Analysis of the Level of Customer Service Kohls versus Home Depot Free Essay Example, 2500 words

The main problems faced by Home Depot are that managers are unable to clearly identify the goals of the corporation and find appropriate solutions to improve quality. They do not possess the vision of the problems the company has. To improve Home Depot performance they should take into account the following aspects. The first is the identification of a task and the quality of its fulfillment. The group exists to achieve a common purpose or task, and the leader's actions in one area affect both the others; thus the successful achievement of the task is essential if the group is to be held together and its members motivated to give their best effort to the job. In contrast, Kohl maintains exceptional customer service quality and quality control which helps to ensure long-term success and customer loyalty. Performance and development reviews provide those involved with the opportunity to reflect on past performance as a basis for making development and improvement plans. Obtaining a hi storical perspective through analysis is a necessary part of the review but reaching an agreement about what should be done in the future is what it is all about. We will write a custom essay sample on Analysis of the Level of Customer Service Kohls versus Home Depot or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/page If there is a falling away in commitment, a slackness that creeps in, with deadlines or meetings missed, or hair-splitting or carping, don't avoid the issue tell the team that they exist to support one another in getting the job done. Thus, Kohl s pays more attention to technological innovations and improvements while Home Depot relies on traditional channels of communication. The advantage is that Kohl s meets the requirement of wide audience marketing stylish pieces of furniture. The high quality of products is the main criterion for the company. Taking into account the company s policies, it is possible to say that it does not reduce the costs of production as it can worsen the quality of their products. These marketing principles and marketing approaches indicate economic health and growth of the company which becomes increasingly dependent upon sales as an engine of growth.

Notes On Ajax Life And Participation On The Trojan War

Shivan Desai, 6802944 AJAX (AIAS) ΑΙΑÎ £ For information on Ajax’ life and participation in the Trojan War, read the following secondary sources: †¢ Buxton: p. 135-137 (â€Å"The Iliad† and â€Å"To the fall of Troy† –see also images on the bottom of p. 137) †¢ Greek Mythology Link: http://www.maicar.com/GML/Ajax1.html Type your answers under each question (It is important that you include the questions. Do not omit them!) Ajax is Achilles’ first cousin, a handsome man and formidable warrior, is called the â€Å"wall† of Achaeans for his strength and his huge stature towering all other Greeks. †¢ Read Iliad book 7 : 180-312 (The duel between Ajax and Hector): o Ajax’s presence and his armour are described by Homer in quite a magnificent way. How?†¦show more content†¦Ajax s clothing are described in a parallel fashion to which his power is, Next came the two Ajaxes, men clothed in an impetuous ferocity.† (Iliad 7.198-199). After the choosing of whom is to face Hector, face of the Trojan people, Ajax is once again portrayed as mighty, in which the Archaean’s acknowledge, From it fell out the very lot men were hoping for, the one for Ajax. (Iliad 7.216-217) and describes him as a magnificent figure, stating noble Ajax (Iliad 7.213). Ajax s armour is then continuously elaborated upon, So men prayed. Ajax armed himself in glittering bronze. When all his armour was in place around his body, he moved forward, like some gigantic Ares (Iliad 7.245-247). Ajax s presence and choosing to face Hector seems significant in the manner of which portrays H ector s speculative fear for his might, Even in Hector’s chest the heart beat rapidly. But there was nothing he could do to pull back now, retreat into the ranks. For he had made the challenge, made it eagerly. (Iliad 7.256-259). Homer once again elaborates how magnificent Ajax s armour is, Ajax approached bearing his shield. It was like a tower made of bronze, with seven layers, each one of ox-hide, a weapon made by Tychius, the best of leather workers, who lived in Hyle. He’d made the glittering shield for Ajax from the hides of seven well-fed bulls. On top of these, he’d set an eighth layer made of bronze.

The Secret Circle The Divide Chapter 11 Free Essays

string(34) " Diana approached them gradually\." Cassie was in town running errands when the rich aroma of the Witch’s Brew Coffee Shop filled her lungs. Coffee, she thought. What a good idea. We will write a custom essay sample on The Secret Circle: The Divide Chapter 11 or any similar topic only for you Order Now The Witch’s Brew was a gimmick, plain and simple, capitalizing on the town’s Salem witch trial – related history. At night it featured strobe lights and white cotton cobwebs, and was a favorite place for anyone from out of town looking for an overpriced drink with a gothic name. The locals, and Cassie’s friends especially, avoided the place for obvious reasons. But in the light of day, the Brew could almost pass as an ordinary coffee shop, and they’d just set up their outdoor tables. Cassie figured it wouldn’t be so bad if she could sit outside sipping her drink in the sun, so she looked for an empty seat. That was when she noticed that familiar dyed red hair she knew belonged to Scarlett. She was bent over a book, reading and mindlessly chewing on a pencil. Cassie’s first instinct was to go sit with her, but then she remembered the new rule. Outsiders were off limits for now. It wasn’t fair. The Circle shouldn’t be able to dictate whom Cassie had coffee with. But even Faye was willing to relinquish some of her personal freedom for the good of the group. And Cassie had to get to the lighthouse anyway. In lieu of being able to do magic, Melanie and Laurel were resorting to herbology to pass the time. They’d asked resorting to herbology to pass the time. They’d asked Cassie to bring over the flowers from a rare herb in her garden – the Plymouth gentian. Cassie felt for the paper bag containing the flowers in her tote, as if to remind herself of the errand’s importance. She turned to go just as Scarlett noticed her. â€Å"Cassie?† Scarlett’s face instantly lit up. â€Å"It’s so good to see you,† she said. â€Å"Come sit with me.† â€Å"I can’t,† Cassie said, scanning the surrounding area. â€Å"I only have a minute.† â€Å"Sit for only a minute then.† Scarlett closed her book and pushed it aside. Scarlett looked so lonely sitting there by herself. It would have been cruel to decline. â€Å"What are your plans for today?† Cassie asked casually. Scarlett raised her hands and looked left and right. â€Å"This,† she said. â€Å"It ain’t much.† Cassie offered her a polite chuckle. â€Å"Thanks again for coming to Melanie’s the other day. I’m sorry I kind of lost track of you and didn’t get to say good-bye.† Scarlett’s dark eyes radiated affection. â€Å"No problem,† she said. Then she took a long sip of her iced coffee and seemed to be weighing something in her mind or trying to figure something out. Cassie felt like she was being examined so deeply that Scarlett could have been counting each of her pores or every one of her eyelashes, but Cassie just let her. For some reason, it didn’t make her feel self-conscious. She didn’t know why, but she wanted Scarlett to know her, and to really see her. to really see her. After another moment passed, Scarlett said, â€Å"I really like your friends. And since I don’t know anyone on the island, I was hoping to make a good impression.† Cassie knew this was the moment where, if she were a regular girl without a Circle to answer to, she would ask Scarlett to hang out. Instead, she offered her a pathetic-sounding conciliation. â€Å"I was the new kid not long ago,† Cassie said. â€Å"And I know how brutal making friends in this town can be.† Scarlett’s full red lips broke into a wide smile. â€Å"That’s why I’m going to guilt you into being friends with me.† Cassie laughed. She enjoyed Scarlett’s unpretentiousness. She was just the kind of no-nonsense girl Cassie would have been friends with back in California. â€Å"For example,† Scarlett said, â€Å"I’m going to remind you that I moved here with a single pathetic suitcase to convince you to go shopping with me.† Cassie remembered Diana’s snarky comment about Scarlett’s suitcase and was embarrassed by it all over again. She glanced at her watch. She had another two hours before she had to be at the lighthouse. What could be the harm in going around to a few stores for an hour? â€Å"Lucky for you, shopping is one of my favorite leisure-time activities,† Cassie said. â€Å"Does that mean you’re in?† Scarlett asked. â€Å"Why not?† Cassie stood up. â€Å"My errands can wait.† Scarlett shot out of her seat. â€Å"That worked even better than I thought it would.† Shopping with Scarlett was the perfect diversion from all of Cassie’s troubles. Since she couldn’t talk about any of the Circle’s issues, she had to put them out of her mind entirely. It was like getting to be somebody else for a few hours, somebody with normal concerns. Concerns like, Is forty dollars too much to pay for a tank top even if it’s really really soft? And Scarlett was a master shopper; she could pluck out the best item on a sale rack with the speedy foresight even a witch could admire. She somehow talked Cassie into buying turquoise-blue feathered earrings. â€Å"These are more your style than mine,† Cassie said, just after the impulse buy. â€Å"We can share them.† Scarlett smiled brightly. â€Å"In fact, we can share most of this stuff. That’s the beauty of being the same size.† Cassie agreed and then suggested they unload their shopping bags into the trunk of her car before searching out the perfect summer shoes. She and Scarlett slipped so easily into friendship that Cassie forgot she was supposed to be keeping her distance from her. So the sight of Diana stepping out of her Volvo across the parking lot didn’t strike Cassie as an immediate cause for alarm. Her panic didn’t set in until Diana’s eyes met hers – first with the delight of a surprise encounter, followed by a narrowing, painful displeasure. Cassie had been caught blatantly defying a promise she had made to the Circle. Diana approached them gradually. Her â€Å"hello† sounded more like a snub than a greeting. â€Å"I see you two have been having a good time,† she said, gesturing to their shopping bags. Scarlett, sensing the coldness in Diana’s voice, smiled politely but said nothing. â€Å"I ran into Scarlett unexpectedly,† Cassie said. Diana derided Cassie with her eyes. â€Å"I guess there’s a lot of that happening today.† Cassie bit her lip but said nothing. Scarlett shifted uncomfortably and said, â€Å"Maybe I should get going.† â€Å"No,† Diana said. â€Å"I should.† She stepped past them toward the mall ‘s entrance. â€Å"I’ll talk to you later, Cassie.† â€Å"That girl really does not like me,† Scarlett said, once Diana was out of earshot. Cassie wasn’t sure how to begin defending Diana’s behavior. It’s not like Scarlett could possibly understand. â€Å"It has nothing to do with you,† Cassie said. â€Å"Believe me. But I’m still sorry.† Scarlett shrugged it off. â€Å"I’ll let you make it up to me by joining me for dinner.† Cassie was torn. She knew the right thing to do was to separate from Scarlett and immediately go do damage control with Diana, but she’d been having such a good time, and breaking off from Scarlett now would only hurt her feelings. â€Å"How about burgers from Buffalo House?† Scarlett asked. â€Å"I’m buying.† â€Å"I really shouldn’t.† Cassie felt for the bag of herbs in her tote and looked at her watch. But a bacon cheeseburger sounded like bliss right now. A girl had to eat, right? â€Å"Okay,† Cassie said at last. â€Å"If you come with me to run this errand first. It’s just a quick favor for a friend. Then we can go for burgers.† Scarlett beamed. â€Å"Perfect,† she said. Of course, the Circle would not approve of Cassie bringing Scarlett along, but she was careful. And Scarlett didn’t ask any questions, even when Cassie insisted she stay in the car while she ran into the abandoned lighthouse with a paper sack under her arm. And since Melanie and Laurel hadn’t arrived yet, all she had to do was drop the bag onto the table and go. It took less than a minute to get in and out. And then she and Scarlett were free to race over to Buffalo House for burgers. Later that night, Adam came over to Cassie’s for a cozy night of popcorn and a movie. Her mom was upstairs, allowing them their privacy in the den, where they lounged on the soft-backed couch. Cassie sunk down into the cushion with her head resting on Adam’s shoulder, breathing him in. She could get drunk off the smell of him. They weren’t really watching the movie, or at least Cassie wasn’t. She had her eyes closed and was focused on Adam’s gentle caresses, how he slid his soft fingers up the inside of her arm, starting at the wrist, moving to the elbow, and back down again. She could have done that all night; the movie was just noise in the background. But then Adam looked down to see if she was awake. â€Å"You’re sleeping,† he said. Cassie opened her eyes. â€Å"I’m not sleeping, just enjoying.† Adam got a serious look in his eye, and Cassie was sure he was about to lean in to kiss her. This was how their movie watching usually turned out. But this time, instead of kissing her, he clicked the movie off and sat upright. â€Å"There’s something I’ve been meaning to talk to you about,† he said. Cassie also sat up straight and pulled her knees into her chest. She couldn’t imagine what was about to come out of his mouth. A million possibilities, one worse than the next, raced through her mind. â€Å"Diana said she saw you out shopping this afternoon,† Adam said. â€Å"With Scarlett.† Cassie stiffened. â€Å"Oh.† â€Å"She thinks your friendship with Scarlett is getting too close.† â€Å"Well, thank you for telling me what Diana thinks,† Cassie said. The remark made Adam raise his voice, which was something he never did in Cassie’s presence. â€Å"I don’t think I should have to tell you that you’re putting yourself at risk by spending so much time with an Outsider,† he said. â€Å"You’re putting all of us at risk.† â€Å"Is that even how you really feel, or is that how Diana feels?† Adam jerked back as if Cassie had taken a swing at him. â€Å"What’s that supposed to mean?† â€Å"Why are you siding with Diana on this? You’ve always been the one to jump to the defense of Outsiders.† â€Å"Cassie, what’s going on with you? Come here.† Adam tried to reach for her, but she pulled away. Cassie knew she was overreacting – this was Adam, the guy who stayed up all night on her front porch just to protect her. And Adam and Diana had been friends their whole lives; of course Diana went to him for advice. But she still didn’t want him to touch her. â€Å"I’m not siding with anyone,† Adam said. â€Å"These aren’t normal circumstances. You know that.† But all Cassie could hear right now was Diana in Adam’s words, and she couldn’t help but be a little hurt. â€Å"I feel with my entire being that Scarlett is safe,† Cassie said. Adam looked like he was about to reach for Cassie again, but then he thought better of it. â€Å"I just want you to be careful,† he said. â€Å"I’m always on your side. You know that.† He carefully moved in closer to her. â€Å"I’m sorry I raised my voice. But I feel strongly about this. We have no way of knowing that Scarlett isn’t a witch hunter. She arrived in town the same night Constance died.† â€Å"You’re being ridiculous,† Cassie said. â€Å"No, you’re being ridiculous. And stubborn.† Cassie took a deep breath and tried to settle down. â€Å"Let’s just drop it, okay?† But Adam refused. â€Å"I know you really like Scarlett,† he said. â€Å"And I get it, I do. She seems nice and funny and pretty. We all like her, but it’s not a good time to let your guard down.† â€Å"It never is when you’re one of us.† â€Å"You say that like you don’t want to be one of us, like it’s some kind of curse.† â€Å"Let’s just finish the movie,† Cassie said. â€Å"Cassie, look at me.† â€Å"I’ll stop hanging out with her, okay?† Cassie shouted. â€Å"I ran into her by accident, but I’m sure Diana didn’t mention that part.† Cassie clicked the TV back on. She stared straight ahead and sat as far away from Adam as the couch would allow. She was done talking for the night. How to cite The Secret Circle: The Divide Chapter 11, Essay examples

Sap Research Centers free essay sample

Shanghai the right choice to locate an SAP Research Lab in Asia? What competitive advantage does this location provide? Discuss the positives and negatives of this location considering the overall SAP Research Strategy. Although Shanghai provides some competitive advantages, it is not the right choice for SAP to locate its research lab in Asia. Shanghai provides the following competitive advantages as one of SAPs choices to locate its SAP Research Lab in Asia: Large potential Chinese market for business applications: OERP software systems are not yet widely adopted in China. In early 008, over 55% of Chinese enterprises had not adopted ERP systems, either used in- house systems or no systems. SME (which had potential to grow into large enterprises) market was dominated by two local players o A potential for many innovative and new designs that may be conceived in China o SAP executives hoped that establishing a research unit would open up the Chinese government to purchasing and using SAP software for tax management and internal administration in the future Government support: o Chinese government provided various support to stimulate greater levels of innovation and indigenous research capabilities in China. Such support included and was not limited to tax benefits for both enterprises and employees, creation of software parks, tightening of IP protection regulation (despite continuing challenges), etc. Establishing a research operation was highly encouraged by the Chinese government, which would help SAP to develop its business relationship with the Chinese government and eventually strengthen its market position in China The existing development group (SAP China Lab): o Most convenient and lowest-cost option o Established connection with the top 10 universities in China to provide access toa uality talent pool Shanghai as a city (comparing with nearby second-tier Chinese cities and some other cities in Asia): o Offered better infrastructure, proximity to other firms, access to skilled employees, and the lifestyle attraction for managers and their families of being in the most international city in China Given SAP Researchs mission to explore emerging technologies or revolutionary appli cations and to direct future product development, the location of Shanghai offered additional benefits besides the competitive advantages discussed above: Collaboration with SAP China Lab (product development) Avoidance of high competition for researchers in some other locations (e. g. Beijing) Despite the above positive aspects of choosing Shanghai, there were more critical negatives of this location: Fierce competition for limited local talents: This was the single most important issue that would veto choosing Shanghai as the location for SAP Research Lab in Asia. There were a few detrimental issues: o The talent pool ot local universities would provide very limited candidates. though China nad over one billion people, Chinese education system was not geared towards producing graduates with innovation capabilities. Only the top 1% of graduates of Chinese masters degree and PhD programmes had received the same quality of education as those graduating from top European and US universities. Even worse, the highly sought-after and globally mobile group was snapped up by local Chinese companies and MNCs or had sought out opportunities abroad, leaving behind largely less qualified as researchers. o Attracting experienced research staff from the US and Germany also proved to be unsuccessful and difficult as well. o There were few pioneering research clusters outside of Beijing, particularly in IT and anagement science research, which resulting in most IT companies (like Microsoft and Tata) setting up their main research labs in Beijing. Beijing also hosts many of the top Chinese universities. Comparatively, Shanghai lacked such proximity and thus did not foster an environment for collaboration and networking among researchers, which ultimately would limit new idea generation and innovation. o SAPs research division was not as well known as its business applications. Hence, misunderstandings and confusion were created in the recruitment process for SAP Research, which made attracting local talents more difficult. Ђ Given the significant involvement in the IT industry from Chinese government and Chinese business practices of relationship-oriented, Shanghai not being Chinas government and administrative center also made it ds-advantageous to become a hub for research labs. Overall, Shanghai might not be a wise pick by SAP to set up its research lab in Asia. 2. How can SAPs Shanghai Research Center be successful in attracting top local talent as well as top experienced researchers from around the globe? Can SAP Research China achieve world-class, innovative research, on-par with Western ounterparts, without offering extremely high compensation packages? Due to its Job nature, researchers often need to be involved in research projects requiring three to seven years of work. To entice employees to stay with the company for a longer period of time will be quite difficult, especially in its Shanghai Research Center, whose host city offers abundant employment opportunities. Moreover, the analysis in question 1 shows that attracting talents both locally and from abroad is a tough competition. So, SAP Shanghai Research Centers employee incentive program will have to ccommodate both short- and long-term. On top of a competitive (not extremely high) package, which have to be in line with its global pay scale, SAP could consider offering a tenure system similar to that of US universities professors. Before granted tenure, research staff needs to fulfill a certain mid-term (say a minimum of five years) employment with SAP research division and demonstrate creative and innovative capability via delivering research achievements. The tenure researchers will be offered life-time employment and opportunities to work in the Research Labs that