Pan Europa Essay Example for Free

Pan Europa Essay Answer 1: In order to avoid takeover Pan-Europa should develop and maintain faith and loyalty of their customers towards products. Company should also satisfy its stakeholders by expansion and improvement in their market and product. At given time EPS and Shareholders’ Equity plays a vital role. Company should increase its market share by same â€Å"low price and high volume† and expand its production for more efficiency. Maarten Leyden from Production should be leading the way for Pan-Europa. Answer 3: Part 1 of the question relates to Question 2 Various study techniques can be used for correction of different factors that affect project. The investment’s time value of money and unequal lifetime can be corrected by using net present value method (NPV). Risk can be reduced by â€Å"Optimization† that is finding good balance between advantages and negative risk. Answer 4: †¢Ã¢â‚¬Å"Must Do† project according to me are Project 3 Expansion of a plant Project 6 Effluent water treatment at four plants. Company southeastern region plant in Germany had reached full its full capacity. With the expansion capacity was expected to result in additional production of up to â‚ ¬1.5 million per year, yielding an IRR of 11.2%. Water treatment is regulatory requirement and it’s just matter of time before it has to be done. It might cost company 2.5 times more in coming 4 years than today. †¢Higher risk projects include Development and introduction of new artificially sweetened yogurt and ice cream and Development and roll-out of snack foods. Customers has tendency like monkey and can easily jump from one branch to another and customer just easily switch to another product. Lower risk project is Replacement and expansion of the truck fleet. †¢Combined effort between new plant and expansion of plant alongside with market expansion would be beneficial to the company . †¢Effluent water treatment has nonquantitative benefit because it is environmental compliance. Answer 5: The most desirable projects according to me are new plant and expansion of plant (project 2 3). †¢Is the project a â€Å"must do† for reasons outside the company’s control? No †¢Does the project meet the company policy for minimum IRR? Yes †¢Does the project meet the company policy minimum payback period? No †¢Does the project incur excessive risk? No †¢Does the project meet the current corporate strategy? Yes Answer 7: Management committee’s recommendation to the Board of Directors should be a new and expansion of plant, effluent water treatment and market expansions as per table:

Royal Dutch Shell

Royal Dutch Shell Royal Dutch Shell is a global, publically traded Public Limited Company, whose main focus is on the energy and petrochemicals business. Royal Dutch/Shell officially formed in 1907, with the merger of a London based Transportation Company called Samuel Shell transport and trading company ltd., and a recently formed oil company from the Netherlands, the Royal Dutch Petroleum Company. This merger facilitated the transportation of oil throughout the world, giving Royal Dutch Shell a global presence in the then emerging market of oil. Until 2005, Royal Dutch and Shell were two entities, with a 60/40 profit sharing mix, Royal Dutch and Shell respectively. The two companies officially merged into one entity, eliminating the slash after Royal Dutch. They have a principal listing in the London Stock exchange and their official headquarters are located in The Hague in The Netherlands. Shell as it is notably abbreviated as, began with the vision of its first operating manager Henry Deterding. H enry Deterding, provided the growing company with a strong backbone, taking Shell from a small player in the oil exporting business to a major competitor. Royal Dutch Shell, took control of Mexican Eagle Petroleum Company in 1919, and in 1932 formed an alliance with British Petroleum, and was Shell-Mex and B.P. Ltd until 1975. Its last major acquisition was in 2007 of the Ukrainian oil company Regal Petroleum. Today, Shell is based in over 140 countries, and is engaged in oil and gas exploration and production, transportation and marketing of natural gas and electricity, and marketing and shipping of oil products and chemicals. They also have interests in renewable energy, like wind, solar and hydrogen based energy. Royal Dutch Shell has come a long way since its inception and has become a world leader in the oil and gas market. This is in large part due to the companys leadership, since the formation of the company strong leadership has brought Shell into a well-built company. Roya l Dutch Shell through their strong leadership, ethics and corporate social responsibility; and their business environment have become according to fortune 500, the largest Corporation in the world. Leadership and Managemen The Management of Royal Dutch Shell, like other major oil companies BP, Amoco, Exxon and Mobil is highly complex. Controlling and efficiently profitably running an organization that is active in over 140 countries is not an easy job. Each country and region has its own difficulties and limitations that put the managements strategy in challenge and force it to change regarding the political, economical and social situations. This is the challenge that Shell accepts and moulds itself according to the situation. Strengths Shell is one of the largest oil companies in the world and has a strong market position. Its operations include upstream and downstream operations in over 100 countries. The company has interests in oil production operations in 37 countries and majority interest in 40 refineries worldwide. Shell operates the worlds largest single-brand retail network, with more than 45,000 service stations. The cornerstone of the company is its leadership position in various fields such as oil products, deep-water production, Natural gas, and polyolefin. The company has established a strong brand image operating for over 100 years worldwide. Shell is ranked second in 2009 Forbes Global 2000, up from sixth in 2008. It was ranked eighth in 2007. The company is ranked First in 2009 Fortune Global 500 ranking. The companys strong market position gives it significant bargaining power in the global oil industry. Shells business operations are vertically integrated with presence in both upstream and downstream businesses. In upstream, the company is engaged in the exploration and production of oil and gas. In 2008, the companys total hydrocarbon production totaled 3,170 thousand barrels of oil per day. During 2008, the company participated in 224 successful exploratory wells. The company is also involved in the natural gas supply, storage, transport, distribution activities, and marketing of natural gas and electri>city. The companys gas and power business operates in 35 countries around the world. In downstream, the company produces and markets refined petroleum products. Its refining and marketing division operates 40 refineries with an installed capacity of 4 million barrels per day. The company conducts its operations through an extensive distribution network comprising 9,000 miles of pipeline in about 70 countries, over 300 distribution facilities, and 3,000 storage tanks. Shell is one of the largest single branded retailers with more than 45,000 service stations spanning 90 countries. The companys vertically integrated operations give it significant competitive advantage in the global market in terms of economies of scale, synergies, and cross-marketing opportunities. Weaknesses The company has been witnessing a consistent decline in its hydrocarbon production in the recent past. The hydrocarbon production totaled 3,170 thousand barrels per day in 2008. This was 2% lower than the production in 2007 and 7% lower than in 2006. The decline in production is attributed to field declines, lower volumes, price impacts of production-sharing contracts, the effects of the hurricanes in the US Gulf of Mexico, and the planned maintenance turnarounds in the UK related to the shutdown gas processing facilities. The field declines affected oil production in the Australia, Brunei, Denmark, Nigeria, Norway, the UK, and the US during 2008. In addition, natural gas production was affected by declining fields in Brunei, Germany, Malaysia, the US, and the UK. Declining production would adversely affect the companys revenue growth. Shell faced an administrative action in 2008. Shell was fined $109,600 by Washingtons Department of Labor and Industries, in June 2008. The company was fined for multiple safety violations in its Anacortes refinery. The refinery is the second largest of the four major facilities supplying gasoline and other petroleum products to the Puget Sound region. The department cited 23 violations ranging from inadequately instructing operators on how to deal with emergencies to faulty inspections. Shell paid $120 million in June 2008, to settle a class action lawsuit led by the Pennsylvania State Employees Retirement Board and the Public School Employees Retirement Board. There was an allegation against Shell of overstating oil and natural gas reserves and artificially inflating stock prices over a five-year period from April 1999 to March 2004. In 2004, Shell admitted to have overstated its oil reserves by about 20%, 3.9 billion barrels. Many of the companys executives lost their jobs, including chief financial officer Judy Boynton. In April 2007, Shell agreed to pay $352.6 million, plus administrative costs, to settle a lawsuit with investors outside the US who purchased the companys shares. In May of 2009 Shell settled a $15 million dollar civil rights lawsuit in Nigeria. They were accused of paying soldiers to abuse locals in predominantly oil rich regions in Nigeria. Such huge penalties can have negative effects on the companys profitability as well as Shells overall rep utation. Opportunities Shell announced a proposal by Shell Canada for the acquisition of all of the outstanding shares of Duvernay Oil Corp, in July 2008. The acquisition was completed in August 2008. Duvernay, based in Alberta, is engaged in the exploration and development of natural gas and crude oil in the deeper, western portion of the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin in Alberta and Northeastern British Columbia. The company owns about 450,000 acres in two large gas project areas. Duvernay owns and controls the natural gas processing and delivery infrastructure in both the project areas. The company produces over 25,000 barrels oil equivalent per day predominantly in natural gas. The company plans to increase production to about 70,000 barrels per day by 2012. Shell has a strong presence in North America tight gas activities. With the acquisition of Duvernay, Shell could strengthen its portfolio through enhanced technology and scale. Duvernays acreage together with Shells operating expertise and fina ncing capabilities provide a strong platform for future growth. Increasing demand for liquefied natural gas, the demand for liquid fuels is expected to increase to 108 million barrels per day by 2030, an increase of 30% from 2005. The demand for global liquefied natural gas is expected to more than triple in volume from 2005 to 2030, driven by the demand in North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific markets. Currently, Shell is participating in the Liquefied Natural Gas projects in major projects, Pearl GTL and Qatar gas 4 LNG in Qatar. The company is also participating in LNG projects in Australia. The companys focus on LNG projects implies it is well positioned to venture into opportunities in the growing market worldwide. Threats Shells business is subject to numerous laws and regulations relating to the protection of the environment. With rising awareness of the damage to the environment caused by industry, especially regarding global warming, regulatory standards have been continuously tightened in recent years. One of the most important developments in this area has been the introduction of the Kyoto Protocol for the reduction of greenhouse gases. The protocol calls on industrialized countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions level by 5.2% on an average annual basis during the 2008-2012 periods. The company has a significant presence across the US and the European markets. A weak economic outlook for these regions could depress industrial development and impact the demand for the companys products. Related threats to Shell include its major competitors, domestically and worldwide. These major competitors include and are not limited to: Exxon Mobil, British Petroleum, Conoco Phillips, PETRONAS, Total, Chevron and CITGO. These companies are vital threats to Royal Dutch Shells bottom line because they, for the most part, offer the same types of products and services sometimes at a substantial price discount. There are some main problems and issues inside Royal Dutch Shell that are evidently highlighted and should be resolved so the company can keep their competitive advantage when analyzed and compared to other corporations. The predominant problem is the higher than normal employee turnover rate which can be contributed by the employees to the company. In recent years namely there was a large increase of employees that were leaving Shell, in exchange for other employment positions in oil and petroleum companies that are direct competitors of Shell. Although this phenomenon did and does not impact all global operations, there is still a negative impact on the performance of this business organization since these events happens in customer rich areas such as Asia, India and the Middle East. Another major problem that is being faced by the company is its eroding supply base in the Middle East and other oil producing regions due to the ongoing friction between the United Kingdom and oil producing countries in the Middle East such as Iran with regards to topics such as the war on terror, the occupation of Iraq and the ongoing negotiations on the nuclear ambitions of Iran. Since Shell Company is partly British owned, these contemporary issues and news can directly affect the supply and logistical train of the company. Due to the support given by the British government to the United States with regards to the occupation of Iraq and the war on terror, the company has been losing the influence and prestige when it is viewed by Arabian and Middle East producing companies. This animosity against the corporation stem from the fact that it is a British company in the Middle East. This company has also supplied fuel, oil and other petroleum based products to the occupying forces in Iraq and Afghanistan which are wholly composed of the British and American Armed forces. To remedy these pressing problems, certain issues and concerns must be addressed. To combat the negative publicity that is being shed against Shell in the Middle East countries and the loss of the preferential treatment previously offered by Middle East countries to the company, an appropriate campaign must be launched to erase this negative perception about the company. This publicity campaign will not only be geared towards oil producing countries but will also focus on other Middle East countries. Reconciliatory talks and discussions must be established with the members of the OPEC in relation to the current prices of oil and petroleum based products. To further reinforce these steps, the company must assign area/regional managers in these countries who have a significant understanding and immersion in the local culture and thinking to reduce the probability of misunderstanding and miscommun ication that would add another injury to the present situation. The CEO must also have leadership qualities and characteristics to inspire his/her subordinates to respect Arabic customs and traditions. He must exude motivation, self confidence and necessary skills that are suitable for the job at hand. Lastly, the company must set up two programs so that it can remedy the last problem mentioned in this paper. First, to capture the new market, it must redefine its products to comply with strict government and environmental standards. The process of using, mining and manufacturing its products must be free from any pollution and contamination. These vital steps will not only please a government and a lobby group but would also earn the sympathy and recognition by the public. The company must also take steps in reengineering its internal structure to accommodate renewable sources of energy. It must train personnel and employees so that they would be ready to research, experiment and to test various sources of energy that is being developed by the oil industry. Similar to most global companies, Royal Dutch Shell has many strengths and weaknesses that affect the overall performance of the company. However, Royal Dutch Shell, through the companys commitment to strive for excellence combined with their upstream and downstream revenue streams, their leadership structure and corporate and social values have become the largest corporation in terms of revenue in 2009.

Changing Commodity Prices Impact On Common Agricultural Policy Economics Essay

Changing Commodity Prices Impact On Common Agricultural Policy Economics Essay In the wake of an increasingly globalized economy, one that has seen the emergence of large trade blocs and common markets, the nations of the world have been competitively forced into becoming more economically integrated year after year. In light of hundreds of years of consumer theory, this would almost certainly lead one to a conclusion of necessarily lower prices and more efficient production on almost all products. However, as is the case in many nations, the European Union (EU) has succeeded in creating an artificial market for agricultural products through the use of a Common Agricultural Policy (C.A.P). The Common Agricultural Policy is a policy, set forth by the European Union (EU), which is comprised of a set of rules that regulate the production, trade, and processing of agricultural products. The C.A.P currently accounts for almost fifty percent of the EU budget, however, this number continues to decrease over the years. The C.A.P is significant in that it symbolizes Europes switch from sovereignty on a national level to a European level. (McDonald and Dearden, (2005), European Economic Integration, Prentice Hall, 4th edition.) Common Agricultural Policy (C.A.P). The EUs agricultural policy dates back to 1957, when the creators of the Treaty of Rome defined the general objectives of a common agricultural policy, post-war food shortages still fresh in minds. The principles and mechanisms of the Common Agricultural Policy (C.A.P) were adopted by the six founding members of the European Economic Community, and in 1962 C.A.P came into force. C.A.P was designed to secure Europes self-sufficiency in food production. The basic principles of C.A.P remained the same for decades: guaranteed prices for agricultural products, often above world price levels, and subsidies based on the quantity of production, with little concern for the problem of surplus production. C.A.P has been the most fully integrated of EU policies. In the 1970s, nearly 70% of the EU budget went into agriculture. After a series of reforms, agriculture expenditures in the budget have dropped to 35 % for the 2007-2013 financial period. Over the same period, more money (9.7%) has been allocated for rural development and the expansion of EUs other responsibilities. (Common Agricultural Policy (C.A.P).European Journalism Centre (EJC) 2009). Common Agricultural Policys reforms. The C.A.P has had a long history of reform, and is nowhere near perfect. The first attempt at reform came just ten years after its implementation. In 1968, the Mansholt Plan was put into effect in an attempt to reduce the number of people in the agriculture business and to promote more efficient means of agricultural production. In 1972, the extensive food surpluses were targeted through the creation of structural measures designed to modernize European agriculture. This attempt at reform is generally regarded as a failure because many of the problems it tried to fix were still left unchecked. In 1983, a publication was released entitled, The Green Paper, which sought to balance the ongoing disparities between supply and demand through improvements in production. In 1988, the European Council agreed on various reform measures. The most important was the agricultural expenditure guideline, which limited the percentage of C.A.P expenditure in the overall budget. In 1991-92, the future of the C.A.P was addressed through what has been called, the MacSharry Reforms. The key aspects of the reforms included the cutback of agricultural prices to make the products more competitive, compensation for farmers that incurred a loss in income, and environmental protection. The reform of 1992 was generally regarded as successful, with positive effects on European agriculture. However, international trends, the enlargement towards Central and Eastern Europe, the preparation of the single currency causing budget constraints, the increasing competitiveness of products from non-member countries, and a new round of World Trade Organization negotiations forced further adaptation of the C.A.P (europa.eu.int). In July 1997, Agenda 2000 was created to address many of the important issues facing the EU and the C.A.P. The key focuses of this new agenda are the reinforcement of the competitiveness of agricultural commodities in domestic and world markets, the promotion of a fair standard of living, the creation of extra sources of income for farmers, a new rural development policy, revamped environmental considerations, better food quality and safety, and the simplification of C.A.P legislation. The first wave of C.A.P reforms had decreased over-production, brought down butter mountains and emptied the milk lakes. But by 2002, several factors made it a necessity to undertake major review of the EUs farm policy, including several food crises, the EUs planned eastward expansion, World Trade Organizations objections to the C.A.P and the sustainable development strategy defined during the Gothenburg Summit. In 2003, Franz Fischler, then the Commissioner for Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development, presented a C.A.P reform package he described as the most radical improvement to the EUs agricultural policy ever. His main proposals included: decoupling of subsidies and production high requirements of environmental, food safety and animal welfare standards as prerequisite for getting subsidies more money to rural development as opposed to direct and market subsidies cuts in intervention prices in many sectors After heated debate, farm ministers agreed to go through with the C.A.P reform. Although, the link between farm subsidies and the amount of production was not totally abolished, as originally proposed, a major shift did take place, with the bulk of farmers income now coming from direct aid, based on the size of their holdings and not production. (Common Agricultural Policy (C.A.P).European Journalism Centre (EJC) 2009). The reform also prepared the EU for the WTO Doha round of international trade liberalization talks, where the EU offered to eliminate export subsidies altogether by 2013. The talks were put on hold in 2006. Whatever the result of the trade talks, the EU remains the worlds largest importer of food, especially from developing countries. A number of sensitive sectors were left out of the 2003 C.A.P reform, including sugar, wine, bananas and other fruits and vegetables. Since then, a profound reform of the sugar sector was agreed on in 2005. In 2006 and early 2007 the Commission also proposed reforms for the wine, banana and fruit and vegetables sectors. (Common Agricultural Policy (C.A.P).European Journalism Centre (EJC) 2009). Under the Barroso Commission, Mariann Fischer Boel took over stewardship of the renamed Agriculture and Rural Development DG. She continues to strive for higher food quality and safety, efficient application of the Rural Development Policy 2007-2013, energy crop schemes and simplification of the C.A.P and cutting of red tape. The enlargement of the EU from 15 to 27 members has brought new challenges to C.A.P the number of farmers in the EU increased by over 70%. Meanwhile, farming organisations have welcomed the EUs decision to set a minimum 10% target for the use of biofuels for transport by 2020. The EU has also created the possibility for agriculture to play a bigger role in the fight against climate change, according to the COPA organisation. A key aim of the 2008 French EU Presidency was to bring the C.A.P up to speed with new global challenges. To this end, with the backing of the Commission and a vast majority of member states, four texts were adopted in November 2008, focusing on rural development, direct aid to farmers, and regulation mechanisms for the single market (dairy quotas, interventions, etc.). (A health check'(CAP)by Europa (European Commission) (2009)). These agreements officially launched the EU debate on the future of the C.A.P post-2013, also taking stock of global food balances, competitiveness, sustainable development, and the economic dynamism of rural areas. The Czech Presidency of the EU, in the first semester 2009, failed to secure an agreement on the future of the C.A.P post-2013. However, the Agriculture Council did agree unanimous conclusions on agricultural product quality and the retargeting of aid in Less Favoured Areas (LFA). (Common Agricultural Policy (C.A.P).European Journalism Centre (EJC) 2009). The quality policy paves the way to clearer labelling and, it is hoped, better communication and understanding among farmers, wholesalers and consumers. The Council also said it would consider national and private food certificates that follow Commission good practice guidelines and pledged to cut red tape for farmers and producers who want to apply for EU schemes like the organic label and geographical indications. The LFA programme is designed to improve the targeting of aid to farmers in areas with natural handiC.A.Ps. Member states have been asked to produce maps by 31 January 2010, including specific details on climate, soil, and terrain. (Common Agricultural Policy (C.A.P).European Journalism Centre (EJC) 2009). Global food prices and C.A.P reform. The European Unions common agricultural policy protects and subsidizes agriculture so heavily as to bring serious social losses to the Economic Union. The policy creates inefficiencies in the agriculture sector as well as other sectors of society such as manufacturing, textiles, and service industries. Furthermore, there have been many economic consequences of the C.A.P, including the high level of protection, the burdens on consumers, taxpayers, and the EU budget, environmental damage, the harm to international trading relations, and the failure to raise farmers incomes (The Common Agricultural Policy:Past, Present and Future. Brain E.Hill. `Metheuen Co. Ltd, London. (page 117). There are a lot factors responsible of the food price rise: speculation in commodity markets, low global food stocks, subsidies, high cost of energy, concentration of important agricultural markets in the hands of a few firms, trade restrictions by important exporters to protect domestic consumers, deprecia tion of the US dollar and lower productivity growth due to low investment in agricultural researchà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ As global prices  hit new highs,  the European Commission had to intervene. First they sold its intervention stocks, removed the obligation to set aside 10% of arable land for the 2008 harvest, increased milk quotas by 2% and suspended import duties on cereals. (Global food prices and CAP reform by Euractiv. (2009). Then, the  Commission  proposed  policy  measures aimed at improving market transparency. It decided to enhance monitoring of  developments in agricultural markets and  analyze the impact of price speculation.  The EU executive also announced plans to  investigate the functioning of the food supply chain for potential unfair commercial practices, which may be holding back competition  and  driving up prices.   Overall, the Commissions  policy to address rising global food prices comprises three  strands of action: Mitigating short and medium-term effects of the food price shock  by monitoring price developments and speculative investments, changing the CAP Increasing agricultural supply and ensuring food security in the longer term  by strengthening the sustainability  of EU and global policies on biofuels, boosting agricultural research  to increase productivity and maintaining an open but vigilant GMO policy,  and;   Contributing to the global effort to help the poor  by promoting an open trade policy and concluding the Doha round of World Trade Organisation (WTO) talks,  offering humanitarian  aid and supporting  agricultural and rural development policy changes in developing countries. (Global food prices and CAP reform by Euractiv. (2009). C.A.P effects upon the environment. The C.A.P has also caused concern for the environment as well as concerns for the economy. Because of the subsidies provided to farmers, they have the incentive to produce more agricultural products because they will receive more money. The C.A.P price policies have encouraged intensive farming and the overuse of antibiotics, pesticides, and nitrates. This has put a strain on the environment and has concerned the people of the European Union. The policy did not foresee farmers overproducing and over using chemicals, but this has become an indirect cost created by the policy. Europeans are also concerned with food safety because of farmers using so many chemicals in production. Farmers have been getting away with using the chemicals and unsafe practices because of the limited food safety regulations. Policymakers believed that high price supports would lead to higher food safety and quality. High support prices do not increase either food safety or quality: indeed, minimum prices and intervention guarantees encourage low quality and standardized produce (The European Community: Economic and Political Aspects. (V.Lintner and S.Mazey. `Mcgraw-Hill, Maidenhead. (page 107) (1991). CCL: C.A.P has been seen as a monument to the determination of politicians, especially in the early years of integration, to work together for a united Community. It has become a symbol of co-operation. C.A.P has economic and social dimensions. There are many reasons put forward to explain  rising  food prices. These range from changing eating habits to trade restrictions and climate change. The  European Commission  insists that there is no connection between EU agricultural subsidies and rising food prices, and  stresses that the C.A.P is  much less trade-distorting than the American policy.  (Global food prices and CAP reform by Euractiv. (2009). ANNEXES: Figure 2: EU agricultural payments, 1963-2013. Source  : Agriculture 2009 revised.ppt Figure 3: EU expenditure: 1988-2006. Source  : Agriculture 2009 revised.ppt Figure 4: Source  : Agriculture 2009 revised.ppt Figure 5 and 6: Source  : Europa. REFERENCES: WEB SITES: Global food prices and CAP reform by Euractiv. (2009) http://www.euractiv.com/en/cap/global-food-prices-cap-reform/article-184329 Accessed 15th February 2010. Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) by European Journalism Centre (EJC). (2009) http://www.eu4journalists.eu/index.php/dossiers/english/C8 Accessed 16th February 2010. Agriculture CAP by Europa (European Commission) (2009) http://europa.eu/pol/agr/index_en.htm accessed 16th February 2010. The Doha Development Round of trade negotiations: understanding the issues by OCDE. (2008). http://www.oecd.org/document/45/0,3343,en_2649_201185_35738477_1_1_1_1,00HYPERLINK http://www.oecd.org/document/45/0,3343,en_2649_201185_35738477_1_1_1_1,00en-USS_01DBC.htmlHYPERLINK http://www.oecd.org/document/45/0,3343,en_2649_201185_35738477_1_1_1_1,00en-USS_01DBC.htmlHYPERLINK http://www.oecd.org/document/45/0,3343,en_2649_201185_35738477_1_1_1_1,00en-USS_01DBC.htmlen-USS_01DBC.html Accessed 17th February 2010. Fortress EuropeOne vision, one market: Europe as a success story? (2008) http://www.groupedebruges.eu/Word docs/manifest_chapter_4_(draft_version_1).doc Accessed 20th February 2010. LECTURE: Lecture 11: Agriculture. SEMINAR: Seminar 11: Agriculture. Agriculture 2009 revised.ppt REPORTS: CAP reform document  : 970 Future CAP.pdf  ; 981 Future CAP.pdf CAP report: Open Europe CAP report.pdf

Leagility Defined for the Supply Chain Essay example -- essays researc

Leagility Defined for the Supply Chain Two words, lean and agile, combine to make the word leagility. Supply chain managers need lean supply lines to eliminate waste and keep costs low. They also require agile supply chains to get the right amount of the product to the right place in order to satisfy the ever-changing nature of the marketplace. Traditional management recommended a lean supply chain for products with a stable demand, yet low profit margin. Conversely, products with a high profit margin and volatile demand should have an agile supply chain (Van der Vorst). Modern managers may benefit from studying hybrid supply chains that are both lean and agile. Lean supply chains work best with products that sell in high volume and low variety (Christopher). The reason for this is clear when one considers a type of product meeting this criterion. Toilet paper sells in predictable volume and while there is some variety with this product, it is basically the same from brand to brand. The consumer is more likely to buy this product as a result of price rather than bells and whistles. A manager of a supply chain of toilet paper can use many tools to keep the logistics cost low. Sales of this product are likely to be tied to population size with little of no variation in sales†¦except in college towns where TP sales may be higher during rush week. This consistency allows managers to ship regular orders of the product. Consistency allows for long-range contracts with shippers, wh...

John Steinbecks The Chrysanthemums and D.H. Lawrences The Odour of Ch

John Steinbeck's 'The Chrysanthemums' and D.H. Lawrence's 'The Odour of Chrysanthemums' Women in the 1900s were given little attention. John Steinbeck and D.H Lawrence however have chosen to base their short stories on a single woman character and around a type of flower, which is the chrysanthemum. Though written by male writers, both stories give an insight of the feelings and actions of a female character in that time period and how chrysanthemums can mean an entirely different obsession towards the two main characters. John Steinbeck's 'The Chrysanthemums' is about a tinker who confronts Elisa Allen while she was working on her prized chrysanthemums. Elisa was impressed of the tinker's freedom and his way of life. The tinker offers his service, repairing pots and pans, to Elisa, but she refuses at first. However, the tinker does not give up and tells Elisa about a customer that would be interested in her chrysanthemums. Elisa's attitude instantly changed and after her discussion with tinker she finds some work for the tinker to work on. Elisa's husband, Henry, takes her out later to the city for dinner. To her dismay she finds her lovely chrysanthemums dumped by the roadside by the tinker. D.H Lawrence, however, writes about Elizabeth Bates and her children who wait for the return of Walter, husband and father, who is late in his homecoming. Elizabeth has a brief meeting with her father. Not waiting any longer, Elizabeth and her children have dinner. Elizabeth puts her children to sleep and then goes out to look for her husband. It turns out that the husband had an accident and is now dead. Elizabeth's mother in law visits her and together they clean the dead Walter, while reminiscing the past.... ...not be offered to strangers. However, in 'Odour of Chrysanthemums,' Elizabeth realises she has never really known Walter and is ashamed to handle him. She experiences fear for she is aware that she has no control over her destiny and that she cannot escape death. Both stories do not have a happy ending, but instead deal with different aspects of life. 'The Chrysanthemums' with society and trust, whereas 'Odour of Chrysanthemums' with fate and death. I feel that John Steinbeck offers a better ending because it teaches us not to trust strangers with ease and gives us the message that we should be happy with what we have, not to envy others. Then again, the ending in 'Odour of chrysanthemums' is also true but I feel that it is too harsh. It is a fact that every creature will encounter death but death should not be Elizabeth's or anyone's 'ultimate master.'

Computers Have Impacted Me in Many Ways :: Personal Narrative Writing

Computers Have Impacted Me in Many Ways First of all, I want to begin by saying that in order for me to make this paper interesting at all, I am willing to pretend that computers are somewhat fun and exciting but the truth is, I honestly can not stand anything that goes beyond the basics of a computer because if I try to go any deeper I am reminded that it has a bigger brain than I. Due to the fact that I have an undying frustration with these boxes of microchips, this may not be the most professional sounding paper in the world, but I will do my best in trying to make it fun and entertaining. Out of all of the topics that I saw on the list of what we could do this paper on, I found zero that actually interested me, but I chose one anyway. Well, actually, I more or less turned one of the topics into something that I could handle writing five pages on. I am going to talk about how computers impact me in my daily life and I will talk about my past experience with computers and the things that I have learned from them. Computers have impacted me in many ways. Although I do not like to be instructed in how to do certain assignments (web sites and so forth) I do enjoy being able to have the luxury to type a paper on the â€Å"easy to use,† Microsoft word. Being an English major, it is very important that editing be taken very seriously and it makes my life a lot easier knowing that if I get sick of making corrections on a 20 page paper, the computer will pick out the obvious ones so that it saves me time. This may sound like a lame reason, but it saves me a lot of time. Another thing that I love is that it’s so easy to make change to a document font in any way that I want. If I want the words to be size twenty-two then all I have to do is highlight and hit the button. If I want to make a cool cover page with different font styles I can choose from a variety of different designs. Two of my favorites are comic sans and futura xblkit bt.

Education Is Very Important Essay

It helps us gain knowledge, information and interpret things correctly. Education teaches us how to lead our lives by mingling in the society and turning out to be good citizens. It makes us capable of interpreting rightly the things perceived. Education teaches us right behavior and makes us civilized people. It forms as a support system to excel in life, to continuously learn and build confidence, to reason everything till every question meets its answer. The conversion of information to knowledge is possible because of education and we also gain intelligence. Higher education influences the economic development of a nation as per the economists. A person is always judged by good manners he/she has. Education is important as it teaches us to differentiate between good and bad manners and choose the right behavior that cultivates good manners. Good manners are important for kids to develop at a very young age. Kids must learn to be polite, learn telephone etiquette, socialize with other kids and develop values. All this can be taught at home as well as school. Teaching your children good manners creates a foundation for them that will follow them through life. Education is important because it equips us with all that is needed to make our dreams come true. When we opt for higher education or masters, we need to choose the specialization field of our interest and talents. Most leading courses allow you to study all areas for the first year and to choose a specialization in your second year when you have more exposure and knowledge about these fields. The technical and analytical skills can be well explored in the area of one’s interest.