Unethical Practices free essay sample

Mitsubishi Motors Corporation now markets over 16 types of vehicles in the Philippines, after 45 years of operation. Vehicles range from the easily- recognizable Lancer, Galant, and Eclipse passenger cars, to light commercial vehicles of different images and purposes: the ubiquitous PaJero, and the active Strada, Montero Sport, Grandis and Fuzion. Also included on the line-up are Adventure, L300 Versa-Van, and commercial vans. Moving the industry are the FK/FM trucks and the Rosa buses. Trucked neatly etween the light duty pick- ups and heavy haulers are the Canter light truck and Rosa mini- bus. Today, Mitsubishi, headed in the Philippines by Mr. Masahiko Ueki, produces thousands of vehicles a year in a 190,294 sq. m. plant along Ortigas Avenue Ext, Cainta Rizal. Mr. Masahiko Ueki is leading the company to focus on four major concerns: Manufacturing, Marketing, Labor/Management Corporation and Community Involvement. In manufacturing, production programs are aimed towards product quality. Quality Circles provide the impetus for continuous Improvement of manufacturing processes leading to improved quality and cost-effectiveness. We will write a custom essay sample on Unethical Practices or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page With Total Customer Satisfaction remaining to be the underlying commitment, the importance of delivering products and services that are attune to the complex and changing needs of the customers in the Philippine market setting remains to be the trusted of marketing activities and efforts. All in all after 45 years of existence in the countrys automotive industry, Mitsubishi Motors continues to offer quality products and services to the Philippine market.

What is a List of Publications, and Why Does It Matter

What is a List of Publications, and Why Does It Matter For freelancers who write short pieces, a list of publications (LP) where weve successfully appeared is essential. Creating it may be a dull left-brain task, but even if you have few publications so far, starting an LP gives you advantages for your career. Heres what to include in your list: Articles, essays, stories, blogs, guest blogs, poems, interviews, book reviews, forewords, introductions, letters to editors of well-known newspapers, and, of course, books youve published. Include radio interviews, live talks, and panels youve participated in. There are a few ways to organize the list: I like to organize mine GENRE: Writing how-to. ARTICLE: Writing Blocked? Try These Six Simple Tools. 850 Words. Romance Writers Report, March 2014, vol. 34, no. 3, pp. 21-22. And an online one: GENRE: Writing how-to. ARTICLE: Told and Retold: Reinventing Classic Fairy Tales, 1560 Words. Childrens Book Insider, July 2014, pp. 4-5. http://cbiclubhouse.com/clubhouse/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/2014-07.pdf Resist the urge to include everything youve ever written. Dont add pieces accepted, even paid, but never published. Dont add letters you published in newsletters or newspapers. Where you store your LP depends on your goals: I keep my master LP in a computer file labeled List of Credits. I post a few pieces on my website. Hope Clark wisely points out that these pieces can come up in a Google search. I use recent publications for my email signature and queries. You can also link to pieces from Facebook. The key is to sprinkle discriminately, not dump to brag. From your LP, you can extract an Abbreviated List of Pubs (ALP) in your queries to editors using what applies to each editors needs. The ALP can: 1. Show youre a professional. 2. Demonstrate your organizational ability, consistency, and attention to details. Editors will assume youll use these qualities for their assignments. 3. Provide verifiable evidence of your credits. 4. Show your seriousness, marketing savvy, and ingenuity. In Make a Real Living as a Freelance Writer, Jenna Glatzer counsels about judicious ALP choices: cite   credits for publications in which youve had great relationships with editors (they compare notes). And avoid overly creative (read: fabricated) entries. 5. Show your interests and flexibility. Editors may then consider you for other types of assignments. A magazine editor rejected my article about journal writing, but noting my childrens publication credits, she invited a piece on childrens writing. For you, an LP can: 1. Be a record of your completed pieces. 2. Remind you of publications youve forgotten and how youve undersold yourself. 3. Prompt you to recall genres youve written in and would like to explore further. 4. Give you a convenient source for extracting credits for many purposes. 5. Enable you to announce everywhere, Ive published, oh, about 3,562 articles. 6. On dark days, it shows your line of your progress, motivates you to write and submit, and reminds you of your achievements. Your LP is a gift to yourself disguised as grunt work. Easy to keep current, your LP will continue to boost your confidence as you add to it and quietly crow over your latest successes.

The Growth of Rome - Ancient History

The Growth of Rome - Ancient History At first, Rome was just one, small city-state in an area of Latin-speaking people (called Latium), on the west side of Italys peninsula. Rome, as a monarchy (founded, according to legend, in 753 B.C.), couldnt even keep foreign powers from ruling it. It started gaining strength from about 510 B.C. (when the Romans threw out their last king) until the middle of the 3rd century B.C. During this the early Republican period, Rome made and broke strategic treaties with neighboring groups in order to help her conquer other city-states. In the end, after revising her battle tactics, weapons, and legions, Rome emerged as the undisputed leader of Italy. This quick look at the growth of Rome names the events leading to Romes domination over the peninsula. Early RomeLegendary Founding of Rome Etruscan and Italic Kings of Rome In the legendary beginning of its history, Rome was ruled by 7 kings. The first was Romulus, whose ancestry is traced to Trojan (War) prince Aeneas.The next king was a Sabine (a region of Latium northeast of Rome), Numa Pompilius.The third king was a Roman, Tullus Hostilius, who welcomed the Albans into Rome.The fourth king was Numas grandson, Ancus Martius.After him came the 3 Etruscan kings,Tarquinius Priscus,his son-in-law Servius Tullius, andTarquins son, the last king of Rome, known as Tarquinius Superbus or Tarquin the Proud. The Etruscans were based in Etruria, a large area of the Italic peninsula to the north of Rome. 7 Kings of RomeGeography of Rome The Growth of Rome Starts Latin Alliances The Romans expelled their Etruscan king and his relatives peacefully, but soon thereafter they had to fight to keep them out. By the time the Romans had defeated the Etruscan Porsenna, at Aricia, even the threat of Etruscan rule of the Romans had reached its end. Then the Latin city-states, but excluding Rome, banded together in an alliance against Rome. While they battled each other, the Latin allies suffered attacks from the mountain tribes. These tribes lived east of the Apennines, a long mountain range that separates Italy into an eastern and western side. The mountain tribes are presumed to have been attacking because they needed more arable land. Rome and the Latins Make Treaties The Latins had no extra land to give the mountain tribes, so, in about 493 B.C., the Latins this time including Rome signed a mutual defense treaty that is called foedus Cassianum, which is Latin for Cassian Treaty. A few years later, in about 486 B.C., the Romans made a treaty with one of the mountain peoples, the Hernici, who lived between the Volsci and the Aequi, who were other eastern mountain tribes. Bound to Rome by separate treaties, the league of Latin city-states, the Hernici, and Rome defeated the Volsci. Rome then settled Latins and Romans as farmer/landowners in the territory. Growth of Rome Rome Expands Into Veii In 405 B.C., the Romans began an unprovoked 10-year struggle to annex the Etruscan city of Veii. The other Etruscan cities failed to rally to the defense of Veii in a timely manner. By the time some of the Etruscan league of cities came, they were blocked. Camillus led the Roman and allied troops into victory in Veii, where they slaughtered some Etruscans, sold others into slavery, and added land to the Roman territory (ager publicus) , much of it given to Romes plebeian poor. Latin LeagueVeientine WarsBattle of Lake RegillusCoriolanus Temporary Setback to the Growth of Rome The Sack of the Gauls In the 4th century B.C., Italy was invaded by the Gauls. Although Rome survived, thanks in part to the noisily famous Capitoline geese, the Romans defeat at the Battle of the Allia remained a sore spot throughout Romes history. The Gauls left Rome only after they were given vast quantities of gold. Then they gradually settled down, and some (the Senones) made alliances with Rome. Rome Dominates Central Italy Romes defeat made other Italic cities more confident, but the Romans didnt just sit back. They learned from their mistakes, improved their military, and fought off Etruscans, Aequi, and Volsci during the decade between 390 and 380. In 360, the Hernici (Romes former non-Latin league ally who had helped defeat the Volsci), and the cities of Praeneste and Tibur allied themselves against Rome, unsuccessfully: Rome added them to its territory. Rome forced a new treaty on her Latin allies making Rome dominant. The Latin League, with Rome at its head, then defeated the league of Etruscan cities. In the middle of the 4th century B.C., Rome turned towards the south, to Campania (where Pompeii, Mt. Vesuvius and Naples are located) and the Samnites. Although it took until the beginning of the third century, Rome did defeat the Samnites and annexed the rest of central Italy.​ Rome Annexes Southern Italy Finally Rome looked to Magna Graecia in southern Italy and fought King Pyrrhus of Epirus. While Pyrrhus won 2 battles, both sides fared badly. Rome had an almost inexhaustible supply of manpower (because it demanded troops of its allies and conquered territories). Pyrrhus pretty much only had those men he had brought with him from Epirus, so the Pyrrhic victory turned out to be worse for the victor than the defeated. When Pyrrhus lost his third battle against Rome, he left Italy, leaving southern Italy to Rome. Rome was then recognized as supreme and entered into international treaties. King Pyrrhus of EpirusTarentum and the Pyrrhic Wars The next step was to go beyond the Italic peninsula.   Source: Cary and Scullard.

Research paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Research paper - Essay Example Type III, commonly called Cyclothymia, is a less severe form of this condition. The person undergoes cycles of mild mania and/or depression. At times, when undetected, it could progress to either the type I or II variant. Bipolar disorder is a chronic illness and it significantly affects the lifestyle of the patient on a social and professional basis, and quite often impairs their cognitive functioning. Depression is the phase of BD that represents the greatest challenge in management of the disorder. Undetected or prolonged depression and delirium is a frequent cause of suicide, and thus it is imperative that this condition be dealt with sensitively. The depression: mania ratio in bipolar disorder is 1:3, which tells us that the patient spends more time in an all-time low (Galvez, Thommi, & Ghaemi, 2011) . Heredity and Statistics: The possibility of inheriting BD from a previously diagnosed parent is 86-90% and studies over the past 11 years have shown that 9% of unipolar depressive patients were diagnosed as having BD. The suicide rate in these patients is almost 17 times higher, as compared to the general healthy adult population (Rapoport, Basselin, Kim, & Rao, 2009). In addition to being a social burden, BD has equal implications on personal finances and world economy. Within the USA itself, the treatment regimen spans from $12000 for a single episode of this syndrome, to a whopping $62K for patients who have to be aggressively managed with drugs and other therapy. Typically, symptoms of BD appear by the average age of 22 years, but are recognized and diagnosed with a lag period of almost 10 years. Even after commencement of therapy, the subject may remain symptomatic for a significant period of time, which makes it essential to continually monitor and adjust the treatment protocol (Nivoli et al., 2011). It has been reported that more than 66% of patients have a minimum of one close relative that has been diagnosed with either unipolar or bipolar depressio n, thus linking it to heredity (Nivoli et al., 2011). Characteristics and symptoms of people with Bipolar Disorder: Symptoms of varying degrees and intensities can be observed in this syndrome. The most common observation in Type I BD is extreme mood fluctuations. The highs include excitement, overly enthusiastic behavior, boundless energy, megalomaniac tendencies, generous thoughts and a surge in confidence levels. The lows that one typically experiences are prolonged periods of depression, irritability, sleep deprivation and a general feeling of loneliness, often accompanied by phases of crying for trivial or no apparent reasons. It is very common to have feelings of being incomplete, inadequate and worthless, which eventually culminates into thoughts and ideas of suicide. The hallmark of this disorder is the frequent cycling between the high and lows, namely the mania and depression, by virtue of which this disorder is detected. Social Challenges: Needless to mention, social stig ma is commonly encountered by people, who are aware and informed that they are suffering from this syndrome. Such subjects consciously modify their behavior, in order to reduce the instances of being rejected or discriminated. In the mild to moderate symptoms in Type

The Impact of Performance Management Research Paper

The Impact of Performance Management - Research Paper Example Performance management also refers to a sequence of steps through which businesses align their employees, resources and systems with organizational priorities, strategic goals and objectives. Essentially, performance management is the complex science, which guarantees the management of behaviors and results, which are principal elements of performance. Organizations initiate performance management through supposed strategic tactics directed at enhancing organizational effectiveness via the enhancement of managers’ and employees’ performances. This is through the enhancement of the capabilities of both teams and individuals. This paper will study the issue of performance management, discussing its negative effects. The appreciation of the adverse effects of performance management encourages organizations to learn from its experiences, enhance them and sustain employees’ interests in the reviews. Performance management exposes employees and managers to undue pressu re, which ultimately results in poor levels of performance and dwindling organizational successfulness. Traditional points of view consider performance management on account of performance assessment systems having immense, positive effects on business performance. However, there is relatively little evidence to defend this hypothesis. There is a growing appreciation for the adverse consequences of performance management to both organizations and employees (Godener & Soderquist, 2004). One of the most prominent negative effects of performance management is the bureaucracy associated with the compilation of reports for regular assessments. The preparation of such reports takes at least two days, which is the normal quantity of time, invested from middle and senior managers for performance management purposes, in a month. The complexity of performance management is also a significant hurdle since it disconnects employees from the entire process of performance management. Measures such as composite measures and performance indexes, which managers use in performance management, may not be universally ideal. The negative impacts of performance management also include decreased departmental and organizational performance. The implementation of performance management has an adverse effect on the organization’s immediate performance, particularly with regard to employees’ performance. This situation emerges as a result of lack of proper training of employees and managers, especially in terms of formal change management. In addition, performance management results in diminished organizational performance when the review process fails to address the changes in the organization’s culture. Performance management demoralizes employees. This is because employees consider performance reviews as management-based tools used to get back at them, thereby, subjecting the employees to extreme levels of subjectivity. Performance management produces particularly adverse effects when the process fails to address employees’ fears and clarify the essence of the process and its benefits to employees. Furthermore, performance management results in low productivity due to inadequate management commitment to the process and a notable lack of consistency regarding performance management in different organizational departments. In addition, performance management, which is a two-way communication process, could degrade communication. When managers fail to appreciate

Apple Case Answer Essay Example for Free

Apple Case Answer Essay Organization Overview; Introduction This case discusses the apples Inc. Apple Inc. is one of the worlds most successful and most recognizable companies, established by Steve Jobs and Steve Wazniak. Over its 30 year existence, the company had seen a lot of changes in the computer industry. During its life it faced many problems like changing of CEOs and shifting in its major strategies which costs lotto the company. But at last it was Steve jobs who saved the company and afterwards it started competing in the market. Steve Jobs Bring new era to Apple Inc. He shifted the strategies to differentiation strategy and launched many products like iMac, iPod, iPhone. On April 4, 2010, Apple Inc. launched the iPod; the companys third major innovation released over the last decade under its iconic CEO Steve Jobs. Apples strategy of shifting its business into non-PC products had thrived so far, driven by the smashing success of the iPod and the iPhone. Yet challenges abounded. Macintosh sales in the worldwide PC market still languished below 5%. Growth in iPod sales was slowing down. IPhone faced increasing competition in the smartphone industry. What would the future hold for the computer giant in a rapidly changing world? How should the company allocate resources between its more traditional offerings (computers) and its newer products (iPods, iPhones, Apple TV, etc.) in order to maintain and improve its market position? Also, how should Apples unique retail strategy be used to support the companys product decisions, and by capitalizing on new and emerging trends thus further maintaining its competitive advantage. * Mission Statement Apple is committed to bringing the best personal computing experience to students, educators, creative professionals and consumers around the world through its innovative hardware, software and Internet offering. * DEEPLIST Analysis: * Demographic Demographic factors highly affect the computer industry. As buyers are of all ages and different genders, also every individual have different choice like the use of iPod, iPhone and iPad is increasing in young generation. Literacy rate is increasing in our country and use of internet and computer in education as well as in homes also increasing. Children and teenagers are more interested in playing games on computers and increasing usage of social website, chatting etc. Information technology playing a vital role in business world due to these virtual organizations, are increasing. So demographic factors is plays important role in the industry. * Economical In the past few years, the industry has been affected by the slow economic and that resulted in low consumer spending. There is no sign of improvement, consumer spending and investment might decrease as well. Discount rate 13.5% from the central bank of Pakistan and it is the highest rate in Pakistan that negatively affecting this industry .Due to weak economic conditions, Pakistan’s educational is encountering large budget deficits. This factor has a negative impact over Apple’s sales in the educational segment. Sales of products that include components obtained from foreign suppliers can be adversely affected by currency exchange rate fluctuations and by international trade regulations. * Social Factors Social Factors also influence the industry as different segments of the society have different buying behavior and income so it affects the overall demand of the computers. The computer and internet usage is growing worldwide and is a good source of opportunities for the computer industry. Customers has become more experienced and computer literate in our country comparing with past. Education has become a prime issue for the new  generation, which is a key factor for the company’s business. * Political and legal Political uncertainties and terrorism activities are directly impacting the overall business of the company. Energy crisis more and more taxes badly affecting the industry. For instance, when government imply 15 % sales tax it becomes difficult for the companies to manage profits. The company has to comply with the environment regulations such as environment safe disposal or recycling. * Technological As computer industry is a technology oriented industry so Technological factor greatly influence the industry as well as Apple Inc. As the technology changes it affects all the production processes, People appreciate more more advances in their systems and are switching over to new information appliances. Technology is evolving at a rapid pace now days. Internet availability and usage is growing and leads to good opportunities for the industry. The traditional desktop and tower systems might become outdated by the entrance of new revolutionary products. New technology demand is increasing by schools and professionals. Problems: * Frequent changes in strategies and top management * Apple Mac, application softwares not easily available * Premium segment; requires heavy R D costs * Operates in Niche market Five forces (porter) that apple applied. Motorola Mobility v. Apple Inc. is one of a series of ongoing lawsuits between technology companies Motorola Mobility and Apple Inc.. In the year before Apple and Samsung began suing each other on most continents, and while Apple and High Tech Computer Corp. (HTC) were already embroiled in a patent fight, Motorola Mobility and Apple started a period of intense patent litigation. The Motorola-Apple patent imbroglio commenced with claims and cross-claims between the companies for patent infringement, and encompassed multiple venues in multiple countries as each party sought friendly forums for litigating its respective claims; the fight also included administrative law rulings as well as United States International Trade Commission (ITC) and European Commission involvement.[1] In April 2012, the controversy centered on whether a FRAND license to a components manufacturer carries over to an equipment manufacturer incorporating the component into equipment, an issue not addressed in the Supreme Courts default analysis using the exhaustion doctrine in Quanta v. LG Electronics.[2] In June 2012, appellate judge Richard Posner dismissed the U.S. case with prejudice and the parties appealed the decision a month later. * - Motorola Mobilitys suits In early October 2010, Motorola Mobility filed a complaint with the ITC against Apple alleging patent infringement.[6] The complaint allegations concerned six Motorola patents, and sought remedies of a court-ordered bar on U.S. imports of infringing products, and an injunction prohibiting Apple from importing, marketing and distributing infringing products. The ITC instituted its investigation a month later and Motorola subsequently dropped its patent claims with respect to two of the six patents at issue.[7]Motorola also filed two complaints for patent infringement against Apple in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois (Illinois Complaints), and another complaint for patent infringement against Apple in the U.S. District Court for the Southern  District of Florida (Florida Complaint). Both complaints alleged Apple infringed 18 Motorola patents. In November 2010, Motorola voluntarily dismissed the Illinois Complaints, (asserted as counterclaims in the actions brought by Apple on October 29, 2010 in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin). Later that November, Apple also filed counterclaims in the Southern District of Florida, alleging Motorola infringed six Apple patents in manufacturing and selling mobile devices, set-top boxes and digital video recorders.[7]Additionally, in October 2010, Motorola filed a complaint for a declaratory judgment against Apple and NeXT Software, Inc.[8] in the U.S. District Court in Delaware, seeking a ruling that Motorola did not infringe any claim of twelve patents owned by Apple and NeXT. In response, in early December 2010, Apple asserted these twelve patents against Motorola, Inc. and Motorola Mobility, Inc. in the Western District of Wisconsin and moved for a change of venue from Delaware to Wisconsin. Ulti mately, both parties patent assertions were subsequently transferred to the Northern District of Illinois. * - Apples counter-suits In late October 2010, Apple filed two complaints in the Western District of Wisconsin for patent infringement against Motorola, Inc. and Motorola Mobility, Inc..[9] The complaints alleged Motorola infringed six patents and sought money damages and an injunction. In early November 2010, Motorola filed counterclaims against Apple alleging Apple infringed twelve Motorola patents which Motorola originally asserted in the Northern District of Illinois. The Western District of Wisconsin transferred the actions to the Northern District of Illinois and trial was scheduled for June 2012 on six Apple patents and three Motorola Mobility patents. Also in late October 2010, Apple filed a complaint with the ITC for patent infringement against Motorola, Inc. and Motorola Mobility, Inc..[10] Apples complaint alleged Motorola infringed three Apple patents with Motorolas mobile devices offered in the U.S.. Apples complaint sought a court order barring imports of those devices and sought an injunction prohibiting Motorola from engaging in further activities related to the same mobile devices. The ITC began  investigation in late November 2010; in mid-January 2012, the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) found no violation by Motorola for the three asserted Apple patents; Apple filed a petition to review the ALJs findings but the ALJ ultimately ruled for Motorola and against Apple in mid-March 2012.[11] In mid-March 2011, Apple filed counterclaims against Motorola in the ITC proceeding (which was subsequently removed to the Western District of Wisconsin court), and instituted a new action in the Western District of Wisconsin, Apple Inc. v. Motorola Mobility, Inc., alleging that Motorola breached standards commitments (see Context, below), with counterclaims including equitable estoppel, waiver, breach of contract, violation of Section 2 of the Sherman Antitrust Act, unfair competition and interference with contract. Apple sought declaratory judgments that Motorolas license terms involving standards-essential patents were unreasonable and discriminatory, that Motorola was not entitled to injunctive relief, and that Motorola committed patent misuse.[7] * - Context Components manufacturers and major patent holders such as Motorola and Samsung commit to licensing their standards essential patents to other industry participants through their participation in standard-setting organizations (SSOs), while other industry participants negotiate licenses to use those patents, including manufactures and sellers of smartphones and tablets.[12] North American technology companies treatment in the marketplace of their respective products and mobile operating systems (OSs) spans the spectrum from completely proprietary systems to open-source license systems: Apple and RIM manufacture and sell products that run on only their respective proprietary mobile OSs; Microsoft licenses its proprietary mobile OSs, (Windows Phoneand Windows Mobile), to non-affiliated wireless handset original equipment manufacturers (OEMs); and Google sponsors Android, an open-source mobile OS it distributes free to OEMs.[13] All these OSs provide platforms for software application de velopers as well as for a variety of products and services offered by  competing product manufacturers. Such products in turn rely on, and their patent holders commit to, SSOs rules for both standards essential patents disclosure and reasonable and non-discriminatory licensing (FRAND) grants for compatibility and interoperability of devices.[13] * - Further developments In March and April 2011, Motorola filed patent infringement complaints in the court in Mannheim, Germany, alleging that Apple Retail Germany GmbH, Apple Sales International, and Apple Inc. infringed three of Motorola Mobilitys patents, two of which are standards-essential patents. In December 2011 and February 2012, the court in Mannheim, Germany found that Apple products infringed two of the three Motorola Mobility patents, one standards-essential and one non-essential, and granted injunctions.[7] Between May and December 2011, Apple filed patent infringement suits in Munich, Dà ¼sseldorf and Mannheim, Germany alleging that Motorola infringed Apples utility and design patents. Apple asserted the design patents against Motorolas tablet products. In mid-February 2012, the Munich court found that a Motorola smartphone unlock feature infringed one of the Apple utility patents,[14] and granted an injunction.[7] Five days prior to the Munich court decision, Apple sued Motorola in the U.S . District Court for the Southern District of California.[15] Apples complaint sought a declaratory judgment and injunction based on an alleged breach of contract by Motorola, and alleged that Apple is a third party beneficiary under a patent licensing agreement between Motorola Mobility, Inc. and Qualcomm, Inc., and thus in reliance on that contract. Apple alleged that Motorolas rights under two patents it asserted against Apple in Germany were already exhausted under the licensing agreement and asked the court to enjoin Motorola from prosecuting and enforcing its claims against Apple in Germany. In February 2012, the European Commission, Competition Directorate-General, sent Motorola notice that the Commission received a complaint by Apple on the enforcement of Motorolas standards-essential patents against Apple, allegedly in breach of Motorolas FRAND commitments. Apples complaint sought the Commissions intervention with respect to standards-essential  patents.[7]

Molieres Tartuffe Essay -- essays research papers

The Theme of Moliere’s Tartuffe: Reason vs. Passion Jean-Baptitste Poquelin Moliere’s Tartuffe, is undoubtedly a satirical comedy. In Moliere’s description of a satire, he was very direct as to the function and objectives of one are. The function is to correct men’s vices, using satire to ridicule them and expose them to public laughter (Moliere, p.14). Although this satire is making fun of many things in the church and organized religion, which is not the only objective Moliere had in mind. Tartuffe has many themes that reoccur through out the play. The time period, in which this play was written, was known as the Age of Reason. One of the main ideas and attitudes during this time was, reason must always control passion. Due to this attitude, one theme that constantly appears through the play, is the battle between reason and passion. In Act II, Scene 4, one of the major conflicts between reason and passion is played out. Valere confronts Mariane with the rumors he has heard about her marrying Tartuffe. Throughout this entire confrontation, they are letting their passions stop them from getting what they truly want, which is each other. Finally, Dorine brings about the reason that is needed in their situation. In lines 69-71, Dorine states,† If you ask me, both of you are as mad as mad can be. Do stop this nonsense, now. I’ve only let you squabble so long to see where it would get you.† Their passion is so strong; Valere and Mariane are blind to what the other is want...

Strategic Analysis for Ryanair to Enter China

Strategic Analysis for Ryanair to Enter China Submitted in part fulfilment of the Master September 2010 STRATEGIC BUSINESS ANALYSIS (ULMS 719) University of Liverpool Management School 17 September 2010 Abstract Ryanair, the leader of low-fare carriers in Europe, will expand its business throughout the world. This report discusses the strategies which Ryanair entre the Chinese market.Through PESTEL analysis and SWOT analysis to have sophisticated understandings of the Chinese market situation and the civil aviation environment, then after a series of considerations, eventually, Ryanair makes the decision to cooperate with China Southern Airlines in the form of a joint venture. Based on this, Ryanair has set up plenty of adequate business strategies that are composed of market targeting strategy, price strategy and marketing strategy in order to successfully enter the Chinese market. Keywords: Ryanair; China; Strategic analysis Table of ContentsAbstract ——— Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€-i List of Tables and Figures————————————————————————iv 1. Introduction————————————————————————————-1 2. Overview of Ryanair ————————————————————————-2 2. 1 General introduction of Ryanair———————â₠¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€-2 2. 2 Ryanair’s competitive advantages ———————————————————-4 3.Strategic analysis ——————————————————————————–6 3. 1 External environment-PESTEL Analysis ———————————————-7 3. 1. 1 Political ————————————————————————————7 3. 1. 2 Economic———â€⠀Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€œ8 3. 1. 3 Social ————————————————————————————–10 3. 1. 4 Technology——————————————————————————–11 3. . 5 Environment——————————————————————————-12 3. 1. 6 Legal ————————â€⠀Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€13 3. 2 Internal Environment-SWOT Analysis————————————————-14 3. 2. 1 Strengths ———————————————————————————-15 3. 2. 2Weaknesses———————————————————————————17 3. 2. 3 Opportunities————————————————————â€⠀Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€18 3. . 4 Threats————————————————————————————–19 3. 3 Summary ————————————————————————————-20 4. Business Strategic——————————————————————————–21 4. 1 Entry Mode Strategy————————————————————————21 4. 1. 1Problems that may cause ————————————————————–21 4. 1. 2 Joint Venture —————————————————————————22 4. 1. 2. 1 Brief introduction of Joint Venture ————————————————22 4. 1. 2. 2 Partner-China Southern Airlines —————————————————23 4. 2 Market Targeting strategy —————————————————————–25 4. 3 Pricing Strategy —————————————————————————–26 4. 3. 1 The level of highest price ————————————————————–27 4. 3. The level of lowest price —————————————————————27 4. 3. 3 The level of average price ——————————————————— —-27 4. 3. 4 Price choice on peak-season and off-season —————————————â⠂¬â€œ28 4. 4 Marketing Strategy ————————————————————————-28 4. 4. 1 Cooperation with Mass Communication ———————————————-28 4. 4. 2 Cooperation with local authorities —————————————————–28 4. . 3 Cooperation with China Southern Airlines ——————————————-29 4. 5 Summary————————————————————————————-30 5. Conc lusion—————————————————————————————-30 References——————————————————————————————-32 List of Tables and Figure Table1. The Development of Civil Aviation in Recent Years——————————— 9 Table2.Ryanair’s SWOT Analysis —————————————————————- 15 Table3. Highlights of Ryanair’s Finances ————————â₠¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€œ 16 Table4. Key Statistics Comparison between Railways, Highways and Civil Aviation——19 Figure1. Comparison of Average Fares in four airlines —————————————–16 1. Introduction Low-cost carriers mainly operate high-volume passenger traffic on short-distance routes, use second-level airports, and offer no extra services.Given their sharply reduced costs, normally low-cost carriers offer fares considerably lower than that of traditional airlines. The trend began in America, with Southwest Airlines as the chief representative. Since 1990, numerous low-fare airlines have sprung up on a global scale. Among these, Ryanair’s achievements stand out. As the most profitable airline company in the world, Ryanair is renowned for its low-cost and low fares to travel destinations throughout most Eur opean countries. However, current airline routes and markets cannot meet Ryanair’s long-term development.To achieve its expanding ambitions across a global range, Ryanair decided to start with the Chinese market. Aviation in China is advancing at a staggering rate. Because of improvements in the living standard, more and more customers are willing to spend money on high-fare air tickets to save time and obtain excellent service, whereas the majority of middle-class individuals would rather travel by other vehicles than by plane due to its high price. Without doubt, the low-cost carrier is the only way to satisfy the growing requirements of the market in the next several years.Ryanair sees China’s high-potential market and increasing demands. It must, therefore, address these paramount issues: how to carry out appropriate strategies and combine Ryanair’s own advantages with the framework of international regulations and the Chinese government’s policies. I f Ryanair enters the Chinese market successfully, it will have a special meaning and impact on Ryanair’s sustainable development and will bring about a great change in current Chinese aviation patterns. This study will suggest specific measures for Ryanair to enter the Chinese market.The study first introduces Ryanair’s history, its considerable achievements, and unique predominance. From these aspects, we can have deeper understanding of Ryanair. Then, this study will apply PESTEL and SWOT models to analyze the internal and external environments. Based on environmental assessment, during the entire entering process, some unpredictable problems will be generated. In accordance with these problems, this study will offer relative solutions. More specifically, it offers an entry-mode and business strategy.Last but not least, the study concludes by offering a look at Ryanair’s experiences and improvements during the analysis process, and shows its drawbacks as well. Finally, the study offers suggestions to minimize the risks of entry into and for making profits in China. 2. Overview of Ryanair 2. 1 General introduction of Ryanair Ryanair’s legend dates back to 1985 when the Ryan family set up the company with only ? 1 share capital and 25 staff in Ireland. At that time, the Ryan family mainly operated scheduled passenger airline services between the UK and Ireland. At first, this mini-airline failed to draw the public’s attention.In the meantime, due to blind business expansion, Ryanair opened up new routes and purchased new aircrafts regardless of risk, resulting in constantly increasing expenditures and making huge losses for four years running. The meaningful year for Ryanair was 1990. Under the leadership of a new CEO, Michael O'Leary, Ryanair first introduced low fares and low-cost operation modes, based on the American South West Airline’s successful experience. The move has proven a wise decision. From then on, Ryan air began to make a profit and gradually became the leader in low-fare air tickets in Europe.After more than 20 years of unremitting efforts, Ryanair is recognized as the world’s favorite airline (Ryanair Annual Report, 2009). In addition, in accordance with its latest fiscal year report, Ryanair has developed into the largest low-fare airline, with over 7,000 employees, 43 bases and 1,100 routes between 26 counties (Ryanair. com). Also, Ryanair’s fleet includes 250 new Boeing 737-800 aircraft. Its number of passengers served reached 66. 5 million, which took the lead in the industry. In the next several years, Ryanair will still enlarge its fleet to deliver more passengers.In recent years, the value of Ryanair shares has gone up more than 10 times compared to 1997 when Ryanair issued shares to the public( Ryanair Annual Report, 2010). This continued, even after the events of September 11, 2001, when global aviation changed dramatically. Although most airlines have bee n largely affected, Ryanair has retained profits for 12 years. In 2003, Ryanair successively merged and acquired Holland’s low-cost airline, Buzz, the budget airline subsidiary of KLM and the Dutch national airline. These moves led to the organization’s overall strengths and risk resistance for further improvement.The 2010 financial report illustrated Ryanair earned â‚ ¬305. 3 million in 2010. In consequence, Ryanair was named as â€Å"the most profitable airline in the world† by The Economist magazine in 2005. Meanwhile Ryanair’s stock share is very popular with investors and shareholders. In addition, one reason why Ryanair continues to achieve milestones is that it has maintained its business philosophy of ‘providing its customers with a lowest price ticket even no fares, on the premise that Ryanair cuts into the whole company’s operating expense and other unnecessary cost† (Johnson, 2004) 2. Ryanair’s competitive advantage s It is universally acknowledged in business that superior enterprises will prosper whereas inferior ones will be eliminated. That is to say, survival of the fittest. The main points allowing a company to gain success are competitive advantages. This is the final goal of the strategic process in management. Competitive advantages were first proposed by Michael Porter in 1990. If a firm is able to generate more economic value than rival firms, it has a competitive advantage.In other words, not only could it bring benefits to customers, but also its opponents would find it hard to imitate and surpass it (Barney and Hesterly, 2007). In the competitive low-fare aviation market, Ryanair gradually created its own competitive advantages. They are as follows: A. Purchasing a single aircraft type: Ryanair only operates Boeing 737 and Boeing 737-800 â€Å"next generation. † Ryanair took good advantage of its own bargaining power and stable reputation to gain favorable contracts. This a dvantage helps Ryanair save costs.At the same time, Boeing aircraft not only suit the demands of European countries but also saves a large amount of maintenance and the costs of repair and staff employment. B. High efficiency in staff work: Employees’ efficiency at Ryanair is relatively higher than those at other airlines. For example, at Ryanair, an airhostess is responsible for service on the plane and for cleaning as well. Productive-based remuneration system is widely applied in Ryanair. It consists of the number of on-board sales of products on the flight and their working hours.To arouse enthusiasm and initiative among staff, Ryanair distributes company’s stock as dividend and rewards. C. Masterful exploitation of second-level airport resources: In some European areas, use of second-tier airports is very low. Therefore, to raise the usage ratio and boost economic improvement, local governments have offered some favorable policies. Based on Ryanair’s large volume of passenger traffic and its rapid growth, Ryanair obtained great contracts and even some subsidies from local areas, leading to a decrease in airport access fees. D.Taking advantage of the Internet: To save agency commission fees and simplify the purchasing process, Ryanair set up online reservations and spent a large amount of money on promoting online implementation widely. The Skylight system offers a platform for Internet users to book and confirm their ticket through Ryanair’s website promptly. Consequently, its Internet operation has significant advanced to reach 99% of ticket sales. E. Reducing expenses and making profits from other aspects: Ryanair no longer provides free meals, and Ryanair cancelled first and business classes to offer more seats.Apart from this, Ryanair limits weight of luggage to decrease fuel consumption. During the entire operation process, Ryanair always puts cost decreases in first place, and also attempt to seek a way to earn more money . For instance, Ryanair supplies different kinds of products and services including food, as well as information in terms of taxi and hotel booking for passengers. Simultaneously, the advertisements for colorful Ryanair’ aircraft and websites for other companies offer major sources of revenue. F.Unique corporate culture: Ryanair’s headquarter was built in a rural area at a small location in Ireland. In the beginning, the entire company comprised only eight administrative workers. At times, the firm’s CEO and department managers would help customers check in and even load and upload their baggage. Every Thursday the company would hold football matches between various company departments. The corporate culture creates a harmonious work environment and makes a success of the business. 3. Strategic analysis The Chinese market is new for Ryanair.There is no denying that the Chinese market has its own unique characteristics. To enter the Chinese market, it is imperati ve that Ryanair have a deep understanding of the external environment. Similarly, Ryanair should grasp if the internal environment is beneficial or detrimental to Ryanair. Only in this way, will Ryanair be able to exploit its own strong points to fulfill its potential and avoid some influences that may give rise to shortcomings. Meanwhile, environmental analysis offers a determinant factor to establish specific strategies. The following steps might be taken. . 1 External environment: PESTEL analysis Johnson pointed out the PESTEL framework as an effective tool for analyzing the macro-environment. Moreover, it helps the company to know what is going on outside the organization and how external factors are likely to change in the future. PESTEL refers to six points: political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal (Johnson, 2008). It is clear that this framework includes all external aspects. Through this framework, Ryanair could get a better understand of the unfam iliar Chinese market.Then, on the basis of this, Ryanair could carry out accurate methods that are suitable for Chinese customers. 3. 1. 1 Political issues The political point is related to political and state systems, policies and regulations. Aviation is an industry that is very sensitive to political changes. In the meantime, aviation is strictly regulated by government. Chinese aviation started late, therefore its laws and regulations have several shortcomings. With the gradual deepening of its economic reforms in recent years, the Civil Aviation Administration of China opened the door for non-state owned enterprises in 2004.After that, a series of loosening policies regarding airline routes have been put forward to provide more chances for low-cost carriers. Up through late 2007, the Chinese government concluded 110 bilateral agreements with foreign states (The Report of Chinese Aviation, 2008). On the one hand, this move indicated that the Chinese aviation industry was at the international stage to seek further development. On the other hand, it means that the Chinese market relaxed rules on foreign ownership of airline. Through corporation, the monopoly concerning a reservation in fuel price, maintenance fees or tickets would be broken up.In addition, there has been a dramatic increase in space resources. As of 2007, Chinese aviation implemented the Reduced Vertical Separation Minimum (RVSM) cruising altitude between 8,400 meters and 12,500 meters. RVSM went up from 7 to 13. This implied that space environment would be optimized and flights would be unobstructed. Beyond a new regulation applied regarding airline tickets in 2004, the Chinese government gradually relaxed price control. The measure was of immense significance in long-term development of airlines. 3. 1. 2 EconomicIn 2009, the financial crisis swept through the global, and the world economy has been greatly affected by it. However, even under this circumstance, the Chinese GDP was 33. 5 tril lion yuan, up by 8. 7 percent over the previous year. Fiscal revenues reached 6. 85 trillion yuan, an increase of 11. 7 percent (Report of the Work of the Government 2010). Constant economic growth provides an attractive environment for aviation industry. The following table indicates the development of civil aviation in recent years: Tab1e 1: The Development of Civil Aviation in Recent YearsYear Item| 2004| 2005| 2006| 2007| 2008| Length of Transport Routes (10 000 km)| 204. 94| 199. 85| 211. 35| 234. 30| 246. 18| Total Passengers Traffic (10,000 persons)| 12,123| 13,827| 15,968| 18,576| 19,251| Total Passage-Kilometers (100 million passenger-km)| 1,782. 3| 2,044. 9| 2,370. 7| 2,791. 7| 2,882. 8| Sources from China Statistic Yearbook 2009 As can be seen from Table 1, Chinese civil aviation has maintained a sustained, rapid and sound development. Moreover, the rise in the value of RMB will work to the advantage of aviation.It contributed to cutting down the cost of crude oil import. To some extent, airlines could benefit from it and improve profitability. The financial crisis had a noticeable impact on the fuel market, which is the lifeline of aviation. As a whole, the global fuel price market decreased from $80 per barrel to $74. 07 per barrel. Whereas, in view of the Chinese fuel market monopolized by China National Aviation Fuel and high demand in the domestic market, Chinese fuel prices ran counter to the international situation and had an upward tendency.Hence, this is a big challenge for airlines (Hu,2010). 3. 1. 3 Social Since the adoption of reform and opening policies, China has made headway socially and demographically. In the first place, Chinese people’s living standards have greatly improved. The annual per capita disposable income and annual per capita consumption expenditure of urban households have seen a dramatic increase to reach 15,781 yuan, 11,243 yuan, respectively. After 30 years of arduous efforts, the excessive population growth has been brought under effective control.Furthermore, China’s population has basically accomplished the change-over to the population reproduction pattern characterized by low-birth rate, death rate and growth. Based on statistics provided by the State Statistical Bureau, by 2008, China had a population of 1. 3 billion. In the second place, residence, transportation and communication, as well as recreation, education and culture contributed to the promotion of the continuous growth of domestic consumption. Take 2006 as an example, the annual per capita living expenses of urban residents was 59,370. 3 billion yuan.In comparison with last year, transportation and communication rose by 13. 8%, and the other two items went up by 10. 8%. The major factor that caused the results above was due to changes of the social-cultural environment. Thus, people’s lifestyles, including transportation and travel choices have changed subsequently. In recent years, the rate of tourism had an upward tendency, climbing from 26% in 2001 to 36. 7% in 2007 throughout the whole air transportation market. Moreover, the number of self-funded travelers accounted for 50. 7% in the tourism industry (China Statistical Yearbook, 2009).Last but not least, with close relationships of educational institutions between different nations, the quantity of students who study abroad is increasing year by year. In particular, through a ten-year development period, the number of students in 2008 was ten times higher than that in 1998; it reached 179,800 persons. 3. 1. 4 Technology First, we can acknowledge that advanced technology has resulted in cost reductions for airlines. As a result, as the most famous civil aircraft manufacturing companies in the world, Boeing and Airbus continually issue new economical and practical aircraft, like the Boeing 777 series and Airbus A380.Secondly, simplifying the business program(StB)was proposed by International Air Transport Association in 2004. It i s a new approach that aims to reduce airline expenses and offer better services for passengers. The StB program compromises five parts: bar-coded boarding passes (BCBP), IATA e-freight, IATA e-services, the Baggage Improvement Program and the Fast Travel Program. With the aid of the StB Program, airlines can sell tickets by direct marketing and vending machine or booking tickets via the Internet, mobile phones and land lines.Since 2006, e-ticketing has been implemented widely in the domestic market and is up to 100%. It was estimated that, after implementing e-tickets, the cost of each ticket would decrease by two-thirds, and there is no denying that this measure would bring huge potentials regarding a decrease in operation expense for airlines(Wu,2007) Thirdly, with the rapid improvement of air-traffic management and overall industrial technology and equipment levels, the utilization rate of national airspace resources had a significant rise.In the meantime, increased numbers of ai rcraft have driven the development of the aircraft maintenance market, extending the useful life of civil planes, which endure 25–30 years. Lastly, along with the quick development of civil airlines, the supply and demand of pilots in the transport market is increasingly prominent. With regard to training and recruiting pilots, there is fierce competition between new airlines and existing airlines. As an administrative department, the Civil Aviation Administration of China is cautious about turnover as to pilots.To a great extent, the liberalization of rules pertaining to pilots is still restricted by laws and regulations, thereby hindering long-term development of new airlines (Fang, 2009) 3. 1. 5 Environment In contemporary society, human beings have gradually raised their awareness of saving resources and protecting the environment. Hence, consumers are willing to back â€Å"no-frill,† low-cost carriers. Analysis of the low-cost carrier market in China and the Inves tment Advisory Report, 2006–2007, showed that 79% of customers would accept products provided by low cost airlines.Next, in 2012, the European Union will begin to charge for carbon emission. Obviously, it is not good for high-speed growth but imperfect Chinese aviation. In spite of China vigorously pushing forward energy conservation and greenhouse gas emissions reduction, nevertheless, under the current technology and situation, to reduce greenhouse gas emission, it must depend on technology rather than fuel decreases. Because of insufficiency or drawbacks of relevant laws and regulations, at present, China has not formulated a relevant policy in terms of charging carbon emissions.This contributes to more and more foreign airlines paying more attention to the Chinese aviation market of the future (Li, 2010) Finally, through decades of operation and development, Chinese airports have begun to take shape. By 2008, China had 152 civil airports. Beyond that, passenger traffic an d freight traffic achieved great performances: 19,251,000 persons and 4,076,376, tons respectively (The Year book of China, 2009). Currently China is speeding the construction pace. The Civil Aviation Administration of China has announced that by 2020, China will set up more than 97 airports.By then, 80% of the area will be covered, so that 82% of the total population would enjoy airline service (Tan, 2003) 3. 1. 6 Legal Although world aviation has become wired, foreign airlines that would like to enter and operate in China also face a great many difficulties in the aspects of market and technology and, especially, laws and regulations. For instance, according to the General Administration of Civil Aviation Law of China, Article 177 states that it does not allow transportation between any two points in the areas of China for foreign airlines.Besides, foreign airlines’ timetables and flight plans must report to relevant aviation departments in a timely fashion. To some extent, it undoubtedly becomes an obstacle to free development in aviation. In addition, lack of relative facilities results from the immature advancement of aviation in China. Like most cities having only one main airport, the construction of a secondary airport still falls far short of needs of modern aviation. Consequently, this is a big problem that should not be ignored by foreign airlines. 3. 2 Internal environment: SWOT analysisSWOT was first put forward by Albert Humphrey in the 1960s and mainly deals with an enterprise’s internal environmental analysis. It is the method that is used for arriving at deep and comprehensive understanding of a company’s own strategic competence, as well as a business environment before the company works out the adaptation strategy in the new circumstances. SWOT refers to strength, weakness, opportunity and threat. Among these four aspects, ST focuses on company, while OT pays more attention to relevant competitors’ effects.By appl ying this, the enterprise could realize what factors are beneficial to it and then carry forward them in the future. Meanwhile, the organization should find some existing serious problems that would have adverse influence on further development. Then, it should find a solution to the problems or try to avoid them in practice. By this method, the company could make best use of the advantages and bypass the disadvantages so as to attain sustainable development (Johnson, et al. ,2008) The following picture shows a summary in respect of Ryanair’s SWOT analysis: Table 2: Ryanair’s SWOT AnalysisStrength| 1. Powerful brand support2. Low fares3. Low operation cost and high ancillary incomes4. High efficiency, flexible operation| Weakness| 1. Service quality decrease2. Regulation restrictions3. Changes of charges have great impact on Ryanair4. Limited niche market| Opportunities| 1. Tremendous civil market potentials2. Economic downturn3. Ambitious expansion | Threats| 1. High- speed development of other substitutes2. Fierce competition and pressure from other civil airlines3. Excessively depends on jet fuel market and low price| 3. 2. 1 StrengthsAfter 20 years of arduous efforts, Ryanair has already built up an enterprise image and exploited the brand with its own characteristic in the European LCC market. The Economist magazine called it â€Å"the best airline which could earn a large amount of money. † Wall Street Daily considered Ryanair’s stock as the most popular and the most valuable to purchase (Wang, 2008) It has made marked achievements in every respect, as can be seen from the table below in terms of general accomplishments: Table 3: Highlights of Ryanair’s Finances â‚ ¬ Key items| 2010 | 2009| change|Operating revenue| 2,988. 1| 2,942. 0| +2%| Net profit /(loss) after tax| 305. 3| (169. 2)| +280%| Scheduled passengers| 66. 5m| 58. 6m| +14%| Fleet at period end| 232| 181| +28%| Average number of employees| 7,032| 6,369| + 10%| Adapted from Ryanair Annual report 2010 Since its establishment until now, Ryanair has always persisted in the philosophy of business: Let more and more customers enjoy low fare, even for free. A survey of different airlines and their fares follows: Figure 1: Comparison of average fares of four airlines. â‚ ¬ Source: Ryanair Annual Report 2010.Ryanair can in fact issue tickets much cheaper than other airlines. That’s the reason why the total Ryanair scheduled passengers came out to â‚ ¬ 66. 5 million. With such cheap fares, Ryanair can still make profits. The reason is attributed to an emphasis on minimizing operations costs, which includes: aircraft purchasing, daily maintenance and selection of airports, online booking and personnel expense. Apart from these, Ryanair tries to earn more from ancillary service while reducing costs. For example, customers could book cars or hotels, and even some low fare tickets of concerns from Ryanair’s websites easily.Besi des, Ryanair is considered a conspicuous billboard as its aircrafts and even its trays are fully sprayed with different companies’ advertisements. This action brings about considerable income to Ryanair. In 2010, the advertising income reached â‚ ¬663. 6million. Definitely, a highly productive work force also plays a pivotal role in the way to success. It is reported that each Ryanair’s emplyee can serve 9,457 passengers per year. To mobilize the enthusiasm of employees, Ryanair brought out air bonuses and participation in Ryanair’s valuable option project (Ryan air Annual Report 2010). 3. . 2 Weaknesses Due to reduction in Ryanair’s various operation expenses, a variety of free services have been cancelled. At present, customers must pay to use the toilet. Therefore, more limitations are sure to follow, service quality decrease and then, increasingly, customer complaints. The most serious negative issue has been the severe criticism continually releas ed by the news media, and it has harmed the company’s overall image and interest. Ryanair’s target market mainly focuses on leisure-travel customers and short point-to-point routes. Although it does not have higher standards of ervice, Ryanair is extremely sensitive to price. That is to say, once Ryanair raises prices slightly, it will lose lots of customers. Nevertheless, as the company’s scale is constantly enlalrging, costs will go up proportionately. Therefore, limited niche market and increasing cost are not propitious for further expansion of the company. Currently, Ryanair confronts a tough situation, which involves how to balance the company’s benefits and customers’ requirements appropriately. In spite of Chinese aviation advocates; reform and innovation, China is not completely wide open to foreign airlines.Local laws and regulation restrictions are not conducive to Ryanair’s entry. 3. 2. 3 Opportunities Compared with advanced coun tries, although China aviation is advancing rapidly, it still has plenty of drawbacks, particularly in the low-cost carrier area. 2008 Chinese Aviation Report implied that China has a huge market with big potential and wide prospects in civil aviation. However, nowadays, there is only one small-scale, low-cost airline, Spring Airline, in China’s domestic market. Apparently, existing fleets and routes are difficult to satisfy a increase of domestic demand.Ryanair’s entry will fill the low-cost carrier vacancy. Moreover, it has been proved that low-cost carriers can benefit during economic downturn(Kerpen, 2004). lobal recession leads to a sharp fall in public income. Therefore, the public turns to low fares to reduce expenses. A host of customers would rather choose Ryanair, which does not have free services, than general flagship airlines that offer higher standards of service. Apparently, the economic slump brings infinite business chances and generous profits for Rya nair. Ryanair is planing to enlarge its fleet to acquire 200–300 planes by 2016.Due to bulk buying, Boeing and Airbus quote Ryanair the most favourable prices to acquire such big orders. In that case, it not only saves costs but also offers sufficient funds to invest in overseas markets. Ryanair’s ambitious expansion could come true in the near future. 3. 2. 4 Threats Rapid development of Chinese railways and highways in recent years should be a concern for air carriers. Ever since the transportation industry has advanced steadily, railways and highways have held leading positions. Because civil aviation is subject to its own conditions, in freight traffic, t had a very big lead compared with railways and highways. This is shown in the table below: Table 4: Key Statistics Comparision between Railways, Highways and Civil Aviation Items| Year| Passenger Traffic (10,000 persons)| Passenger-Kilometers (100million passenger-km)| Freight Traffic (10,000 tons)| Railways| 2006 | 125,656| 6,622. 1| 288,224| | 2007| 135,670| 7,216. 3| 314,237| | 2008| 146,193| 7,778. 6| 330,354| Highways| 2006| 1860,487| 10,130. 8| 1,466,347| | 2007| 2,050,680| 11,506. 8| 1,639,432| | 2008| 2,682,114| 12,476. 1| 1,916,759| Civil Aviation| 2006| 15,968| 2,370. | 349. 4| | 2007| 18,576| 2,791. 7| 401. 8| | 2008| 19251| 2,882. 8| 407. 6| Adapt from Chinese Statistic Yearbook 2009 As shown in the diagram, from 2006 to 2009, people would rather choose railways and highways than civil aviation. Furthermore, as mentioned above, the statistics of railways and highways far exceed that of civil aviation. In 2002, civil aviation was reconstructed and reorganized. From then on, competition through three airline groups involving Air China, China Southern Airlines and China Eastern Airlines has taken shape in the civil aviation market.The three airlines have the market share for 80% in China. There is no denying that these three airlines groups pose a huge threat to Ryanair. They would t ake full advantage of their own strengths to freeze out new competitors. More importantly, Ryanair is famous for its low fares. Jet fuel is a major component of Ryanair’s operations costs. However, as cost of jet fuel has risen, Ryanair’s ticket prices have spiraled up to match them. Therefore, this action is directly opposite to the aim of the company. Ryanair would lost a large number of customers because of its relative high fare compared with privious price. . 3 Summary As discussed in the PESTEL and SWOT analyses above, as a whole, the external environment is conducive to Ryanair’s entry and development in China, specifically, the attractive points were policy relaxation to foreign airlines and high demand for low-fare carriers. However, Ryanair would have to pay more attention to techniques and legal restrictions in certain aspects. Only after analysing the external environment objectively will Ryanair enter the Chinese market smoothly. In the meantime, th e internal environment is equally fundamental.After placing more emphasis on understanding the other airlines and Ryanair itself, then it will be able to fight a hundred battles without danger of defeat as the result of wise decision making and strategic adjustments in a short time. 4. Business strategy 4. 1 Entry mode strategy 4. 1. 1 Potential problems Given that aviation is a sensitive industry, there is no doubt that Ryanair will face some tough problems that could interfere with its entry plans or progress. In particular, the Chinese government puts up all sorts of obstacles, and these factors are concretely revealed by the following.The first obstacle is the imposition of restrictions on setting ticket prices. Civil aviation-transport price reforms state that on the basis of benchmark prices, airlines may set a price which increases 25% and decreases no more than 45% (Wu, 2007). Compared to the previous rule, the government has relaxed controls on prices. Nevertheless, it is s till hard to satisfy the requirements of low-cost carriers, which rely on low fares to gain a larger share of the market. The second obstacle is the control of air-route management rights. So far, there are 115 airports which are completely open.Airlines could freely arrange air route entry and quit based on actual market demands by themselves. However, these airports’ handling capacities are relatively small and the low-cost carrier’s self-potential is subject to it. The last obstacle is the monopoly pattern in civil aviation. At present, Air China, China Southern Airlines and China Eastern Airlines have become three powers of civil aviation. At times, the three-airline group launches its own low-cost tickets in order to develop market share. Ultimately, their positions in the domestic market are strengthened.As a new entrant to the Chinese market, the three-airline group’s low-cost strategy will negatively affect Ryanair. 4. 1. 2 Solution: Joint Ventures As st ated above, the way to enter a new market is not completely clear for new entrants. To avoid some unpreditable factors that would arise in the Chinese market and to lower risks attributed to lack of knowledge regarding market information or market situations, joint ventures are the most convenient and effective solution for Ryanair, especially a minority joint venture. 4. 1. 2. 1 Brief introduction to joint venturesA joint venture is a â€Å"corporate child† that is a new entity given birth and jointly owned by two or more parent companies. (Peng, 2009)Generally, this is a common measure for new entrants to enter unfamiliar environments. That is to say, that Ryanair should seek other partners in the Chinese market. Two parties hold different proportions of equity and also share investment, management, risks and responsibility for profits or losses. At the beginning, owing to the fact that Ryanair stands at a disadvantage, it is imperative that gaining support from domestic fi rms make up the shortage of funds and resources.From all of the above, this measure is acceptable and advocated by local authorities, and they will even offer a preferential policy in the developing aviation industry. Yet it is certain that there will exist some drawbacks during the application of joint ventures. On the one hand, because of differences in background and corporate culture, a new company will be easily split on objectives and interests and even conflicts. On the other hand, sometimes both paties cannot reach a consensus in regard to equity allocation and operational control.At the end, it is often hard to coordinate globally on account of tight controls on a foreign subsidiary (Peng,2009). 4. 1. 2. 2 Partner: China Southern Airlines Based on an overrall consideration of various factors, Ryanair decided to choose China Southern Airlines as its partner. The following paragraphs show reasons why Ryanair mades the decision. First, highlights of China Southern Airlines fol low. Its headquarter is in Guangzhou. The company is made up of 13 branches and 5 subsidiaries throughout China.Futhermore, China Southern Airlines has set up two bases in Shanghai and Xian, and it also owns 54 foreign agencies abroad. China Southern Airlines possesses the highest number of aircraft, 400, the most advanced air route network and the biggest passenger traffic that up to 66,280,000 persons. At present, with Guangzhou and Beijing as major hubs, their air route networks and ranges of business have spread throughout the main cities in the world. In 2008, China Southern Airlines was honoured with â€Å"flight safety five stars† by the Civil Aviation Administration of China. Now it still keeps the longest safety records.China Southern Airlines always insists on â€Å"Safety First Principle† On the premise of safety, the firm constantly brings forth management level and technology innovation to improve its strength and international competitiveness. China South ern Airlines is the only airline that fosters pilots independently. Second, in some ways China Southern Airlines and Ryanair are complementary, eventually accomplishing a win-win situation. For China Southern Airlines, in spite of the fact that it plays an irreplaceable position in domestic aviation, the pattern of company management still has gaps compared to other European airlines.By joining Ryanair, China Southern Airlines not only brings fresh blood but also receives advanced management patterning. China Southern Airlines can absorb Ryanair’s rich experience regarding corporate governance and human resoure management to achieve rational resource allocation and high employee efficiency. In the meantime, China Southern Airlines’ business covers the whole country, and transport capacity cannot suit domestic market’s demands. Ryanair’s entry could lighten its burden in some air routes. More importantly, China Southern Airlines has lost in terms of intern ational air routes in recent years.Whilst Ryanair is the pioneer in the low-cost area in Europe. By means of Ryanair’s influence, China Southern Airlines could regulate tactics in Europe and make profits. Similarly, Ryanair can benefit from cooperating with China Southern Airlines. First and foremost, due to application of the joint venture, this it way complies with legal requirements, thereby diminishing entry resistance from the government to a great extent. Then Ryanair could develop smoothly regardless of culture or language differences under China Southern Airlines’ strong brand support and resouce sharing.At last, China Southern Airlines will offer the permission of using its bases and airports and pilots to Ryanair. This measure will reduce the anxiety caused by the shortage of resources. This is the only way that lowers Ryanair’s operation costs and carries on its low-fare business in China. 4. 2 Market Targeting Strategy When it comes to the target cli ents of low-fare carrier service, it mainly focuses on the special group that is characterized by high sensitivity to fare, high-price elasticity and price factor as their first consideration.Southwest Airlines was awared of the chief competitors of airlines are highways and railways. Generally, in short air routes, customers are sensitive to price. Because of short flight time, they do not require high-standard services. As a result, it is difficult to capture more customers through service differentiation. With regard to how to choose a target market accurately, there are three elements to be taken into consideration: First, price factor. Customers who prefer low-cost carriers are distributed into three classes.Initially, self-funded travellers. In general, tourists are customers who visit families and friends in their schedule in advance. They pay attention to low fares rather than immediacy to save travel expenditures. Next, the main character of this group is time flexibility. Finally, general business customers. Due to high air-ticket prices, sometimes they are restricted by unit to take planes. Once low fare are implemented, there is no significant distance between air tickets and train tickets, and they will welcome low-fare air tickets.Another thing is the length of flight time. In the present situation of the aviation market, the majority of flights take 3 hours. In order to decrease costs and raise aircraft utilization rates for low-fare carriers, 2 hours would be preferred. Humans usually select transportation like railways and highways due to cheaper prices, even if they spend a long time on the journey. Low-cost air fares not only save much time but also let more customers have access to comfortable trips and services (Olson and Peter, 2005) 4. 3 Pricing StrategyThere is no denying that low-cost strategy is the lifeblood for low-fare carriers’ existence. In the fierce competition of the aviation marketplace, flagship airlines launch their own ultra-low fare in the off-season. However, as flagship airlines are limited by high costs, offering low fares is only a temporary method to attract more customers. As a low-cost carrier, it is obvious that Ryanair’s fare should be much lower than the level of market. Only in this way can it obtain market share and optimize itself. So how to set its ticket prices? 4. 3. 1 The level of highest priceLow-cost carriers are known for low fares, therefore their highest prices cannot go beyond the full price of economy class of flagship airlines. If the price is quite low, it will affect the company’s profits. On the contrary, high price does not conform to the firm’s low-fare tenet. 4. 3. 2 The level of lowest price In China, owing to price control from the government, Ryanair could not implement its bottom-line price strategy. Hence, on the basis of regulation, Ryanair could properly provide two-thirds low fare tickets in every flight to draw customers.After the c ompany develops and reaches the maturity stage, it could gradually reduce low-fare tickets proportionally. 4. 3. 3 The level of average price On the one hand, the average price must be higher than the average cost to guarantee the firm’s normal operations and profits, ultimately, fulfilling Ryanair’s sustainable development and expansion. On the other hand, the low-cost carrier’s average price should be markedly lower than he average price of flagship airlines to win stable and long-term customers and capture a market share.Through moderate pricing, althought Ryanair’s air tickets are low, it could increase the passenger load factor to improve profitability in every flight. 4. 3. 4 Price choice on peak- season and off-season In peak-season, like holidays or festivals, Ryanair could consider raising the price a little higher than usual in some special and hot routes due to high demands of these days. Likewise, in the off-season, the best way to stimulate c ustomers’ consumption is to provide more low-fare tickets widely (Goddard, et al. ,2005) 4. 4 Marketing Strategy 4. 4. 1 Cooperation with mass commuicationAt the beginning of its China venture, Ryanair could take full advantage of its own aircraft to advertise for other companies through charging for advertisement fees. They could then spend this income on creating advertising compaigns for its low fare by means of newspapers, magazines, and television. Through a lot of press publicity, more and more people would be interested in this new thing. Moreover, people would be willing to get more information about low-cost carrier and they would like to enjoy so cheap price. At that moment, Ryanair could launch some promotion plans to stimulate customer interest. . 4. 2 Cooperation with local authorities Low fares are the lifeline of Ryanair, without this advantage, it is impossible to compete with other airines. So enhancing cooperation with local authorities is necessary. As a ma tter of fact, current price control policy makes it difficult to meet the competitive market’s needs. Indeed, Ryanair should set a good example to abide by regulations, and then lead by example against unfair competition. Once having set up a good relationship with local authorities, Ryanair can obtain more benefits like use of second-level airports at very reasonable prices. . 4. 3 Cooperation with China Southern Airlines For Ryanair, air route selection and pilot demands are two main operation issues. With the help of China Southern Airlines, Ryanair can apply for the hottest tourism routes to carry out point-to-point flights. When the market turns to off-season, Ryanair should timely change its route to some charter flights. For instance, these years personnel, economic and cultural exchanges across the Taiwan Straits have kept increasing. Therefore, setting up regular air service in this route would satisfy demand growth.In the meantime, Ryanair uses single type aircraft, so it can share pilots and aircraft maintenance expense with China Southern Airlines, and this leads to cost decline. Finally, Ryanair could truly implement its low fare and foster a good and healthy company image. What’s more, in order to avoid heavy traffic at hub airports, Ryanair could widely increase the second-level airport utilization rate of China Southern Airlines. This would result in punctual rates and leave a good impression on the customers. Besides, China Southern Airlines also provides Ryanair with its sselling platform: online booking or using agencies all over the country. . 5 Summary To sum up, before Ryanair decides to enter the Chinese market, it should anticipate some problems that may happen during the process. Then, based on an overall consideration of various factors, Ryanair should plan to invest in the form of a joint venture with China Southern Airlines. The next step wold be Ryanair’s market targeting emphasis on self-funded travellers, cus tomers who would like to visit families or friends and general business customers. At the same time, flight time should take two hours. Ryanair must keep an eye on this group’s customers’s demands.After that, it should look to the high level, the low level, average level and different period price principles to set up flexible and appropriate air-ticket prices. As to marketing, Ryan air should coordinate the relationship with mass commuication, local authorities and China Southern Airlines. Only combining the strategies listed above can Ryanair achieve global optimization and obtain long term development. 5. Conclusion The entry into the Chinese market is an essential step of Ryanair’s expansion plan outside Europe.In this way, it is inevitable that Ryanair will face a rare chance for development as well as tough challenges. Therefore, this paper firstly summarized Ryanair’s own competitive advantages and showed why Ryanair possessed the capability to ext end its low-cost business in China. On the basis of this, Ryanair must have a profound and thorough understanding of the new market, for instance: current policies and laws of aviation, Chinese customers’ consumption concepts and behaviours, and the differences between China and other European markets.Hence, the next section objectively amplified on the internal and external environments with SWOT and PESTEL analyses. On the whole, although in some aspects Ryanair is still subject to Chinese aviation regulations and laws, owing to the fact that aviation develops at high speed and given the domestic market’s huge demand, the Chinese aviation environment is suitable for low-cost airlines existence and advancement. In accordance with the environmental analyses, specific business strategies to enter China are proposed.At first, Ryanair should adopt a joint venture to cooperate with China Southern Airline. Only in this way can it reduce entry risks and restrictions from the government. Then, on that premise, Ryanair should set up a market target strategy, pricing strategy and marketing strategy in detail. Ultimately, Ryanair will fulfill its purpose of entering Chinese aviation smoothly and achieving success there. In this study, there still exists a problem to be considered

The Special Economic Zone Act of 1995: How Special Is It?

Cabatos 1 Lawdemhar T. Cabatos Ms. Louyzza Maria Victoria H. Vasquez English 10 21 March 2013 The Special Economic Zone Act of 1995: How Special Is It? Approved on February 24, 1995, the Special Economic Zone Act of 1995, the â€Å"act providing for the legal framework and mechanisms for the creation, operation, administration, and coordination of special economic zones in the Philippines, creating for this purpose, the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA), and for other purposes,† took effect on the very day President Fidel Valdez Ramos imprinted his signature on the bill (â€Å"Republic Act No. 7916).It is the government? s declared policy to materialize state policies and provisions of the 1987 Philippine Constitution. Section 20, Article II of the 1987 Constitution states, â€Å"The State recognizes the indispensable role of the private sector, encourages private enterprise, and provides incentives to needed investments† and Section 12 of Article XII declares that â€Å"The State shall promote the preferential use of Filipino labor, domestic materials and locally produced goods, and adopt measures that help make them competitive,† (â€Å"The 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines†). By virtue of Republic Act No. 916, the Philippine government hopes to fulfill the mandates of its constitution. Before we deal on how special Republic Act No. 7916 really is, what are special economic zones (SEZs)? Defined in Republic Act No. 7916, Special Economic Zones (SEZs) or ECOZONES are â€Å"selected areas with highly developed or which have the potential to be Cabatos 2 developed into agro-industrial, industrial, tourist/recreational, commercial, banking, investment and financial centers. An ECOZONE may contain any or all of the following: industrial estates (IEs), export processing zones (EPZs), free trade zones, and tourist/recreational centers. The law defines an industrial estate (IE) as â€Å"a tract of land subdivi ded and developed according to a comprehensive plan under a unified continuous management and with provisions for basic infrastructure and utilities, with or without pre-built standard factory buildings and community facilities for the use of the community of industries. † An export processing zone (EPZ) is â€Å"a specialized industrial estate located physically and/or administratively outside customs territory, predominantly oriented to export production. A free trade zone is â€Å"an isolated policed area adjacent to a port of entry (as a seaport) and/or airport where imported goods may be unloaded for immediate transshipment or stored, repacked, sorted, mixed, or otherwise manipulated without being subject to import duties† (â€Å"Republic Act No. 7916†). For years, industrialization has been centered in key cities – the National Capital Region for Luzon, Cebu for Visayas and Davao and Cagayan de Oro for Mindanao – leaving other regions trailin g behind the Philippine industrialization scheme.Thus, special economic zones, as stated in the objectives of the law, are created to promote rural industrialization by transforming selected areas in the country into highly developed industrial, commercial and financial centers thereby promoting flow of both foreign and local investors and generating employment opportunities for the area? s labor force and ultimately supporting the government? s effort to reduce unemployment (â€Å"Republic Act No. 7916†). Economic zones are also thought to promote balanced growth by providing jobs especially to rural areas.Employment generation by special economic zones, in theory, bridges the poverty gap among social classes and balances the regional income inequality among regions (Clarete and Veron). Cabatos 3 To promote the flow of local and foreign investors into special economic zones, the law provides special incentives to enterprises located in special economic zones, including exemp tions from taxes under the National Internal Revenue Code. The law states that no taxes, local or national, shall be imposed on business enterprises operating within the ECOZONES.Instead, five percent (5%) of the gross income within the ECOZONE shall be remitted to the national government. Incentives are also given to enterprises located in export processing zones (EPZs) and free trade zones. Special permits for the importation of capital equipment and raw materials that are not subject to duties, taxes and other import restrictions are given to these businesses (â€Å"Republic Act No. 7916†). Through giving prospective investors tax incentives, the government aims to reel in foreign investors and urge local investors to establish businesses in special economic zones.Prior to the establishment of special economic zones in the Philippines, other Asian countries have already created special economic zones with the goal of attracting foreign direct investment, easing extensive u nemployment, supporting a wider economic improvement policy, and as experimental laboratories and test economies for the application of new policies and approaches (Farole and Akinci). Studies have been conducted in recent years to look into the cost-to-benefit ratio and economic and social impacts of policies enacted for the creation of special economic zones in these countries.In China, for example, the Third Plenum of the 11th Congress of the Chinese Communist Party adopted the Open Door Policy in 1978 and in 1980, four municipalities in two provinces were designated as special economic zones, opening China to global contact and influences. Almost immediately, the four special economic zones accounted for 59. 8% of the total Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in China. Since then, the SEZs continued to result in high rates of Cabatos 4 economic growth in China (Yeung, Lee and Kee).Analysis on the economic statistics of Chinese municipalities from 1978 to 2007 showed how special econ omic zones benefit the economy of China. Special economic zones increase per capita municipal foreign direct investment by 58% in foreign-invested and export-oriented industrial enterprises. Further analysis on the statistics also showed that the special economic zones increased municipal foreign owned capital stock while keeping the domestic capital and investment at a competitive level.Special economic zones also bring more advanced technology and increased total factor productivity by 0. 6% (Wang). Despite the economic benefits special economic zones have brought to China, several cases have turned up showing unsuccessful implementation of special economic zones in several countries. Quite a number of zones have become „white elephants? , zones that resulted in an industry taking advantage of tax breaks and incentives but are unable to generate substantial employment or export returns (Farole and Akinci).Similar to the SEZs, Industrial Development Zones (IDZs) have been est ablished in South Africa. However, unlike the impressive performance of special economic zones in other countries which transformed their economies into tiger economies, IDZs in South Africa have failed to sufficiently attract foreign investments or compete internationally (Altbeker, McKeown and Bernstein). In India, the designation of special economic zones has generated and constantly increased employment in regions where special economic zones are established. Figures may seem large, but when employment enerated by special economic zones in India is analyzed on a national level, special economic zones in India accounted for only less than one percent (1%) of the total manufacturing employment since their establishment in 1966 (Aggarwal). Cabatos 5 In the Philippines, special economic zones have already been established even before the Special Economic Zone Act of 1995 became a law. It was in 1923 that the Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines first conceptualized the creation of export processing zones or special economic zones.By 1967 the first export processing zone, the Bataan Export Processing Zone (BEPZ) was established by virtue of Presidential Decree No. 66 of then-President Ferdinand Marcos. Since then, several others have been established including two of the country? s major special economic zones – the Clark Special Economic Zone and the Subic Bay Freeport Zone (Mallari and Padilla). The Special Economic Zone Act of 1995 was the government? s response to the call of rural industrialization of the 1993-1998 Medium Term Philippine Development Plan.In pursuit for the aim of dispersing the industrialization scheme outside the National Capital Region, the government developed special economic zones through its Philippines 2000 program (Mallari and Padilla). With the SEZs? goal of promoting the flow of investments and generation of employment, studies have been conducted focusing on three of the major special economic zones in the country, the Bataan Export Processing Zone (BEPZ), the Clark Special Economic Zone (CSEZ) and the Subic Bay Freeport Zone, to look into the benefits and drawbacks of creating these special economic zones to Philippine economy and society.Looking into the working conditions of the Bataan Export Processing Zone, survey results have shown that majority of the labor force was composed of female workers, accounting for seventy-four percent (74%) of the total workforce, 67% of which are young or are 24 years old and below. Moreover, workers have been found to be well-educated relative to the job they have been hired for in the Bataan Export Processing Zone. Sixty percent (60%) had finished high school education and 16% pursued a post-secondary education (Mallari and Padilla). Cabatos 6 Significant difference in the wage of male and female workers was lso observed. Female workers were given a lower basic wage relative to that of male workers. Furthermore, one-third of the employees were paid below the minimum wage for the Bataan region. Despite the uneven and insufficient wages of workers, laborers sill work six days per week. A quarter of the labor force worked for 60 hours and 5% worked for more than 70 hours per week, where 46% worked overtime. The study reported that the working hours of workers per week in the Bataan Export Processing Zone were greater than the standard working hours of 8 hours per day and 48 hours per week (Mallari and Padilla).In conclusion, the Bataan Export Processing Zone was observed to have failed in creating sufficient opportunities of employment for the labor force in Mariveles, Bataan because of the limited capacity of enterprises to absorb the ever-increasing supply of labor in the area. The BEPZ, despite being momentarily able to generate adequate employment opportunities, has not catalyzed the growth of other economic activities in the region (Mallari and Padilla). The Clark Special Economic Zone (CSEZ) and the Subic Bay Freeport Zone were creat ed by virtue of Republic Act No. 227, otherwise known as the Bases Conversion and Development Act of 1992. The act aimed to convert Clark and Subic U. S. military bases, together with their extensions and substations, into productive civilian and economic use of lands through the establishment of special economic zones (â€Å"Republic Act No. 7227). Similar to the performance of the Bataan Export Processing Zone, the Clark Special Economic Zone, despite having been able to continuously expand employment opportunities in Pampanga and increased the value of exports, has not proven to have generated substantial employment.The thousands of job opportunities provided for the labor supply in Pampanga is not significant in proportion with total employment of Pampanga (Mallari and Padilla). Cabatos 7 A study on the decisive factors in establishing enterprises in Subic concludes that investors opt to create businesses in Subic because of competitively-priced raw materials and the abundance of skilled and literate labor force (Go and Tatad). Add the incentives given to these enterprises and you get a multi-million dollar business enterprise booming in profit while compromising the benefits and quality of their labor force.How special then is the Special Economic Zone Act of 1995 and its SEZs? We recall that the goal for the enactment of this law and the creation of special economic zones is to take the Philippine industrialization scheme outside of Metro Manila, promote rural industrialization and the spur of economic activity in less urbanized regions, generate employment and ease the regional income inequality and the poverty gap among social classes. However, there seems to be a mishap, not on the law but on the implementation of the law.In policy, special economic zones promote balanced growth by spreading the industrialization in rural regions and SEZs are indisputably effective in promoting foreign and local investments in areas where they are located. Although S EZs have been established outside the National Capital Region, it is evident that a large number of these SEZs, especially the largest and most dynamic ones have been established in areas proximate to NCR and still leaving behind Visayas and Mindanao in the economic progress of Luzon.There have been improvements in the national regional income inequality but are largely due to changes in inequality between top ranking regions in Luzon (Clarete and Veron). Just how special is it then? Cabatos 8 China and other Asian countries have done it. Why haven? t we? Is it because of the law? No. It is because of the poor system that we have, a system driven by money and stained by corruption. And unless we start the change to a cleaner, more efficient and a better system, „special? would only be in the name of Republic Act No. 7916, not on Philippine society. Cabatos 9 Works Cited Aggarwal, Aradhna. Impact of Special Economic Zones on Employment, Poverty and Human Development. † Wo rking Paper. Indian Council for Reserch on International Economic Relations. May 2007. Web. 15 March 2013 Alejandro, Ethel P. and Roselie B. Tubeo. Clark Special Economic Zone: An Assessment of Costs and Benefits. Quezon City: University of the Philippines Diliman – School of Economics, October 1998. Print. Altbeker, Antony, Katie McKeown and Ann Bernstein. â€Å"Special Economic Zones: Lessons for South Africa from international evidence and local. † Centre for Development and Enterprise Round Table.Johannesburg, South Africa: The Centre for Development and Enterprise, June 2012. Web. 15 March 2013 Anderson, Eric Moltzau. Economic Implications of Clark and Subic. Quezon City: University of the Philippines Diliman – School of Economics, September 1996. Print. Beltran, Barbara and Ma. Lumen B. Isleta. The Establishment of Industrial Estates in the Philippines: an Inquiry into the Impact of Bataan Export Processing Zone on the Philippine Economy. Quezon City: Univ ersity of the Philippines Diliman – School of Economics, 18 March 1981. Print. Clarete, Kenneth Jordan M. nd Alvin F. Veron. Economic Zones and the Regional Income Inequality in the Philippines. Quezon City: University of the Philippines Diliman School of Economics, April 2009. Print. Cabatos 10 Farole, Thomas and Gokhan Akinci. Special Economic Zones: Progress, Emerging Challenges and Future Directions. Washington DC: The World Bank. 2011. Web. 16 March 2013 Go, Marie Fleurdeliz Uy and Maria Raissa Cantero Tatad. A Case Study on Foreign Investment in Philippine Special Economic Zones: The Analysis of the Factors Significant to Foreign Firms Investing in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone.Quezon City: University of the Philippines Diliman – School of Economics, March 1995. Print. Inciong, Leslie M. and Ma. Joy Kathleen U. Rabago. An Evaluation of the Economic Performance of Two Hybrid Ecozones: Subic Bay Freeport and Calabarzon Growth Network. Quezon City: University of the P hilippines Diliman – School of Economics, 16 October 1998. Print. Mallari, Christine Mae G. and Mary Prudence H. Padilla. Employment Generation and Working Condition at Clark Special Economic Zone. Quezon City: University of the Philippines Diliman – School of Economics, 2000. Print. â€Å"Republic Act No. 7227. † 13 March 1992.Philippine Bases Conversion and Development Authority. 20 March 2013. Web. 20 March 2013 â€Å"Republic Act No. 7916. † 24 February 1995. Official Gazette. Web. 11 March 2013. â€Å"The 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines . † 11 February 1987. Official Gazette. Web. 11 March 2013 Cabatos 11 Wang, Jin. â€Å"The Economic Impact of Special Economic Zones: Evidence from Chinese Municipalities. † Job Market Paper. London School of Economics. November 2009. Web. 13 March 2013 Yeung, Yue-man, Joanna Lee and Gordon Kee. China's Special Economic Zones at 30. The Chinese University of Hong Kong. 2009. Web. 19 March 2013.