Police ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Police ethics - Essay Example The enormous powers enjoyed by these detectives must be tamed through some strict checks on their ethical conduct in exercising these powers at right spot and the correct manner. While having such powers in most cases is a legal necessity but justified and dignified application of these powers is often an ethical issue. In United States there are several documents at national level like Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, its Bill of Rights and the Federalist Papers which are meant to enforce these ethical guidelines. However there is a lack of education and implementation in this connection. The tools and trick that are used in an investigation also provides a ground for ethical arguments and concerns. For example the use of sex and friendship in undercover investigations are very common tools for the police detectives but their ethical issues are lease bothered at higher level in the department. However, police ethical misconduct in using these undercover investigat ion tools is highly probable.

That which is accepted as knowledge today is sometimes discarded Essay - 5

That which is accepted as knowledge today is sometimes discarded tomorrow - Essay Example Whether in primary or middle school, the true purpose of education has lost its significance to a great extent as people seem to have forgotten that education is intrinsically linked with acquisition of knowledge. (Davidson and Carber, 2009, p.9) During the formative years, the students traverse through different stages of development and the educational programs that they are taught are not similar as that of middle schools, but one of the most significant aspects of PYP or Primary Years Program is to inculcate the idea of inquiry although it is doubtful whether the educators make genuine efforts for developing the stance of inquiry (Davidson and Carber 2009, p.11). Moreover, the teachers are concerned with the completion of curriculum that robs the children of their natural abilities of expression. For instance, if a child is unable to grasp the concept of ‘transparent’ in the classroom, a teacher may or may not prefer to take special efforts to think of a better way to solve this problem although the principles of teaching reinforce this concept. Thus, knowledge remains unfinished in most schools from early childhood and children may never learn to ask questions even during the latter years when they grow up to become adults. Knowledge, as it is known to us remains a maxim that looks good in text books and it is a fact that few people will be able to abolish when viewed in today’s perspective. The most common example that can be cited for explaining the redundancy of knowledge is that of computer education, which is now being taught in most schools and colleges. It is undoubtedly true that the world of computers, which is developing faster than a sudden storm, leave the learners in awe. Moreover, the parents are puzzled with the inclination among most children to choose computer as their chosen subject. Additionally, the computer programs and curriculums that are taught in

Economics Regulation and Market Structures Essay

Economics Regulation and Market Structures - Essay Example Economic regulation affects new companies who want to enter into a market. This reason why new competitors are affected is that they may not be able to enter into a market due to this form of regulation. Social regulation deals with exact social problems such as toxic waste, produce safety, employee safety, and prejudice (â€Å"Social Regulation†). Social regulation exists because in the 60s and 70s the government established regulatory agencies to handle a wide variety of social problems. The entities affected by social regulation include local businesses and citizens. Businesses may have to have a plan to deal with social problems, while citizens may have their rights restricted in terms of what they can purchase. A natural monopoly occurs when a firm can fulfil the market demand for a good or service at a cheaper price than all other competitors (â€Å"Natural Monopoly†). The reason why natural monopolies occur is because sometimes a market can only support one produ cer. According to economic theory, firms can attain monopolies because of unique raw materials, technology, or other factors. An example of a natural monopoly is the gas industry. It is uneconomical to build new infrastructure so just one set of infrastructure is built. This results in company having total control of the market (Pieterz). The antitrust laws attempt to order business to compete fairly.

INTERPERSONAL INFLUENCE Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

INTERPERSONAL INFLUENCE - Assignment Example My house was a mess: my toilet is leaking, renovations were in order, and my husband was painting the place, an electrician was replacing the old wiring systems, the old furniture had been auctioned, and a plumber was taking care of the plumbing system. Simply put, the house was not in a good condition to host my friends. The party was scheduled for the weekend and some of my husband’s friends would really want to watch football, which was going to be a problem since we had no cable connection that month. My neighbor happens to have a good home-theater and reliable cable connection; this would really come in handy. Therefore, I began by enticing my neighbor with muffins two weeks before the party. She liked them so much that she came over for some lessons on baking. I remember she even baked some for one of her friends who had a birthday a few days later. I comfortably let her use my oven because I knew that she would feel obliged to reciprocate the favor by agreeing to let me use her house for my get-together. I offered to help her make the muffins just in case she got stuck, and even prepared extra niceties (cookies) for her to present to her friend. She was very pleased with my being nice to her. We had not known each other for long, and she did not know many of the friends on my guest list . I had planned for fifteen people, and I was not sure she would agree to accommodate fifteen strangers in her house. However, I needed a place that was close to mine for the sake of cooking and coordination just in case people needed to sleep over or put their belongings. One day after coming from her friend’s party, I went over to her place, asked her about the party and whether her friend liked the muffins. I told her about my party and that she was invited since we had formed a good friendship. She was a bit surprised when I dropped the bombshell on her about hosting fifteen people at her house. However, she

Human Development Essay Example for Free

Human Development Essay Taking a look at the Human Development Index map of Africa, which can be seen on (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_Development_Index) on the web; it shows that many of Africas countries are very underdeveloped.7 One of the obvious reasons for why countries is Africa are underachieving is because of how poor is the strength of their economy compared to others. As it is well known, Africa is very rich in mineral resources as many other states rely upon their, possessing most of the known minerals types of the world. Africas economy is more reliant on agriculture than that of any other continent, with around 60% of Africans working in the agricultural sector. Secondly, the economic development of virtually all African nations has been hindered by inadequate transportation systems. Most countries rely on road networks that are composed largely of dirt roads, which become impassable during the rainy seasons. Road networks tend to link the interior of a country to the coast; few road systems link adjacent countries.9 To show how poor and how bad economy crisis is in Africa, one ought to take a look at their food crisis and the growing volume of food imports. Whereas Africa imported an average volume of 1.96 million metric tons of agricultural products in the years 1961-63, by 1980-82 this figure had risen to 11.2 million metric tons at an annual value of over $6.8 billion (over one-seventh of the total value of Africas imports in 1982).Owing to foreign exchange constraints, most African countries have had to rely increasingly on food aid to meet their imported food requirements.10 The commercial sectors of most African states rely heavily on one or a few export commodities. The bulk of trade occurs with industrialized nations, which require raw materials and sell industrial and consumer goods. Trade between African states is limited by the competitive, rather than complementary, nature of their products and by trade barriers, such as tariffs, and the diversity of currencies. Looking at the economy of Europe, a sharp contrast in strength and influence can visibly be seen. Europe has long been a world leader in economic activities. As the birthplace of modern science and of the Industrial Revolution, Europe acquired technological superiority over the rest of the world, which gave it unquestioned dominance in the 19th Century. An important impetus for growth since the mid-20th Century has been the formation of supranational organisations such as the European Union, the European Free Trade Association, and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. Unlike Africa, Europe has highly developed transport systems, which are densest in the central part of the continent. Many countries in Europe use well maintained transportation systems to transport important goods such as water transport which plays a major role in the European economy. Almost all European countries maintain national airlines, and several, such as Air France, British Airways, Swissair, Germany, and Netherlands are major worldwide carriers.13 Looking at both economies and trade, it is unquestionably obvious that Europe conducts substantial international trade compared to Africa. For Europe, much of its trade is intra-continental, especially among members of the European Union, but also engages in large-scale trade with countries of other continents. Germany, France, Great Britain, Italy and the Netherlands are among the worlds greatest trading nations. A large portion of European inter-continental trade involves the exporting of manufactured goods and the importing o f raw materials. Europes agricultural sector is generally highly developed, especially in Western Europe. The agricultural sector in Europe is helped by the Common Agricultural Policy, which provides farmers with a minimal price for their products and subsidized their exports, which increases competitiveness for their products. This policy is highly controversial as it hampers free trade worldwide (protectionism sparks protectionism from other countries and trade blocs: the concept of trade wars) and is violating the concept of fair trade.15 Africas economy is more reliant on primary products (i.e, agricultural and mineral) than that of any other continent, with around 60% of Africans working in the agricultural sector. About three fifths of African farmers are subsistence farmers tilling small pots of land to feed their families, with only a minimal surplus that can be sold for other goods.16 However, there are significant number of large farms that grow cash crop such as coffee, cotton, cocoa, and rubber; these farms, normally operated by large corporations, cover tens of square kilometres and employ large number of labourers. Africas geography is unsuited to trade and thus hampers its economy. The centre of the continent, at least on the western side, is an almost impenetrable rainforest that greatly impedes the transit of people of goods. Some of the wealthiest parts of South Africa are blocked from the rest of Africa by the Kalahari Desert, while the Sahara creates an obvious barrier to trade. While Africa has a number of great river systems such as those of the Nile, Niger, Congo, and Zambezi, it is not nearly as well-linked rivers as are other areas such as Europe. Moreover, many of the rivers are blocked by rapids and cataracts that require vast development projects if they are to be bypassed. The wetness of the roads and tracks makes transport difficult and hazardous. In addition Africa is cut off from the sea to a greater extent than any other continent. To enforce even more problems to Africa; there is an increasing amount of desertification occurring in Africa where the deserts, especially the Sahara are becoming larger, enveloping area around them, leaving less space for land. This process is partly due to the deforestation of areas of forest; with no roots to hold soil in place, it blows away leaving an infertile desert. Europe has a well developed financial sector. Many European cities are financial centres with the City of London being the largest.19 The European financial sector is helped by the introduction of the euro as common currency. This has made it easier for European households and firms to invest in companies and deposit on banks in other European countries as exchange rate fluctuations are now non-existent in Europe. As mentioned above, Europes economy is superior to that of Africa, so what can Africa do to improve its economy or perhaps what can it take from the Europe economy as a model. Professor J A. van Ginkel held a conference on the Knowledge and Development in Africa; here he talked about ways to improve Africas economy however not only by getting the economic policies right.20 Prof van Ginkel mentions that there is now substantial evidence that institutional weakness in many African countries is a critical obstacle to economic performance.21 From the surveys he conducted on the obstacles to business in Africa it highlights the damage caused by: the unpredictability of changes in laws and policies, the unreliability of law enforcement, and the impact of corrupt bureaucracies.22 Unless governments eliminate these kinds of obstacles then it is unlikely that the economy whether it is just locally in certain parts of Africa or on a national front will flourish. An aspect of the Europe model that Africa can learn from is the aspect of knowledge. No commodity is more expensive than knowledge. An Africa without a sustainable, strong knowledge sector of its own will always remain in a dangerously dependent position. Research and training institutions on the continent can make a critical contribution in at least three ways: by making the most of existing indigenous knowledge; by accessing the vast reservoir of existing global knowledge, as well as the ongoing advances in understanding, and adapting them to suit specific local conditions; and by helping to find innovative solutions to seemingly intractable problems.23 In terms of human resources, it was highlighted in the Seminars of Anticipation that African developments suffers from a tragic paradox: on the one hand, elites trained in Western world are too many (and most of them stay in the US or in the EU because they cannot find well-paid qualified positions in Africa, or because their skills do not correspond to African needs); while on the other hand the well-trained intermediate executives required to manage a modern economy are cruelly missing in Africa (higher technical experts, management executives, civil administrators). To conclude, this essay has looked the economies of both Europe and Africa and compared and contrast both of them. It has also provided information about both economies in terms of trade and finance. A brief history was provided which looked at the relationship between Europe and Africa and to the days of colonisation. Reasons as to why both regions are on different levels economically were provided to show how dominant and rich Europe was and how poor and underdeveloped Africa was. The Africa food crisis was mentioned to give an account of how poor Africa was against other regions. In addition ways that Africa can improve their economy thus bringing it more power and strength so that it can compete with other regions was provided, for example making sure Africa had the aqeduate education so that it learn. Many Africans move to the west so that they can have higher education which is not available in Africa and tend to stay there once they have completed their studies. This is detrimental to Africas development and thus a solution to the problem would be to support the creation of a complete curriculum. This would lead to a massive contribution to the development of vocational and technical education in Africa thus improving Africas economy. So as it can seen, the economies for both Europe and Africa are at this present time in contrast to each other but there is hope for Africa to become more dominant and influential in world affairs if the correct adjustments and policies are introduced to improve them. References Fawcett, L., Hurrell, A., Regionalism in World Politics, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1995, pg 43Â  Ravenhill. J, Africa in economic crisis, Basingstoke, Macmillan, 1986, pg 9Â  www.ciaonet.org/isa/rajo

The Scarlet Letter - Thesis Essay Example for Free

The Scarlet Letter Thesis Essay One main theme present in the work The Scarlet Lette is that of sin and guilt. Nathaniel Hawthorne attempts to show how guilt can be a form of everlasting punishment. The book represents sin and guilt through symbolism and character development. In his novel, The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne explains how the punishment of guilt causes the most suffering among those affected. As with any piece, symbolism plays an important role in representing the main ideas of a novel. The plot in The Scarlet Letter revolves around three significant events that describe the development of the story. As both starting point and ending point of the novel, the scaffold scenes hold symbolic meaning. The first scaffold scene introduces the reader to the story, plot, and characters. The reader meets Hester Prynn and soon discovers the means of her sin. Hesters thoughts as she stands before the public are described at the end of the second chapter. Could it be true? She clutched the child so fiercely to her breast, that it sent forth a cry; she turned her eyes downward at the scarlet letter, and even touched it with her finger, to assure herself that the infant and the shame were real. Yes! -these were her realities, -all else had vanished! (Hawthorne, 55). At this point, Hester is still quite ashamed of her sin of adultery, and may not want to acknowledge the reality of it. As Hester is accused of her crime, the first scaffold scene represents committing and being accused of a sin. By the time the second scaffold scene approaches, seven years later, the reader should know that Hesters partner in crime is the minister Arthur Dimmesdale. Thus far in the novel, Dimmesdale has kept his sin a secret from society. During the second scaffold scene, Reverend Dimmesdale ventured out in the night to the scaffold in seek of forgiveness from God. He hoped to reveal himself to the public, however No eye could see him, save that ever-wakeful one which had seen him in his closet, wielding the bloody scourge. Why, then, had he come hither? (129) Resulting with the burden of guilt still upon his soul, his sin is not revealed which is why the second scaffold scene represents concealment of sin. Just as the book opened at the scaffold, it closes there as well. The third and final scaffold scene involves the primary characters from both the first and second scaffold scenes. All three of these characters, Hester, her child Pearl, and Dimmesdale stand together at the scaffold. This is the point in the novel where the minister finally wishes to reveal his sin. Concealing his sin for so long had caused him to deteriorate both mentally and physically, so just as Dimmesdale confessed, his life was taken from him. The third scaffold scene represents revealing and repenting sin. Some say that Nathaniel Hawthorne named the characters of his novel with symbolic meaning behind them. Each of the four main characters names can be tied in one way or another to sin and guilt. First, there is the character Hester Prynn. Her last name, Prynn, rhymes with the word sin, which is used to represent her role in the novel. Next, there is Dimmesdale. Simply the mere sound of the name in itself gives the impression of someone dim, dark, or weak; perhaps this way from suffering guilt. Then there is Chillingworth. Again, the sound of the name gives the reader a sense that the character has a cold heart; which is sinful alone. And lastly, little Pearl. Rather than representing the evils of sin, her name means salvation, and can be represented as the salvation of sin. The characters alone play a symbolic role in expressing the main theme. (Online-Literature.com, Symbolism) Nathaniel Hawthorne attempts to show how guilt can be a form of everlasting punishment by showing how each character endures much suffering from it. Hester Prynne, the main character in the novel, suffers a variety of types of punishment for the crime of adultery she committed. She faces such punishment as public humiliation from wearing the symbol A as to represent her crime, dealing with the physical outcome of her crime, and most painful, having to live with what she had done. As the book opens, Hester is brought forth from the jail and walked to the scaffold. For the first time being seen in public named an adulterer, Hester shies from the public as they mock her. However, She never battled with the public, but submitted  uncomplainingly to its worst usage; she made no claim upon it, in requital for what she suffered; she did not weight upon its sympathies. (Hawthorne 140). Soon, it did not matter what other people thought of Hester because of her sin. She chose not to live with the humiliation, but she did have to live with herself. Having to deal with her daughter Pearl day in and day out is a punishment in itself as well. Most people, including Hester, view Peal as a demon child. However, Hester hesitates to punish Pearl for being so. She feels guilty as it is, placing a burden on Pearls life, for Peal is branded as the child of an adulterer, all of this resulting from Hesters passionate sin. (Guilt as Reparation for Sin, paragraph 14). The minister Dimmesdale is greatly affected by the weight of guilt he carries with him everyday of his proceeding life. Since his sin is unknown to society, there is not a public crowd to look down upon him, but one Roger Chillingworth who lives just to torture Dimmesdale. He wishes and prays most often that the public know of his wrong, rather than hold it secret, as it would be less painful. Happy are you, Hester, that wear that scarlet letter openly upon your bosom! Mine burns in secret!! (Hawthorne 182). Fear, is in fact, the only reason Dimmesdale fails to confess himself. He feels guilty for not being able to be a father figure to Pearl, for letting Hester suffer on her own, and, of course, just for his own sinful actions. In the end, it is the guilt that kills him, not any public humiliation. One may look at Roger Chillingworth, Hesters husband, and see no guilt within him. Truthfully, Chillingworth is a cold-hearted soul. He does, however, have some guilt. Chillingworth, indeed, feels a bit guilty for marrying Hester in the first place. He and Hester both knew they did not love each other, but decided to marry anyway. Chillingworth might have known something like what Hester did would have happened eventually. After all, Chillingworth was much too old and unattractive for a young woman like Hester to feel anything worth making the relationship work. Even though it was out of his hands, Chillingworth also feels a bit bad about leaving Hester as he did for so long. He may feel that he could have been a catalyst  in what happened, however, Chillingworth was not about to let others who contributed to it run away freely. This explains his excuse for becoming a fiend. He may feel guilty for becoming so evil, however, he blames it on Hester and Dimmesdales actions, and does not feel he should change his ways. I have already told thee what I am! A fiend! Who made me so?' (Hawthorne 151) He felt less guilt than the other characters, however, he was the one who caused the most misery. Although Pearl, Hesters daughter, does not directly suffer such guilt because she is the only innocent character in the novel, she does suffer from her mothers guilt and sinful actions. Because Pearl is dubbed an evil being as an illegitimate child, she suffers much public ridicule and humiliation. She also receives the blame for Hesters past seven years of suffering guilt. During the scene in A Flood of Sunshine, when Hester throws the A into the river, she also symbolically throws away Pearl, thus rejecting and blaming her own child. Each of the four main characters, in their own forms, has and must suffer from a form of guilt. Since Hester and Dimmesdale are the only characters that committed the sin the book revolves around, they are the ones who suffer most of the guilt. Guilt is a painful reminder of sin. The other punishments both characters had to face were painful, but in the end, all they did was make them feel further guilt and suffer further pain. The only thing other punishments bring out is the inner guilt of a person, if they are worthy enough to realize their wrong. Only the man who has enough good in him to feel the justice of the penalty can be punished; the other can only be hurt.' (Punishment Quote, paragraph 1). There are two characters in the novel who are worthy enough to be punished: Hester and Dimmesdale. On the other side of the spectrum, there is Chillingworth. He does not see the wrong in his sin of torturing Dimmesdale. Hester Prynne immediately feels guilty for what she had done. If anything, shed wish to take it back, as if it had never happened. Such the same with Arthur Dimmesdale. He was not only suffering from guilt of his sin, but also  was becoming a very hypocritical reverend, the last thing he may have wanted. It is quite evident that the guilt eventually drove him mad to the point of self-mutilation, because as the reader knows, in the end of the novel, Dimmesdale dies from his guilt. If you are not worthy, you cannot feel sorry for what you have done, as the case with Roger Chillingwroth. He felt it was he duty to torture the reverend Dimmesdale. He was, nonetheless, hurt by it. He had dedicated the remainder of his life to making Dimmesdale suffer, so when Dimmesdale died, so did Chillingworth shortly following. Sin is represented in many ways throughout the novel. Because of the sins the characters have committed, they had to be punished for their actions. Letting them suffer with their own guilt is the best way of going about the matter. With this, the character is forced to live with what they did. Because both Hester and Dimmesdale saw their wrongs, guilt, for them, was effective. It just goes to show the pain the characters suffer. In his novel, The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne explains how the punishment of guilt causes the most suffering among those affected. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Guilt as Reparation for Sin in The Scarlet Letter. [http://www.123student.com/english/1443.shtml]. Feb. 2004. Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter. New York: Penguin Books, 1962. Punishment Quote. [http://www.123student.com/english/1910.shtml]. Feb. 2004. Stephanie. Symbolism in The Scarlet Letter. [http://www.online-literature.com/hawthorne/scarletletter]. Feb. 2004.

A Brief History of Heineken Company Analysis

A Brief History of Heineken Company Analysis Heineken is one of the global leading brewers. The company is headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and spreads its business all over the world. In this report, we have taken a deep look into the Heineken Company. We will generally display the company portfolio, and then followed by the companys past 5 years performance. Afterwards, the report will focus on Heinekens international marketing activities with detailed explanations of its international marketing strategies. Ultimately, the report will extend to discuss miscellaneous topics of Heineken Company, and ends up with an exhaustive conclusion. Introduction Heineken is one of the worlds biggest brewers and is committed to remaining strong and independent. The brand is named after the founders name Heineken -can be found all around the world. Heineken has become one of the most valuable international premium beer brand since last century and it is still growing stronger. Heineken is also one of the experts of beer brewing and has built quite a number of specialty beers around the globe. In addition to the Heineken brand, there are more than 170 specialty beers which meet a variety of consumers needs from every corner of the world. The famous brands include Amstel ®, Europes third-largest selling beer, Cruzcampo ®, Tiger ®, Zywiec ®, Birra Moretti ®, Ochota ®, Murphys ® and Star ®. Heineken has wide international presence through a global network of distributors and breweries. Heineken owns and manages one of the worlds leading portfolios of beer brands and is one of the worlds leading brewers in terms of sales volume and profitability. History The Heineken story began more than 140 years ago in 1864 when Gerard Adriaan Heineken acquired a small brewery in the heart of Amsterdam. Since then, four generations of the Heineken family have expanded the Heineken brand and the Company throughout Europe and the rest of the world. Employees In 2007, the average number of employees employed was 54,004 170 brands Heinekens leading brand portfolio includes more than 170 international premium, regional, local and specialty beers. Our principal brands are Heineken ® and Amstel ®. We continually seek to reinforce our brands through innovations in production, marketing and packaging. 139.2 million hl The Heineken brand is available in almost every country on the planet. We own more than 119 breweries in more than 65 countries brewing a Group beer volume of 139.2 million hectolitres. Segments Heineken applies typical Global Area Structure to their organizational strategy. Global area structure is an organizational arrangement in which primary operational responsibility is delegated to area managers, each of whom is responsible for a specific geographic region. (International Business, 5th edition, Rugman Collinson). Heineken distinguishes the following geographical segments: Western Europe Central and Eastern Europe The Americas Africa and the Middle East Asia Pacific Head Office/eliminations. Segment information is presented only in respect of geographical segments consistent with Heinekens management and internal reporting structure. Heineken runs its business in five regions, which is in charge of regional presidents. Regional subsidiaries, which remain high responsiveness to the group departments,are responsible for management, risk assessment and operation efficiency. The distribution models of Heinekens is of a big variety. Goods are delivered in multiple ways in every country, depending on the countries conditions, usually direct to the wholesalers or via third parties. Hence, distributions diverse. The various distribution models are taken in charge by regional subsidiaries as well. In such a circumstance, no secondary segment information is in hand. Targeting Young adult consumers (core aged 18-25) around the world is the group Heineken targets at. Heineken is aware of the rise of popularity of mixers and other drinks in this market. Positioning The premium positioning of the Heineken brand is crucial to the growth strategy. Maintaining this positioning requires a combination of the highest quality brewing process delivering the highest quality beer and creative and compelling marketing. As the brand extends its global market share, and its positioning becomes more consistent, its marketing is becoming increasingly international. However, within the marketing mix, there will always be a requirement for locally driven campaigns and support. Product strategy Theory Product strategies vary depending on the specific good and the customers. Some products ca be manufactured and sold successfully both in the United States and abroad by using the same strategies. Other products must be modified or adapted and sold according to a specially designed strategy. A number of factors can compel an MNE to use moderate to high product modification. These include economics, culture, local laws, and product life cycle. Application A key strength for Heineken is the fact that the product is produced to be exactly the same, no matter which of 115 or more breweries it was produced at. The recipe has stayed the same for nearly 150 years, and Heinekens attractive packaging and red star are recognizable nearly anywhere in the world. Heinekens entire brand image is centred on it being a superior quality beer with exceptional taste. Heineken has also won many awards for its beer, which reinforces their claim that Heineken is a product of the highest quality. One potential weakness is that Heineken lacks a production base in many markets, which inevitably leads to higher costs associated with getting the product to market in these areas. However, the flip side to that is the consumers perception of premiumness that is often associated with an imported beer versus one that is produced domestically. Another important strength for Heineken lies in their innovation, as is evident by their recently released Heineken Draught Keg. Since the Heineken beer is recognized all over the world, and the product life cycle is quite short, there is no need to do large modification to the beer itself. Meanwhile, its package changes several times within a year, which makes it fresh to consumers and also a efficient way to promote their products. Company performance This report also analyzes the Heineken Company performance in a horizontal scope as well as a vertical scope. We will first measures its regional performance, and followed by a last 5 year performance evaluation. As we know, Heineken Company is a Multinational Enterprise. It has been doing business in different regions worldwide. Take appropriate measures when dealing business with typical customers is quite important. The financial statement of year 2009 will be released on March 20, 2010. So the analysis is mainly based on the data from 2004 to 2008. Key figures Revenue: In general, the Heineken Company enjoyed increasing revenues in last 5 years, from à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 10062 million (2004) to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬14319 million (2008). EBIT: Earnings before interests and taxes (EBIT) is used as a primary measure of profitability, without taking interests and taxes expenses into consideration. The higher EBIT, usually, the better. The EBIT was à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1348 in 2004, à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1249 in 2005, reached its peak at à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1832 in2006, and then decreased to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1418 in 2007, even declined further to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1080 in 2008, measured in millions. Net profit: Net profit calculated by profit before taxes minus taxes. The net profit has almost the same trend as EBIT: rose from à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬642 million (2004) to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 1211 million (2006), then it suffered a downwards shrink to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬807 million (2007) and à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬209 million (2008). Dividends: Dividends is a portion of money a company paid to its shareholders. It can be used to measure a companys financial health. The dividends of Heineken kept growing from à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬173 million in 2004 to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬343 million in 2007. In 2008, it fell by a small amount to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬304 million. Net cash flow: Net cash flow is a part of cash flow statement, represented the cash receipts minus cash payments. Net cash flow was -à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬550 million in 2004, leaped to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬401 million in 2006, and dropped to -à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬227 million in 2007, finally climbed up to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬225 million. Regional analysis Western Europe Have an eye on Western Europe, Heineken is doing excellent: Heineken is Western Europes leading brewer and the region is the biggest contributor to Group profitability, thanks to the strong market positions and excellent brand portfolio. Heineken is Europes number one beer. Heineken has market leadership positions in the Netherlands, UK, Spain and Italy; and it is the number two player in France, Ireland and Switzerland. In the Western Europe, in the year 2004 to 2007, the revenues were around à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬5,400 million. However in 2008, it jumped to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬7661 million. Heineken even generated à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬8,432 million revenue, with earnings before interests and taxes (EBIT) à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬792 million in 2009. The total assets were à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬3924 million in 2004, but almost tripled to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬11678 million in 2008. And the group beer volume has doubled in past 5 years, reaching 56,345,000 hl (2008). It takes up 38% of the Groups consolidated EBIT. Western Europe is Heinekens main market. Central and Eastern Europe Central and Eastern Europe is Heinekens largest region by volume. The business is benefiting from integration of acquired breweries and the outcome of portfolio optimization. The Heineken brand is increasing its popularity. The beer market there is largely influenced by financial crisis last year. The high price of our products can also be an influential fact. Within this region, the company earned increasing revenues between à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬2,526 million and à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬3,687 million in last 5 years, and EBIT from à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬254 million in 2004 to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬389 million in 2009. The total assets have a 20% growth within 5 years. Group beer volume generated a 50% increase. Africa and the Middle East The improved political stability continues to drive economic development and improve purchasing power, making beer more affordable. The popularity of the brands and of Heineken beer in particular, is rapidly growing. Heineken is the number two brewer in Africa and the Middle East. The revenue in this region in 2009 was à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1,817 million, and EBIT was à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬485 million. In the past 5 years, the revenue doubled and the EBIT tripled, total assets also grew from à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬825 million to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1919 million. And the market volume is still rapidly growing. Heineken Company has a long-term orientation in this market. The Americas The economic downturn led to lower on-trade consumption and downtrading in the off-trade, especially in the USA. In the fourth quarter volume of the Heineken brand showed a positive trend in Canada, the Caribbean and South America. In 2009, the revenue was à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1566 million while the EBIT was only à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬210 million. The revenue welcomes a peak at 2006, and has a moderate float in the rest of 5 years. EBIT tells almost the same story. Total assets have a 50% growth over 5 years. And the group beer volume up soared by approximately 5,000,000 hl. Asia Pacific The revenue in 2009 was à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬309 million, and EBIT was à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬103 million, the company also has a long-term orientation in this region. The revenue has a continuous decline, from à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬471 million to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬297 million, with slight floating. EBIT began at à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬63 million, ended at à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬65 million, and topped at à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬95 million 2006. Total assets experienced an upward trend from 363 to 552, measured in millions of euros. Management Heineken Holding N.V. controls the Heineken Company. The Heineken N.V. Executive Board has two members, CEO and CFO. And it is chaired by the CFO Jean-Franà §ois van Boxmeer. The CEO is responsible for Group Commerce, Group Supply Chain, Group Human Resources, Group Corporate Relations, Group Legal Affairs, and Manager Group Internal Audit. The CFO is in charge of Group Control Accounting, Group Finance, Group Business Development, Group Process Technology Directors, Group Strategy Director, and Group Strategic Partnerships. There are five operating regions, namely, Western Europe, Central and Eastern Europe, The Americas, Africa and the Middle East as well as Asia-Pacific. Each region has a Regional President. The Executive Committee is consist of two members of the Executive Board, the five Regional President,s and five Group Directors. The Executive Committee supports the development of policy and ensures the alignment and implementation of key priorities and strategies across the organization. Segmentation: Heineken sells its beer all around the world and has a global market share of 7%. The prime market of Heineken is Europe, in 2008 almost 50% of Heineken its sales were in Europe. Asia-pacific and the Americas cover the other 50%. The Americas count for nearly 30% of Heinekens sales, and the Asia-pacific for 20%. Heineken has divided all the types of beer it sales into groups. Standard lager, premium lager are the hold most products sold all over the world for Heineken. Together they count for almost 85% of all sales of Heineken. With standard beer counting for 55% of the total sales. Furthermore Heineken has got the groups specialty beer, ales shouts and bitters, and low or no alcohol. The group specialty beer count for 10% of the sales, so ales shouts and bitters, and low or no alcohol are of hardly any part of the sales of Heineken. Targeting: Because Heineken is a beer brand it can only sell to people who are older that a certain age. That age is set by the governments. The general age set by the governments for people to buy beer and other alcoholic drinks is set at 16 years in and older to 21 years and older. So the target market of Heineken is everyone older than the age set by the government. In what way does Heineken target the separate markets within those markets? To target the young adults (age 18-30) Heineken uses music. Heineken organizes for example a deejay-contest a lot of young adults are willing to go to that party. Heineken makes sure that their name is all over the place and that the party is a huge success Only Heineken beer is sold on that party, their name Heineken is everywhere you look. In this way Heineken makes sure that their name is widely known. Their name is also associated with successful parties so every time those young adults go to a party they will compare it to the Heineken party. That is the way of getting a good reputation among young adults. Because of this reputation Heineken will sell more beer to those young adults, which is their goal. Beer is very often associated with football. Heineken is a sponsor of the UEFA Champions League. At the beginning and during a football match their name is on billboards on the sides of the field. Their name is also mentioned before the match begins, for example: this match is sponsored by Heineken. In this way Heineken associates itself with football. Their target market with this type of advertising are the man who like watching football and who are allowed to drink, which is a big group. They are indirectly targeting the young people who are not yet aloud to drink, because they are watching to that match to they associate watching football with Heineken, so when they are allowed to drink they will probably buy Heineken to drink during the match. To target the women Heineken introduced Jillz and beer that is less bitter. Jillz is a apple cider mixed with water and barley malt and fruit. It is developed especially for women, because most women dont like beer. When you look at the commercial of Jillz you see four good looking men picking apples. Because women like watching to those men they will buy Jillz assuming that by drinking Jillz they will encounter such a good looking guy. Another way of targeting the women is by introducing a beer that is less bitter. Heineken introduces products like Wieckse Witte a white beer, which is less bitter than normal beer and has got a reddish color. Heineken introduced this type of beer because they assumed that women dont like beer because of its bitterness. Positioning, Market entry and distribution strategies: Waar verkopen ze en hoe krijgen ze de producten daar en hoe zijn ze in die markten binnen gekomen? Heineken sell its products almost everywhere in the world. Because beer hasnt got a high value per liter. Distributing the beer by for example a tanker is too expensive, so Heineken has to have a lot of breweries to supply in the countries they sell their beer in. because of this Heineken has got approximately 120 breweries in more than 70 countries. Heineken mainly sell its products through supermarkets/hypermarkets, specialist retailers and on-trade business. 7% of its products is sold on a different way. Drawing a conclusion this mean that Heineken is depending on other retailers to sell its products. Heineken doesnt have got a shop that sell only Heineken products. The only way in which Heineken is selling its own products is though internet. People can order Heineken beer on the official Heineken site, for example on www.Heineken.nl. Product strategies: There are a lot of different types of beer; there are bitter beers, sweet beers, sour beers, beers with a different amount of alcohol in it and different colors. This are some things that Heineken can differ its beer in. This shows that there are a lot of types of beer, but beer doesnt need a lot of modification. Heineken has got many different types of beer, even in one country. Heineken has got a total of 200 different products. There are different reasons for those modifications. According to International Business a book from Alan M. Rugman and Simon Collinson, there are four points on which a product has to be modified: Economics, culture, local laws and product life cycle. Economics: In each country the customers have got different needs. People want different amount of beer in a bottle, or they want more alcohol in their beer. Because of all these different needs Heineken has got to make a lot of different products, products that differ in size, alcohol percentage and shape. In the Netherlands for example, Heineken sell their beer primarily through the super markets and in bars. So Heineken sells often sells its products in bottles in crates, and in casks. The amount of beer in the bottles is approximately 33 cl. Culture: The history of beer a country and the time beer is present in a country causes many different tastes for and in those countries. In Germany for example people like to drink light beer(white beer). So when Heineken wants to sell beer in Germany it should not come up with dark beer with a high percentage of alcohol. So the culture of countries causes a lot of different demands for beer. Local laws: The laws of a country are very important for the beer products. When Heineken is not allowed to sell beer with a high percentage of alcohol in it, or when they are forbidden to use a certain ingredient, Heineken has got to come up with different products. Product life cycle: This concept states that a product has got to develop in order to maintain its sales. So Heineken needs to modify the beer products in order to keep ahead of the competition. Another reason to modify is to try and come up with other types of product before the demand of other products has declined to much, and to try and get to new markets. An example for this is Jillz, Heineken wants to sell its product to women, it keeps ahead of the competition, because the competition didnt came up with the same idea, and it invents a new product before another product, Wieckse Witte, shows a decline in sales. Pricing strategies: According to International Business a book from Alan M. Rugman and Simon Collinson, there are four forces that influence the pricing. Government controls, Market diversity, Currency fluctuation and Price escalation forces. Government controls: The government in the Netherland raises an excise on products that contain alcohol. Because beer contains alcohol, the prices of Heineken beer are higher than they would have had without that tax. The excise on crates is the same for every company, so Heineken can compete to other beers. Because Heineken is a premium beer, the price for a crate of Heineken is a lot higher than other types of beer. Therefore Heineken competes with other premium beer brand. Market Diversity: The marker diversity between countries causes different prices between those countries. A premium beer a Heineken can encounter a low demand for its beer. Heineken is than forced to sell its products for a low price to gain market share or just to sell beer. Heineken doesnt really have this problem, because they have over 200 different types of beer, so there is a high probability that Heineken does have the taste the people in that country like. Currency fluctuations: The currency fluctuations between countries cause higher or lower prices for Heineken beer that is exported. When the value of a currency in a country, where Heineken has got a brewery, declines compared to an country where the beer brewed is exported to, the prices of Heineken beer will increase compared to local beer brands. Price escalation forces: When the prices of producing Heineken increase by 25 cents, Heineken will try to pass this along to retailers in the production cycle closer to the consumers. Every retailer in the production cycle wants to make profit, so they will add an percentage increase. This increase in price will be larger the closer the product gets to the consumer. The increase of 25 cents may increase the prices in the supermarket with 35 cents.