Fossil Fuels The Global Energy Problem - 1352 Words

Abstract For the past 100 years, fossil fuels have been the cornerstone of the world energy production. Oil is the most notable fossil fuel; however, coal and natural gas are also mainstream. Since global warming is the most important environmental problem the world faces and the cause is from greenhouse gases, many look to renewable energy resources to resolve the environment and energy crisis. The Global Energy Problem For many years, the world has been in an ongoing debate and struggle on what to do with our energy production and reserves. The debate has also encompassed the environmental aspect on how many forms of energy impacts the world and its environment. For over 30 years, scientists, world governments, and†¦show more content†¦(2013). The two charts above depict the world and a few selected regions consumption on oil and coal from 1965 to 2012. As shown, global oil and coal production continues to increase. Since the oil strikes in the late 1800’s to the 1900’s, the world went from coal to oil. Companies such as Standard Oil, British Petroleum, etc. found new ways to refine oil into different uses. For example, crude oil, which is oil pumped out of the ground and untouched, can become Kerosene, Propane, Gasoline, Jet Fuel, Motor Oil, etc. The petroleum industry also became one of the largest institutions of all time and today, the world relies heavily on it. For almost 150 plus years, the world has been burning fossil fuels without any regard to the impacts it would have on the planet. In the past 20 years, this issue is starting to come to the forefront. One main reason for this is the increase of greenhouse gas leads to a faster rate of global warming. Greenhouse gases are gases that trap heat in t he atmosphere which makes the planet warmer. Greenhouse gases can be carbon dioxide (CO2), Methane (CH4), Nitrous oxide (N2O) and Fluorinated gases. How much gas and for how long and how strong they go into and effect the atmosphere determines their effect on climate change. The main contributor of climate change is carbon dioxide (CO2) as this is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions and it is from

The Population Of Japan And Japan - 758 Words

This graph illustrates that the population of Japan has aged at a rate that is not what is generally seen, even in other countries which have large numbers of the population approaching retirement age. It is marked by two age group â€Å"crests†; the first of which can be seen between the ages of 60 to 69, and the second crest can be seen peaking between ages 40 to 44. The Statistics Bureau of Japan estimates that the population of people over the age of 65 comprises 25.8 per cent of the total population of the country currently, and as the second age crest reaches retirement age in the next 20 years, the ratio of people over 65 will reach a new high. This will not only be the result of this second crest being larger in scale relative to younger generations, but also because life expectancy in Japan is currently at 85 (The World Bank Group) and projected to rise to 87 in the next decade, meaning that these crests will need to be supported by the working population simultaneously. This aging generation is not inherently negative for the economy, of course. The other aspects of Japanese demographic indicators are what makes this aging alarming and pose a serious danger to the future of the Japanese economy. While not the focus of this paper, it is worth discussing the population growth of Japan. While the near-future will undoubtedly face a greater burden as the first age bracket reaches retirement age, the worst hardship will arise in 20 years. The horizon of 20 years isShow MoreRelatedJapan And Australia On Population Aging1384 Words   |  6 PagesResponses of Japan and Australia on Population Aging As time goes on, more and more countries come into population aging period. Population aging means the ratio of 65 years or above is over 7%, or the ratio of 60 years old or above is over 10%. Japan has the most serious aging problem in the world, and as predicted, after several decades there will be no Japanese populations without taking response measures. 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Japan’s graying population: The reasons behind it, steps taken to curb it and the implications of an aging society Introduction Japan has seen rapid development from the times of Meiji Restoration (1868) up till today. In fact, it has grown more rapidly than any other countries from 1870 to 1994 (Nafziger,1995) because of the various economic policies its government hadRead MoreSouth Kore Not Always Its Own Country, Before World War I1433 Words   |  6 PagesKorea. In 1905 Japan occupied the country while fighting with Russia and by 1910 Japan annexed the country which meant Korea was now under Japans rule. Japan was able to hold onto Korea from then until the Second World War. On August 8, 1945, the Soviet Union decided to declare war on Japan and invaded Korea, during this time the US had already been in Korea fighting against the Japanese. 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Japan’s GDP per capita is recorded at $37,432.91 higher than what it has beenRead MoreExtreme Poverty in Japan1501 Words   |  7 PagesIntroduction Friday 20 February 2012, Saitama, Japan: three members of the same family are found dead in their apartment building in Saitama, north of Tokyo. The victims were found decomposed lying on futons together with the carcass of their pet cat. The fridge was found empty and one-yen coin seemed to be the only money they possessed. The victims were an elderly couple in there 60s and their son, thought to be in his 30s. The cause of death of the family is unknown, however officials believeRead MoreThe Geography 101 Course Essay Essay894 Words   |  4 Pagesup many times throughout the semester and I have increased with familiarity is Japan. This location is constantly changing and growing. It exports many different vehicle and machinery parts, and is at the forefront of technology and the revolution that follows. Though I do not have any personal connections to the country of Japan, I know that has important geographical traits and occurrences that affect the population and cultural geogra phies, the agricultural and economic geographies, and the politicalRead MoreJap A Nation Of Many Countries1287 Words   |  6 PagesAdams, Matthew World Geography Mr. Koldoff 13 May, 2015 Japan: A Nation of Many Excitements Japan is one of the most interesting nations in the world. Many different cultures and religions exist in this country. Japan is a large archipelago of islands just east of Korea. Although the country is very often looked at as a country of many different and large cities, it is also full of grasslands and agricultural opportunities. Japan is also one of the leading electronic suppliers of the world. This

Cloud Computing Enterprise Planning and Implementation

Question: Discuss about the Cloud Computing for Enterprise Planning and Implementation. Answer: Introduction The report is focused on the strategy implementation of a company that is related with the implementation of latest versions of Cloud Computing. The aim of the strategic implementation of the latest technologies of cloud computing are to make the systems faster while getting a faster result in the IT systems of work. The report will put emphasis on many aspects such as the ways of implementing the new systems of cloud computing into the businesses along with the risk management of the systems. It will describe about the involvement of stakeholders in the change management procedures of the company. It can be said that the implementation of new strategy requires a proper strategic plan and consulting with the officials involved in the operational team and strategic management team of the company. The processes of change management strategies in the context of the business changes are to be described in details with the consent of the responsible officials of the company. The need of a doption of strategies and the strategies of risk management are to be formulated based on the required cost and budgeting of the company that are set for the change management in terms of new systems of Cloud Computing. Development of future state of the organization It can be said that to maintain the competitiveness in the market, companies must change themselves and their strategies for coping up the needs of the markets and the demands of the customers. It is to be pointed out that the world of IT is moving in a fast pace with the development of science and technology. There are numerous opportunities that the organization can avail while implementing latest versions of cloud computing services like storages, servers, networking, databases, software analytics and many more. The various forms of cloud computing services that are to be implemented in the processes of Change management are PaaS, SaaS and IaaS (Grozev and Buyya 2014). The strategic pan of the change of the IT infrastructure of the company is formulated as per the requirements of the existing clients as well as the demands of the market. The aim is to increase the client base of the company in terms of providing better service in a reasonable price. It will help in the improved customer satisfaction, which will ultimately lead to generation of more customers from them by the WOM promotion. The main reason of using different types of Cloud Computing software is to increase the productivity of the company as well as the performance of the company (Cito et al. 2015). The system of the company will be increased after the implementation of the new software in the IT department. It is important to make future strategies while considering the present condition of the different operations of the company. It is important for the company to adopt the current trends of the market in terms of technology implementation. However, it requires a proper planning of adopting different strategies of change management in the company. For a change management, it requires to follow various steps and communication with the employees of the company. It is essential to understand the current situation of the company while formulating future strategies for the company (Grozev and Buyya 2014). The employees of the organization must have a proper knowledge about the different types of modern software that are using by the top reputed companies while attracting more customers in order to provide an improved customer satisfaction. The steps or the approaches that are to be formulated by the companys senior management of the company must follow various considerations. The various business departments must get benefit from the new strategies of the IT implementation processes. The new approach will be implemented after consulting with the operations officer, strategic management department, executives working at the junior level, in the service department, etc. Apart from that, the business processes of the company must be considered in terms of the IT development (Fuggetta and Di Nitto 2014). Alignment with existing businesses strategies The existing business strategies of the company are following with the business processes that are related with the expectations of the customers of the company. It can be said that the existing business strategies are based on the current systems of ERP and CRM technologies. The new strategies of the Cloud Computing software and technology implementation must align with the current strategies of the company. The existing CRM technologies are not updated enough to provide results that are matching with the quality level of services provided to the clients by the company. However, the systems of ERP that are using in the company are not yielding sufficient results in terms of quality (Chauhan and Saxena 2013). Hence, the executives are to be contacted in order to formulated strategies. However, the company will The core business processes of the company comprises of the management department, product / service development, accounting management, technology management, process, quality and change management, employee satisfaction and development, customer strategy and relationships, customer acquisition, service delivery, external benchmark department, etc. The core business processes of the company needs the changed technologies. Alignment of the existing business operations are an important aspect that needs to be considered by the technical department as well as the strategic department of the company. The core business operations needs to adapt the technologies that will be implemented in order to achieve better services and faster quality services to the company (Hashizume et al. 2013). The drivers of the business and the business operations are related with one another so that they can provide a better result to the customers in the long run. However, the alignment of the new strategies and the new technologies of Cloud Computing are essential so that the employees can get comfortable with the new strategies. The communication channel between the different levels of employees is mandatory so that they can get comfortable in the new systems of management in the technology implementation (Botta et al. 2016). Strategic plan Strategic planning of the organization is defined as the organizational process that defines strategy, direction, making decisions as well as allocating the resources to the suitable areas of business operations. The strategic management department of the organization is responsible for the formation of the new strategies that will help the company to grow its business operations in the market. The strategic planners of the company must focus on the different types of aspects of competitive advantage in terms of market needs and the rival companies so that they can make a creative strategy plan in the market. There are many frameworks or tools, that the company can use to formulate a concrete strategy plan such as balanced scorecard, Porters Five Forces, SWOT, growth share matrix, strategy map, etc. in terms of improved strategy for the company (Botta et al. 2016). The company will have to formulate new goals and objectives that will be aligned with the existing strategies. A total c hange in organizational goals and strategies will create problem in the adaptation problem of the employees associated with the organization. It is the reason, the strategic planners must focus on the concerns of the employees along with their feedback. The main feedback from the IT team and the technological department of the company is responsible for the appropriate strategy implementation. It can be formulated by following few processes like analysis, strategy formulation, goal setting, structure and control feedback. These stages come under the formulation and implementation of the different types of purpose and values of the new forms of change management (Hashizume et al. 2013). Adoption and change management Change management of any organization is defined as the approach that is responsible for transitioning teams, individuals, organizations that used different management resources, budget allocations, business processes, and different types of operations that help in shaping the future of the organization. Organizational change management is considered to as the list of strategies that are linked with the transitional change. The tool of the change in the organizational context requires change in individual and as well as in the whole organization i.e. the business operations. The different types of teams present in the organization will not have same perspective towards the new form of strategies (Chauhan and Saxena 2013). The need of change management is essential in order to refer a change control process that is related with the scope of the strategy that is being formulated in the long run. The reason of change in the team is the constant innovation and globalization that are requ ired constantly in a various kind of business environment. Change management is the reason of the different types of development of the company in the technological development. It should use different types of phenomena like mobile adaptability and social media that have revolutionalized the business and have an effect on the technical performance of the department of IT in the company (Hashem et al. 2015). Change management models that are used in the organizational perspectives are Lewins change management model. There are three steps in the Lewins Change management model which will be used in reducing the effect of hindrances that are caused in the different types of employees of the organization. The three steps are: Unfreeze: In this stage, the leader or the people associated with the change management are responsible for the determination of the cause of hindrances in the minds of the employees. It is seen that the understanding of the change that is essential for the growth of the company (Durao et al. 2014). Change: After finding the reason of the different types of hindrances among the minds of the employees, the leaders of the organization must use situational leadership style in order to maintain a steady flow of communication between the leaders and the different employees who have hindrance in their minds. It can be said that a good leadership and a steady communication is the reason of clearance of the hindrances towards new policies of change management. Refreeze: Refreeze is the last stage of the change management model that is used by the team leaders to implement the strategy that is being finalised in the second stage of the model. It is the time where the staffs and the leaders both are equally involved in the technology implementation of cloud computing in the organization (Fuggetta and Di Nitto 2014). Risk management The risk factors that are to be identified in this change management plan of the organization are to be implemented in the preventive measures. Risk factor Preventive measures 1.Human error in the aspect of staff Employing best people; training; team formation; adapt new process; peer reviews 2. External components, Standard Software Prototyping; benchmarking; compatibility analysis; review of installations; review of suppliers; benchmarking 3. Unrealistic budget and schedule Incremental development; business case analysis; modification of budget and schedule; reuse of software (Chang, Kuo and Ramachandran 2016) 4. User interfaces do not fit needs Description of users; development of scenarios; prototyping 5. Developed functions and requirements do not match Prototyping; description of users; description of scenarios 6. Constant requirement alterations Information hiding; change management processes; incremental development; increased threshold for changes (Zainuddin et al. 2016) 7. Inadequate performance, architecture and quality Benchmarking; simulation; prototyping; modelling; tuning 8. Problems with externally performed task Parallel design; audits; team formation; prototyping of suppliers 9. Problems in terms of legacy systems Restructuring; Design recovery 10. Overestimation of IT capabilities Benefit/ cost analysis; technical analysis; prototyping (Moreno-Vozmediano, Montero. and Llorente 2013) The risk management process consists of two categories namely risk assessment and risk control. The risk assessment is again categorised into three categories such as risk identification, risk prioritization and risk analysis. Again risk control is divided into three categories such as risk resolution, risk management planning and risk monitoring (Rittinghouse and Ransome 2016). Stakeholders Management A stakeholder is a person or a group of individual or an organization, which can be affected by or can affect or can perceive itself by a programme. There are different types of stakeholders in the organization such as employees, customers, shareholders, senior management of the company, government, etc. They are categorized under internal stakeholders and external stakeholders. The internal stakeholders and external stakeholders of the IT organization are to be involved in the strategic formation as well as the choosing various technologies and software of cloud computing (Gupta, Seetharaman and Raj 2013). The stakeholders are to be involved because they are the experienced personnel that are associated with the organization since the foundation of the company. They will be taking responsible decision towards the organizational growth of the company. Apart from that, the stakeholders have the experience regarding market knowledge as well as different information regarding the compet itors (Avram 2014). It can be said that the effective stakeholder management is responsible for creation of positive relationships with the internal and external stakeholders through different stages and its management with an agreed objective. Stakeholders management in the organization is defined as the strategy that utilises various information gathered during the common process. Few processes are to be followed in terms of conducting effective stakeholder management. They are identification of the stakeholders, prioritizing the stakeholders, understanding the key stakeholders and following key principles that engage the stakeholders to provide their input in the changes that needs to be done in the organizational context (Chang and Ramachandran 2016). Costing and Budget Management The budget and costing is a point of concern for the company for the technology and software of cloud computing and IOT by replacing the existing CRM and ERP softwares. The budget that will be allocated is not only allocated for buying new technologies and software. It is also for allocating resources in the implementation of the technologies in the office premises and people who will be required to run the technologies in the IT department. It is estimated that a budget of $1.2 million is to be allocated for the change management strategies of the organization i the software implementation (Oliveira, Thomas and Espadanal 2014). Conclusion It can be concluded that the Chief Technical Officer of the company has passed the proposal of the need of the strategy implementation in the company. In the proposal, it is focused that the company is not performing up to the industry standards and it is the reason of the acceptance of the new strategies in the different operational departments of the company. The company is focused on the development of various technologies and software of cloud computing that will help the company not only in providing excellent customer service but also to attract clients from the market. The strategic management department of the company has to conduct an extensive market research on the technological part and the software that will help the department in making strategic decisions in terms of generic strategy, competitive advantage, geographic scope, portfolio management, market positioning, value chain and core competence. The aspect of cost and budget are determined in a clear way so that the whole processes of change management can be completed within the budget and in the stipulated time. Apart from that, the effect of leadership while implementing processes of change management within the organizational context is important so that the employees creating hindrances are to be handled in a proper way. References Avram, M.G., 2014. Advantages and challenges of adopting cloud computing from an enterprise perspective.Procedia Technology,12, pp.529-534. Botta, A., De Donato, W., Persico, V. and Pescap, A., 2016. Integration of cloud computing and internet of things: a survey.Future Generation Computer Systems,56, pp.684-700. Chang, V. and Ramachandran, M., 2016. Towards achieving data security with the cloud computing adoption framework.IEEE Transactions on Services Computing,9(1), pp.138-151. Chang, V., Kuo, Y.H. and Ramachandran, M., 2016. Cloud computing adoption framework: A security framework for business clouds.Future Generation Computer Systems,57, pp.24-41. Chauhan, N.S. and Saxena, A., 2013. A green software development life cycle for cloud computing.IT Professional,15(1), pp.28-34. Cito, J., Leitner, P., Fritz, T. and Gall, H.C., 2015, August. The making of cloud applications: An empirical study on software development for the cloud. InProceedings of the 2015 10th Joint Meeting on Foundations of Software Engineering(pp. 393-403). ACM. Durao, F., Carvalho, J.F.S., Fonseka, A. and Garcia, V.C., 2014. A systematic review on cloud computing.The Journal of Supercomputing,68, pp.1321-1346. Fuggetta, A. and Di Nitto, E., 2014, May. Software process. InProceedings of the on Future of Software Engineering(pp. 1-12). ACM. Grozev, N. and Buyya, R., 2014. Inter?Cloud architectures and application brokering: taxonomy and survey.Software: Practice and Experience,44(3), pp.369-390. Gupta, P., Seetharaman, A. and Raj, J.R., 2013. The usage and adoption of cloud computing by small and medium businesses.International Journal of Information Management,33(5), pp.861-874. Hashem, I.A.T., Yaqoob, I., Anuar, N.B., Mokhtar, S., Gani, A. and Khan, S.U., 2015. The rise of big data on cloud computing: Review and open research issues.Information Systems,47, pp.98-115. Hashizume, K., Rosado, D.G., Fernndez-Medina, E. and Fernandez, E.B., 2013. An analysis of security issues for cloud computing.Journal of Internet Services and Applications,4(1), p.5. Moreno-Vozmediano, R., Montero, R.S. and Llorente, I.M., 2013. Key challenges in cloud computing: Enabling the future internet of services.IEEE Internet Computing,17(4), pp.18-25. Oliveira, T., Thomas, M. and Espadanal, M., 2014. Assessing the determinants of cloud computing adoption: An analysis of the manufacturing and services sectors.Information Management,51(5), pp.497-510. Rittinghouse, J.W. and Ransome, J.F., 2016.Cloud computing: implementation, management, and security. CRC press. Zainuddin, N., Maarop, N., Abidin, W.Z., Azmin, N.F.M. and Samy, G.N., 2015. Cloud Computing Adoption Conceptual Model of Malaysian Hospitals.Open International Journal of Informatics,3(1), p.1.

Jesus Superiority to All Things Jewish in the Epistle to the Hebrews free essay sample

.To what, exactly, is Jesus superior? What is the authors point in underscoring this? The author of Hebrews writes to encourage believers to stand strong in their faith and to not fall away from following God. The book is also written to encourage people and to explain where Jesus falls in the line of superiority. Hebrews discusses how the Jewish laws are full of flaws and doesn’t lead people to a relationship with God. It also notes that some Old Testaments prophets were aware of the laws imperfections and how they made mention of a new covenant. (Ehrman 300) The main theme of the Epistle to the Hebrews is that Jesus is the superiority over Prophets, Angels, Moses, Joshua and the Jewish Priesthood. Jesus is above all of these because he paid the ultimate sacrifice once and for all when he died on the cross covering all sins. The reason the author continues to declare, â€Å"Christ and faith in him are superior to anything that Judaism can offer† is â€Å"to convince his listeners not to convert to Judaism† (Ehrman 307). We will write a custom essay sample on Jesus Superiority to All Things Jewish in the Epistle to the Hebrews or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page According to the Hebrews, it wasn’t possible to know God and then â€Å"fall away† for if this did occur, you didn’t truly find salvation in the first place. (Towles, Lesson on Hebrews) The author wrote to encourage Christians to stand strong for no matter the persecution they faced and assumed them they will receive an award in the end.

How to Develop Photographic Memory

How to Develop Photographic Memory Struggling to remember that phone number? Having troubles memorizing the dates for the History exam? Seeking for a magic way to imprint the information on your brain quickly and efficiently? Sadly, we dont do magic. Luckily, there are some ways to help drastically improve your memory. Before we get down to business, lets dot all the is and cross all the ts. Though used interchangeably, the terms â€Å"photographic memory† and â€Å"eidetic memory† dont mean the same thing. Eidetic memory is the ability to remember visual images for a long time after seeing them shortly. Photographic memory is a skill, that allows one to memorize impressive amounts of information (text, numbers etc) almost immediately after seeing them. Its considered to be a popular misconception and a product of junk science. If the controversy hasnt changed your intention to improve your memory and get closer to a true â€Å"braniac† status, prepare to do some work and appreciate the results. With a bit of patience and practice youll definitely become the memory master. Method of Loci This technique requires a bit of effort and a lot of imagination. Basically, its a mnemonic device, strongly connected with spatial memory. There are several stages to it and well walk you through each one. Construct Your Memory Palace Our brain remember visual images much better than soulless text or numbers. Thats why building associations facilitates memorizing process. Memory palace is where youll store the images. It doesnt have to be fancy a all. The only requirement is that you know it and can easily find your way around. The house youve grown up in will fit perfectly. Once the place is chosen, move to the next step. Paint the Pictures Lets go with the basics here: say, you need to memorize the list of groceries, which contains milk, avocados, soap and corn flakes. Take the three items and go a little crazy. Imagine avocado, swimming in the canoe down the milk river, floating down the stairs of your house. Then, it takes a machine-gun, and starts shooting with cornflakes. They hit your Moms favorite vase, it breaks into pieces, releasing soap foam all over the place. There you have it: avocado, milk, soap and corn flakes! We remember catchy images much better. The images you create may be ridiculous, scary, sexy, shocking – whatever works for you. Make sure to connect them with a certain location in your mind palace, use the vivid colors and prepare to be surprised with how much you actually can remember. Take a Tour Now, take a stroll around the palace. Use the mental â€Å"anchors† youve left around it and think of an element of your picture. After that you brain will conjure up the whole image, helping you recall the constituents. Thats how you use the loci method. Unleash your creativity and have fun with it. Mind Mapping Mind Mapping is a powerful memorizing technique, effective particularly for non-linear thinkers. It involves drawing a scheme, with the key concept in the center with all the others surrounding it. The notions are organized into branches, which leads first to the important sub-concept and then, inevitably, to the central one. A well-organized mind-map is far more efficient than hours of repetition as it makes you think and build connections in your own way. Go Sober Yeah, this one is a bit sad. Alcohol deteriorates your learning abilities and memory. If you do want to facilitate the memorizing process to the greatest extent, go really light on booze (if youre not ready to give it up entirely). The wisest choice concerning the beverage is red wine: its full of antioxidants and flavanols that help prevent Alzheimers disease and make your memory function better. Military Technique Ready to go tough? This technique has been used to train the intelligence for several decades already. To try it youll need: a room (preferably with no windows), a lamp (with a switch that is easy to reach), a book with the information you need to memorize, a sheet of paper and 15 minutes per day at least during a month. Got it all? Moving to the method then. First, choose the paragraph you need to memorize. Then, take the paper and cut out a part of it that will cover all the page of the book except for the needed paragraph. Place the paper onto the page and turn off the lights. When your eyes adjust to the darkness completely, turn on the light for a couple of seconds. The moment should be enough to see the paragraph in full concentration. Then turn off the light and repeat. The whole procedure may sound weird at first, yet soon youll get used to it and remember the text of the paragraph much quicker. Eat Right A good diet is everything. To literally nourish your brain, make sure you include enough products, containing omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids, potassium, Vitamins E and K. These elements will keep your brain alert, prevent Alzheimers and dementia, boost your mood and ability to focus. Add sufficient amounts of broccoli, nuts, seeds, oily fish and whole grains to your food and get healthier with every meal. Heres a student grocery list which contain everything you need for a healthy diet. Get Pumped Up Exercising has tons of benefits. Apart from toning your body and increasing general fitness, it helps you be more focused, make better decisions and remember information for a long time. While exercising, you accelerate the blood flow, making it bring more oxygen to the brain cells. In addition to that, the post-workout boost of endorphins will make you feel good about yourself, motivate you to work harder and practice all the techniques weve mentioned above. Well, thats pretty much it. Dont give up and quite soon youll become a real memorization monster!

Real-World Green Chemistry Examples

Reals Green chemistry seeks to develop products and processes that are kind to the environment. This can involve reducing the waste a process creates, using renewable materials, lessening the energy required to form a product, etc. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sponsors an annual challenge for the most innovative green chemistry inventions, plus you can find examples of green chemistry in many of the products you buy and use. Here are some interesting sustainable chemistry achievements: Biodegradable Plastics Plastics being developed from eco-friendly renewable sources, plus some modern plastics are biodegradable. The combination of innovations reduces our dependence on petroleum products, protects humans and wildlife from undesirable chemicals in old plastics, and reduces waste and impact on the environment. Scientists at  NatureWorks  of Minnetonka, Minnesota, makes food containers from a polymer called polylactic acid, made using  microorganisms to convert cornstarch into a resin. The resulting polymer is used to replace rigid petroleum-based plastic used in yogurt containers and water bottles. Advances in Medicine Pharmaceuticals are expensive to produce in part because of the complicated and exacting synthesis mechanisms required to produce some drugs. Green chemistry seeks to streamline production processes, reduce the environmental impact of drugs and their metabolites, and minimize toxic chemicals used in reactions. Professor Yi Tang, of the University of California,  devised an improved  synthesis process to make  Zocor ®, which is the brand name for  the drug, Simvastatin, used to treat high cholesterol. The previous process used hazardous chemicals and released a large volume of toxic waste. Professor Tangs process uses  an engineered enzyme and a low-cost feedstock. The company Codexis, then took the mechanism and  optimized the enzyme and synthesis process so the drug could be manufactured more safely, less expensively, and with less of an environmental impact. Research and Development Scientific research employs a number of techniques that use hazardous chemicals and release waste into the environment. New greener processes keep research and tech on track while making it safer, cheaper, and less wasteful. Life Technologies  developed a three-step, one-pot synthesis method for polymerase chain reaction (PCR), used in genetic testing. The new process is more efficient, consuming  up to 95 percent less organic solvent and releasing up to 65 percent less waste compared with the conventional protocol. Using the new process, Life Technologies  eliminates about  1.5 million pounds of hazardous waste each year. Paint and Pigment Chemistry Green paints go way beyond eliminating lead from formulations! Modern paints reduce toxic chemicals released as paints dry, substitute safer pigments for some poisonous colors, and reduce toxins when the paint is removed. Procter Gamble and Cook Composites and Polymers formulated a soya oil and sugar mixture to replace petroleum-derived paint resins and solvents. Formulations using the mixture release 50% fewer hazardous volatile compounds.Sherwin-Williams created water-based acrylic alkyd paints that contain low levels of volatile organic compounds  (VOCs). The acrylic paint is made from a mixture of acrylics, soybean oil, and recycled PET bottles. Manufacturing Many of the processes used to make products rely on toxic chemicals or could be streamlined to reduce the use of resources and release of waste. Green chemistry seeks to develop new processes and improve conventional production methods. Faraday has developed a plating process to make high-performance chrome coatings from trivalent chromium instead of highly toxic hexavalent chromium.

Real-World Green Chemistry Examples

Reals Green chemistry seeks to develop products and processes that are kind to the environment. This can involve reducing the waste a process creates, using renewable materials, lessening the energy required to form a product, etc. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sponsors an annual challenge for the most innovative green chemistry inventions, plus you can find examples of green chemistry in many of the products you buy and use. Here are some interesting sustainable chemistry achievements: Biodegradable Plastics Plastics being developed from eco-friendly renewable sources, plus some modern plastics are biodegradable. The combination of innovations reduces our dependence on petroleum products, protects humans and wildlife from undesirable chemicals in old plastics, and reduces waste and impact on the environment. Scientists at  NatureWorks  of Minnetonka, Minnesota, makes food containers from a polymer called polylactic acid, made using  microorganisms to convert cornstarch into a resin. The resulting polymer is used to replace rigid petroleum-based plastic used in yogurt containers and water bottles. Advances in Medicine Pharmaceuticals are expensive to produce in part because of the complicated and exacting synthesis mechanisms required to produce some drugs. Green chemistry seeks to streamline production processes, reduce the environmental impact of drugs and their metabolites, and minimize toxic chemicals used in reactions. Professor Yi Tang, of the University of California,  devised an improved  synthesis process to make  Zocor ®, which is the brand name for  the drug, Simvastatin, used to treat high cholesterol. The previous process used hazardous chemicals and released a large volume of toxic waste. Professor Tangs process uses  an engineered enzyme and a low-cost feedstock. The company Codexis, then took the mechanism and  optimized the enzyme and synthesis process so the drug could be manufactured more safely, less expensively, and with less of an environmental impact. Research and Development Scientific research employs a number of techniques that use hazardous chemicals and release waste into the environment. New greener processes keep research and tech on track while making it safer, cheaper, and less wasteful. Life Technologies  developed a three-step, one-pot synthesis method for polymerase chain reaction (PCR), used in genetic testing. The new process is more efficient, consuming  up to 95 percent less organic solvent and releasing up to 65 percent less waste compared with the conventional protocol. Using the new process, Life Technologies  eliminates about  1.5 million pounds of hazardous waste each year. Paint and Pigment Chemistry Green paints go way beyond eliminating lead from formulations! Modern paints reduce toxic chemicals released as paints dry, substitute safer pigments for some poisonous colors, and reduce toxins when the paint is removed. Procter Gamble and Cook Composites and Polymers formulated a soya oil and sugar mixture to replace petroleum-derived paint resins and solvents. Formulations using the mixture release 50% fewer hazardous volatile compounds.Sherwin-Williams created water-based acrylic alkyd paints that contain low levels of volatile organic compounds  (VOCs). The acrylic paint is made from a mixture of acrylics, soybean oil, and recycled PET bottles. Manufacturing Many of the processes used to make products rely on toxic chemicals or could be streamlined to reduce the use of resources and release of waste. Green chemistry seeks to develop new processes and improve conventional production methods. Faraday has developed a plating process to make high-performance chrome coatings from trivalent chromium instead of highly toxic hexavalent chromium.

Marketing in Airline Industry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Marketing in Airline Industry - Essay Example In order to attract customers and increase their loyalty, marketers today try to associate their products with an element of service attached to it. For example, when a customer buys a car, he enjoys the facility of free service for the first three years from the car manufacturer company ((ICMR)). If a goods and services are represented on a continuum with highly tangible goods on the extreme left and highly intangible services on the extreme right, the bundle of goods and services will fall somewhere along the middle of the continuum. The industry that has been selected for discussion in this paper is the airline industry. The airline industry is regulated by the Ministry of Civil Aviation in the domestic market and by a system of bilateral service agreements in the international market. The bilateral service agreements regulate the prices offered by various airlines, capacity of the aircraft, and the routes to be served by these airlines (Sky News). The future of the airlines industry depends on the flight schedules, take-off time, in-flight and airport service, safety records, fleet capacity and efficiency, route frequency, strategic alliances with other airlines and businesses like hotels, etc. Characteristics of the airline industry Airline industry is highly competitive. Competition is intense on the routes which are more profitable. The growth of the industry is closely linked to economic growth. An airline seat is an intangible and perishable good and hence marketers need to take special care while formulating their marketing strategies. Demand is price elastic i.e. as the price of service goes down the demand goes up, and income elastic i.e. when the income of the general population goes up, more people tend to travel by air. The profitability of an airline increases, when the flight capacity is properly utilized and the aircraft spends less time on the ground. There has been a revolutionary increase in the number of low-cost airline which are otherwise called the budget airlines in the aviation industry over the last few years. The budget airlines are usually operators who provide low-cost travel options for the passengers. The budget airlines try and cut the indirect costs to the maximum possible extent. Passengers are not offered wet towels, meals etc. Sometimes it may even happen that they do not even offer water to the passengers flying the budget airlines (Phillip). Marketing of Airlines Like any other industry, promotional activities play an important role in the airline industry as well. Airlines today offer attractive schemes to woo customers. These include frequent flyer schemes, special benefits, discounts, festive season offs, gifts like electronic equipment or kitchen appliances, access to club lounges, and special discounts with the alliance's business. Quality of service can be a useful tool for airlines to gain a competitive advantage. This is because passengers expect airline crew to be efficient, friendly and helpful. Thus, proactive customer orientation is the need of the hour. Marketing Strategies Airlines must identify and eliminate non-value adding cost and use the money saved to provide better quality services. The company should find a niche market and cater to it. Identifying and flying to

SEE Business Services Literature review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

SEE Business Services - Literature review Example However, various factors might result to this kind of scenario. For instance, the ever-changing business environment will push many business people and entrepreneurs to seeking more information on how they can utilize the business opportunity effectively. Because of this, the membership will increase because one of the objectives of the organization is to develop members. Additionally, the members have a forum to share their experiences and educate each other on various business and entrepreneurial ventures. Another major cause of increase in membership is favorable business environment that will encourage business hence the need for people to join the organization in order to gain knowledge. The driving force for this is that the organization provides an environment of sharing between members. Moreover, the organization encourages and celebrates outstanding business practices. Similarly, a favorable business environment will lead to an increased number of businesses and as a result, more people would want to join the organization in order to benefit and improve their business (Franz & Huemer 2007, p.6). Consequently, a favorable business environment will also lead to an increased number of entrepreneurs hence increasing the number of people who want to join the organization. ... Furthermore, the organization is bridging an information gap that exists in the market hence many want to join and benefit from the services that it offers. Another reason for the sharp increase in the number of people wanting to join the organization is the few number of organization that offer similar services. These are some of the courses for the increasing number of people that want to become members of the organization. However, for the organization to manage this increase effectively without negatively affecting the value of services it provides then it needs to develop smaller business development teams at the regional level that will deal with all the needs and concerns of members. These business development teams will perform a similar function as those in the head office in order to, effectively, manage the rising number of members without having a breakdown. However, they will not be in a position to make decisions. The management of the organization will be the sole cust odians of all rights and privileges. Additionally, these development teams will work as the head office directs. 2.0 Change Facilitation (a) Force Field Analysis Diagram +10 +5 0 -5 -10 \\\\\ The size of the arrow signifies strength i.e. the longer the arrow the stronger the force the shorter the arrow the weaker the force (Harris, 2002, p. 20). However, looking at the Field Force Analysis Diagram, there are several forces that the organization is facing. These forces are from all involved parties in the organization. For instance, the regional officers are advocating for decentralization in the organization so that more members can get services closer to them and faster than when the head office

Bru Tripura Vision Essay Example for Free

Bru Tripura Vision Essay According to the legends one of the Tripuri prince was expatriated by the king, who along with his followers migrated to the Mayani Thalang area of Lushai hills and founded a state over there. He proclaim as king of the state and the descendant of the exiled Tripuri prince ruled over the state for generations. In due course of time there was no heir to succeed the throne, which lead to anarchy in the kingdom. Owing to some internal feud and vendetta four chief of the sub tribes, namely Twikluha, Yongsika, Paisika, Tuibruha and their entourage left their hearth and home and migrated through Chittagong to the state of Tripura centuries ago. These Reang chiefs could not climb up the Dombur hill peak for two consecutive times and succeeded in third times. Mahendra Manikya was at the throne of Tripura kingdom. After reaching to the capital, these chiefs tried to persuade the ministers and other bureaucrats to give them permission to meet the king and submit their memorandum but was not successful in doing so. By then they have exhausted whatever food and edible they had brought with them and suffered a lot. They were very sad and disheartened by this. They were determined to send the message of their arrival to the king anyhow. In order to send information to the king they broke the dam of the river Gumti where worship was going on at that time. This was a serious crime and all of them were brought before the king. The king ordered them capital punishment. Somehow this news came to Queen Gunoboti. The chiefs prayed in front of the queen who after persuading the king motivated to forgive these chiefs of their crime, who letter forgave them. Since then the Reangs became very obedient and loyal to the queen and throne of Tripura. It is said that the ueen Gunoboti fed these chiefs with her breast milk in a big pan of brass, which is still intact with Ktordofa, which was gifted by the queen. The queen gifted many other valuable things, which were carefully preserved by Reangs till date. Historical Population figures In 1971 the Riang were the second largest of the scheduled tribes in Tripura. There were 64,722 people counted in the Riang tribe in Tripura that year. In 1961 the Riang had numbered 56,597 and in 19 51 they had numbered 8,471. [1] According to the 2001 census, there were 165,103 Reang in Tripura. Meska and Molsoi groups The Reang clans are divided into two groups: 1. Meska, 2. Molsoi. The Meska Group The Meska group is divided into seven sub groups or dopha, these are as follows: 1. Meska :- Meskameans the lemon tree in in kau bru language. 2. Msa :- Msa means tiger in Kau bru. It is said that the fore-father of this dopha was brought up by a tigress in his child hood like the Romulus and Ramous of ancient Rome. 3. Chorkhi :- Chorkhi means Spinning wheel in Kau bru, it is said that one Reang chief was speaking obscene about his daughter-in-law, when his friends started spinning the spinning wheel to musk the obscene of the chiefs. So the descendant are named after the chorkhi. 4. Raikchaoh :- Rai means cane in Kaubru, kchaoh means red in Kaubru; it is said that the fore-father of this dofa used to wear cane made red colour armlet. 5. wairem :- wai means tie, rem means mix/hybrid in Reanglanguage. It is said that they are descendant of Reang man and Kuki woman. 6. Tauma yakcho :- Tauma means hen, yakcho means toeless; the toes of the fore-fathers of this dopha resembled to that of hen. 7. Tuimuiyaphaoh :- Tuimayaphaoh means tortoise in Reang dialect, the fore-father of this dopha were suffering from white patches like the tortoise chest. The Molsoi Group The Molsoi group is sub-divided into six groups, which are as follows: 1. Molsoi :- Molsoi is the derivative of msoi which means msoi in Kaubru. Their fore-fathers first settled in the deer dominated green valley. Since they were called in that name. 2. Apeto :- Apeto is a type of fish in Kaubru. The fore-fathers belly was big like the belly of Apet fish. 3. Nouhkham :- Nouh means house, kham means burnt in Kaubru; once the fore-father of this dophas house were burnt to ashes since then they were termed in this name. 4. Chongpreng :- Chongpreng is a type of musical instrument, it is said that the fore-father of this dopha used to survive by playing this musical instrument as they were suffering from gungri disease. 5. Yaohstam :- Yaohstam means ring of finger, it is said that the fore-father of this dopha used to used to wear ring and used to display proudly to others. This dopha has been in extinct at present. 6. Reang kachko :- Kachko means chief in Kokborok, the fore-father of this dopha were chiefs of Reang. Ktor Dopha In the above thirteen dophas or sub-groups of the Reangs there are 26 chiefs or heads, who are designated as Kotor Dopha. Kotor means head and dopha means clan or group. The chiefs are divided into two categories: * Rai, and * Kaskau. Rai and his subordinates chiefs * Rai :- Rai means Raja or chief of the sub group is bestowed as Rai. * Chapiya Khan :- Crown Rai. * Chapiya :- Crown Chapiya Khan. * Dor kalim :- He is the priest of Rai. * Doloi :- Helper of Rai. * Bandari :- Store keeper of Rai. * Kanda :- Servant and holder of umbrella of Rai. * Doya Hajari:- Drum player. * Muriya :- Trumpet player. * Dugria :- Helper in of priest. * Dauwa :- Arranger of puja, or worshiping. Siakrak :- distributor of prasad, that is the sacrificial animal meat. Kaskau and his sub ordinate chiefs * Kaskau :- The chief minister of the sub-group is bestowed as Kaskau. * Yaksung :- He is the assistant of chief minister. * Hajra :- Servant of Kaskau. * Kangreng :- Umbrella holder of Kaskau. * Kormo : Servant of Yaksung. * Khan Galim: Umbrella holder of Yaksung. * Khandol :- The collector of food and other required articles. P eople of Kotor Dopha are exempted from paying taxes to the king. Occupation, culture and custom The Reangs are primarily an agriculturist tribe. In the past they mostly used to practise the Huk or Jhum cultivation, like most other Tripuri tribes. But now shifted to modern agricultural practice. Most of the educated are employed in government job and many are occupying very high post in administration. Some have also started doing business also. Marriage system The Reang is an endogamous tribe and had very little contact with the Bengali or other sub-tribe of Tripuri. But since the beginning of nineteen century there has been some inter tribe marriages and inter-caste wedding among them. The marriage system is similar to other Tripuri tribe of Tripura. There is no dowry system but the bride-groom has to spend to father-in-laws house for two years before marriage is performed. There are two types of marriages;but nowadays the system to spend to father-in-laws house is no mandatory. Haloksai, and Haloksam. Parallel cousin marriage is prevalent but declining. Cross cousin marriage among the Reang is accidental. Child marriage is not allowed, widow marriage is permitted. Widows are prohibited to wear ornaments before one year is passed after the death of husbands. Widow and widower are forbidden to participate any entertaining and enjoying programme or activity or attending such activity within one year of death of their spouses. Remarriage of widow and widower are allowed after one year of death of the spouse. Monogamy is the present day practice of the society. Marriage is arranged through the matchmaker Andra, who goes to the prospective brides parent for negotiation. Then the brides party is invited to finalise the marriage in Kokswmgma, while pork, fowl, rice, rice beer are served. Marriage is settled to the satisfaction of both the party. The Okchai performs the wedding ceremony on the nuptial day fixed. The Reang widower is not permitted to get marry to an unmarried virgin girl. The Reang marriage bond is very strong and Reang men cannot divorce without the consent of wife. If any Reang is alleged for extramarital relationship and found to be true then they are dealt with strict punishment and heavy penalty is imposed upon. Dress and ornaments The traditional dress of the Reang is simple and plain like other Tripuri people. Traditionally the men wear a hand woven loin cloth and a piece of cloth as a wrapper for upper portion. The women wear a long cloth called Rnai, a wraparound; from the waist to down to the knees. A Rsa, covering the chest, and Rikatouh for covering the whole upper half of the body, wears the upper part of the body. These are woven by the Reang women, which are colourful and very beauty full. But nowadays the educated mass are wearing all the modern dresses like any other part of the world. The Reang women are very fond of personal decoration and take much care for the makeup and hair-do. They love like other Tripuri people, ornaments, flowers, and cosmetics. Silver ornaments especially the necklace of silver coins, the Rangbauk have a pride of place and status. Dance and music It is very much integral part of the Reangs daily life. No other Tripuri people are so fond of dance like them. As a result the Hojagiri folk dance of Riang sub tribe had attained achieved acclaim all over the world. Hozagiri Dance is the most famous dance of the reang community. While the theme of the dance remains almost to be the same as of other tribes, the dance form of the Reang community is quite different from others. The movement of hands or even the upper part of the body is somewhat restricted, whereas the movement beginning from their waist down to their feet creates a wonderful wave. Standing on an earthen pitcher with a bottle on the head and a lighted lamp on it, when the Reang belle dance twisting rhythmically the lower part of the body, the dance bewilders the onlookers. The Reangs also use the musical Instruments like Khamb, Flute made of bamboo and bamboo cymbal. The Reang women prefer to put on black Pachra and Rsa. Reang women put on coins ring, which generally covers their entire upper body. They also put on rings made of coin in their ears. They are fond of fragrant flowers as ornaments to metal things Customs Most of the disputed and differences are settled by the people of Kotor dofa, that is by the Rai and Kasko of respective sub tribe. It is done through the customary law of the Reangs. Whenever a disputes arise in the between the member of the community, a meeting is called by the Rai. All relevant arguments are heard and then justice is done according to the principle of natural justice. Whatever verdict or punishment is pronounced in the judgment it is implemented with firm hand and payments of penalty etc. re made then and there. Religious belief and practices Majority of the Reang in Tripura adhere to Vaishnav Hinduism. They claim Kshatriya status. A growing number of Christians, almost all of them Baptists, exists in both Tripura and Mizoram. In 1943, the Reang were subjected to forcible conversions during the rebellion by Ratanmani Noatia. During the end of 2 0th century, they were again subjected to religious violence in Mizoram by the Baptists. [3] Like other Tripuri people they also believe in many god and goddess. The centre figures are those of fourteen gods and goddess of Tripura. Their important festivals are same those of prevailing in Tripura. These are Ker, Gonga mwtai, Goria, Chitragupra, Hojagiri, Katangi puja, Lampra uathop. The religious observance are community in nature, and each family has to contribute his part of share of payment. It is called as Khain. All the religious festivals are arranged with the prior meeting of chiefs. In such meetings political, social, and religious matters of importance are discussed and decided by the majority of the meeting. The deities of the Reangs are similar those of other Tripuri people. These are: * Sibrai, the supreme deity or Mtai Ktor Tuima, the presiding deity of river, * Mainouhma, the goddess of paddy, * Khuluhma, the goddess of cotton, * Goroia, the god of wealth prosperity well being and war, * Kalaia, brother of Goria, * Sangrongma, the deity of mother earth, * Hathaikchuma, the goddess of hill, * Buraha, the god of jungle, * Thuhnairou, the god of death, * Bonirou, the god of evil spirit, * Nouhsuma, t he goddess of house holds. Worshipping of the deities The worship of different deities are similar to the main-stream Tripuri people. Aokchai, the priest performs all the ceremony along with his helper. The green bamboo pole is used as deity in most on the cases. Different types of life stock like fowl, pig, goat eggs, etc. are offered in the worship. The place of worship is selected out side of the houses. Where the offerings are dedicated in the names of the deities in front of the wathop, green bamboo pole, the symbol of god. But the Rangtouk and Nouhsuma puja is held inside the house only. Two earthen pots are filled with newly grown rice and at top of the pot some oval pebbles collected from huk specially. The pebbles are called the fortune stone. And the pots (Rongtuk) are decorated with the rice powder, vermilion, and garlands. One is named Mainouhgma, the other as Khuluhgma. Rituals on birth of a baby On the birth of baby many pujas are observed. These are Kebengma, Abu suma, Khongkhonok kama, Maitukma etc. for the welfare of the baby. The fowl, prawn, several leaves of trees are needed. When the child grows up special form of worship has to be performed. Bukhuksini the seven-gurdian deities of witches are pleased with sacrifice of a pig, four fowls, and other things beside. Ceremony on death The mortal remains are cremated. The obsequies is done in two stages: Broksakami and Kthuinaimo. Broksakami When a person dies his corpse is first bathed with the Chobtui that is alkali water or soap . After that he is dressed with new clean Rikatouh, head is dressed with another piece of rikatouh like the headgear. In case of woman rnai and rsa. Then a fowl is sacrificed in front of the feet of the corpse. Later on an earthen pot filled with mean and rice placed at the feat of the deceased and it is followed by dance rituals throughout the night. Rice bear is distributed to all the mourners excepting the family members of the deceased. The next morning the body is laid to rest on pyre and cremated usually near a stream. Kthoinaimo It is a ritual connected with the respectful and well wishing offering to the manes. Laotou or the soul deceased remains under the control of the Sisimangi, the son of Buraha , for a year and it is said that Sisimangi is the protector of the soul. On the day of the kathainaimi the widow of the deceased offers dried rice, meat, fish, fruits, and wine in the name of Laotau and Sisimangi, on the smangnouk , then taking the burnt bones or ashes go to the charainok. It is worshiped for over a period of one year or he next hangrai, when it is immersed in any river or in Gomati River at Dumbur,or Ganga, according to the ability of the family. In short the religious culture of the Reang is similar to that of other Tripuri or the Tripuras other cast Hindu . Posted by BRU at 04:37 Email ThisBlogThis! Share to TwitterShare to Facebook No comments: Post a Comment Newer Post Home Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom) Followers Blog Archive * ? 2011 (20) * ; December (6) * ; November (12) * ? October (2) * HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF TRIPURA * Demography of Reangs History About Me BRU View my complete profile | | Simple template. Powered by Blogger.

How can Collaborating Virtually Compete with face-to-face Interaction?

The world is not as small as it once was. Individuals are more complex than they once were, seeking greater freedoms of expression in their professional lives. They are more intelligent and have a great need to know their roles in their broader organizations. Corporations have changed also. They are no longer seeking profit in one arena. Many of the successful corporations compete in a myriad of different arena in an even more diverse network of countries. Corporations have become worldwide conglomerates. â€Å"Organizations of the future will increasingly live in a world that is flatter, faster, and much more chaotic. They will need to respond in the marketplace before headquarters realizes the game has changed.† (Katzenbach & Khan, 2009, pg. 99) As a result of this flatter, faster, and more chaotic world both individuals and organizations have found it necessary to change the way they communicate. As individuals we are more connected than we have been at any other p oint in history. â€Å"Where once the challenge was how to stay connected, now the pervasive use of BlackBerry and wireless-enabled laptop computers allow one to be connected around the clock and around the world. The new challenge may be learning how to filter out information or how to set boundaries around available time. Effective virtual collaborators will learn to establish team norms that ensure that no one is being overwhelmed with too much information and that are respectful of teammates’ work/life balance.† (Bradley, 2010, pp. 205) Here rests the fulcrum of successfully collaborating virtually. It is balancing the right mix of information with the correct medium in order to ensure collaboration takes place. Successful collaborators keep constituents eng... ...es the time available for discussion and analysis of strategic options (Rudolph & Repenning, 2002), creates problems in achieving both cognitive and effective consensus at least some of the time (Gersick, 1988), and generally diminishes communication quality in many, if not most, instances (Waller et al., 2002). Yet organizational team members seem unable to escape the demand for speed. A significant organizational challenge is in creating communication processes that allow reflective understanding of the meaning and perspectives of others, yet within the increasingly stringent time constraints commonly found in organizational settings.† (Berry, 2006, pp. 344-366) As a leader, when it comes to collaborating virtually this is your primary task. Leaders need to put in place systems that allow the strength of the collective genius of their constituents to shine.

Mystery Shopping†the Miracle Tool in Business Research

VOLUME NO. 3 (2013), ISSUE N O. 01 (J ANUARY) ISSN 2231-5756 A Monthly Double-Blind Peer Reviewed (Refereed/Juried) Open Access International e-Journal – Included in the International Serial Directories Indexed & Listed at: Ulrich's Periodicals Directory  ©, ProQuest, U. S. A. , EBSCO Publishing, U. S. A. , Cabell’s Directories of Publishing Opportunities, U. S. A. , Open J-Gage, India [link of the same is duly available at Inflibnet of University Grants Commission (U. G. C. ], Index Copernicus Publishers Panel, Poland with IC Value of 5. 09 & number of libraries all around the world. Circulated all over the world & Google has verified that scholars of more than 2022 Cities in 153 countries/territories are visiting our journal on regular basis. Ground Floor, Building No. 1041-C-1, Devi Bhawan Bazar, JAGADHRI – 135 003, Yamunanagar, Haryana, INDIA http://ijrcm. org. in/ VOLUME NO. 3 (2013), ISSUE N O. 01 (J ANUARY) ISSN 2231-5756 CONTENTS Sr. No. TITLE & NAME OF THE AUTHOR (S)HIERARCHY PROCESS MOJGAN RIAZI, DR. YOUNOS VAKIL ALROAIA & DR. ALI AKBAR AMIN BIDOKHTI ASSOCIATION OF TRAINING PRACTICES WITH JOB SATISFACTION IN PUBLIC SECTOR ORGANIZATIONS RIZWAN BASHIR & FARZANA BASHIR STUDYING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SOCIAL CAPITAL AND TALENT MANAGEMENT IN IRAN STATE MANAGEMENT TRAINING CENTER (SMTC) SAYED ALI AKBAR AHMADI, MOHAMMAD ALI SARLAK, MUSA MAHDAVI, MOHAMMAD REZA DARAEI & SAMIRA GHANIABADI CONTEMPLATIVE SCRUTINY OF THE ADEQUACY OF HERZBERG’S MOTIVATION-HYGIENETHEORY: A VERDICT OF JOB SATISFACTION IN THE MID LEVEL MANAGER IN TELECOMMUNICATION INDUSTRY ABU ZAFAR AHMED MUKUL, SHAH JOHIR RAYHAN & MD. SHAKIB HOSSAIN PLANNING AND MANAGING A SCHEDULED SERVICE DR. IGNATIUS A. NWOKORO REAL INCOME, INFLATION, AND INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTIVITY IN NIGERIA (1970-2005) Dr. OWOLABI A. USMAN & ADEGBITE TAJUDEEN ADEJARE DEVELOPMENT OF SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES IN NIGERIA: A PARADIGM SHIFT ADEYEMI, A.ADEKUNLE THE EVALUATION OF KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENTâ₠¬â„¢S EFFECTIVENESS ON E-LEARNING: A CASE STUDY ON PAYAME NOOR UNIVERSITY OF IRAN BAHAREH SHAHRIARI & KIARASH JAHANPOUR THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE AND JOB SATISFACTION AMONG PROFESSIONAL STAFF IN VIETNAMESE CONSTRUCTION COMPANIES NGUYEN PHI TAN ANALYSIS OF LIQUIDITY OF SELECTED PRIVATE SECTOR INDIAN BANKS SULTAN SINGH, SAHILA CHOUDHRY & MOHINA PRODUCTIVITY MEASUREMENT OF PUBLIC SECTORS BANKS IN INDIA DR. BHAVET, PRIYA JINDAL & DR. SAMBHAV GARG IMBIBE ETHICAL EDUCATION DR. T.SREE LATHA & SAVANAM CHANDRA SEKHAR MODELING INDIAN MONSOON (RAINFALL) VOLATILITY AS AN INDEX BASED RISK TRANSFER PRODUCT D P. SHIVKUMAR, M PRABHU & DR. G. KOTRESHWAR THE DEVELOPMENT OF SMALL SCALE INDUSTRIES IN MEGHALAYA MUSHTAQ MOHMAD SOFI & DR. HARSH VARDHAN JHAMB REGRESSION MODELS M. VENKATARAMANAIAH & M. SUDARSANA RAO EFFECTIVENESS OF EMPLOYEE RETENTION TECHNIQUES ADOPTED BY BPO COMPANIES WITH REFERENCE TO CHENNAI DR. RANJITHAM. D ROLE OF FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT IN EDUCATION INSTITUTIO NS IN INDIA SHABANA, SONIKA CHOUDHARY & DR. M. L.GUPTA AN EXAMINATION OF LONG-RUN AND SHORT-RUN RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CRUDE OIL PRICE, GOLD PRICE, EXCHANGE RATE AND INDIAN STOCK MARKET R. KANAKARAJAMMAL, S. PAULRAJ & M. V. ARULALAN MYSTERY SHOPPING– THE MIRACLE TOOL IN BUSINESS RESEARCH SHAKEEL-UL-REHMAN & A. VELSAMY THE EMPIRICAL INVESTIGATION BETWEEN EMOTIONAL COMPETENCE AND WORK PERFORMANCE OF INDIAN SALES PEOPLE DR. RITIKA SHARMA MARKETING OF BRANDED PRODUCT IN RURAL AREA: A CONCEPTUAL BASED STUDY ON RURAL MARKET PANKAJ ARORA & AJITHA PRASHANT A STUDY ON EMPLOYEES JOB SATISFACTION WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO COACH FACTORY P.MANONMANI & V. UMA E-CRM APPLICATION IN INSURANCE SECTOR AND RETENTION OF CUSTOMERS DASH BISWAMOHAN. & MISHRA RADHAKRISHNA THE USAGE OF SIX SIGMA TOOLS IN BRINGING DOWN THE DEFECTS IN THE HR PROCESSES SREEJA K & MINTU THANKACHAN WOMEN EMERGING GLOBALLY AS THE POTENTIAL MARKET: REASONS, IMPLICATIONS AND ISSUES DR. JAYA PALIWAL URBAN RESIDENTIAL WATER SUPPL Y IN GADAG TOWN IN KARNATAKA STATE DR. H H BHARADI TECHNICAL ANALYSIS: A TOOL TO MEASURE MARKET VOLATILITY G. B. SABARI RAJAN CO-BRANDED CREDIT CARD – A TAILOR-MADE PRODUCT NICHE FOR CONSUMERS DR.A. JESU KULANDAIRAJ A COMPARATIVE STUDY ON CUSTOMER SATISFACTION WITH SERVICE QUALITY IN PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SECTOR BANKS DR. SAMBHAV GARG, PRIYA JINDAL & DR. BHAVET EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE (EI): AN IMPERATIVE SKILL FOR MANAGERS IN THE GLOBAL WORKPLACE SMARTY MUKUNDAN Page No. 1. THE EXTENT OF THE IMPORTANCE OF PERSONALITY INDICATORS OF INDEPENDENT ENTREPRENEUR THROUGH USING GROUP ANALYTICAL 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 8 14 21 29 34 40 45 49 54 57 63 66 72 83 86 91 94 101 104 111 120 123 128 136 140 144 150 153 157 160 REQUEST FOR FEEDBACK INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN COMMERCE, IT & MANAGEMENT A Monthly Double-Blind Peer Reviewed (Refereed/Juried) Open Access International e-Journal – Include d in the International Serial Directories ii http://ijrcm. org. in/ VOLUME NO. 3 (2013), ISSUE N O. 01 (J ANUARY) ISSN 2231-5756 CHIEF PATRON PROF. K. K. AGGARWAL Chancellor, Lingaya’s University, Delhi Founder Vice-Chancellor, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Delhi Ex.Pro Vice-Chancellor, Guru Jambheshwar University, Hisar FOUNDER PATRON LATE SH. 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Double quotation marks are used for titles of journal articles, book chapters, dissertations, reports, working papers, unpublished material, etc. For titles in a language other than English, provide an English translation in parentheses. The location of endnotes within the text should be indicated by superscript numbers. PLEASE USE THE FOLLOWING FOR STYLE AND PUNCTUATION IN REFERENCES: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ BOOKS †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Bowersox, Donald J. , Closs, David J. (1996), â€Å"Logistical Management. † Tata McGraw, Hill, New Delhi. Hunker, H. L. and A. J. Wright (1963), â€Å"Factors of Industrial Location in Ohio† Ohio State University, Nigeria. CONTRIBUTIONS TO BOOKS Sharma T. , Kwatra, G. (2008) Effectiveness of Social Advertising: A Study of Selected Campaigns, Corporate Social Responsibility, Edited by David Crowther & Nicholas Capaldi, Ashgate Research Companion to Corporate Social Responsibility, Chapter 15, pp 287-303. JOURNAL AND OTHER ARTICLES Schemenner, R. W. , Huber, J. C. and Cook, R. L. (1987), â€Å"Geographic Differences and the Location of New Manufacturing Facilities,† Journal of Urban Economics, Vol. 1, No. 1, pp. 83-104. CONFERENCE PAPERS Garg, Sambhav (2011): â€Å"Business Ethics† Paper presented at the Annual International Conference for the All India Management Association, New Delhi, India, 19–22 June. UNPUBLISHED DISSERTATIONS AND THESES Kumar S. (2011): â€Å"Customer Value: A Comparative Study of Rural and Urban Customers,† Thesis, Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra. ONLINE RESOURCES Always indicate the date that the source was accessed, as online resources are frequently updated or removed. Garg, Bhavet (2011): Towards a New Natural Gas Policy, Political Weekly, Viewed on January 01, 2012 http://epw. in/user/viewabstract. jsp WEBSITES †¢INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN COMMERCE, IT & MANAGEME NT A Monthly Double-Blind Peer Reviewed (Refereed/Juried) Open Access International e-Journal – Included in the International Serial Directories vi http://ijrcm. org. in/ VOLUME NO. 3 (2013), ISSUE N O. 01 (J ANUARY) ISSN 2231-5756 MYSTERY SHOPPING– THE MIRACLE TOOL IN BUSINESS RESEARCH SHAKEEL-UL-REHMAN RESEARCH SCHOLAR ANNA UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY CHENNAI A. VELSAMY ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES SONA COLLEGE OF TECHNOLOGY SALEM ABSTRACT Satisfied customers are an important advantage for almost every company. Every company tries its level best to deliver better services to make the customers satisfied.A customer must be satisfied up to the highest possible level. Mystery shopping is a type of research tool to measure the level of satisfaction, a customer experiences through impartial way. The present paper tries to bring out the conceptual understanding of mystery shopping – tries to explain the openness of mystery shopping to various ar enas whether public or private and how it creates attention for improving performance of the company. KEYWORDS Mystery Shopping, Mystery Shopper, Customer Services, Customer Satisfaction, Employee Appraisal, Competitive Advantage. INTRODUCTION nowing the customer satisfaction is always the top prerogative in any business.Getting to know the level of satisfaction and (or) the changing expectations of customers’ is a continuous process. Though there are various methods and tools available for this, mystery shopping is considered as unique and undeniable tool in any organisation. As defined by Wilson (2001), mystery shopping is â€Å"a form of participant observation that uses researchers to deceive customer-service personnel into believing that they are serving real customers or potential customers†. Mystery shopping is a technique that involves looking at your business from outside and measure the efficiency of your own key processes from the view point of customers. My stery Shopping can be carried out in person, by telephone, or less commonly by email.It can recognize strengths and weaknesses and aid to show exactly where service delivery can be improved. In instances where excellent service is provided, the service may be considered an example of best practice and specific staff members can be singled out for recognition and reward. Initially set up in retail and private sector service industries, now mystery shopping is used increasingly in the private as well as public sector to gain a better understanding of how service users are taken care of when they approach front line offices. Research is the foundation stone of effective marketing planning and is vital for implementing successful marketing strategies.Mystery shopping is a research to know about company in customer point of view. It is the use of individuals, skilled to measure any customer service process, by acting as potential customers and in some way reporting back on their experien ces in a detailed and objective way. It is also an act of purchasing goods and services for collecting information for market research. K REVIEW OF LITERATURE Although the concept of mystery shopping is old, there are very less literature available in its field. Since the use mystery shopping as a tool of research has got much concern in the present business competition, investigating through the literature becomes imperative.As the use of mystery shopping is gaining much importance in the present chase of competition. The literature obtained by the investigator, in the form of various reports and research studies is briefly reviewed in this part. Banks and Murphy (1985) have noted that organizations prolong to articulate discontent in performance assessment systems even though advances in appraisal technology. Appraisal reliability and validity still remain a major problem in most assessment systems. Mystery shopping is the collection of facts, not perceptions. The mystery customer questionnaire or checklist should emphasize objective questions with a view to collecting factual data, again negating another weakness of customer surveys, i. e. hat customers only remember their overall impression of a service and not the individual elements or transactions (Wilson, 1998). Finn & Kayande, 1999 found that the process mystery shopping uses a form of member observation to observe the behavior of employees, usually in the process of providing services; the resulting data are then used for evaluation purposes. The process usually includes a structured interaction between the representative and the service provider; an employee whose behavior is being assessed. It is followed by an evaluation interview in which the manager gives the employee feedback about the data collected during the interaction. This procedure is intended to increase the accuracy of the service provider.Bromage, (2000) found it as an integral training tool in that it can be used to identify training needs. Wilson, (2001) defined mystery shopping as a form of participant observation that uses researchers to deceive customer-service personnel into believing that they are serving real customers or potential customers. Shing and Spence (2002) argue that their use to gather competitive intelligence is parallel to industrial espionage and conclude that in such cases mystery shopping is difficult to defend ethically. Karia, 2005 stated that mystery shopping in India is of not a much scope but some of the big corporate have started to do mystery shopping for increasing their service delivery. Brender-Ilan, B. nd Shultz, T. (2005) found that the procedure of mystery shopping research is intended to increase the accuracy of the service provider valuation, as this type of jobs is considered rigid to appraise impartially. Obviously, the process is used differently in different organizations, and for different purposes. CONCEPTUAL UNDERSTANDING Mystery shopping is necessary for companies t o get an objective opinion on how their business is doing. If they used their own employees to evaluate their service and operations, it would be biased. So mystery shoppers, who don't already have a connection with the company, are used to provide honest and unbiased feedback.In the UK mystery, shopping is increasingly used to provide feedback on customer services provided by local authorities, and other non-profit organizations such as housing associations and churches. Mystery shopping is a term that describes a field based research technique of using independent auditors posing as customers to gather information about product quality and service delivery by a retail firm. The mystery shopper poses as a customer in order to objectively gather information on the business being INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN COMMERCE, IT & MANAGEMENT A Monthly Double-Blind Peer Reviewed (Refereed/Juried) Open Access International e-Journal – Included in the International Serial Directo ries 01 http://ijrcm. org. in/ VOLUME NO. 3 (2013), ISSUE N O. 01 (J ANUARY) ISSN 2231-5756 studied. Getting a customer's view of one's business is a widely recognized tool in both the marketing and customer service arenas. When mystery shoppers are dispatched to visit a business, they use criteria developed by the client to evaluate the business and focus primarily on service delivery and the sales skills of employees. Their reports, usually written, are forwarded to the client and can be used in a number of ways. Mystery shoppers can also objectively evaluate competitors and their service delivery and product mix for comparisons and benchmarking.Mystery Shopping is also known as Ghost Shopping where industry serves to evaluate the customer service for any company that deals with customer satisfaction. By sending an anonymous ghost shopper, that forms the base on their visits to client locations. Ghost shopping helps in evaluating the service provided by the company’sâ€℠¢ channel members to its customers. From this information companies can understand whether it is meeting, or failing to meet, it's customer's needs. Ghost shoppers are everyday people who are visiting stores as anonymous customers, and in the process helping these stores to better understand how they can meet customers' needs. METHODS OF IMPLEMENTATIONMystery shopping can be done by two methods a) A company uses its own employees to perform the mystery shopping, in which company trains its own employees to collect the customer related enquires from the market and b) Some companies can engage marketing research companies to evaluate the superiority of service in their stores; these companies use mystery shoppers to get the information in disguise. They disperse a mystery shopper to make a particular purchase in a shop or store, for example, and then report on the experience and understanding. Typically, the shopper is compensated, and can keep the product or service. Mystery shopping can be used in any industry, with the most common venue being retail stores, hotels, movie theaters, restaurants, fast food chains, banks, gas stations, automobile dealerships, apartments, health clubs and health care services Mystery shopping can allow a firm to create a competitive edge. It can also assist retailers in developing and evaluating strategies to retain current customers.The first step in mystery shopping is to identify your firm's important customer service characteristics and objectives often flowing from your strategy and overall goals and objectives. Next a firm uses these variables to develop a mystery shopping questionnaire, either alone or with the help or a consultant or mystery shopping firm. The survey can include a mix of description and check-off questions. WHY & WHERE MYSTERY SHOPPING? In this growing severely competitive environment, there is an ever-increasing need for companies to gather evidence on whether their policy initiatives have had the intende d outcomes and whether retail firms treat their customers fairly.In particular, the need is to measure and evaluate the impact of company policies, assess levels of firms’ compliance with rules and examine the experience consumers have of the market. Mystery shopping is regarded as a necessary means of gathering such information. This is because of the problems inherent to surveying those who have recently purchased products – consumers don’t always exactly recall all the particulars. Some of the benefits of mystery shopping are; Product Placement, Point of Selling, Visibility, Customer Demand, Repurchases, Brand Recall, Awareness. Mystery shopping is useful to know about the awareness of that brand, how many outlets are having this product? Through it one can get the information about the competitors like their new product launches, market share, new promotions, campaigns, etc.Even you can check the placement of the product in the outlet, whether the product ha s got right place on shelf, visibility of product, how fast product is moving, impulse buying appeal of the product, etc. A â€Å"conformist† mystery shopper in-person visits more of business locations. The assessments are typically discrete questions along with the correlated point values, as well as some narratives for amplification. However, due to advances in technology as well as evolving customer service requirements, the ability to gather data and other materials relating to a customer’s experience has been significantly increased. Mystery shopping can allow a firm to create a competitive edge. It can also assist retailers in developing and evaluating strategies to retain current customers.Typical areas of assessment are customer service, suggestive selling and up-selling techniques, teamwork, employee and management activities, head-count, store appearance and organization, merchandise displays and stock, cleanliness of the location, signage and advertising com pliance, time in line and time elapsed for service, product quality, order accuracy, customer's preferences, cash handling, and return policies. After pre-testing the questionnaire, mystery shoppers are hired to do an assessment. Assessments can be on-site or via the telephone or even the Internet. A sample size as well as a period of time for the mystery shopping program is determined and results are used for feedback.BENEFITING RANGE OF BUSINESS Mystery shopping is more visible in developing countries and it is mostly prevailing in retail sector. But other sectors also use it as a tool to measure their customer satisfaction, competition, new technology advancements etc. some of the areas where mystery shopping is seen commonly are Banks, Restaurants, Hotels, Supermarkets, Automobile shops, Repair shops, Bars, Clubs, Theaters, Shopping malls, Retail chain operators. FMCG companies, Consumer durable companies, Apparel retailers. Mystery shoppers are professional in this field as he charges a reasonable amount from the companies for doing this service of conducting research.A feedback is given by them to the client whether the services are being performed according to expectations or not and gives a chance for the further improvements that company thinks necessary for its survival. On the other hand they tries to offer a better delivery to the customers to make them satisfied and a company can attract more and more customers if it is efficient in the market USE AND EXECUTION OF MYSTERY SHOPPING Managers can use the reports from mystery shoppers to evaluate their position in the industry, and the results can be used to provide employee recognition and other positive reinforcements of loyalty and morale through incentive programs.Many restaurants, banks, supermarkets, and clothing retailers have used the techniques, along with hotels, furniture stores, grocery stores, gas stations, movie theaters, automotive repair shops, bars, athletic clubs, bowling alleys, and almost any business where customer service is important. As the service sector of the economy has increased, so has the demand for mystery shoppers. Some retailers are large enough to have their own in-house program in place. Other smaller companies who do not have the resources to develop a quality mystery shopping program in-house use mystery shopping contractors. These contractors directly hire and train the mystery shoppers, who work as independent contractors.The reports from mystery shoppers can measure training and levels of customer service pre- and post-training. Mystery shopping allows managers to determine if the services provided by employees are appropriate. Shopping reports can assess promotional campaigns and even verify employees' honesty in handling cash and charges. Reports over time can give up a longitudinal database of averages. Some industries share findings so that managers can know regional or national averages of the industry. At the Web site Managerspot. c om, for example, restaurant owners can compare their numbers from mystery shopping reports with a pool of similar, but anonymous, restaurants.The use of mystery shopping is just one part of a company-wide program to develop and enhance employee performance. The idea is to find out from a consumer's point of view which areas of service and product quality are most important and what areas need improvement. Data from the shopping results can be used by the company to make necessary changes on a timely basis. The results should be used for developmental and reward purposes and not for punishment. Mystery shopping is a valuable tool to businesses and is especially helpful for small, start-up businesses that need accurate and fast information to assess their employees and compare their products and services to the competition.So mystery shopping is a process for exploring everyday experiences, one person’s view at a snapshot in time, a way of identifying strengths and weaknesses i n dealing with customers, a method of measuring employees’ performance against set customer service standards, a useful aid for identifying training needs. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN COMMERCE, IT & MANAGEMENT A Monthly Double-Blind Peer Reviewed (Refereed/Juried) Open Access International e-Journal – Included in the International Serial Directories 102 http://ijrcm. org. in/ VOLUME NO. 3 (2013), ISSUE N O. 01 (J ANUARY) ISSN 2231-5756 Mystery shopping can be used for various purposes. Most of the time the goal is to measure the quality of the service delivery to the customer.In this situation the mystery guest can be focused on the compliance to specific standards, guidelines or demands, or the mystery guest can be instructed to position the quality of the service on a scale. If a mystery guest visits locations of competitors, benchmarking becomes a way to judge your own activities against those. GROWING NECESSITY OF MYSTERY SHOPPERS Managers can use the repo rts from mystery shoppers to evaluate their status among its competitors and the scope of increasing the business. Also this tool is highly reliable, and the results can be used to provide employee recognition and other positive reinforcements of loyalty and morale through incentive programs.The use of mystery shopping is just one part of a company-wide program to develop and augment employee performance. The idea is to learn from a consumer's point of view which areas of service and product quality are most important and what areas need improvement. Data from the shopping results can be used by the company to make necessary changes on a timely basis. The results should be used for developmental and reward purposes and not for punishment. Mystery shopping is a valuable tool to businesses and is especially helpful for small, start-up businesses that need accurate and fast information to assess their employees and compare their products and services to the competition. MYSTERY SHOPPIN G IN INDIAMystery shopping is not much practiced in India; some of the organizations who have initially used this type of research are ICICI Bank, Titan, Arrow and Reliance communications. ICICI Bank used mystery shopping initially in Pune to check the services offered by one of its branches, it conducted survey by telephone through mystery shoppers to find out the different services provided to different age groups by the bank (Karia, P. M. , 2005) CONCLUSION In the present age of competition there are various tools of research available for the companies to measure their service level from the customer point of view. One such efficient tool is mystery shopping, which is also called as ghost shopping. It can be viewed as an efficient tool in measuring the customer satisfaction with the company.No doubt, companies are spending lot of resources in ensuring customer satisfaction and to know what actually customers want. Mystery shopping can be chosen as an efficient tool in knowing th e overall details of positive and negative aspects of services provided to customers. It can also be used to rectify the problems a company actually faces in dealing with the customers. 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INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN COMMERCE, IT & MANAGEMENT A Monthly Double-Blind Peer Reviewed (Refer eed/Juried) Open Access International e-Journal – Included in the International Serial Directories 103 ttp://ijrcm. org. in/ VOLUME NO. 3 (2013), ISSUE N O. 01 (J ANUARY) ISSN 2231-5756 REQUEST FOR FEEDBACK Dear Readers At the very outset, International Journal of Research in Commerce, IT and Management (IJRCM) acknowledges & appreciates your efforts in showing interest in our present issue under your kind perusal. I would like to request you to supply your critical comments and suggestions about the material published in this issue as well as on the journal as a whole, on our E-mail i. e. [email  protected] com for further improvements in the interest of research. If you have any queries please feel free to contact us on our E-mail [email  protected] com.