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Baiji - Facts and Figures

Baiji - Facts and Figures Name: Baiji; also known as Lipotes vexilifer, the Chinese River Dolphin and the Yangtze River Dolphin Habitat: Yangtze River of China Historical Epoch: Late Miocene-Modern (20 million-10 years ago) Size and Weight: Up to eight feet long and 500 pounds Diet: Fish Distinguishing Characteristics: Moderate size; long snout About the Baiji The Baijialso known as the Chinese River Dolphin, the Yangtze River Dolphin and (less frequently) by its species name, Lipotes vexiliferoccupies that unfortunate interval between a dwindling number of sightings and functional extinction. This graceful, moderately sized, freshwater dolphin once occupied a thousand-mile stretch of Chinas Yangtze river, but it hasnt exactly flourished in modern times; as long ago as 300 B.C., early Chinese naturalists counted only a few thousand specimens. If the Baiji was imperiled back then, you can imagine the reasons it has completely disappeared today, with over 10 percent of the worlds population lining the shores (and exploiting the resources) of the Yangtze River. Like a patient dying of a terminal disease, extraordinary efforts were made to resuscitate the Baiji when people realized it was about to go extinct. In the late 1970s, the Chinese government established reserves along the Yangtze River for the Baiji, but most individuals died shortly after being relocated; even today, authorities maintain no less than five Baiji reserves, but there have been no confirmed sightings since 2007. It may yet prove possible to reintroduce the Baiji by breeding captive individuals, a program known as de-extinction, but its more likely that the very last Baiji will die in captivity (as has happened with many other recently extinct animals, such as the Passenger Pigeon and the Quagga).

Property Law Degree Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Property Law Degree - Case Study Example With certainty it is understandable that the Residents Association has a vested interest in the use and development of land around them. The residents who live in a certain area will likely see changes in their neighborhood and daily life if land in or near their community is altered. Further residential development could lead to overcrowding and diminishing quality of schools. Also, depending upon what kind of housing is to be built, the value of their own properties could be negatively impacted. Or perhaps the land to be developed is a place full of trees and nature, where all of the kids in the neighborhood love to go to play. It is clear that land development can have many types of impacts on the people who live around it. Sometimes those impacts are positive, but if they are not, it is not surprising that those people would want to prevent those negative impacts. The Town and Country Act of 1990 was established to maintain balance between the demands of developers and the needs of local residents. The case of Regan v. Paul Properties Ltd. in 2006 illustrates one reason that residents may find reason to object to development. Regan attempted to prevent Paul Properties Ltd. ... The window had already been screened in such a fashion that no light came in. The court ruled that development could ensue without infringing on the resident's right to light. (Clarke, 2008). If the Residents Association should seek to have the grant quashed, there are grounds upon which they may be able to do this. If the Residents Association disagrees with one or more of the conditions connected to the planning permission that has been granted, and have already tried to voice their concerns to the local planning authority, an appeal can be made to the Secretary of State. This appeal needs to be made within six months of the date that the planning permission was decided upon. The three ways that a plaintiff can typically make an appeal include written representations, a public inquiry session, and an informal hearing. While written representations from both parties can be both time-saving and money-sparing, this is not always the most effective method of an appeal that deals with an issue as big and serious as the development of an entire residential area. A public inquiry, although costly and time-consuming, may be a better appeal method for the Residents Association. This method involves an Inspector hearing both sides of the case, both in verbal and written form, as well as commentary from third parties. A cross-examination will then take place, allowing all parties to ask questions and provide the necessary supporting arguments. After the inquiry, the Inspector will make a formal site inspection and will later come to a final decision. (RICS, 2008). In some planning appeal cases, costs can be awarded if unnecessary costs were

A Logistics Managers Position with the Firm Essay

A Logistics Managers Position with the Firm - Essay Example Throughout the internships summer experiences, I learned that international shipping is more than just filling out paperwork. There’s a lot to learn when it comes to the actual physical work that is involved, the ships that carry the goods, and the high risk of shipping over the ocean rather than by air. Just wearing a tie or nice trousers looks good, but it’s also good to be able to say I loaded the container. I know about commercial ships and ocean travel. In other words, I’ve gotten my hand's dirty learning from the bottom.  Just wearing a tie or nice trousers looks good, but it’s also good to be able to say I loaded the container. I know about commercial ships and ocean travel. In other words, I’ve gotten my hand's dirty learning from the bottom up. My references will confirm that I’m disciplined, energetic, and a quick-learner and feel pretty good about myself gave the economy and hold plentiful knowledge about the position I m applying for. If you have an opening and by going through my professional details you think that I can justify the responsibilities of the concerned job, I would welcome an interview at your convenience.

Data Analysis for Business Decision Making Essay

Data Analysis for Business Decision Making - Essay Example Table1: Time needed in minutes on electronic devices Internal modem External modem Circuit board CD drive Hard drive Memory board Available minutes per week Test device1 2 3 5 6 4 8 9000 Test device 2 1 5 3 2 5 5 7800 Test device3 5 2 3 3 3 2 6600 Test device 4 3 4 2 1 2 3 6120 Next calculation will involve determining of the mathematical relationship for describing the constraints given in the problem. One relationship that is general is the quantity of resource that is utilized should be less than or rather equal to the quantity of resource that is available. The decision variables should also be greater than zero. First constraint: Test device 1 time used Test device 1 time available 2a+3b+5c+6d+4e+8f 9000 Second constraint: Test device 2 time used Test device 2 time available a+5b+3c+2d+5e+5f 7800 Third constraint: Test device 3 time used Test device 3 time available 5a+2b+3c+3d+3e+2f 6600 Fourth constraint: Test device 4 time used Test device 4 time available 3a+4b+2c+1d+2e+3f 6 120 Fifth constraint: a, b, c, d, e, f 0 All these constraints do represent the restrictions of the capacity of production, and have an effect on the total profit. The constraints display a linear programming aspect in which certain specific interactions would exist in between the given variables. Increasing the number of units produced by a company would reduce the production of other products. Response to question c. Solution. The decision variables in this problem are a, b, c, d, e, f. This problem was solved using the excel solver that is displayed the worksheet. Microsoft Excel 12.0 Answer Report Worksheet: [Book3]Sheet1 Report Created: 20/07/2012 10:52:29 Target Cell (Max) Cell Name Original Value Final Value $B$7 z 0 545568 Adjustable Cells Cell Name Original Value Final Value $B$1 a 0 168 $B$2 b 0 0 $B$3 c 0 984 $B$4 d 0 0 $B$5 e 0 936 $B$6 f 0 0 Constraints Cell Name Cell Value Formula Status $B$8 c1 9000 $B$8=0 Binding $B$5 e 936 $B$5>=0 Not Binding $B$6 f 0 $B$6>=0 Bindin g From the table, the maximum profit for Northern H-Tec E. Ltd Company is ?545,568 as displayed in the work sheet. Where c1, c2, c3, and c4 represents the constraints involved in the problem. Response to question d. Constraints that are biding are those constraints that limit the output of profit where as the non binding constraints do not always have a limitation in the overall profit. This implies that changing the non binding constraints do not affect the profit so long as the changes in this kind of constraints are within the allowable decrease and increase indicated in the sensitive report. Changing binding constrain

The Bullwhip Effect in the Supply Chain

The Bullwhip Effect in the Supply Chain As the name suggests bullwhip effect is an oscillation in the supply pipeline. In supply chain this effect occurs when there is a constant fluctuation in the demand. This effect also known as whiplash effect arises when minute demand fluctuations downstream result in a bigger fluctuation upstream of the supply chain. It describes how inaccurate information, non operational transparency and a disengaged production plan and real time information result in revenue loss, bad customer service, high inventory levels and unrealized profits. Incongruent information across the supply chain leads to overreact to backlog and building of excessive inventory in order to prevent stock outs (Supply Chain Management: Concepts Techniques and Practices-Enhancing Value Through Collaboration, By Ling Li; pp 191) it creates unstable production schedules that cause lead to unnecessary cost in supply chain. Companies have invested in extra capacity to meet the high variable demand. The highly variable dema nd increases the requirements for safety stock in the supply chain. Additionally, companies may decide to produce to stock in periods of low demands to increase productivity. If this is not managed properly it leads to excessive obsolescence. Highly variable demand also increases lead times. These inflated lead times lead to increased stocks and bullwhip effect. Thus this effect can be quite exasperating for the companies; they invest in extra capacity, extra inventory, work over time one week and stand idle the next, whilst at the retail stores the shelves of popular products are empty, and the shelves with products that arent selling are full (Dr. Stephen Disney, Cardiff Business School, Cardiff University) The problem of this effect in supply chain management has been a concernment for many years. Due to its non industry specific nature, it has grabbed the attention of many professionals from diverse industries and business schools. Many firms have observed the bullwhip effect in which the fluctuations in orders increase as they move up the supply chain from retailers to wholesalers to manufacturers to suppliers.(pp 478-479 ; Supply Chain Management Strategy , Planning and Operation , 2nd Edition; Sunil Chopra Peter Meindl) Some of the prominent cases so far noticed have been of an Italian pasta manufacturer Barilla SpA (Hammond 1994) that provides vivid illustrations of bullwhip in its supply chain. Barilla for a very long time had been offering special price discounts to the customers for bulk purchases. Such marketing policies created a highly erratic and spiky demand patterns, leading to high supply chain costs that outstripped the full truckload benefits and mismanaged inventory. Another case is of Campbell Soups chicken noodle soup experience (Cachon and Fisher 1997). The company is into selling only those products that have a stable demand. The manufacturer yet faced extremely variable demand on the factory level, the reason for which was found out to be forward buying practices of the customers. (FIGURE) As pointed out by Lee, Padmanabhan and Whang(1997 a,b) the expression Bullwhip Effect was termed by executives of PG, the company that manufactures Pamper brand of diapers. These executives observed that while the consumer demand for Pampers Diapers was fairly constant over time, the orders for diapers placed by retailers to their wholesalers or distributors were quite variable i.e., exhibited significant fluctuations over time. In addition, even larger variations in order quantities were observed in the orders that PG received from its wholesalers. This increase in the variability of the orders seen by each stage in a supply chain was called the bullwhip effect. As per Simatupang and Sridharan this situation of misalignment in demand understanding can be termed as Asymmetric Information where different parties have different states of private information about product demand, and the chain operations. The problem of this as ymmetry arises because participating firms generally lack the knowledge required about each others plans and intentions to adequately harmonize their services and activities. Supply chain members often do not wish to share their private information completely and faithfully with all others due to the profitability of that actual or anticipated information. Thereby the whole supply chain suffers from suboptimal and opportunistic behavior. These decisions occur when the members donot have sufficient visibility to resolve various tradeoffs in decision making because lack of information causes decisions to be made in a narrow scope that cannot ensure the products flows properly to end customers. Moreover, with limited information sharing, members donot have consistent perceptions of market needs and visibility over performance at the other levels of the supply chain. As a consequence, decisions are made based on either the best estimation of the available data or an educated guess. Such decisions can be biased and prevent the individual member from attaining the optimal solution of the supply chain. For example, the manufacturer often uses incoming orders with larger variance and not sales data from the retailer as a signal about the future product demand. Asymmetric information also produces problems of vulnerability of opportunistic behavior. Specifically, adverse selection and moral hazard manifest themselves in the relationship among the supply chain members. The negative selection of adverse selection, for example, is that the member firms cannot optimize supply chain performance because they donot possess the required capability to meet the predetermined customer service level. ( Semchi levi, David, Philip Kaminsky and Edith Simichi Levi, Designing and Managing the Supply Chain, London: Mc Graw Hill, 1999, pp. 103-107)(Lee, Hau L., V Padmanabhan and Seugjin Whang, The Bullwhip Effect in Supply Chains, Sloan Management Review, Vol. 38, No. 3 (1997), pp 93-102 ) To explain this effect a very simple example of two tier supply chain, a retailer and a manufacturer, can be taken into account. The retailer observes customer demand and places orders to the manufacturer. For determination of the order quantity to place with the manufacturer, retailer will use the observed demand data of customer and a demand forecasting technique. In the 2nd stage, the manufacturer plays his role of forecasting by observing the retailers demand to place order to his suppliers. In many supply chains, the manufacturer doesnt have access to customers demand data thereby making him rely on the retailers data to forecast. As the bullwhip effect implies (the orders placed by the retailer are significantly more variable than the customer demand observed by the retailer), the manufacturers forecasting and inventory control problem will be much more difficult than the retailers forecasting and inventory control problem. In addition, the increased variability will force t he manufacturer to carry more safety stock or to maintain higher capacity than the retailer in order to meet the same service level as the retailer. Longer the supply chain of a company more the impact of bullwhip effect can be observed. This also leads to increase in amount of the inventory across the chain. The rules of ordering such as timing of order placement, the acceptance of or refusal of back orders, order quantities and lot sizes, and cancellation rights and penalties, can have an enormous impact on the total system inventory and the bullwhip effect. To understand these challenges better a simulation of beer distribution game was created by the professors of MIT, Sloan School of Management. This simulation helps to understand the challenges faced by putting the participant in a real life supply chain situation. In this exercise, students enact a four stage supply chain. The task is to produce and deliver units of beer: the factory produces and the other three stages delive r the beer units until it reaches the customer at the downstream end of the chain. The aim of the players is rather simple: each of the four groups has to fulfill incoming orders of beer by placing orders with the next upstream party. Communication and collaboration are not allowed between supply chain stages, so players invariably create the bullwhip in the pipeline or chain. Sterman (1950a) was the first one to actually test the beer game to experience the bullwhip effect to experiment the causes that result to it. He (Sterman) experienced (1) Inventory Rationing (2) order bathing and (3)Price Fluctuations. He also provides evidence on bullwhip effect that occurs due to customers tendency of underweighting the inventory in supply line. The customer does not keep in the account the unreceived inventory at the time of placing a new order. Due to this the orders in backlog are underweighed in the decision to order more. Peter et. al.(1940) identify 4 main causes behind building up of bull whip effect. These causes are:- Demand Forecasting Every company in a supply chain usually does a product forecasting for its production scheduling, capacity planning, inventory control and material requirement planning. This forecast is oftenly done on the basis of previous orders placed by the customers. A very common method of demand forecast is exponential smoothing in which future demands are continuously updated as the real demand data becomes available. The order placed reflects the amount needed to replenish the future demands aswell as safety stock. Due to long lead times the safety stock days surge resulting in greater order quantity fluctuations. Moving a level up, to the manufacturers stage if the method of forecasting is same i.e. exponential smoothing then the demand variability is even more, eventually creating a bullwhip. Order Batching In supply chain most of the organizations place orders with their upstream suppliers after the accumulating them. The frequency of these orders is weekly, biweekly or at times monthly depending on the product. There are several cost related and demand related reasons for this practice. This can be demystified by an example of a company that places an order once a month because of the nature of the product it deals in. The supplier faces a highly erratic stream of orders. There is a spike in demand at one time during the month, followed by no demands for the rest of the month. This variability is higher than the demands the company itself faces. This practice amplifies variability leading to bullwhip effect. Transportation economics also plays a major role in the frequency of order placements. If the truck load is not enough then the order is not released as the cost is same irrespective of the load. Therefore companies prefer to order only when accumulated requirements are enough for a truck load to fill. This period batching causes surges in demand at a particular time period, followed by the periods of time with no or little orders, and other time periods with huge demands. Price Fluctuation Price variation is a crucial factor that impacts the buying behavior of a person. The customer buys in quantities that donot reflect their immediate needs. They buy in bigger quantities and stock up when the prices are low and reduce the purchase when the prices are normal, thereby creating a forward buy pattern in the chain. As a result the customers buying pattern doesnt reflect the consumption pattern and variation between the 2 grows which leads to the bullwhip effect. Rationing and Shortage Gaming When the product demand exceeds its supply the manufacturer is forced to ration them to the customers. Knowing that manufacturer will ration the goods, customers exaggerate their real needs at the time of ordering. Later when the variation between demand and supply plummets down, orders suddenly start to fade and cancellations pour in. This overreaction of the customer is an outcome of anticipation due to lack of information and interaction between the relevant parties. As the customer doesnt get 100% delivery of the goods required, he exaggerates the demand in order to receive the desired amount of goods. The above mentioned literature is comprehensible enough that all the factors or elements resulting in bullwhip effect originate from a common ground i.e. information sharing. It is evident enough that the lack of information and interaction between different stages evolve bullwhip in the system thereby plaguing the whole Supply Chain. Therefore it calls for supply chain integration where different stages upstream and downstream need to combine their operational practices by sharing information and work together towards a common objective. In this collaborative manner firms are likely to have less risk factor and more benefits to reap. Multiple researches have been done in order to prove the impact of inter firm collaboration on the performance of supply chain and attenuate the bull whip effect. Supply Chain Collaboration Intensive competition in the market place has forced companies to respond more quickly to customer needs through faster product development and shorter delivery time. Increasing customer awareness and preferences have led to companies that are able to deliver products with excellent quality, and on time. However the demand of customers for product variety, especially in the case of short life-cycle products such as food, apparel, toys and computers, makes it difficult for manufacturers and retailers to predict which particular variety of the products the markets will accept. To be effective in matching demand with supply, manufacturers and retailers need to collaborate in the supply chain. Each form of collaboration varies in its focus and objectives. Regardless of the collaborative approach taken, however, Simatupang and Sridharan(2003) suggest that the requirements for effective collaboration are mutual objectives, integrated policies, appropriate performance measures, a decision d omain, information sharing and incentive alignment. These requirements demonstrate a need for significant planning and communication to occur between partners, and can require significant resource commitment. Additional studies (Derocher and Kilpatrick, 2000; Mentzer et al., 2000) have affirmed that strong relationships increase the likelihood that firms will exchange critical information as required to collaboratively plan and implement new supply chain strategies. In order for this sharing of critical information to occur, a high degree of trust must exist among the collaborating partners (Frankel et al., 2002). Trust refers to the extent to which supply chain partners perceive each other as credible and benevolent (Ganesan, 1994; Doney and Cannon, 1997). Credibility reflects the extent to which a firm believes their relationship partner has intentions and motives that will benefit the relationship (Ganesan, 1994). One important aspect of information sharing as it relates to colla boration is the delineation of the kind of knowledge, explicit or tactic that results from the exchange of information. Collaborative arrangements involve knowledge transfer that is both explicit (e.g. transactional) and tacit, which resides in social interactions (Lang, 2004). More specifically, explicit knowledge is defined by Lang (2004) and referred to here as knowledge that can be articulated and codified in order to be transmitted easily. Hoover et. al., (2001) identify the benefits of collaboration only when it is done on a larger scale. Therefore they conclude that collaboration cannot be just a solution between close partners, but needs to be implemented with a larger number of business partners. The end goal should be solutions that enable mass collaboration. Darren Peters (six sigma master black belt for Cummins Inc. and also an ex professor of Purdue Universitys College of Technology) in his article on supply chain integration mentioned that a true integration of supply chain calls for a high degree of synchronization and alignment. Peters defines synchronization as information sharing; alignment, the most complex factor, reflects the collective behavior and motives of each partner within an ecosystem. Collaborative Planning Forecasting and Replenishment (CPFR) is the most recent prolific management initiative that provides supply chain collaboration and visibility. It has lately emerged as a new paradigm for the organizations that further want to cut their operational cost and make their supply chain more agile and responsive. Supply chain collaboration involves close work relationship with upstream suppliers and downstream customers. It is a new strategy to make the supply chain more effective and efficient keeping the customer at top priority. The association of Operations Management defines CPFR as follows: Collaboration process whereby supply chain trading partners can jointly plan key supply chain activities from production and delivery of raw materials to production and delivery of final products to end costumers (The Association of Operations Management also known as the American Production and Inventory Control Society, APICS). The complexity of new products, shrinking tim e to market, and capital intensity have led firms to collaborate to improve access to complementary abilities (Scott 2000) to help meet competitive challenges (Kanter 1994) and to address increasing competition due to market globalization, product diversity and technological breakthroughs ( Simatupang, Wright and Sridharan 2002). A greater interconnectedness and trend of outsourcing have led to a greater need for supply chain professionals to work in alliance with firms possessing complementary skills and capabilities. Lambert et. al. (Lambert, Douglas M., Margaret A. Emmelhainz and John T. Gargner,Building Successful Partnerships, Journal of Business Logistics, Vol. 20, No. 1 (1999), pp. 165-181) suggest a particular degree of relationship among chain members as means to share risks and rewards that result in higher business performance than would be achieved by the forms individually. Bowersox (Bowersox, Donald J., The Strategic Benefits Of Logistics Alliance, Harvard Business Rev iew, Vol. 68, No. 4 (1990), pp. 36-43) reports that logistics alliances offer opportunities to dramatically improve customer service and at the same time lower distribution and storage operating costs. Narus and Anderson (Narus, James A. and James C. Anderson, Rethinking Distribution: Adaptive Channels, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 74, No. 4 (1996), pp. 112-120) define a collaborative supply chain as the cooperation among independent but related firms to share resources and capabilities to meet their customers most extraordinary needs. As per a simplistic definition, Collaboration is nothing but a process in which people, groups and organizations work together to achieve desired results. Therefore supply chain collaboration is a business practice wherein trading partners use IT and a standard set of business procedures to combine their intelligence in planning and fulfillment of customer demand (VICS, 2004). The CPFR model created by Voluntary Interindustry Commerce Standards Assoc iation (VICS) is a promising mechanism for the forecast accuracy by having customers and suppliers participation in the forecasting process. A buyer and a seller work together as collaborators to satisfy the needs of the end customer thereby creating a win win situation. VICS 2004 proposes a model that is applicable to almost all the industries. In case of any discrepancy the vendor and the buyer can come together and rectify it by deciding upon the replenishment quantity. This kind of association or professional acquaintance offers a great potential to drastically improve supply chain performance through collaborative demand planning, synchronized production scheduling, logistics planning and new product development. The VICS Association, CPFR provides templates for supply chain collaboration in 4 stages (VICS 2004): Planning Stage: At this phase the relationship between buyers and vendors is planned and updated. It leads to front end agreement and joint business plan. Variances, w hether plan to plan or plan to actual, are also addressed. Forecasting Stage: At this stage, demand (order)/supply (sales) forecast is created and exceptions or discrepancies are identified and resolved. Forecast accuracy visibly improves by having customer and supplier involvement in the planning process and thereby making the goals compatible for both the parties. Execution: At this stage, the order is generated, shipments are prepared and delivered, products are received and stocked on retail shelves, sales transactions are recorded and payments are made. Analysis: At this stage, monitor planning and execution activities for exceptional situations. If a discrepancy occurs, the two trading partners can get together and share insights and adjust plans to resolve such discrepancies. Collaboration and co-operation between producers and their customers is a key component of a modern successful supply chain. As per Tim Bennett (Former President of National Farmers Union, Texas, USA) it is imperative that the organizations develop these relationships not only to drive improvements in efficiency but to respond more effectively to customer demands. As per Aviv (2005); Schwarz (2004) this initiative not only reduces the inventory but also increases sales for both sides i.e. retailers and suppliers. This also includes sharing of data and coming up with new and innovative ideas to attain a common objective. Supply chain collaboration is oftenly defined as 2 or more chain members working together to create a competitive through sharing information, making joint decisions, and sharing benefits which result from greater profitability of satisfying end customer needs than acting alone.(Simatupang Sridharan, 2005; Whipple and Russell, 2007). Narus and Anderson (1996) define Supply Chain Collaboration as sharing knowledge and skills by independent but related firms to meet extraordinary demands of precious customers. The major reasons for companies to collaborate their supply chain with suppliers and/or customers as the case may be, is to reap a better competitive advantage and improve the overall operational efficiency with improved profit margins. As per Wernerfelt 1984 Resource based view shows how firms develop and utilize their resources. Moreover the ownership of scarce and firm specific resources is the reasoned behind its success. Collaboration in the past has very often been interchangeably used with cooperation. Every professional and expert defines it differently. There are several driving forces that for the exchange of reliable information in the supply chain industry. One of these driving forces is competition. Merchandise retailers such as Wal-Mart and K-Mart have expanded product offerings into food items in order to enhance the value of customer service offerings through one-stop shopping. A second driver is the innovative nature of products, or the length of the life cycle and the duration of retail trends in these industries. In the apparel industry, for example, the life cycle of some garments is 6 months or less. Yet, manufacturers typically require up-front commitments from retailers that may exceed 6 months making long term fashion forecasts risky. General merchandise retailers know this years newest toy has a short product life cycle. It is imperative to get the latest trend in the consumer products to market quickly; otherwise, either tremendous lost revenues or markdown prices will be experienced. Long manufacturing lead times necessitate supply chain planning visibility. A third driving force is the longer, more complex supply chain given moves to offshore production. International sourcing for apparel and general merchandise has lengthened the supply chain and cycle time, and necessitating supply chain planning visibility. A fourth driving force behind CPFR is the nature of the supply chain cost structure. Global markets and more competitors are likely to move the supply chain system towards universal participation by all retailers in CPFR in an effort to cut costs (Raghunathan, 1999). All of these driving forces support the need to respond quickly to volatile demand and other market signals. These forces stimulate the development of supply chain visibility tools such as CPFR (Fisher 1997). Identified benefits of collaboration include: revenue enhancements, cost reductions, operational flexibility to cope with demand uncertainties (Fisher, 1197; Lee, Padmanabhan, and Whang, 1997; Simatupang et al., 2005); increased sales, improved forecasts, more accurate and timely information, reduced inventory, improved customer service, (Barratt and Oliveira, 2001; Whipple et al., 2007); division of labor, exchanges of knowledge about products and processes (Kotabe, Martin, Domoto, 2003) and cost and/or problem avoidance (Whipple, 2007). Companies like Wal mart, Procter Gamble and Dell computers have evidently shown that an anticipatory business model is better able to increase sales revenues and deliver profit margins meeting the shareholder expectations. This model is successful only when there is a cooperation and collaboration amongst all the members, internal aswell as external of the entire supply chain. (Supply Chain Collaboration-How to implement CPFR ;Ronald K Ireland with Colleen Crum, pg2). As per Ronald K Ireland reducing the Bull Whip effect in supply chain is not a program or a monthly initiative. It is a continuous practice to maintain a balance and to keep it to minimal due the inevitable nature. About the collaboration Ronal shares one of his experiences at Wal mart where due to some wrong program installation in the systems, purchase orders used to get blocked that lead the point of sale data to zero. The actual break down of collaborative planning happened when no queries were raised regarding the drastic change in point of sale rate. It was only when a supplier requested a Wal mart analyst to verify the forecast. This incident moralizes that it takes a team approach to eliminate the bull whip in the supply chain. Trust plays a vital role in the whole collaborative setup. Without trust and reliability on partners, supply chain collaboration is of no use. It is very important to have trust and faith in the partners to create supply chain into a value chain. Andraski (1994) reports that CPFR engages the manufacturer and retailer into exchanging the marketplace information in order to come up with a customer specific plan that can substantially reduce inventory. There are various cases or examples of CPFR implementation that prove its success. Various types of partnerships (collaborations) have been tried. Wal-Mart and Warner Lambert embarked on the first CPFR pilot, involving Listerine products. In their pilot scheme, Wal Mart and Warner Lambert used special CPFR software to e xchange forecasts. Supportive data, such as past sales trends, promotion plans and even the weather, were frequently transferred in an iterative fashion to allow them to converge on a single forecast should their original forecasts differ. The pilot scheme was very successful resulting in a tremendous increase in sales, better fill rates and in a reduction of inventory investment (Cooke, 1998; Hill, 1999). Other examples of CPFR pilots include Sara Lees Hanes and Wal Mart, involving 50 SKUs of underwear supplied to almost 2500 Wal Mart stores (Hill, 1999; Parks, 1999, 2001; Songini, 2001). In 1996, Hieneken USA employed CPFR to cut its order cycle time and is currently providing Collaborative planning and replenishment software to its top 100 distributors (Aviv, 2001). Procter and Gamble has several active CPFR pilots underway (Schachtman, 2000). Levi Strauss and Co. incorporates certain aspects of the CPFR business process into its retail replenishment service (e.g. by creating jo int business plans and identifying exceptions) (Aviv, 2001). Additionally, in the ECR report entitled European CPFR Insights several CPFR pilots are described including: Unilever Sainsburys GNX, Condis-Henkel-Cartisa, Kraft-Sainsburys GNX, Carton Scholler, Vandemoortele-Delhaize (ECR Europe, 2002). (Andraski and Haedicke, 2003) cited a major gap of misunderstanding, misuse of greater bargaining power and undue expectations in a collaborative relationship. Such gaps can be avoided if mutual agreements on extensive and timely information sharing were put in place to more precisely predict potential problems of matching supply and demand. At the same time these arrangements call for an effective governance structure to address potential economic incentive problems between contracting parties, thereby leading to more cooperation across firm level boundaries. Information Sharing Information is an essential part of managing operations and supply chain management. The above given review is comprehensible enough for us to realize the magnitude of information in supply chain and the repercussions if not communicated properly. It is the most crucial element in the whole CPFR frame of supply chain. Sridharan and Simatupang (2009) define information sharing as a process that facilitates the chain members to capture and disseminate timely, relevant and accurate information such that the recipient is able to plan, execute and control the supply chain operations. Likewise it should flow along with material and money across the supply chain in order to smoothly operationalize the key functions of supply chain. In the era of globalization where organizations have gone and are going multinational, the need of information sharing becomes vital for the smooth running of business. Some supply chains have the ability to share point of sale data to the end consumer with other members of the supply chain. Sophisticated supermarkets like Wal Mart use barcode scanning at the checkouts. These scanned barcodes populates electronic files that help in determining the patterns of particular products. This data is then offered to suppliers for the purpose of capacity planning activities. Utilization of this data only for the purpose of capacity planning doesnt help to resolve the problem of bullwhip as the suppliers still donot get clarity on the fluctuating orders of retailers. The real benefit availed from this data comes from its usage in replenishment or ordering decisions. The suppliers need to be proficient enough to use this information for forecasting replenishment. Effective sharing of information provides a shared basis for concerted actions by different functions across interdependent firms (Whipple et al. 2002). Increasing the level of integration and information sharing has become a necessary tool to bring a competitive advantage to the modern suppl y chain. Multiple researches have been performed in this context in order to develop a strong foundation in favor of information sharing and its crucial role in the all new Integrated Supply Chain Models. According to A.T. Kearney report(Field 2005), the average manufacturer has enjoyed benefits equivalent to million in savings for every $1billion of sales by synchronizing t

Exploring The Four Ancient Civilizations- Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece an

Before the beginning of history, people from across the land gradually developed numerous cultures, each unique in some ways while the same time having features in common. Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece and Israel are all important to the history of the world because of religious, social, political and economic development. In the first civilization, both Mesopotamia and Egypt relied on a hunter-gatherer economic system, during that time, every country in the world strived on it. Mesopotamia had rich soil for agriculture, but experiences floods. For the Mesopotamians, these floods would destroy major cities, but for the Egyptians it would keep the soil rich all year long without the damage that the Mesopotamians had experienced. With the rich soil foods were plentiful around the farm lands, which gave both countries the chance to establish largely dense areas, like what we now know as a city-state. The Nile River also served as a defense for the Egyptians they enjoyed centuries of tranquility and peace in which they used to develop peaceful development of their civilization. For the Mesopotamians, this wasn’t the case. Mesopotamian society consisted of classes and social differences. The nobles, free clients of the nobility, commoners and slaves and Slave women all made up the different classes. The men dominated the women in Mesopotamia. The nobles consisted of the king, his family, the chief priests, and high palace officials. The king was a war leader elected by the citizens. He established an army and led it into battle. Kingship was hereditary. Commoners were free citizens. In ancient Egypt, both women and men could act on their own and were responsible for their own actions. In contrast, Mesopotami... ...males much higher. Also, the four ancient civilizations had to overcome the burden of uniting their people under one king. The need of kings to glorify themselves on statues is a testament of their ruling power, Egypt created many statues that displayed their gods, kings and queens. It was the Egyptians that influenced the Greek to create sculptures of their own ruling powers. Other then sculptures, the Egyptians influenced the Greeks to write on surfaces of buildings, it first started with Hieroglyphs then the ancient Greeks improved on writing, they wrote on large sheets of papyrus which lessened time and made recording events easier. With so much in common the real differences lie beneath the surfaces of religion, power, equal rights and education. All four of the ancient civilizations principles can still be found in many modern countries.

Compare and Contrast: Highschool vs. College Essay

My memory of the first day of high school brings me back to the feeling of being overwhelmed. There were students allocated everywhere in one building. It seemed like every one was confused on where to go and how to behave. It seems like a long time ago to me, but my first day at college brought back those feelings. Even though there weren’t as many people scurrying around, I still felt this overwhelming sense of confusion. Now I find myself as a freshman in college, somewhat similar to that freshman in high school with just a little more independence than what I had four years ago. Most students after grammar school are mandated to attend high school. On the other hand, college is a choice. Although high school teaches us many lesson on the path of maturity, college puts that lesson to a test. Even though there are many similarities between high school and college there are just as many differences. As a freshman in high school, you find yourself developing at an accelerated rate. You have a little more freedom than middle school, a very structured class schedule and most of all the same classmates stick with you throughout all four years. High school is a very structured environment. You become dependent on your teachers and other classmates to guide you through all four years. In college, you are self-reliant and manage your own time and schedule. Depending on others will not help enhance your grades. A high school student needs to structure his or her time and find tune in his or her study habits to ensure better results. To manage your time is a learned experience in high school and carried on through college. Learning how to manage your time in high school all comes together in college. Your time management skills are put to the test in college. Even though the environment in college is to be independent, you depend on the skills learned from high school to help achieve tha t independence. Classes in high school are very structured and defined by the mandatory credits for graduation. These classes are general and are distributed on an annual basis. All students share the same classes that are based on the grade level they are attending. In high school, you depend on your teachers  for that constant reminder of the completion of assignments. On the other hand, in college your professors simply lecture. It is up to the student to understand the material from the lecture. Courses are selected by the student based on their choice of major. Even though the courses are mandated, the selection of courses are defined by the student. For both, high school and college, grades are dependent on the achievement or failure of courses. Homework and assignments are given in high school as an extra credit mechanism to help raise grades. There is more leniency to help achieve a passing grade. In high school, by applying yourself to the classes you are assigned, your grade will reflect on the amount of participation during class. In college, homework is truly based on the amount of effort you place in studying. The professors in college don’t give that leniency. The expectation of a responsible student is to understand and know the material for future use. Tests are given based on the material to further ones knowledge of the course. These tests are based on your grade. Achieving this is based on the effort put into studying, similar to the effort that is placed in high school. In conclusion, some may think high school and college are different when in fact they have similarities. Grammar school prepares us for high school. High school prepares us for college. College prepares us for the future. These experience s define us as individuals. Each environment presents us with learning experiences that we depend on to enhance our abilities to become adults. These experiences are based on appropriate decisions and choices. In order to find the similarities and differences, a student must experience the learning environment for themselves.

Free Essays on Bush At War-Propaganda

Bob Woodward’s book, Bush at War, presents the story line of the war on terrorism from the perspective of Bush and his administration without external researches or verification, making the book seem like endless propaganda leading towards an obsessive goal with attacking Iraq. Woodward’s research is mainly notes from interviews with Bush and information given to him by Bush’s administration; making the book seem more like propaganda. Woodward paints a picture of the President as an honest man who cares about the world and wants to bring peace. Condoleeza Rice is portrayed to be Bush’s adopted daughter and biggest fan. Powell and Bush’s relationship is constantly scrutinize more than necessary, and he (Powell) is like servant more than a the Secretary of State, he is always doing what he is told and when he inputs his opinion it is always shut down or not even considered. Although this is what is perceived of Powell in the book, Woodward makes up fo r Powell’s situation in the Whitehouse by writing good little paragraphs about him. Cheney's influence is downplayed which I think was intentional. Rumsfeld is portrayed to be a mean prick in contrast to Bush’s â€Å"humble, people-loving guy persona†, yet both came in unison when it came to war. Everyone else in the ensemble was more or less dancing along with whatever Bush and Rumsfeld said. At moments I felt the book was like a play in which war making process seemed to flow scene-by-scene, meeting by meeting play. The players (Bush and his administration) seemed to be performing who they were supposed to be. I had to constantly remind myself that this is what supposedly really happened in the Whitehouse and Camp David. Woodward begins with scene-by-scene account of where and what Bush and his administration were doing while the Twin Towers were crashing down. The book continues with series of meetings between Bush and his administration and their plan to attack. Between e... Free Essays on Bush At War-Propaganda Free Essays on Bush At War-Propaganda Bob Woodward’s book, Bush at War, presents the story line of the war on terrorism from the perspective of Bush and his administration without external researches or verification, making the book seem like endless propaganda leading towards an obsessive goal with attacking Iraq. Woodward’s research is mainly notes from interviews with Bush and information given to him by Bush’s administration; making the book seem more like propaganda. Woodward paints a picture of the President as an honest man who cares about the world and wants to bring peace. Condoleeza Rice is portrayed to be Bush’s adopted daughter and biggest fan. Powell and Bush’s relationship is constantly scrutinize more than necessary, and he (Powell) is like servant more than a the Secretary of State, he is always doing what he is told and when he inputs his opinion it is always shut down or not even considered. Although this is what is perceived of Powell in the book, Woodward makes up fo r Powell’s situation in the Whitehouse by writing good little paragraphs about him. Cheney's influence is downplayed which I think was intentional. Rumsfeld is portrayed to be a mean prick in contrast to Bush’s â€Å"humble, people-loving guy persona†, yet both came in unison when it came to war. Everyone else in the ensemble was more or less dancing along with whatever Bush and Rumsfeld said. At moments I felt the book was like a play in which war making process seemed to flow scene-by-scene, meeting by meeting play. The players (Bush and his administration) seemed to be performing who they were supposed to be. I had to constantly remind myself that this is what supposedly really happened in the Whitehouse and Camp David. Woodward begins with scene-by-scene account of where and what Bush and his administration were doing while the Twin Towers were crashing down. The book continues with series of meetings between Bush and his administration and their plan to attack. Between e...

April Raintree Reflection Essays

April Raintree Reflection Essays April Raintree Reflection Paper April Raintree Reflection Paper Reflection on April Raintree Novel by Beatrice Culleton April Raintree Reflection: Chapter 1 The first chapter in the novel April Raintree by Beatrice Culleton gives a very intriguing background to April. We learn about her mother, father and most importantly her younger sister April. We are introduced to her living situation and how terrible it is. It is given from the view of a child, leaving the reader to use their common sense to fill in the blanks. I found myself feeling very sorry for April at the beginning of the book, having to raise her sister all by herself because she thought her parents were sick and needed medicine to get better. When her parentâ„ ¢s would take this medicine I just wanted to tell April what was really going on and to go talk to someone. Even though they got taken away from their family during the chapter I still feel terrible. I hate how young Cheryl is, because if she knew what was going on with her family, she wouldnâ„ ¢t be able to understand even if she wanted to. If I were in April or Cheryls situation I donâ„ ¢t think I could cope with all the stress at such a young age. It seemed obvious that they would get taken away from their family, just because the story had to move forward and there had to be conflict but I didnt want it to happen. Nobody wants to be separated from their family, no matter how bad or neglecting they are towards you. Everyone needs someone to love, and be loved back whether they show it or not. I didnt find this chapter the most interesting of the novel, but it kept me interested in the story and kept me flipping the pages. April Raintree Reflection: Chapter 9 In the ninth chapter April has already married Bob and moves to Toronto to move in with him. She is overwhelmed with the parties, mansions and most importantly her complete and total loneliness. Cheryl comes to her house for Christmas and April is excited and nervous for Bobs mothers reaction. They also get a chance to catch up with each other and Cheryl finds out that April went searching for her parents and didnt tell her. I found that this chapter was the turning point for April and Cheryls relationship. Looking back on the novel I feel that it only got worse from this point. This is to be expected because even though they are blood related they were raised in two different families, which allowed them to become two totally different people. Cheryl has been able to live without her sister for a long time, and I think it becomes clear that she doesnâ„ ¢t want to live with April anymore. I think their different opinions about the Native people are a lot more important than the re ader thinks at this time. I think that because it is such a big part of their lives that it hurts Cheryl to see April not care, and hate those people. To Cheryl, itâ„ ¢s like hating yourself, and your heritage. If I were Cheryl, I would probably be just as upset because I would have it written on my face if there was anyone to hate it, it should be the person who is judged all the time with it. April Raintree Reflection: Chapter 11 This chapter is the most intense chapter in the book. April gets raped, and it is described so perfectly to make the reader feel exactly how scared; humiliated and distraught April was during this terrible time. Just thinking about this scene in the chapter makes me want to cringe and scream at the same time. I want to cringe because I hate being a bystander in those situations, but I also want to scream so I can help her and save her because I know how much it is going to affect her life from that day on for the rest of her life. On the news when you here about children that are getting raped, they donâ„ ¢t go into full detail and I now understand why. I canâ„ ¢t imagine how anyone can go to sleep at night with those vicious memories inside their head. It makes me so angry that people would sink so low to hurt someone so terribly emotionally and physically without thinking. Those people should be hurt just as bad because they will never know how those experiences affect the r est of their victimâ„ ¢s life. I have no sympathy for rapists; no matter what their situation is or even if they were threatened. There should be absolutely no reason for someone like this to get away free, and if there is a death penalty this situation should be the ones where they use it. I know this may seem very harsh, but what they did is more than harsh, it is disgusting, disrespectful and just an overall terrible thing to do. I feel so much for April in this chapter and I feel bad judging her because I dont know what its like to have something so traumatic affecting my day to day life. April Raintree Reflection: Chapter 12 In chapter twelve Cheryl apologizes to April for making her go out to get her things, April goes out with Roger and April and Cheryl buy a house together. If I were Cheryl, the guilt I would feel for letting my sister go out into that part of town would never leave me, but I dont think Cheryl saw it as being that bad. I think this because Cheryl was a prostitute and it probably wasnt that abnormal for those things to happen to people walking on the street, especially young women. I was happy that April and Cheryl decided to move in together because I think that at that specific time in their lives they needed emotional support to help them get through. Even though they are both adults at this stage I always think itâ„ ¢s important to have someone to come to just in case there is no one else to turn to and living with your sister would give you that feeling of comfort and security. Although April was the one who just recently gotten raped I still think Cheryl is the dependent one i n their relationship. She comes across as someone who does her own things and marches to the beat of her own drum but I believe that deep down she just wants someone to love her for who she is and will support her through all her decisions. We could automatically put the blame on April for not being a good sister but I think it boils down to Cheryl and how stable she is as a human being. In the novel, Beatrice Culleton makes her come across as stubborn, smart and dependent. We never see Cheryl as being anything but wanting to be with her sister. Later in the novel we find out that she learns to depend on whiskey to solve her problems because she loses faith in her sister. It is hard to judge Cheryls actions because we donâ„ ¢t know what her life was like from her point of view, only Aprils. April Raintree Reflection: Chapter 14 Chapter fourteen mostly takes place in the courtroom where April is questioned about her rape and is forced to answer questions about it, making her uncomfortable and making her relive that terrible evening. Cheryl decides to support her sister by coming to the trial. In the chapter, we find out what Cheryls job was when April was in Toronto. She is a prostitute and they thought it was Cheryl they were raping, not April. When April heard the news, she couldnt force herself to believe it. Its as if her mind went blank and she couldnt process anything else at that moment. Cheryl had told April that it was all her fault from the very beginning, and it turns out that it was true. It says in the book when April asked Cheryl if it was true that Cheryl just sat there and said nothing like she was expecting it. If I were April I wouldve smacked my sister across the face a few times. I wouldnt be able to control my anger. Iâ„ ¢d probably have steam coming out of my ears, Id be so furious. A bit later in the chapter one of the rapists goes to the stand and claims that he was drunk and didnt know what he was doing. I threw the book across the room at this point. I was so upset, and angry with everyone and I felt so bad so April. April has done absolutely nothing to deserve people like this in her life. All she does is try to make her life enjoyable for herself and does what is right for her, which is how everyone should live his or her lives. No one, no matter what his or her situation is, should have those things happen to him or her. Its not something you wish upon someone. Its the last thing you want to happen to anyone, even your worst enemy. April Raintree Reflection: Chapter 15 Chapter fifteen is not too long of a chapter but it certainly has a lot in it. The main event in this chapter is the fight between April and Cheryl. Recently, Cheryl has been drinking quite often and not staying at home either. Cheryl comes home one afternoon completely wasted and says things to April that are so rude and disrespectful itâ„ ¢s hard to imagine that Cheryl is Aprils sister. Cheryl, in the earlier chapters seems like the one who has her head on her shoulders and could stay away from this stuff but I guess she proved us all wrong. It makes me upset to see a girl with such drive and motivation to throw it all away for a bottle of whiskey which only makes her feel that much worse about life. I can understand how she is upset and is going through a hard time but alcohol is not a permanent cure. It might make you feel like everything is okay for a few hours but after, when you pass out and wake up, you are still right where you started and you then realize that nothing ha s gone away. Itâ„ ¢s actually gotten worse because now you have to deal with a major hangover as well. In the end, Cheryl slams the door and walks out. Even though it may seem like this is a good thing I beg to differ because when someone is drunk it is better to take care of him or her instead of letting him or her go on the street where they could be taken advantage. April Raintree Reflection: Chapter 16 When I read this chapter, I cried for a good half an hour. It is so emotional for the reader I cant even describe how I felt reading it. At the end of the chapter when we find out that Cheryl jumped off the bridge just like her mother did, my heart fell into my stomach. I felt like April did. I felt alone, like a part of me has been lost and could never be found again. She was the character you couldnt help but love throughout the whole book, and you just wanted to tell her that so she would rethink this selfish act. Suicide is something that I cannot understand personally because I have never experienced such depression. I cant imagine how the author felt writing this knowing that her two sisters went through this very same thing. I am honestly speechless about this ending. Its so sad that it took death for April to realize what Cheryl had been trying to get across for so long. Cheryl did not deserve this life, or to die this way. I want her to come back to life and change her life for the better but maybe this is the way it was meant to be. Maybe, this is what wouldve happened no matter what path shed taken. Its one of situations that you cant even question, you just have to take a deep breath and let it sink in. April Raintree Overall Reflection At the beginning of the book I had to force myself to read it because I couldnt get into it, but as they started to get older I couldnt put it down. I fell in love with the characters and their differences and how they complimented each other so perfectly. I wish we got to see both sides of the story, from April and Cheryls point of view. However, I think that in order for us to believe Cheryls end result there had to be another side of Cheryl that both April and the reader never see. Its a realistic story which makes it that much spookier. People actually live this life and for people like us, who have food to eat and a stable home life it is impossible to comprehend. It would seem so easy to just leave home if things were bad, but when you grow up in that situation from such a young age it is normal to you. Throughout the book we mostly heard about Aprils story, which I think was used as a distraction from Cheryls life to create more mystery. When I was reading about Aprils fabulou s rich life I was always worrying about Cheryl and what she was up to. She was the underdog that you wanted to come out on top and make a difference just like she said she would when she was younger. I think I lost all hope in Cheryl when later in the book she came home drunk. Seeing anyone you care about loses all control and just not care anymore, makes you worried but also makes you not care anymore. It shouldnt be your responsibility to make someone realize why his or her life is worth living; they should know that by themselves without being told. Even though I lost all hope, I still wished, in the back of my mind that she would surprise me and make me smile like she did when she sent April that letter with all the spelling mistakes in it. This novel clearly shows the ups and downs of living the way these girls did. It showed the constant struggle to succeed and be better than their names, and the colour of their skin. It starts off as such a hopeful book, and in the end is a h opeful book as well. There a lot of events that occur during the novel that make you lose hope but even when Cheryl dies, April find hope, and promises to continue what Cheryl has wanted from the very beginning.

Research the topic of Information Security Management from quality Paper

The topic of Information Security Management from quality - Research Paper Example A large number of small-to-medium sized enterprises have and are investing a substantial amount of capital and resources into their business to cement their place within the world of business (eCom Advisor, 2000). The latest networking technology not only helps them achieve this but also allows them to expand their business and upgrade their SME into a large enterprise. This paper would take a look at the security threats that an SME faces online and its need of information security management to tackle these threats. ... This exposes their data to threats such as phishing, Trojans, spam and viruses. These threats could have a serious impact on the daily operations of the business being conducted. Moreover these threats can even sometimes have long term effects that hinder in the company’s growth and become a reason towards the loss in the company’s productivity (GFI software, 2009). SMEs are usually restricted in terms of resources and finances. Any significant loss of data or leakage of secret information could destroy the entire business (GFI software, 2009). This means that data integrity is a vital component within a SME and can make or break its business. An effective Information security management allows businesses to implement various measures that would protect various data and assets that the business owns. Information security management not only allows an organization to tackle security threats that it faces but also allows it to measure the impact the attack would have on t he performance of the business (Alexander, Finch, & Sutton, 2008). Incident response management and disaster recovery Components of an incident: Before the discussion of an incident management system it is vital to understand what an incident is and what the components of an incident are. An incident is an event that occurs due to an action that is executed by a person or an individual. Usually the purpose of these actions is to cause harm to the working of the system or to the data contained within the system. It is vital to point out here that incidents are a subset of events. An incident comprises of three components event, incident response team and incident investigation (Molino, 2006). An event is an activity that causes a deviation of the system from its normal working. An event is

Health Care Reform Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Health Care Reform - Essay Example With Federal Government playing a pivotal role and funding at the national level, a community network of public/private health care should be developed by identifying people and localities where high quality care is lacking. Both public and private agencies should be engaged to arrive at expert consensus on end-of-life care models sensitive to the linguistic and cultural backgrounds of the patients and their families. Health care professionals should be trained to be proactive and to give personalized care with proper communication amongst care providers, patients and their families. Funds should be made available at the community level to all possible support services that are non-medical with the objective of providing dying patients and their families with the best comfort possible during their last days. (Citizens' Health Care Working Group 2007) These recommendations will soon be in the hands of the new American President for implementation. The two presidential candidates Hillary Clinton for the Democratic Party and Jon McCain for Republican Party have already spelt out their about their stand on health care as part of their election campaigns. Hillary Clinton is on record having spelt out her remarks on health care. Universal health care is her key word as other wise she fears millions and millions of people will be left out.