Nazi Consolidation of Power in 1933 Essay Example for Free

Nazi Consolidation of Power in 1933 Essay The potential limits to Hitlers power were considerable. it must be remembered that Hitler was appointed as chancellor of the Weimar republic and as leader of a cross-party cabinet that included only three Nazis: Hitler as chancellor, Wilhelm frick as minister for the interior and hermann goring as minister without portfolio. the vice-chancellor was to be Franz von papen and other parties of the right were well represented. Hugenburg of the DNVP was put in charge of the Economics Ministry and Franz Seldte of the stalhelm was made minister of Labor. The establishment that had brought Hitler to power held the reins of power and did not expect to lose control. the most powerful politician in Germany in 1933 was president Hindenburg, and Hitler had to work with a number of powerful establishment figures from the newly appointed vice-chancellor von papen to the soon to be president of the reichsbank and economics minister hjalmar Schacht. Behind von Hindenburgs power was not just his prestige as president but the army, which, although still at the size set by the Versailles agreement, was highly influential. he new chancellors scope for action was also constrained by the power of institutions from the Reichstag to local government. the civil service, churches and press all stood as potential barriers to the nazification of the political system. Hitlers sworn ideological enemies on the left wielded considerable power through the trade unions. in many urban areas, such as Berlin, the Nazi vote in the general election in November 1932 was as low as 22. 5 per cent (as opposed to a national figure of 33. 1 per cent). ust as the Nazis had risen from obscurity to power on the back of considerable discontent with the political systems inability to deal with Germanys economic problems, so the Nazis now had to deliver (or at least be seen delivering). As with nearly all governments, Hitlers regime would be primarily judged on the state of the economy. for many within Germanys politically important middle class, the violence and thuggery of elements of the Nazi movement was of deep concern. For the Hilarity regime to establish broad political consensus, it needed to be perceived to be legitimate. law-abiding and respectable. so the obstacles to the creation of a Nazi dictatorship were many, and, on first inspection, seemingly insurmountable. Even from within the Nazi movement, Hitler faced pressure from the SA and radicals to implement the Nazi revolution. Enduring obstacles Despite these significant obstacles, the Nazi regime had, to a considerable le extent, consolidated power by the end of 1933. There were a number of reasons: There were high levels of collaboration of individuals and institutions with the regime because there were aspects of that government that they recognised and supported. This will be studied in greater detail in the next unit. The Nazis deployed propaganda effectively as a means of deceiving the political nation and beyond both of their real intentions and the significance of their actions. They managed to use terror and violence with efficient ruthlessness. The use of violence was balanced by the attempt by the attempt to ensure that the consolidation of power had the veneer of legality. the Nazi leaders were pragmatic ion their understanding that their revolution had to be achieved by legal means for it to be acceptable to the vast majority of the German population. Those who believed that they had tamed Hitler and his movement were to be proved very much mistaken. Although his Appeal to the German People broadcast on 1st February was conservative in nature, the Sa began to wreak revenge on the enemies of National Socialism. A decree in Prussia (which had fallen under the jurisdiction of Reich Commissioner Goering) 21 days later resulted in the police being reinforced by volunteers, i. e. the SA. The widely perceived threat of a communist seizure of power is the crucial factor in explaining how the Nazis were able to quickly undermine the constitution of the Weimar Republic. It also explains why so many non-Nazi groups were prepared to go along with the initial phase of Gleichschaltung (coordination). the national community promised by Hitler before and after becoming chancellor on 30th January 1933, the strength of the communist movement in Germany and its potential to challenge the Nazis was real. In the two elections of 1932, the Communist Party had seen its share of the vote increase from 14. 3 per cent in July to 16. 9 per cent in November. on the streets the red front fighters League matched the SA. The socialists were even stronger. Their paramilitary wing, the Reichsbanner, dominated the streets in a number of towns and cities in Germany. In the election of November 1932 the socialist SPD party received 20. 4 per cent of the vote. In his speech to the nation from the Sports Palace in Berlin on 10 February 1933, Hitler made it very clear that it was his intention to destroy the Marxist threat of both communism and socialism. Failure of the left The failure of the communists and the socialist movement to challenge Hitlers chancellorship was due to their misreading of the situation. he communists believed that Hitlers government would not last. their ideological beliefs led them to conclude that Hitlers appointment as chancellor signified a crisis in the capitalist system that would inevitably lead to political and economic collapse and the victory of communism in Germany. therefore, they concluded, the best tactic was to do nothing and wait. This was despite clear provocations: The appointment of 50,000 SA, SS an d Stalhelm (nationalist paramilitary0 members as auxiliary policeman on 22nd February led to a wave of violence against communists and socialists across Germany. On 24 February the police raided and ransacked the head office of the KPD. Hermann Goring claimed that evidence was discovered during the raid that pointed to a communist conspiracy to seize power through force. The SPD leadership were unsure how to respond. to react violently would play into the hands of the Nazi leadership, which was clearly intent on undermining the ability of the socialists to function effectively as a political movement; the Nazis had already attempted to close down a number of socialist newspapers, and SA members frequently disrupted political meetings. Equally damaging to the ability of the left to effectively oppose the Nazis was the split between the communist and socialist parties. Although many on the left argued for the creation of a unity front, there was no agreement on how this should be formed. Indeed, the hatred the communists had for the socialists was only matched by the hatred they had for the fascists. The Reichstag fire and its aftermath There is no doubt that Hitler believed his own propaganda that communists aimed to stage a takeover of power. On the night of 27 February a young Dutchman, Marinus van der Lubbe, set fire to the Reichstag as a protest at the repression of the working class. Hitler and the Nazi leadership ignored the initial evidence that van der Lubbe had acted alone and concluded that the fire was the first act in the long awaited communist backlash. It gave the regime its opportunity to crush the communists and suspend a number of parts of the Weimar constitution. Most importantly, it gave the Nazis the opportunity to use legal means to begin the seizure of power. Crucial to the seizure of power was the issuing of the emergency decree For the Protection of People and State on 28 February. Interestingly, the decree was first suggested by Ludwig Grauert, who was an advisor to Goring and as much a nationalist as a Nazi. The rights of freedom of speech, a free press and freedom of assembly enshrined in the Weimar constitution were suspended, and the police were given powers to detain suspects indefinitely without reference to the courts. The important clause 2 of the decree allowed the cabinet to intervene in the government of the states (Lander) that, together, formed Germany. This power was previously the prerogative of the President, and the clause marked a significant shift in power. Immediately Gobbels ensured that the Nazi propaganda machine portrayed the decree as a necessary step in the battle against communism, and, for that reason, it was widely welcomed. The decree is a very good example of how the Nazis were keen to ensure there was a legal front to their activities despite the fact that in reality the decree signalled the collapse of the rule of law. Indeed, Hitler stated explicitly in a cabinet meeting on 28th February that the struggle against the communists must not be made dependency on judicial considerations. in the coming months his words were adhered to as the decree was used to justify the arrest, imprisonment and often torture of thousands of political opponents. The leader of the KPD, Ernst Thalmann, was arrested on 3 March, and 25,000 political prisoners were in custody in Prussia alone by the end of April.

Examining Property Management Information Systems Information Technology Essay

Examining Property Management Information Systems Information Technology Essay To investigation how a Hotel or Property Management Information System will help the Palma Rima hotel on their day to day running of the hotel. To identify the impacts of a Hotel/Property Management Information System. To identify how convenient it would be for the customers of the Palma Rima hotel if a Hotel/Property Management Information System is introduced. 1.3 Rational As we are in the 21st century, the researcher has been inspired to carry a research on the effectiveness of a Hotel/Property Management Information System, if introduced at the Palma Rima hotel The Gambia which does not have one, but still using the traditional way of taking reservation, checking in and out of guest, taking payment, marketing of the hotel etc. 1.4 Structure of Report The report will first introduce the Palm Rima hotels, methodology used to carry out the research, a literature review on Hotel/Property Management Information System (MIS) and will then analyse the data using relevant methods and interpret the findings presenting the report using methods and style appropriate to the audience. 2.1 Research Approach In designing a research case study, there is the need to determine the research approach to be adopted. Theories are part of a research process and the ability to develop such theories and their testing will only be possible after a research approach is determined. In an inductive research approach, theory will follow data. In this case study, the research will use an inductive approach so as to gain an understanding of Introducing a Hotel or Property Management Information System (MIS) at the Palma Rima Hotel in The Gambia. Inductive research approach as noted by Saunders et al (2007) is more than just making a cause-effect link between particular variables but also enables the understanding of the way in which humans interpret their social world. Since the research using inductive approach is likely to be particularly concerned with the context in which events occur (Saunders et al, 2007), this research will therefore look at the effectiveness of a hotel or property management info rmation system for the Palma Rima Hotel. The five points below summaries inductive research emphasis as noted in Saunders et al (2007): a close understanding of the research context collection of qualitative and quantitative data a more flexible structure to permit changes of research emphasis as the research progress a realization that the researcher was part of the research process Concern with the need to generalize This research case study will use the above mentioned stages to arrive at a conclusion of how effective it will be to introducing a Hotel or Property Management Information System (MIS) at the Palma Rima Hotel in The Gambia. The fact that concepts in this research case study are operationalised made it easier to use an inductive approach 2.2 Data Collection Methods Data collection is a time consuming process and also require enormous amount of tolerance. However, in this research case study, one method is employed to collect data and that was telephone interviews and was the only methods to be used to gather primary data. The researcher bought two international cards costing Five Pounds each to interview the front office manager at the Palma Rima hotel. 2.3 Research Methodologies Each methodology represents a different approach to evaluation. The fact that there are so many approaches in common no single methodology is the best. Which one will be most appropriate depends on the type of questions framed. Seale, J. K. (2003) 2.4 Primary Research Primary research is any type of research that you go out and collect first hand data. The researcher collected primary data through participant, observation, interviews and surveys. Driscoll, L.D. (2006) 2.5 Secondary Research Secondary research occurs when a project requires a summary or collection of existing data. As opposed to data collected directly from respondents or research subjects for the express purposes of a project, (often called primary research), secondary sources already exists i.e. The researchers will used previous research reports from tourism academic books and journals. 2.6 Qualitative Method   It is a research that consists of interviews, observations and questionnaires. The researcher found this method flexible to perform data collection subsequent analysis and interpretation of collected information. 2.7 Method of analysis The researcher will use interviews to have knowledge of how useful it will be to PalmaRima hotel to introduce a Hotel/property Management System (MIS) 2.8 Reliability and Validity The physical telephone interview has significantly increased the response to this research. The front office manager was asked to give his candid opinion about a Hotel or Property Management Information System (MIS). However, the questions asked were guided as such to avoid falsification and exaggeration of the fact that the Palma Rima hotel does not have a Hotel or Property Management Information System hence the methodology has clearly achieved a degree of reliability and validity. 3 Introductions The use of information technology in the hospitality industry has grown tremendously over the past 20 years. This journey has not always been smooth, but it has become clear that information technology is now a critical competitive weapon in the industry. Brotherton B (2003:110). Information technology was first used in the hospitality industry in the 1950s, when multinational hotel chains began experimenting with the developing field of computer science. As in most other industries, the majority of initials applications focused on accounting and automating repetitive and time consuming tasks. Software was borrowed from other industries on the assumption that it could be easily adapted for use of hospitality companies. However, such conversions were usually only partially successful and a large number of changes to business processes and procedures were often needed to accommodate the requirements of the computerized system. Moreover, the expense and technicality involved in both dev eloping and running systems made the use of computerization economical only for the largest companies. (OConnor, 1999). Tourism is a very information intensive activity. In few other areas of activity are the generation, gathering, processing, application and communication of information as important for day-today operations as they are for travel and tourism industry (Poon, 1993). Unlike durable goods, intangible and variable tourism services cannot be physically displayed or inspected at the point of sale before purchasing, as tourism services are normally bought before the time of their use and away from the place of consumption. Tourism products are therefore almost exclusive dependent upon representations and descriptions, i.e. information in print or audio-visual formats. Often these representations are made by friends and relatives, as well as the travel trade, rather than tourism principals or destinations authorities. Communications and information transmission tools are th erefore indispensable to the global marketing of the tourism industry. (Sheldon, 1997). 3.1 Brief Background of PalmaRima Hotel in The Gambia Palma Rima hotel is a 3 star hotel in The Gambia and was opened to guest in 1989 on an undeveloped part of the coastline, between the Senegambia and kotu resorts, and 340 metres to kololi beach. The initial accommodation of larger than average sized bungalows of 23 which were dotted among the palms and trees, each of 4 double/triple rooms with shower and bath, colonnaded veranda and fan or a/c unit (supplemented). These units are now accompanied by a bathing area tenement block comprises of 3 floors. Of its 60 rooms half overlook the sandy through road used cattle and locals alike and the other half overlook the lopsided cloverleaf shaped swimming pool. The pool itself is among the largest in the country and is surely among the most beautiful and equipped there are spacious sundecks with parasols, giant chess, a banana shaped childrens swimming pool area; a blue and mustard Andalucà ­a Bar; a late rite fountain; a raised bar; an entertainment section and wooden African statues. From the moon light night club, stone sided watercourses crossed 3 min-bridges enter the bird garden. 4 Literature Review 4.1 Management Information System (MIS) The principle aim of this system was to increase management effectiveness and efficiency by satisfying organisational information requirements. It commence in the 1970s and it used local data processing linked to information resources to support decision making, information system were used primarily to address the needs of internal management and co-ordination. Emphasis was also given to administration and clerical functions, as purely accounting or inventory management, while delivering added value to customers was a lower priority (Strassman, 1995; Gamble, 1994a). The strategic information system (SIS) used by hotels was to improve competitiveness by changing the nature or conduct of business; integrated ICT networks were used to achieve organisational strategic objectives, to enhance performance, and to co-ordinate activities across functional and business units line as well as to support interaction with external entities, in pursuit of competitive advantage. Personal computers enable managers to manipulate data and create their own managerial reports, statistics and follow up mechanisms by using standard and fairly user friendly spreadsheets and statistical packages. It also helps them to forecast, budget and plan, using past data and simulate models, enhancing their ability to undertake strategic decisions. (Robson, 1997; Peppard, 1993; Mc Gee and Thomas, 1988; Earl, 1988, Jackson, 1989; Wiseman; 1985) The introductions of the internet, intranet and the extranet have revolutionarized communication in the global hotel industry and enable multilevel integration and effective collaboration. It also supported both centralized and distributed computing to maximize the performances of available resources. However, this system is gradually altering the competitiveness of the hotels in the global market place and reducing the significance of location and size in the product delivery process. ICTs are used as indispensable tools for almost all business functions from production to market as it facilitate: Quick communication, Reliable and timely information transfer and retrieval, Integration of the different divisions within the organisation, Flexibility of product specifications, Sharing of information; and Achieving of common objectives. ICT offers the opportunity to target the market segment of one, i.e. each individual customer. This is only possible because ICTs support flexible and responsive value-added chains and allow consumers to repackage products through endless combinations. On the hand, ICT becomes instrumental for cost management in the industry and particularly for distribution and promotion costs. Organizations around the world have reduced their costs by reducing commission to intermediaries, by trading directly from their web page, or by paying lower distribution fees to electronic intermediaries, or by cutting commission levels and fees. In addition, redesigning processes and eliminating repetitive tasks reduced costs and increase efficiency. (Buhalis, 1998). Perhaps more importantly for tourism, ICTs support the newly important element in generating competitive advantage, i.e. time. The later not only assists organizations to share information internally and with partners, and thus maximizes their efficiency, but also allows consumers to interact constantly with tourism suppliers. Consumers can undertake entire transactions from their office or home suing the internet, on a 24- hour, 365-days a year basis. Instant confirmation and purchasing means that consumers can also maximize their own efficiency and as a result appreciate the competitive advantage of organizations based on time. Increasingly, consumers will be able to interact through mobile devices and interactive digital television, developing their capabilities further as they will be able to be connected instantly through simpler equipment and interface without having to log on to their computer. (Puhretmair et al, 2001; Zipf and Malaka, 2001) 4.2 Fidelios OPERA Hotel Property Management System Fidelio was found in 1987 in Munich and emerged as one of the leading and most innovative international system integrator for the hospitality industries. Changing the way hotels computerize and operate its software is adaptable to changing business requirements and integrates both the ongoing technological developments of industry standard computer and software systems and the organizational change experienced. Fidelio allows hotels and chains of any size and type, restaurants, cruise ships and catering and conference operators to computerize their operations and to integrate major industry software products through analysing individual requirements and appreciating their uniqueness. The latest Fidelio product is the OPERA Enterprise solution. The OPERA Enterprise solution is fully integrated suite of products consisting of modules that can be easily added or expanded allowing effective and easy deployment from smaller operators to global, multi-brand hotel chain environments. OPERA can be deployed in any size environment from a single property with just Front Office to a large, full service hotel with Sales Marketing, Catering, Revenue Management, Quality Management, BackOffice, and Material Management. In addition, OPERA Enterprise Solution offers products for a hotel chains corporate office that includes a central reservations system (CRM) for both centralized guestroom and function space sales, and an enterprise information system, the customer relationship management (CRM) specially designed for the hotel industry. The system is also design for the use of hotel bedroom key cards replacing the traditional keys for the guest bed rooms. The system is programmed to instantly cut a key for a guest on arrival and can be cancelled if lost as soon as possible. The key cards are designed in way that some hotels are using the same card to insert on the lift to operate, which an additional security for the hotels, because without a key card one cannot go up in the r ooms. The additional security is who ever last open the room can be traced if there is any problem. However it has its own problems, because it is so light in weight that guests always lost it. The OPERA Property Management System (PMU) is designed to scale according to the requirement of any size hotel or hotel chain. The OPERA Back Office is a powerful financial software suit that provides hotels with a fully integrated, flexible financial and eBusiness solution. The OPERA Reservation System (ORS) manages the hotel inventory efficiently as it is integrated with the OPERA Property Management System and OPERA Sales and Catering system. The system emulates traditional CRS functionality. While at the same time integrating the bold new technologies shared in the OPERA Enterprise Solution. Including system access via web client or any Java enabled browser. With the power of the internet, ORS is easily deployable and globally accessible. The OPERA Revenue Management provides both property based and centralized yield management and is interfaced with the OPERA Sales and catering System to analyse the value of particular group business and maximize revenue. This system registers a ny consumptions made by guest from the mini bars in the rooms and will automatically add to the guest bill. The same goes for the restaurant as well, the restaurant staff will make put all bills through the system and a charge will be made to the guest main bill. The Customer information system collects and manages guest, travel agents, source group and company profile information from designated hotel properties in a centralized database. Guest stays with detailed revenue information are also collected. The system includes a whole range of interrelated modules, including, Opera Property Management System Opera Sales Catering Opera Back Office Opera Revenue Management System Opera Central Reservations System Central Reservation System (plus web engine) Opera Quality Management System Opera Materials Management System Opera Palm Customer Information system Enterprise Information System All of these are interrelated and interconnected, enabling hotels to use the system internally, (Intranet), externally with partners (extranet) and as a window on the world (internet). Buhalis D, (2002: 19). However, these few points are to be remembered when a hotel is operating using the OPERA system as system can fail at any time. Local backups need to be made by local staff and stored offsite. Web based and local based inventory need to synchronize regularly Local hardware to be maintained including UPS and air conditioning 4.3 Distribution of Information The industrys use of technology has moved beyond one of merely controlling operations towards a more strategic role. However, a variety of challenges still remain if the industry is to maximize the benefits it can potentially gain. The greatest lies in the effective use of the data collected during the day to day operations. Customer relations management (CRM), is a strategic orientation of offering individual services to guests based on their relationship with the hotel, is widely regarded as the managerial tool to achieve this kind of differentiation. Almost since the beginnings of the industry, luxury hotels have maintained comprehensive records of the preference and spending habits of their of their most frequent guests, known as history systems, such information systems were originally maintained on manually updated paper index cards and use to provide the exceptional personalized service for which such hotels were famous. (OConnor, 1999). The growth in the use of hotel computerized systems means that most of the guests transactions are now being recorded in electronic format. Developments in communications means that such data can be collected and consolidated, allowing a central database to be updated automatically as guest transaction occur. As a result, instead of just storing the guests name, c ontact details and basic information on their aggregate spending to date, there is an increasing trend towards full-folio storage, where details of each individual transaction are added to the central data warehouse for subsequent analysis. This potentially allows an accurate, in-depth picture to be built up of each guests likes and dislikes, which could subsequently be used to provide a more personalized service. This could be done across multiple units, increasing the consistency of service and the value of the brand. The database can also be analysed for patterns, both at the individual guest and aggregate levels- a process often referred to as data mining (IBM, 2001). For the individual guests. This should result in more closely customized offers than perhaps actually interest them instead of the usual mass market junk mail. Taking such a one to one marketing approach is acknowledge bringing benefits in term of lower costs and increasing customer loyalty. Hotel companies such as Starwood, Bass and Hilton are leading examples of the successful use of such database marketing techniques. Each uses analysis of their corporate database to improve the targeting of marketing and sales efforts, resulting in increased response rates and reduction in the costs of direct marketing (OConnor, 2001b). 4.4 Supply Chain Management A review of various trade journals suggests that electronic commerce (e-commerce) required a new business model that allows lodging companies to proactively gather the necessary intelligence for understanding customers expectations in real time. By combining these two objectives, a hotel company can gain a powerful position and differentiate its lodging service from those offered by market competitors. Such an approach can be accomplished by implementing technologies to the supply chain by integrating front end applications such as customer relationship management with back office activities such as e-procurement (Turban et al, 2002, p.656). A complete e-commerce model for SCM combines both the front end and the back end systems as shown in Fig. 1. E-commerce offer enormous business opportunities to increase revenue while reducing operating costs. The complimentary between e-commerce and SCM also has been supported by many scholars (Corsi and Boyson, 2003; Frohlich and Westbrooke, 20 01; Gurau et al., 2001; Lancioni et al., 2003; Skjott-larsen et al, 2003). However, studies in the tourism and hospitality industry have primarily focus on customer perspective (Heung, 2003). Front-end applications of e-commerce have been widely used in the lodging industry but not much has been explored on the back-end system or the operation side. SCM has been defined by (Cooper, 2000 Lambert et al., 1998) as the integration of key business processes from the end user through original suppliers that provides products, services and information that add value for customers and stakeholders. (Lambert and Cooper, 2000, p.66). For the lodging industry, the SCM concept or philosophy has been practiced to certain extend. The Aberdeen group (2000) characterized the US hotel sector as a highly fragmented industry, representing more than 50,000 hotel properties that purchased from more than 10,000 suppliers. With such fragmentized network vulnerable to the inefficient control of purchasing procedures, the lodging industry is facing significant challenges for managing procurement practices. To take on these challenges, the first step is to understand the core of SCM in the context of the lodging business. 4.5 The Procurement Process Another that has attracted much attention, due to its potential for creating efficiency gains, is that of procurement. Here focus on IT that enables external integration with partners in the value chain, rather than narrowly focusing on automated internal operations. Traditionally the hospitality sector has had an inefficient purchasing process. Multiple units, fragmented supply chains and inefficient business processes all adversely affected the purchasing process by creating inefficiencies and increasing costs. In general, unit level staff managed procurement, and there was a high frequency of low value orders to multiple suppliers, which resulted in high administrative costs. Even where contracts existed for specific products, the unpredictability of hospitality operations meant that Maverick purchases from unapproved vendors were, and still are, common, further increasing costs. Using technology to facilitate the purchasing process over-comes many of this problems while potential ly creating some others. By digitalizing the processes involved in purchasing, great efficiencies can be achieved when sourcing, specifying, ordering, tracking deliveries of and paying for, purchases. In effect e-procurement involves electronically managing the entire purchasing process from product identification through requisition to payment. The process requires extensive and accurate performance data. Not only will an e-procurement solution help to capture aggregate purchases by purchased product codes, but will also help to chronicle the derails in a suppliers performance record including delivery and quality level performance. 4.6 Communicating Information All telecommunications (telephone, telex and fax) have been used extensively throughout the tourism industry worldwide. Although telephone conversation is a personal and direct way of communication, linguistic problems, time zone differences and its prohibitive cost limit its international usage. Telex for years the most prominent communication method and has contributed greatly to communications in the tourism industry. As transmits text reliable and inexpensively without requiring the simultaneous availability of sender and receiver, it has been extensively used especially in regions with inadequate telephone networks. However as computer communications and faxes prevail, the telex is limited to communication with developing world countries with unreliable telecommunications infrastructures and it is gradually being transformed into a computer based system using a different communication network. The commercial introduction of the telefax in the 1980s allowed the transmission of im ages over phone lines and enhances the efficiency of tourism operations significantly. Although its operational is the same as transmission of readily available documents and graphics. Fax technology does not require technical skills or the simultaneous presents of sender and receiver, and therefore has penetrated the tourism market place very efficiently (Beckman, 2001). In the pre-internet era, Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) used computer net-work to enable computer file interchange of standard transaction documents such as invoices bills or purchase orders between organizations. EDI transmits structured transactions with distinct fields, such as transaction data, amount, sender and recipients name. These assist organizations in exchanging information, order and invoices without human involvement. In tourism, for example, this can be used for travel agencies to transfer bookings to a tour operators suppliers. Invoices can be directed backwards and payment receipts can be generated automatically by the system. EDI therefore enhances communication efficiently and reduces labour transaction costs and encourages firms to continue doing business with their partners. Although EDI is still used for large amount of transactions mainly between large organizations, transactions and interchanges on the internet have replaced EDI with extranets and have also enable smaller players to take advantage of the efficiency that networking provides. (Laudon and Laudon, 2002; Reynolds, 1992) 5 Findings and Analyses This chapter will give the synopsis of the data collected from the interviews and later give discussions in relation to the research questions 5.1 Management Information System (MIS) Because the PalmaRima hotel does not have the Property Management System the hotel lacks a local data processing linked to information resources to support decision making, information systems are used primarily to address the needs of internal management and co-ordination. As there is no computer at the reception it makes it difficult for the front office manager to manipulate data and create his own managerial reports, statistics and follow up mechanisms by using standard and fairly user friendly spreadsheets and statistical packages. 5.2 Fidelios OPERA Hotel Property Management System In response to this point, it is noted from the data collected that all reservations, checking in and out guest, Marketing, Catering, Revenue Management, Quality Management, BackOffice, Material Management are all done manually. 5.3 Distribution of Information The growth in the use of hotel computerized systems means that most of the guests transactions are now being recorded in electronic format. Developments in communications means that such data can be collected and consolidated, allowing a central database to be updated automatically as guest transaction occur. This is not happening in the case of the PalmaRima hotel, which makes it very difficult for the front office to get their repeat guest profiles. 5.4 Supply Chain Management Based on the research the PalmaRima hotel cannot implement technologies to the supply chain by integrating front end applications such as customer relationship management with back office activities such as e-procurement. The Aberdeen group (2000) characterized the US hotel sector as a highly fragmented industry, representing more than 50,000 hotel properties that purchased from more than 10,000 suppliers. With such fragmentized network vulnerable to the inefficient control of purchasing procedures, the PalmaRima hotel is facing significant challenges for managing procurement practices. To take on these challenges, the hotel first step is to understand the core of SCM in the context of the lodging business. 5.6 The Procurement Process Using technology to facilitate the purchasing process over-comes many of this problems while potentially creating some others. By digitalizing the processes involved in purchasing, great efficiencies can be achieved when sourcing, specifying, ordering, tracking deliveries of and paying for, purchases. Not only will an e-procurement solution help to capture aggregate purchases by purchased product codes, but will also help to chronicle the derails in a suppliers performance record including delivery and quality level performance for the Palma Rima hotel 5.7 Communicating Information Computer communications and faxes prevail, the telex is limited to communication with developing world countries with unreliable telecommunications infrastructures and it is gradually being transformed into a computer based system using a different communication network. (Beckman, 2001). Based on research the PalmaRima hotel communicates internally by forms only but by introducing the MIS they will benefit by using the intranet to communicate internally and would be a great help to communicate externally by extranet especially to suppliers. 6 Conclusions In other for the hotels to strengthen the organisations business initiatives and maximise profit, they need to overcome the obstacles presented its legacy technology system. In the case of PalmaRima hotel they realised that their manual reservation system becoming more and more ineffective, primarily resulting in loss of financial controls and staff productivity. As a result, the way we live and work in most societies around the globe has been significantly altered. Automated industrial production has enabled a greater total output as well as better planning and quality control. Over the last few decades, the progress in information technology has revolutionalized both the global economy and enterprises. The development and application of computerised systems has accelerated rapidly and enabled their use in a wider range of functions and activities. Technological developments have also introduced a wide range of new tools for the strategic and operational management of organisations. Increasingly technological convergence integrates software, hardware and net ware and supports inter-operability and interconnectivity. In addition, the integration of the internet, extranet and intranets enables organisations to interact dynamically with different actors and stakeholder. The PalmaRima hotel can enhance their performance by empowering their strategic marketing and management efforts through supporting their functions with advanced ICTs. This will enable them to improve their networking and ultimately to improve their virtuality. Technological change alters jobs, creates new skills, makes occupations obsolete, and revises what employees need to learn and be trained to do. Sometimes, new technologies require new job designs. Technology can also be used for recruiting, training and maintaining database for employees. E-recruitment is b eing used by a lot more companies now, sinc

Love Story in Terry Kay’s To Dance With the White Dog and in the Movie O :: Comparison Compare Contrast Essays

Love Story in Terry Kay’s To Dance With the White Dog and in the Movie O In the movie â€Å"O†, Desi and Odin, the main characters, share an unstable relationship due to their juvenile romance. The young couple struggle to support and trust one another throughout the movie. They must also deal with the lies and betrayal of their close friend Hugo. Their budding romance can be compared in many ways to the fruitful relationship of Sam and Cora Peek, in Terry Kay’s novel, To Dance With The White Dog. Sam and Cora Peek’s relationship is one that withstands the trial of time. Although both relationships began in the same manner, there are vital differences between the two that drastically separate them from one another. There are many obstacles in the movie â€Å"O† that cause the ultimate failure of Desi and Odin. The young couple has trouble trusting one another because they are inexperienced and just beginning their relationship. There is little stability in Desi and Odin’s relationship partially due to the secretive way in which the couple must see one another. The lies of a close friend quickly make Odin doubt the loyalty of Desi and thus begin to tear apart the young lovers. Throughout the movie doubts and fears are instilled in Odin by his close friend, Hugo. It is these lies that quickly escalate into Odin’s belief of Desi’s betrayal. Ultimately Odin loves Desi so much he can not bear the thought of her with another man, nor can he bear the thought of a life without her. Odin’s irrational thoughts and impulsive nature destroy the love that Desi once harbored for Odin. The love of Odin and Desi is bittersweet in the end. Both of the young lovers die prematurely at the hands of Odin. The love of Odin and Desi is snuffed out due to their inexperienced youth, the pressures of society, and of their peer’s lies. The pressure of Desi’s father and his strong dislike of Odin also helps create doubt in Odin’s mind about Desi. The racial issues play a small role in Odin’s beliefs of Desi. Hugo points out to him that Desi is a white girl and white girls are sly. In To Dance With The White Dog, Sam and Cora Peek share a life long commitment.

Essay example --

Value-Belief-Norm Theory The aim of this research paper will be to depict the difference between criminals who engage in money laundering and tax evasion. In this regard, the theory of Value-Belief-Norm can be taken into concern. According to this theory, actions of an individual are directly influenced by his/her moral and personal values that impose considerable impact upon the behavioral attitudes (Boersema & Reijnders, 2008). Hence, these psychological aspects further forms as a difference between a normal individual and a criminal. Money Laundering Money can often be duly considered as one of the prime reasons for which most of the criminal activities happen in this world. In this regard, one of the commonly identified crimes associated with money is the aspect of money laundering. Money-laundering is regarded as the process through which criminals of all sorts cover the origin of their wealth in order to avoid suspicions from various law-enforcement agencies. This is also performed by the people with the intention of hiding evidences that could lead to their trail in front of the law. Money laundering can be executed through several ways that include structuring and round tripping among the primary ones. In the method of structuring, money is broken into several small deposits that reduce the chances of any suspicion from various law enforcement agencies. In relation to the method of round tripping, money distorts the market, further lessening the chances for law enforcers to detect the money (UNODC, 2013; [1] Legal Informatio n Institute, n.d.). In terms of law, money laundering is considered as a crime and penalty is thus imposed on people involved in laundering money. E.g. 18 USC Â § 1956 of law dep... ...inals Who Engage In Money Laundering and Tax Evasion From the above discussion, several differences can be depicted between criminals engaged in money laundering and tax evasion. In this context, criminals involved in money laundering are influenced to conduct the crime in order to hide the destination or the source of their income. On the other hand, a criminal involved in tax evasion mainly tends to hide real financial status in the form of paying less tax to the concerned authorities. One more dissimilarity between the two can be apparently observed as the legal actions that are imposed over these criminals. Criminals of money laundering are expected to get stern penalty as compared to that of tax evasion. Additionally, moral values, according to Value-Belief-Norm theory also differ in nature between the criminals engaged in money laundering and tax evasion.

Use of Model Rockets in Education Essay -- Education Essays

As students go about their lives in school, many of them are disengaged and what they do learn, they manage to forget over the matter of a few days. Many teachers have tried to find new ways of teaching that will both interest the students and help them to retain what they learn. Some of these ideas have worked well, while others do the opposite of what they are meant to achieve and disengage the students even more. One activity that a few organizations, such as Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Core, the Boy Scouts of America, and the Girl Scouts, have begun to use is the activity of building model rockets. Model rocketry has been a fun pass-time for many youth for years; they find it fascinating to watch something that they built soar hundreds of feet into the air, and then as the parachute deploys, see their masterpiece drift slowly back to them. All that these clubs are doing is taking this activity and using it to explain and teach the many concepts that go into th e launching of the rocket. James Goll and Lindsay Wlkinson, professors at Edgewood University, once said rockets can spark â€Å"classroom discussions about the chemistry topics of homogeneity, intermolecular interactions, kinetics, thermodynamics, and oxidation—reduction chemistry† (Goll & Wilkinson). In addition, Sylvia Nolte (Ed. D., Estes Educator) said, â€Å"rocketry is an excellent means of teaching the scientific concepts of aerodynamics and Newton’s Laws of Motion. It integrates well with math in calculating formulas, problem solving and determining altitude and speed.† (Nolte) One example where rockets help students in school is science. Chemistry, one branch of science, is a huge part of rocket building because of the fact that the fuel is comp... ...act right surface area, while making a shape that allows the rocket to do things that the designer desires such as be free standing, to spin on the way down as to stay straight, or even just to look cool. These are just the tip of the iceberg of the ways that model rocketry can help students. Model rocketry is a way that any organization can help their members to understand anything that they are trying to learn. Model rocketry will keep students engaged, help them retain what they learn, and let teachers teach in a new way. Works Cited Goll, James G., and Lindsay Wilkinson. â€Å"Teaching Chemistry Using October Sky." Edgewood.edu. Edgewood College, n.d. Web. 7 Mar. 2014 Nolte, Sylvia, Ed. D. â€Å"hysics and Model Rockets.† EstesEducator.com. Ed. Thomas E. Beach, Ph. D., Tim V. Milligan, A.E., and Ann Grimm. Estes-Cox Corp, 20123. Web. 13 Mar. 2014

Food and Beverage Management Essay

The food and beverage department plays a pivotal role in a star hotel. Such a hotel can hardly be convinced of without food and beverage section. Star hotels worldwide have costly and gorgeous bars which earns them significant amount of revenue. To extend the beverage provision of the hotel, there should be a strategy to procure and sell quality beverage at competitive price and serve the guests to their satisfaction in an ambient environment. For achieving the goal one should having a fair knowledge of different licensing regulations to achieve a great sale of different kinds of beverages and customer satisfaction. a) â€Å"The licensing framework and its implications on the hotel†. * Local licensing framework: There were various licensing laws in the UK governing sale of liquor in the past. The ‘licensing Act 2003’ came into existence on 10 July, 2003, which â€Å"provides for a unified system of regulation of the activity of sale and supply of alcohols†. * Some aspects of the licensing Act 2003 are explained below: i) Licensable activities and qualifying club activities. a) â€Å"These activities are the sale by retail of alcohol, b) The supply of alcohol by or on behalf of a club to, or to the order of, a member of the club, c) The provision of regulated entertainment, and d) The provision of late night entertainment†. ii) Licensing authorities: The Licensing Act 2003 mentions the bodies which consist of licensing authorities. Each licensing authority, with the exception of those which cover the inner and middle Temples is required to establish a licensing committee of between ten and fifteen members and also describe the objectives which the licensing authorities must promote. These objectives are: * â€Å"Public safety * The prevention of crime and order * The prevention of public nuisance * The protection of children from harm†. iii) Each licensing committee is required to â€Å"determine and a publish a statement of its licensing policy every three years. The licensing authority must consult: * The police, * The local fire authority, * People who represent holders of various categories of licenses, * Representative of local business and residents†. iv) This Act provides for four types of license namely: * Personal license * Club premises certificates * Temporary event notices * Premises license â€Å"A premises license This license authorizes a hotel to carry out licensable activities. It has details of operating conditions which requires the premises to carry out its operation in line with the licensable objectives. It lasts unless it is surrendered or revolved. It may be time if te applicant so requests†. * Some aspects of regulations of premises licenses: An application for a premises license needs to be made in prescribed form: An applicant for a premises license: * Will submit an operating schedule underlining curtain about activities to be carried out in the premises. * If represented against it by the police, the fire authority, the safety agency, or interested parties, the licensing authority will call for a hearing. After considering the hearing, the same authority may reject the application fully or partly or may attach some condition to the license. * Requires an appointment of an ‘authorized person’. * Requires a ‘designated premises supervisor’, a holder of personal license for the place where the premises license operates. * Identifies some categories of person, who, among others , may apply for premises license: * A person who is engaged or proposed to be engaged in a business involved on licensable activities in the premises. * Any individual aged at least 18 wishing to run a business on commercial basis involving the sale or supply of alcohol. * Provide for some mandatory condition which among others are: * Every supply of alcohol must be made by a personal license holder or person by him. * In case a premises license is stolen, lost, damaged or destroyed, the premises license holder may apply for a copy to the license authority. * Unless granted for a limited period on the desire or the applicant, a premises license will last until it is surrendered or revoked. This will lapse if the holder dies, mentally incapable and insolvent, the company is dissolved. A license holder may voluntarily surrender a premises license. * Some other aspects * Unlike the previous regulations, the licensing Act 2003 dose not fix up the days or the opening hours when alcohol may sell by retail for consumption on or off the premises. The licenses themselves decide when to sell and when to close the sale. * Centrally set, fees for license, certificates etc are fixed on the basis of full cost recovery. * The license authorities have the power to suspend or revoke a license. They can also modify operating condition. * The police are empowered to close licensed premises to deal quickly with unruly behavior and excessive noise. * Offences The following activities, among others, constitute offence under the Act. Ignorance of these offences will impede a manager’s function and duties. A few of them are: * Unauthorized licensable activities (section 136). * Exposing alcohol for unauthorized sale (section 137) * Keeping alcohol on premises for unauthorized sale (section 138) * Allowing disorderly conduct on licensed premises etc (section 146) * Sale of alcohol to drunk person . * Obtaining alcohol form a drunk person (142) * To keeping smuggled goods (section 144) * Admitting un accompanied children under 16 to certain premises (section 145) * Selling alcohol by retail on and moving vehicles (section 158) * Furnishing false statement made for the purpose of this Act (section 158) (Part 7 of the licensing Act 2003) * Implication of licensing regulation. In this age of high –tech technology when business operation are conducted within moments though electronic online system, processing of application for a beverage license rather a longer time. Granting such a license by the licensing committee is also equally time consuming. b) â€Å"Developing the drinks and wine list to achieve higher income and customer satisfaction, including non-alcoholic drinks†. * Developing drink Menu /List To extend the beverage provision of the hotel assistant manager has to focus on the sale tools of beverages, a primary requirement contribute to their sale. These tools are: 1. Beverages menus 2. Creating right and cosy ambience and decor in the room 3. Selling of popular and quality drink at competitive price. The common and main tools are the menus, popular and quality beverages themselves. To carry out the program of extending beverages provision the assistant manager must consider the following: * When customer are on the premise at hotel bar or restaurant, they look for: * An attractive and appropriate menu. * Good food and beverages in soothing and ambient environment. * The beverages menus. The beverages menus inform customers what drinks they have available and their cost. By presenting a well planned and nicely prepared menu, an atmosphere is created to target sale of alcohol to the customers and achieve a margin of profit. Therefore, it is very important to plan and present an appropriate menu so as to make the customers touch the menu with a sense of satisfaction that easily leads him to his choice. Using correct language and setting right location of the items in the menu, the management may skillfully entice customers to select their items comfortably. To carry out the strategy there is a need to fix up basic menu criteria that consists of the following factor: * General presentation General presentation of a menu identifies the image of the hotel. The following aspects of a menu are very important which should be: * Attractive * Clean * Easy to read * Complementary * Responsive to current awareness * Well designed * Menu content The content of a menu is very important. The for beverage provision the menu needs to be prepared and presented in the style and with features as discussed below: * Language The language of menu must be I line with the type of operation. If prepared in foreign language, it must be simple and accurate so that customers can easily choose items of their preference. * Accuracy The menu needs conveying the right price of the items and their availability. customers do not like wasting their time. So the menus must be accurate about pricing and availability. * Pricing Attractive and competitive, correct pricing of an item of food or alcohol is key to the extension program. Recasting the present price structure is essential to target sale at comparative price. * Sales mix Sales mix refers to composition of total sales as between main food and beverages. Designing a menu with potential sales mix of items the customers may select is important. If the sales mix is not satisfactory it will be hard to cover the costs of food and which eventually may fail the operation. * Layout of the menu It should neither be too short or too long. The length of the menu should be as such as will adjust itself to the liking and need of the customers, who prefer short and attractive menus. * Types of beverages menus Beverages menus are grouped as * Wine menus * Bar menus * Room service beverage menus * Special promotion beverages menus * Bar menus: These are two types, such as, large display of beverage menu and the small printed menus. The former should be displayed at the back or to the side of the bar while the later be available on the bar or on the table of the bar. * Room service beverage menus Depending on the standard of the hotel and the level of room service offered, these should be quite expensive to entice the customers. * Special promotion beverage menus It is essentially a promotion menu. This relates to advertising sale of a particular beverage either free or at a special price during an event. c) â€Å"The pricing policy for the new drink list†. More presenting attractive and well designed menus may not boost up beverage sale. Significantly important is adapting correct pricing policy. The beverage market is very competitive. Economic recession worldwide has to some extent the situation. The number of pubs has gone down but investment in the development of new premises has increased. Pubs, clubs and bars sector is largest employer in the world. The sector is very competitive. Considering the realities, the assistant manager therefore lays emphasis on the following aspects regarding pricing. * Pricing The price should include the operation cost, setting up cost, the cost of electricity, gas, washing, cleaning, the fixed cost such as staff cost, rates, loan payment, mortgages and VAT. The pricing should be based on the target market of the operation. Pricing also determines the type of clientele the operation has. A premium price demands not only a high quality drink but also high quality service, furnishing, decor, ambience or entertainment. The product and service, as received by the customers, must match the value of the money they spend, regardless of what the price may be. Pricing policy should attract customers even through by lowering profit. Pricing should be targeted to work a promotional tool. Offering special lunch or dinner with alcoholic drinks and offering wine on discounts to target group of users should be made for larger sale. The hotel management should aim at maximizing the number of customers. They should target the customers, they believes, they will have. The physical design of the premises, the human resources, the products themselves and the styles of service should meet the expectation of the customers. To maximize numbers of customers, gaming, betting, casino lotteries should be installed. Incidence of investment necessary in this regard should be included into beverages pricing. Cost of storage and control of beverage should invariable from a part of price. d) â€Å"Purchasing, storage and control of beverage stock†. * Purchase of beverage stock To sell any beverage profitably largely depends how it is procured, stored and preserved from damage, miss use and theft. Therefore the hotel management should adapt the following policy in relation to beverage purchase. * Purchase The hotel tied up with a brewery company like bass, white bread and brains. Beers may be procured from the parent company and other beverages from nominated suppliers. The drinks should be sometimes procured from nominated suppliers in bulk quality as to achieve significant discount. When beverage can be bought from a parent company at lesser price than supplier’s it should be bought from them. The hotel being a part of national chain, the purchase of all business is conducted by the purchasing department which should independently choose any suppliers it likes by negotiating maximum discount * An item wise strategy for purchases of alcohol is as follows. * Breweries Breweries are national, regional or local microbrewery. The hotel, even if tied to any brewery, should retain its option to source its purchase independently. When non-tied they can buy from any source by negotiating discount. * Cash and carry Specialist supermarket, cash and carry sells in bulk. The hotel may use them in emergency following normal practice: * General wholesaler The hotel may purchase alcohols or wines with competitive price from big wholesalers which buy from overseas and keep stock of beverage in their large warehouses. * Wine wholesaler. Like a general wholesaler, a wine wholesaler is specialized in supplying better quality wine. They can also sell premium spirits like Avery’s of Bristol. They may be used to procure wines for customers having higher socio-economic profile and disposable earning. Wines seller like Matthew Clark may be used as a significant source. * Brokers They specialized in sales usually from a specific region. To sell to both small and big operations. Both of them may use the brokers when needed and convenient. Purchasing from brokers through complex with cost factors, should be used during expediency. * Agency distributor As often cheaper and s they also offer after service they should be another source for beverage purchase. They are large wholesalers, often having licenses to manufacture international brands within UK. * Storage and control of beverage Procuring beverage at competitive price with satisfaction discount is an important skill in revenue earning from alcohol sale. Equally important is how the procured beverage are stored, preserved and their movement is controlled. If beverages are not properly stored, they will deteriorate and also may be stolen. This direct affects investment and revenue earning. As consumed by customers by customers food and beverage should be stored, preserved, maintained in a manner that they remain fit for humans consumption. The following factors in storing and controlling the beverage stock should be taken care of in relation to: * Sprits, liquors and some types of wine which have shelf lives. * Application of food safety Acts to control hazardous substances and beverages. * Cleaning of beers pumps and lines area as supplied through them. * The storage area should be clean as dry damp condition can harm label, cartoons etc. * Lightning should be low (40watts maximum). The beer storage should be 13 to 14 degree Celsius while a wine storage should have a temperature of 13 degrees. A significant variation let us say 3 to 4 degrees either way can effect deterioration. * All storage areas of all kinds of beverage should always be kept clean, tidy and be swept and washed. Empty containers must not be kept in the same place with the new stock as they are likely to accumulated bacteria from open containers. * A financial involvement in the wet stock being big, security aspect of stock should be taken care of. Access to storage record and movement of stock both internally and externally should be controlled, specific and designated. * Beverage beyond expiry dates cannot be sold. So it should be a regular practice to examine † the best before system on line information on stock control, electronic bar management, rapid order system point of sale , application of appropriate technology for control of beverage stores all these are effective control method of beverage stock .

Justify the Need for Keeping Records and Describe the Types of Records You Would Maintain Essay

In this essay I would look at the need for record keeping and describe the types of records I would maintain as a teacher. Predominantly there are normally three reasons for keeping records namely for health and Safety reasons which may also be a legal requirement. Secondly for the teaching purpose so the teacher knows what the student has done and what there progress is. Thirdly for auditing and quality standards reasons which may mean the organization may need to satisfy external agencies who may have financial and quality interests (Watts 2008: online). To understand the type of records we need to keep we need to look at the learner’s journey through the course. The learner would normally join a course after being recommended or seeing some sort of marketing material. Here the justification to the organization of keeping a record of how a student joined so the college or training company could focus their marketing activity to those areas which are more successful. After this process normally the learner would attend an induction programme where the Information and Guidance forms would be filled in as well as the initial enrolment forms. Normally, at this stage the full structure of the course and the next steps would be discussed for progression on to other courses. Then the initial assessment would be done to see at what level the learners are at so if there is a need to give more supervision then that could be addressed at this stage or it could run parallel to the course. The diagnostic assessment would also be carried out at this stage to identify the strengths and weaknesses and highlight any skills gaps. The outcome of the above assessments would then become the foundation on which you would develop the Individual Learning Plan (ILP) for the learner, which will set out the learner plan to learn, the resources required and the timetable for the learning to occur. At this stage one has to remember that the teaching and learning of the course has not necessarily started yet this paperwork is normally filled out to meet funding, quality and legislative requirements. So the need for these records to be kept and filled out accurately may mean the difference in the teacher being able to deliver the course to that student or an extreme scenario of the college being closed to all students due to the quality of the records not being up to scratch. At the end of the day as Gravells (2008:10) mentions if you can’t deliver the session if there are good records which you have kept somebody else could deliver the session with minimum disruption occurring. This can only happen if records relating to the session plans and other documentation to deliver the course are at hand and can be accessed as well as the register to show the learner attended the sessions.