say that it is a philosophy, which promotes the value of law in a society. Moral values are the cornerstone of the philosophy of Confucianism. The believers of Confucianism give great importance to the moral values and never do anything, which may go against their moral values. â€Å"Confucianism is mainly concerned with moral values, which form the cornerstone of its philosophy† (Islam Contemporary Perspective). Confucianism gives rise to such a society where everyone gives preference to moral and ethics, and tries to promote a real peaceful society where there is harmony and tranquility between the individuals. Believers of Confucianism take care of their friends and never produce harm to any person. They love each other and take care of each other’s rights. Unlike Legalists, believers of Confucianism view history and poetry as educational r esources, which they study to get awareness of their history, society, and traditions. Another difference between Confucianism and Legalism is related to the preference of family. For Legalists, preference to family comes second to laws whereas in Confucianism, family is the top priority for a person and he/she takes every step for the protection of his/her family. Some of the strongest points of the religion of Confucianism include belief in God, belief in the angels, respect for moral values, elimination of insincerity, appreciation for beneficial arts, and feelings of sympathy for the foreigners. Believers of Confucianism give extreme importance to the formation of strong governments. It is a fact that the role of a strong government is very important for the development of an orderly society. Therefore, the believers of Confucianism believe that a ruler should exhibit good morals and ethics in order to develop and maintain an orderly society. If we talk about Daoism, we can say that believers of Daoism believe in the importance of peace, harmony, kindness towards others, and sincerity. There is no concept of selfishness in the religion of Daoism. Believers of Daoism live a very peaceful life and do not struggle for such things, which can make their lives difficult. â€Å"Daoism believes that life is generally happy but that it should be lived with balance and virtue† (Chiu). Daoism promotes easy and peaceful life where there are no tensions between people. â€Å"Ritual is an important part of religious Taoism, and the rites are specific to particular deities and departed ancestors† (Harmon). De, Immortality, and The Dao are the main components of Daoism. De refers to the concepts of morality and integrity whereas Immortality refers to the concept of helping others through mediation. The believers of Daoism create such society where every individual tries to achieve immortality by helping others in every field of life. The Way is considered th e ultimate truth in Daoism. It refers to the way people live their lives. â€Å"Daoists do not believe in extremes, instead focusing on the interdependence of things† (Chiu). If we talk about Legalism, we can say that government comes before anything else in a pure Legalist society. People abide by the laws and do not do anything, which goes beyond the limits of law. People serve the government their level best because they know the importance of a well-structured and

Supervisor Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Supervisor Development - Essay Example also make my team members feel rewarded and research has it that an employee’s motivation depends on this expectation that his/her efforts will lead to a valued reward (Mathis, Jackson, & Valentine, 2013, p. 127). I aim to develop a hands-on leading style which would not be about supervision alone, but also turning difference of opinion into quality performance. As a conscientious supervisor, I also believe that developing a solid relationship with team members is exceedingly important. This is where human relations skills could offer real value. I will try to refine my skills in this area by using the tool of good communication. I will relate with my team members in a way that would make them feel like they are being positively influenced instead of being forced to comply with orders. Skills based on participative leadership and good relationship will enable me in supervising my team because they both promote supervision based on

Touching The Heart of Buddhas Teachings Term Paper

Touching The Heart of Buddhas Teachings - Term Paper Example Perhaps the best way to approach the core of Buddhism is to ask, first of all, what the word Buddhism means. Buddhism comes from the word Buddha, whose root word, budh simply means awake. The Buddha, whose root word, budh simply means awake. The Buddha, therefore, is simply one who is awake. In the Anguttara Nikaya, one of the major collections of Buddhist texts, we are told that a Brahmin (a Hindu priest) once encountered the Buddha and asked him a series of questions: â€Å"The Brahmin Dona saw the Buddha sitting under a tree and was impressed by his peaceful air of alertness and his good looks. He asked the Buddha: Are you a God? No, Brahmin, I am not a God. Then an angel? No, indeed, Brahmin. A spirit, then? No, I am not a spirit. Then what are you? I am awake.† (Bancroft 8). When the Buddha said that he was awake, what he implied was that he was once, like most of us, asleep. To be asleep is to be ignorant of our true nature. It means that there is so much about ourselves and the world that we do not understand. If we could only open our eyes and be awake, then we, too, can be Buddhas. This, in fact, is one of the central teachings of Buddhism: that each of us is a potential Buddha, that each of us has the seed of enlightenment. All we need to do is to work at it. All we need to do is to nurture the seed of enlightenment. This brings us to the life story of Buddha. What are the key elements of Buddha’s life story? Why are they so important? What do these teachings tell us? These are among the questions that I shall address in this paper. The Buddha was born around 560 B.C. in what is now Southern Nepal (Zukeran 1). He was Indian, and was born a prince. His name was Siddhartha. The story of his life starts right after he was born, when an astrologer came to the kingdom and predicted that Siddhartha would either become a great king or a great spiritual leader. When Siddhartha’s father heard this, the king made sure that Siddhartha would not be exposed to the difficulties of life. So the king surrounded Prince Siddhartha with all the possible pleasures one could possibly imagine, and he was not exposed to any difficulties or suffering whatsoever. However, the prince developed a great curiosity about the world outside the palace walls. When Siddhartha left the palace walls with this charioteer named Chandaka, he first noticed a bent, wrinkled old man. This was something he had never seen before. On another trip outside the palace walls, Siddhartha saw a man suffering from some kind of disease. On a third occasion , Siddhartha encountered a funeral procession and saw a dead body inside a box followed by crying relatives. He was horrified. On a fourth occasion, Siddhartha encountered a wandering mock who seemed very happy, serene, and contented. When he asked Chandaka who this person was, Chandaka said: â€Å"this is a holy man who has renounced worldly life and entered upon a life of homelessness† (Kohn 11). These key events are what led Siddhartha to a deep realization: that everything is ravaged by time; that we don’t live forever; and that life, at its very root, is filled with suffering. These facts motivated Siddhartha to look for a cure for suffering. In doing so, he vowed to continue sitting in meditation until he found the solution to the problem of suffering. One day, Siddhartha attained enlightenment. During this enlightenment, he was finally able to discover the cure that he was seeking. At first, he thought that he could not teach what he had discovered, since what h e had discovered seemed so profound. But he got up from under the tree, and met a few friends who had deserted him. It is to these friends that he gave his first sermon – the four noble truths. This is where Buddha’s life story becomes significant. The four noble truths are the foundational teachings of Buddhism. These teachings tell us that first, human existence is characterized by suffering. Second, that there

Unknown Language Log Essay Example for Free

Unknown Language Log Essay Lesson 1 (1) Apparent lesson objectives (functions, structures, lexis and pronunciation) Lesson one consisted of an introduction to the new language, we were taught how to greet others and introduce ourselves, how to give personal information (though it was only regarding our nationality), the alphabet was introduced to us in order to explain further vocabulary, and along with it the pronunciation of the letters, and words which had two of the same vowels together and made a longer sound, so we realized that Finnish is a phonetic language, that is the opposite of English which is not. Moreover, we learned a few subject pronouns such as ’’he, she(which do not have separate pronouns, they are the same word), you and I’’, the present of the verb ’’to be (olen)’’, some well-rounded basic vocabulary in order to explain how a word can change its meaning by having two of the same letters together (’’mato’’ means worm, while ’’matto’’ means carpet), and possessive adjectives (only ’’My’’). There were many exponents used to teach us the functions previously said, introducing yourself/greeting (’’Mikà ¤ sinun nimesi on?/What’s your name?’’, ’’Minà ¤ olen Ricardo/My name is Ricardo’’, ’’Mità ¤ kuuluu?/How are you?’’, ’’Kiitos, hyvà ¤Ãƒ ¤!/Fine, thanks!’’), personal information (’’Mistà ¤ olet kotoisin ?/Where are you from?’’, ’’Minà ¤ olen uruguaylainen/I am Uruguayan’’). (2) Lesson structure (stages, presentation, practice, etc.) The main structure of the lesson consisted of an introduction to the language and the country, along with some cultural background, the teacher introduced herself and talked (always in Finnish) about Finland, and where she was born and lived. Then she taught us how to introduce ourselves and how to ask someone their name (a basic small talk including â€Å"How are you?†), and  introduced the subject pronoun ’’I’’, she acted as a model saying what her name was and then asking another student his name, then we did a chain drill where we all had to introduce ourselves to the classmate next to us, we repeated a few times (repetition drills) and then moved forward to the alphabet, consonants and vowels. She taught us basic vocabulary and the pronunciation when there are two of the same letters together in a word, which makes the sound longer or more plosive (depending if it is a vowel or a consonant), we did repetition drills after modeling of some words. Afterwards, we learned the possessive adjective ’’my’’, how to offer something to someone, and to give thanks, then again as practice we did chain and repetition drills offering a book to the classmate next to us and thanking for it. To end the first lesson we learned more subject pronouns such as ’’he, she and you’’ and how to say where we are from, and practised it with repetition drills. The structure itself was presentation and controlled practice consisting of drilling on each new language form. Although she checked if we understood the lesson by asking individually, the main goal was not achieved since most of the practice was repetition drills. We did no production since we were total beginners. (3) What kind of aids and handouts does the teacher use? When she gave the introduction to the country she used a map of Finland along with a flag, the whiteboard was her main aid to teach vocabulary, as she made drawings of the new vocabulary in order to not to translate. She used gestures all the time to give instructions or explain concepts, though when they were more abstract it was harder to understand. She pointed the person she was referring to, whether it was her or one of us, put her hands together when she wanted us to do an activity in groups (like introducing to each other). When she tried to convey by gestures the fact that Spanish and Finnish are more similar as languages alternately to English and Finnish, she separated her hands when referring to English, while putting them together when referring to Spanish (This was confusing, since I actually thought that English people did not get well with Finnish people, and  Spanish people did), when she taught us new vocabulary, for example animals, she did the gestures of some of them(like a cat, or a dog). (4) Personal response to lesson (progress, difficulties, ambiguities, interest, etc.) At first it was confusing as I did not know anything about Finland or Finnish, but through gestures and the aids such as the map or the drawings it became clear, although sometimes I could not understand the instructions and I had to watch what my classmates did in order to know what to do, since it was all drilling it was not so complicated. Regarding to interest, the teacher was very enthusiastic and had a nice attitude though doing drilling all the time was not really motivating. As she did not use L1 in the class, sometimes it was hard for me to follow the pace of the class and had to watch what my classmates were doing to continue. (5) Observed response of group – Please comment I realized that most of them had the same difficulties as me, the lesson was confusing at first, it got clearer after some time, and at certain points we could not follow the pace of the class. Although not all of them were like that, there were others who could keep the rhythm of it (Since we are not all the same when we talk about learning, we all have our ways and speed to learn). I did not find any of them motivated with the lesson, I believe there was too much drilling which does not encourage one to study or be interested. Lesson 2 (1) Apparent lesson objectives (functions, structures, lexis and pronunciation) Regarding lexis and pronunciation, we learned more basic vocabulary (the name of some of objects like hat, cat, orange, apple, dress, and the colours of them) and how to pronounce them, the functions where how to ask what object  is it and its colour(’’Mikà ¤ se on?/What is it?’’, ’’Mikà ¤ và ¤ri?/What colour is it?’’, ’’Omena on punainen/Apple is red’’). (We did not learn any specific type of vocabulary apart from the colours, there were mostly random objects and animals) (2) Listen carefully to the Teacher’s instructions. How does she give instructions? (Language used, gestures, visual support, concept-checking, etc.) She never spoke in L1, the instructions were always given in Finnish, but as learners, gestures were crucial, and she used them constantly. She also modelled what we had to do, so instructions were short and clear. She did concept-checking by drilling, she asked us to say what the image on a book she had was, along with its colour, and repeat. (3) If working in pairs or groups. Do you think the activity was successful? Explain why/why not. What did you learn from it? We did an activity which was based on vocabulary, we had to match the words with the images, I think the activity was successful for many reasons, since it was a kind of game, the activity was motivating and interesting, and the fact that it was a group activity made it even better, not only regarding motivation, but also helping each other, when one of us did not know a word, probably there was another who did, and therefore the activity was successful in my opinion. What I have learned is that making a group activity for the class is a good idea to make a change and not to do always the same (in this case drilling all the time as in the previous lesson), is motivating and therefore language acquisition is better. (4) Share your thoughts on the activities with your classmates and comment on theirs. We all agreed that there was too much drilling, the teacher could have done more practical things instead of making us repeat all the time which at some point became boring. The group activity we made was good to make a change  from all the drilling along with the activity we did in which we had to colour some drawings. But again, after colouring we did more drilling and repeated the colours several times. For me instructions were clear although not all of them believe the same, sometimes they found them confusing. (5) As a student, which activities in the lesson do you consider were the most valuable? Why were they valuable? As a student I believe that the most valuable activities were the one of colouring the circles and the group activity. The reason is because after doing so much drilling, I got really bored, and doing these 2 activities were a kind of ’’break’’ from it, but not only because they were motivating, I also think that both of them helped to lower the affective filter of the class, and by doing so, improving language acquisition. Lesson 3 (1) Apparent lesson objectives (functions, structures, lexis and pronunciation) The functions were how to ask and give information (asking what language do you speak, and where are you from), more subject pronouns were introduced (We, they, you [plural]), the numbers (and how to say them), we did concept checking of the previous class and corrected homework. The main structure was mostly a presentation or modeling of the task, and controlled practice with drilling. Exponents: ’’Mità ¤ sinà ¤ puhut?/What language do you speak?’’, ’’Minà ¤ puhun suomea/I speak Finnish’’, ’’Missa asut?/Where do you live?’’, ’’Minà ¤ asun Montevideossa/I live in montevideo’’. (2) How does the teacher respond to and manage error correction? (Self- correction, peer-correction, etc.) Whenever someone made a mistake during the drilling activities(for example repetition drills), the teacher would repeat again with the correct pronunciation, and in other exercises(writing down numbers in letters) when  it was not correct, she made a facial expression to indicate there was a problem and allowed self-correction. (3) Is there any revision of previous lessons? How is it done? Yes, when the class started we corrected homework which was to colour the drawings of some objects (the new vocabulary we learned the previous class), and write which colour it had. Then we checked the colours again on the book she had and did some drilling. As she connected previous topics with new ones it was useful for us, for example the vocabulary and the colours, she mixed both in one task, the same with numbers, when we had to count how many apples there were, or how many cars. (4) What techniques and aids does the teacher use to present the new aims? She repeated and re-phrased old language in order to associate it with new one to acquire meaning. Visual aids were also used, which helped us convey meaning, she used a book with the colours and objects, used the whiteboard to draw, or gave us handouts with drawings on them. She talked slowly when giving instructions or explaining something, always keeping eye contact, this made it easier to understand. Gestures were also heavily used, which was necessary to convey necessary meaning since we were total beginners. The use of drills was also used most of the times, mostly repetition drills. (5) Is there a focus on form, meaning or both? Since we were beginners, the teacher focused mainly on meaning, rather than on the form. She did not explain the tenses or rules of the language, but instead made sure that we understood the meaning of what she was teaching. We had plenty of communicative activities and drilling, so meaning was emphasized, also we learned a lot of vocabulary. We were thought the new vocabulary with functions (describing an object, counting objects) such as, ’’This apple is red’’, ’’What colour is this dress?’’, ’’There are three cars’’, ’’How many cars are there?’’. Lesson 4 (1) Apparent lesson objectives (functions, structures, lexis and pronunciation) New vocabulary was introduced to us, related to the seasons. She made a connection between the seasons and colours (’’Kà «sa on vihrea ja keltainen/Summer is green and yellow’’), also with vocabulary we saw on previous classes. We learned family vocabulary and how to ask someone’s relatives names (’’Mika sinun isà ¤n nimi on?/What is your father’s name?’’, ’’ Minun isà ¤n nimi on martti/My fathers name is Martti’’). (2) Pace is crucial in keeping students alert, motivated, engaged and â€Å"on course†. What comment would you make on the pace of the lesson observed? What factors are relevant here? Doing drilling activities certainly distorted the pace of the class as it became demotivating; the teacher also connected seasons with colours, which I believe was rather confusing instead of helpful. As she introduced new concepts to the class, she skipped others and left the students wondering some concepts, for example when the concept of the sun was thaught, she could have taught the moon. Moreover, when we made groups to play a game which was a kind of lottery with the seasons, it was quite boring, as it was too childish and easy for us. At some point I got bored of the constant drilling, or confused because of the connection the teacher was trying to make between seasons and colours. The most relevant factor is motivation, the pace of the class has to change in order not to bore students, a monotonous lesson is not good for language acquisition, and as it became confusing sometimes it became hard for us to follow the pace of the class. (3) Observing group. What external signs did they give of keeping up with the pace? (Or not) We managed to follow the pace of the class but at some points, some of us could not do it, as she taught too much vocabulary, and made relations  between them that were rather confusing (Making relationships between the colours and the seasons, made the lesson confusing). This was evident since when one of us was asked to carry on a task, we would not do anything and say we did not understood what she was asking us to do, facial expressions from my classmates also showed me that they were having difficulties. When following the pace was possible, it would be shown with concept checking or following the tasks instructions successfully. (4) Study the teacher’s physical position and movement in the class. Do you think these are planned and have a special purpose? Please give examples supporting your views. She did not stand on one side of the class or sit behind the desk, she would move through the whole classroom, which has the purpose of lowering the affective filter, and to motivate, also provides the idea that the teacher is the one in control of the class. She also moved when doing concept checking, when we had to do a task on our own or in groups she came to correct us instead of doing it with the whole class. The purpose of moving through the class is because of conditioning the environment, if the teacher sits all the class, students will become demotivating, the class becomes monotonous, by moving she gets our attention and makes us to be interested. (5) Points of contrast between English and L2 Finnish is a phonetic language, while English is not, pronunciation problems could happen for Finnish native speakers trying to learn English as they may find trouble discriminating the short and long vowel sounds such as sit-seat and pip-peep. In Finnish the verbs show tense by the addition of suffixes while English uses auxiliary verbs (’’Puhun [I am talking about/Puhuin [I was talking about]). The subject pronouns have no gender like in English (he and she are the same word in Finnish). Although Finnish and English words share the same letters, there are no cognates since the languages are from distinct language families. Also, many words which are uncountable in English such as furniture or people, can be counted in Finnish. Lesson 5 (1) Apparent lesson objectives (functions, structures, lexis and pronunciation) Lesson 5 was mainly concept checking and cultural approach to Finland. We corrected homework from the previous class and learned new vocabulary. We were taught how to say the plural of objects by adding a letter ’’A’’ at the end of it (’’Kissa/Cat’’, ’’Kissaa/Cats’’) (2) Was there a point in the lesson or a lesson in particular in which you felt that certain â€Å"cultural factors† affected either the teaching or your learning? Please explain and comment. The fact that she brought magazines, pictures, and other pieces of art related to Finland made the class more interesting and motivating, therefore it helped language acquisition, but since we were not learning any specific form or language rule it was not so successful (in the 5th lesson), as for the other lessons it made them more interesting as it had an influence on us, curiosity about the country motivated us and helped us on language acquisition and motivation. The video showed lots of aspects from Finland, being a video about something we did not know could be motivating, although we did not have a task and since it was all in Finnish it became rather ’’boring’’. (3) Is the teacher always providing information in the class? Have you noticed (s)he serves other roles? If you have, which are these? The teacher had many roles inside the class; she acted as a planner, as she planned the lessons and materials. The teacher had the role of a resourcer, providing students with information and tasks, as well as checking and clarifying language. She also acted as a language resource, by helping, modeling and answering language questions. She was also a facilitator, since she checked and clarified language, also a monitor, by checking and observing while we were doing the tasks provided. (4) Checking of learning. Can you identify if this took place? If you can, when did it happen and how did the teacher do it? When we corrected homework, which was an exercise based on numbers, she checked if we did right, but apart from that she started writing random numbers on the whiteboard so we would say which number it is, and therefore know if we learned the rule of how numbers are formed. No checking of learning was made furthermore, since we made no production because we were complete beginners. Conclusion as a learner: As a learner, I believe there was too much vocabulary, plenty of drilling activities that made the lesson demotivating, and really confusing at some points. I experienced a lack of motivation during the lessons, as they were monotonous, always doing drills and learning more vocabulary. Conclusion as a teacher: The classes could have been better prepared, so that they were not so monotonous, contexts were not used during any lesson which does not help students, and does not convey meaning, the activities were not purposeful (They did not show students the purpose of the language acquired). The aids used were adequate, gestures, realia, and pictures were helpful since they made the students more interested and helped them to follow the pace of the class. All in all, more variety of activities could have been used, as for the aids they were successful.

The Hair Care Category From The Consumers Marketing Essay

The Hair Care Category From The Consumers Marketing Essay What the consumer expects from the hair care category is firstly a shampoo that is suitable for their hair type and provides them with the results they want after using a shampoo such as cleansing of hair and scalp, keeping hair soft and smooth and strong. The consumer expects that the shampoo will make her hair thick, shiny and free from damage. Secondly, the consumer expects that the shampoo she has chosen should be accompanied by a supplementary product i.e. conditioner which will cater to her need of making her hair soft and moisturized. Lastly, the consumer has started to expect additional products in terms of mousse, gels, serums, leave-ons etc. that will cater to her individualized needs and problems. They will help her to change the texture and type of her hair temporarily for example makes her hair straight with a straightening serum when she has frizzy hair. The consumer expects that all her hair needs are satisfied conveniently and effectively through these off the shelf items instead of having to waste her time using tedious home remedies such as egg and yogurt on her hair. Another point to mention here is that men have started to expect products that are made especially for them. Hair Care Category in Pakistan: The hair care category in Pakistan consists of all available solutions for hair care including shampoos, conditioners, leave-ons, oils, colorants and styling available in retail, wholesale and salon channels. The Business we are in: UPL hair care category at the moment consists of shampoos and conditioners in beauty, herbal and anti-dandruff segments and also plans to provide styling products in the future. The Business we want to be in: The hair care category at this moment is providing generic solutions for hair care and the company needs to move towards providing more specialized solutions for all the different hair types and needs. The consumer is evolving and wants more hi-tech ingredients and technologies rather than just natural ingredients. There is more emphasis on beauty and fashion and the consumer wants hair care companies to give them solutions tailor made for their hair type and hair problems for example frizzy hair, straight hair, damaged hair, curly hair, limp hair etc and these solutions to be provided in the form of not only shampoos but more evolved product types such as serums, sprays, gels and masks. UPL also wants to build the male grooming segment through AD brand Clear. Regions: UPL currently provides its products nationally including urban, suburban, rural and deep rural. They reach consumers through their deep distribution which has penetrated even in deep rural through provision of specialized skus like sachets. Customers users: Anyone who washes their hair is part of UPL target market. Therefore women, men, children of all ages are the ones UPL wants to provide solutions to. Users can be further divided into heavy, medium and light users and the strategy used is based on what category they fall into. Channels Used: Hair care category will provide the products to the above consumers through General Trade stores, Family Grocers, Modern Trade Channels, International Trade and OOH which includes salons so as to be available to reach consumers wherever they are. We will not make ourselves available in low contributing channels such as pan kiosks. What business we will not go in: UPL Hair care will not go in the businesses of loose oils, hair colorants and soap for hair wash because we will provide all solutions to our consumers through our current and future products. For example we will provide the benefit of mustard oil by incorporating mustard oil extract in our shampoo or provide the cleansing properties of soap through clarifying shampoos. How Competition defines their scope: The competition for UPL hair care includes direct and indirect competitors i.e. anyone who provides hair wash and care solutions. This would therefore include soap (both toilet and laundry) and loose oil providers. Our direct competition includes PG (HS and Pantene) and Forvil (Bio Amla). PG has the same scope as ours in terms of customers/users and regions, but they look at the market differently by dividing it cleanly into the three categories and ensuring that there is no overlap between the three. Bio Amla on the other hand has a rural specific focus and channelize their resources on herbal segment. They focus on their rich heritage and providing solutions that will be handed down from generation to generation. So: How do we create customers? UPL can create customers firstly by creating awareness about the different problems that can plague consumers hair. Once they are aware of this, then UPL will provide them will solutions for their specific needs by giving them an entire system for their hair i.e. shampoo, conditioner and styling product. It will also create new customers in terms of men who currently use soap or borrow the beauty shampoo from the lady in the house, by providing them a shampoo made just for them. Hair Care 1 Ά As per the above charts, UPL is only present in the shampoo and conditioner categories. There are a few players that have just started to emerge in the styling segment such as LOreal, Garnier and Toni Guy. Before they make a mark, and the consumers associate them as the experts on styling, UPL should introduce their own styling range as well. As far as the distribution structure goes, the focus is mainly on GT/MT with cosmetic channel and salons not being concentrated upon. The potential of these two channels is therefore not being utilized. Both of these channels contributions should be increased with particular focus as to how to develop them, especially salons which is a channel to which you can sell to for their own use and to sell from, to people who visit these salons. Market Size: Volume (Tons) Segment 2006 2007 2008 2009 CAGR % Beauty 6,244 7,204 7,457 8,609 11% Herbal 5,941 6,466 7,843 8,811 14% Anti Dandruff 2,923 3,392 3,968 4,477 15% Conditioners 6,411 6,677 6,853 7,053 3% Styling 149 154 166 166 4% Colorants 782 815 849 865 3% Ά In 2008, the Herbal category overtook the Beauty Category in volume. This can be attributed to the price increases (7%) taken by players in the beauty category, turning consumers to the herbal shampoos which were at a discount to beauty shampoos. 2007 saw the introduction of a new player in the AD category i.e. Clear shampoo which has propelled growth in the AD segment since. Conditioner category growth may look small, but this is primarily because of decline in loose oils and natural ingredients as consumers switch towards branded products. The rinse-off branded conditioner market on the other hand is actually growing at 6%. Styling products usually consist of those that come in through the grey channel and are not actively being marketed therefore hardly any growth. Even the colorants market has not seen any new entrants until now and therefore the slow growth. Market Size Value (Rs Mn.) Segment 2006 2007 2008 2009 CAGR % Beauty 3,368 4,004 4,302 6,335 23% Herbal 1,605 2,020 2,593 3,335 28% Anti Dandruff 1,643 2,056 2,452 3,748 32% Conditioners 9,527 9,036 8,655 8,467 -4% Styling 103 112 112 124 6% Colorants 1,008 1,026 1,019 1,038 1% Ά The herbal category, even though it has overtaken the beauty category in volume, has not been able to do so in value due to the high price per ml of shampoos in beauty category. However, due to the price increases in Herbal category, the value there has also increased specially in 2009. The AD category has seen the highest growth in value especially in 2009 due to massive price increases taken by HS (20%) The conditioner market is declining due to the decline in loose oils and natural ingredients market; however the rinse off conditioner market is still growing. The styling and colorants market contribute less than 10% of overall hair care market due to its low tonnage. Assumptions for Growth for Each Segment Shampoos: The shampoo market will continue to grow due to consumption building activities in the rural segment. There are still massive amounts of soap being used for hair wash and when it is replaced with shampoo, market will grow further. Within the shampoo category, AD category will see the highest growth due to the further investment behind brand Clear as a shampoo especially for men, followed by Herbal which will be taken as the frontrunner to develop the rural market. The usership of toilet soap for hair wash in rural is 30% and laundry soap is 50%. It will be herbal categorys (Lifebuoy shampoos) job to convert these soap users to shampoo with the natural and herbal proposition, because according to research 46% rural consumers use soap due to the perception that soap cleans hair more thoroughly and that shampoo damages hair. Only 12% say that they cannot afford shampoo. However, if any sensitivity to price exists, it will be overcome by the fact that less dosage of shampoo is needed to replace soap and hence the shampoo bottle will last as much as or more as soap does. The way forward will be to educate them about benefits of shampoo vs. soap and get them to use Lifebuoy shampoo and the next step will be to move them onto beauty shampoo i.e. Sunsilk which is more profitable. Those in rural who are already using shampoo, for them the job will be to move onto Sunsilk from whatever else they are using. Therefore both beauty and herbal categories have a role to play in rural. Conditioners: As the market is evolving, two changes are taking place. Firstly, consumers are moving towards branded products and that is going to see the decline of loose oils and natural ingredients (reetha, amla shikakai etc.) usage. Secondly, consumers are starting to become aware of their own specialized needs and want products to be suited to their individual preferences. Therefore second generation hair care products such as rinse off conditioners will be more in demand. This will further be fueled by international and local media. Styling: With respect to the above, consumers will also start moving towards more evolved products for hair care to cater to their individualized needs and preferences. Also with the entrance of new players such as LOreal, Garnier and Toni and Guy, there will be more awareness about these needs and the market will start to get increasingly developed. There will also be high development in trade and channel by these new entrants fuelling the growth even further. Colorants: Until now this market has been dominated by old players such as Wella, Polycolor, Schwarzkopf, Kalakola etc. But with the recent entry of LOreal and Garnier, investment in colorants market by these players will see development in this area. Market Size Estimation (Volume Tons) Segment 2010 2011 2012 2013 CAGR % Beauty 9,349 10,270 11,018 12,125 12% Herbal 9,607 10,927 11,913 13,938 15% Anti Dandruff 5,115 5,886 6,656 7,600 14% Conditioners 7,383 7,855 8,207 8,736 6% Styling 207 249 290 330 17% Colorants 881 898 915 961 3% Ά The conditioner might look like its showing dismal growth, but what is of interest is the rinse off conditioner category which is actually going to grow at 9% due to heavy investment. The growth number is being dragged down due to negative growth in loose oils and natural ingredients by -5% and -9% respectively. The branded oils category is to grow by 2%. The AD market will show high growth due to investment in a whole new brand i.e. Clear in the new market for male grooming. Herbal however will still be in the lead as regards absolute volume as it should cater to the soap conversion job in the rural segment. Beauty segment will grow due to new entrants in the segment and increase in consumption in rural. Market Size Estimation (Value Rs Mn.) Segment 2010 2011 2012 2013 CAGR % Beauty 7547 9272 11181 15037 26% Herbal 3430 4204 4901 5822 19% Anti Dandruff 4661 5946 7402 9374 26% Conditioners 8,609 8911 9222 9365 3% Styling 156 187 218 248 17% Colorants 1,058 1,078 1,098 1,263 6% Ά Any increases in the herbal segment value will be due to volume increases and not price increases. On the other hand, the increase in market value of beauty and AD segment will continue due to higher price per ml along with increases in volume. The styling category will be a profitable category as it will be sold at a premium to the other formats available. So even small increases in volume will yield higher returns. Once again looking at the total conditioner growth number would be misleading. To break it up, the area of interest which is rinse off conditioners will actually grow at 16% due to its high price per ml and increase in volume simultaneously whereas the loose oil and natural ingredients market is declining at -5% each. Competition Growth Matrix Competition Growth Matrix Conclusion UPL has a comfortable lead in the beauty segment but it needs to maintain this lead in view of growing competition. The AD and Herbal categories of UPL are lagging behind PG and Forvil respectively. Since the AD category is expected to show healthy growth of 12% in the future, UPL needs to maintain at least the market growth rate for its AD brand. Herbal must be invested in specifically in rural areas to convert soap users. Styling is a niche yet profitable market segment that is expected to grow at a whopping 17% in the future. Opportunities lie for UPL here in development in this category and gaining and market lead. Conditioning (rinse off) will also be growing at 9%. UPL has already started focusing on this category before any other company and should direct further investment this way to take advantage of the growth. Through analysis it is evident that Forvil (Bio Amla) is also a formidable competitor in the market where as Unilevers strategies are based on competition from PG. In future Bio Amla should be given equal importance in competitive as well as brand strategy formulation. Product Life Cycle Product Life Cycle Segments Introduction Growth Maturity Beauty X   Pantene X Sunsilk X Herbal X   LifeBuoy X Bio Amla X Anti Dandruff   X Head Shoulders X Clear X Conditioners Rinse Off   X Sunsilk X Pantene X Loose Oil X Natural Ingredients Branded Oils X Styling X   LOreal X Toni and Guy   X Colorants   X Garnier X Kala Kola X Ά The shampoo category is in growth stage, fueled by the rural segment. Penetration and consumption in this segment will keep on increasing as awareness increases through media proliferation. Improvement in distribution will further fuel this trend. Rinse off conditioners are in the introduction stage. Even though they have been on shelf for awhile, they have just started to be pushed by the companies in terms of communication, and that also one brand until now i.e. Sunsilk. Since rinse off conditioners are only being pushed in urban, rural for the time being will be using loose oils for conditioning purposes. Natural ingredients are on the decline however as consumers are getting these in the shampoos themselves and also do not have the time anymore that it takes anymore to use them. Styling segment is in introduction stage and therefore it can be an opportunity for UPL or any other company to gain a first mover advantage there. There has been no new news in colorants segment until now with the introduction of LOreal and Garnier in the market. The advent of these two brands will have an impact on overall category and cause awareness about this segment, leading to growth in off-take of colorants. Distribution Structure Ά For all the 3 segments of shampoos, over the next few years , contribution of GT will decrease with most of the consumer traffic moving towards MT and therefore the companies also shifting their volumes towards MT. For Beauty category Salon channel will also gain importance. Rinse-off conditioners are limited to being sold at MT at this point in time as they are targeted towards higher LSMs. In the future as they start to be used by lower LSMs, their contribution in GT will increase. The biggest jump in contribution of Styling products is in Salon channel. This is where consumers will receive education about the use of styling products and will also be a point of urge purchase. This channel will serve as the foundation for development of this segment, and will lead to increase in contribution of GT as consumers make their repeat purchases from there. Distribution Shares and Companys Position The outlet coverage reflects that of Urban only. The numbers for rural by channel were not available to us, however we did find out that they were much lower. (Outlet coverage in total rural is approximately 60%) Therefore, if the job is to convert soap users in rural, then the outlet coverage must also be increased. Although urban outlet coverage is healthy, UPL is lacking behind in turnover share as compared to PG probably due to higher NPS/ton of PG brands. The turnover share we have taken is in terms of value, and if we compare volume turnover then UPLs is higher. In terms of outlet coverage, UPL is at par or more than both PG and Forvil in all cities except Islamabad. Hence special attention must be paid to this region n the distribution plan. Top 6 External Trends Ά UPL is taking advantage of growth in rural segment with a companywide project to promote its brands in rural. They want to gain a first mover advantage there which will be possible if PG and Forvil dont act. All companies have taken prices increases to be able to hold their margins. Growth of MT and the increase in demand for bulk products have led UPL, PG and Forvil to introduce large size bottles (400ml and 700ml) specifically for this channel. UPL being the first one to focus on conditioners is taking advantage of the trend to provide specialized products for the consumers. PG although it has a range of styling and conditioning products is not actively promoting them. Both UPL and PG are turning towards digital mediums such as the internet and cell phones for advertising. Furthermore, there is an increased use of activations and sales promotions to catch the attention of the increasingly fragmented audience. Growth of small unknown brands in rural with Re. 1 sachets is threatening the higher priced sachets of UPL, PG and Forvil. PG has increased their sachet prices further and are not focusing on them as sku. UPL is trying to counter this by giving a better product at a slightly higher price (Rs. 2 and Rs. 3). Summary: External Analysis UPL hair care category at the moment consists of shampoos and conditioners in beauty, herbal and anti-dandruff segments and also plans to provide styling products in the future. Segments identified in the Hair care market are Shampoos (Beauty, Herbal, and AD), Conditioners (Rinse-Off, Branded Oils, Loose Oils, and Natural Ingredients), Styling and Colorants. In 2008, the Herbal category overtook the Beauty Category in volume. This can be attributed to the price increases (7%) taken by players in the beauty category, turning consumers to the herbal shampoos which were at a discount to beauty shampoos. 2007 saw the introduction of a new player in the AD category i.e. Clear shampoo which has propelled growth in the AD segment since. The AD category has seen the highest growth in value especially in 2009 due to massive price increases taken by HS (20%). The conditioner market is declining due to the decline in loose oils and natural ingredients market; however the rinse off conditioner market is still growing. The shampoo market will continue to grow due to consumption building activities in the rural segment. There are still massive amounts of soap being used for hair wash and when it is replaced with shampoo, market will grow further. Furthermore, the next four years will be more about development of rinse off conditioning and styling. Consumers are starting to become aware of their own specialized needs and want products to be suited to their individual preferences. Therefore second generation hair care products such as rinse off conditioners will be more in demand. Styling is a niche yet profitable market segment that is expected to grow at a whopping 17% in the future. Opportunities lie for UPL here in development in this category and gaining and market lead. Through analysis it is evident that Forvil (Bio Amla) is also a formidable competitor in the market where as Unilevers strategies are based on competition from PG. In future Bio Amla should be given equal importance in competitive as well as brand strategy formulation. For all the 3 segments of shampoos, over the next few years , contribution of GT will decrease with most of the consumer traffic moving towards MT and therefore the companies also shifting their volumes towards MT. For Beauty category Salon channel will also gain importance. UPL is taking advantage of growth in rural segment with a companywide project to promote its brands in rural. They want to gain a first mover advantage there which will be possible if PG and Forvil dont act. Performance Analysis: Lagging Indicators Lagging Indicators 2007 2008 Sales +++ + Total TO Vol +++ + Val ++ ++ Growth Vol +++ + Val +++ ++ Market Share Vol + + Val + + Profit ++ + ROI +++ + GP Margin + Cost + + Sales: Sales in 2008 did not grow by much due to price increases taken across brands in order to make up for inflationary pressures. In 2009, volume growth was driven by activities in rural and by the price advantage that UPL had due to massive price increases taken by PG. They key takeout therefore is to let PG be at a premium to us and secondly keep on developing rural to get volume growth. Growth: The value growth increased in 2008 because of price increases whereas the volume declined but this was reversed in 2009 for reason of ease in pressure in prices. Market Share: Shares grew by a constant rate across the years. Again, any increases came from rural, gaining from top two competitors i.e. Forvil and PG especially in 2009. GP%: Gross margins were pressured due to increase in raw material, overhead, and supply chain. They were maintained by taking price increases and through optimization of formulations. Performance Analysis: Leading Indicators Innovation: The number of product innovation both in terms of re-launches and new variants/SKUs to cater to different consumers needs. In the past 3 years there has been one new brand introduction that is Clear, two brand re-launches and one new variant launch. Investment in Human Capital: The continuous training of all the employees to make them fully knowledgeable in the area of their performance. This is done by creating employee skill profiles where training needs are identified and future performance standards and objectives are set. Localization: Switching from foreign supplier of packaging to local ones to decrease cost, lead time and increase flexibility. Information Technology: The use of Information Technology for quick collaboration with the regional counterparts, suppliers and within different departments of the organization. Integration of ERP, SAP and linking with region and global center. CSR: Integrating CSR activities into brand portfolio to demonstrate responsible business behavior. This will help to enhance brand equity and image and gain community trust. Use of Innovative Media: The use of innovative mediums of communication not used by anyone else in this category, for example leveraging the power of social media, PR and search engine optimization to target specific audiences at point of time and point of purchase. Further analysis on leading indicators is on the following page. SWOT Analysis Strengths: UPL has brands specifically to cater to each segment of the shampoo market and these brands have established brand images. UPL hair care portfolio have a range of offering for all types of socio economic classes First Mover advantage with the launch of Sunsilk conditioners Range of variants catering to a different consumer needs Versus any layer in the competition UPL holds a very strong distribution network which helps in deep penetration and lowering operation cost. An AD brand that provides solutions both for Men and Women. Ability to use UPL clout in advertising media industry Opportunities: Leveraging of UPL distribution might to make inroads into rural Make the most of hair fall need through 3 brands variants Own conditioners segment by investing in distribution channels and communication Use innovative mediums to have a targeted focus LBS to benefit from premium shampoo bottle user in both urban and rural down trading to mid tier brand Can use Clear to generate growth for male grooming products To increase share in AD segment through AD specific brand Clear Weaknesses: Lifebuoy shampoo has a outdated image in the market due to LB soap Sunsilk is only a generic beauty shampoo and needs to stand for something more Clear has not been able to create too large of a dent in its main competitor HS Threats: Low tier and mushroom brands pushing the product in trade channel Garnier and LOreal entering the market targeting both the upper class and the middle class through their brand portfolio Inflationary pressures may force the consumers to switch to other available options thus resulting in a lower share for all the premium brands. PG may start local production of shampoos which will result in a decrease in their prices Counterfeit goods are adversely affecting the sales of branded goods and as counterfeit trade increase the company stands to lose all its brand equity and exclusivity. Besides, it may also result in customer dissatisfaction, which could be detrimental to the companys image. Confrontation Matrices Because Sunsilk has been the first to actively try and establish the conditioners category, they have a high chance of owning this segment both in terms of distribution as well as communication as both customers and consumers will see Sunsilk as the authority on rinse-off conditioners. All 3 brands have numerous variants and therefore will be able to cater to hair fall needs of all income segments. Hair fall is the latest need to be catered to by all the shampoo brands. Strong distribution network of UPL can help it to make inroads in rural segment faster and more effectively than other brands. The male grooming segment is one that is un-catered to at the moment and Clear with its range just for men can fill this gap. UPL will have an easier time integrating innovative advertising mediums such as PR and social media in its current advertising mix due to the clout it enjoys in advertising industry. Because Clear still hasnt been able to pose too much of a threat to number 1 AD player HS, it will not be able to increase UPL share in AD segment. The brand needs to start doing much better before it can grab share from HS and become an AD brand of equal measure. Inflation should not hit UPL too hard because users can downgrade within the UPL portfolio from Clear and Sunsilk to Lifebuoy Shampoo and similarly from competitor premium brands like HS and Pantene. Furthermore, because UPL has such a portfolio that caters to all segments, it will be able to resist price decreases if PG were to start local production and resist entry of LOreal and Garnier. UPLs strong distribution network may also help it to resist growth of mushroom br