Analysis Of James Mcpherson s The Opening Sentence

â€Å"Despite the ghastly events of September 11, 2001, another September day 139 years earlier remains the bloodiest single day in American History.† The opening sentence in James McPherson’s book is quite telling. McPherson goes on to describe that around 6,500 Union and Confederate soldiers combined met their deaths at the Battle of Antietam. McPherson’s use of death statistics bring the reader into his narrative, and help the reader to begin thinking about the impact the Civil War had on America. According to McPherson the Civil War was constantly changing hands, at some points the Confederates were ahead, and at other times it was the Union Army. McPherson’s thesis is that no one battle decided the war, but Antietam was the â€Å"event† of the war, and changed the course of the war. McPherson effectively confirms his thesis, by not just including the military characteristics, but also interweaving social and political characteristics that w ere important throughout the Civil War. McPherson effectively supports his thesis by providing military characteristics about the Battle of Antietam. To first outline this McPherson begins by outlining how important certain bordered were to Union armies at the beginning of the war in 1861. He supports this by noting that Union armies had secured pertinent border states: Missouri, Kentucky, and Maryland. The purpose of this was to push Confederate armies out of western Virginia, which then would later become a Union state. The detailsShow MoreRelatedSports17363 Words   |  70 PagesDates 3. Student profile 4. A suggested invitation for a sportscaster speaker Designed for teachers, this section is suggestive only, and is open to input—as is, in fact, this whole project. Your responses are encouraged, and I wish you well in your analysis of and/or career in sportscasting. Chapter 1 Introduction to Sports, Sportscasters, and Sportscasting Exercise 1.1: Your Definition/Description of Sportscasting We all have our own experiences with the subject of sportscasting. Tell about yoursRead MoreSports17369 Words   |  70 PagesDates 3. Student profile 4. A suggested invitation for a sportscaster speaker Designed for teachers, this section is suggestive only, and is open to input—as is, in fact, this whole project. Your responses are encouraged, and I wish you well in your analysis of and/or career in sportscasting. Chapter 1 Introduction to Sports, Sportscasters, and Sportscasting Exercise 1.1: Your Definition/Description of Sportscasting We all have our own experiences with the subject of sportscasting. Tell aboutRead MoreContemporary Issues in Management Accounting211377 Words   |  846 Pagesproviding a voice of reason amidst all the consultancy excitement of seemingly new ways of costing the business world. He has played a similar role in the area of accounting standard setting, both taking forward the British tradition of the economic analysis of financial accounting and, of possibly greater significance, providing some very original analyses of the possibilities for meaningful accounting standardization. With an agenda as rich as this, it is all the more praiseworthy that Michael maintainedRead MoreTop 1 Cause for Project Failure65023 Words   |  261 PagesFeatured discussion In your experience, what is the TOP #1 cause for Project failure? From experience, the following are the TOP10 causes of Project failure that Mathew can think of (they are not in any kind of order): #1. Lacking Sponsor s Involvement/Ownership #2. Halo Effect (Wrong Man for the Job) #3. Poor HR Management #4. Poor/Inadequate Project Communications #5. Ignoring Project Stakeholders #6. Absence of Risk Management #7. Scope Creep/Unrealistic Expectations ( scope creep:Read MoreProject Mgmt296381 Words   |  1186 PagesLeadership Chapter 2 Organization Strategy and Project Selection 1.4 Projects and programs (.2) 1.4.1 Managing the portfolio 1.4.3 Strategy and projects 2.3 Stakeholders and review boards 12.1 RFP’s and vendor selection (.3.4.5) 11.2.2.6 SWAT analysis 6.5.2.7 Schedule compression 9.4.2.5 Leadership skills G.1 Project leadership 10.1 Stakeholder management Chapter 11 Teams Chapter 3 Organization: Structure and Culture 2.4.1 Organization cultures [G.7] 2.4.2 Organization structure

Establishing Strategic CSR in SMEs

Question: Discuss about the Establishing Strategic CSR in SMEs. Answer: Introduction Real estate is a very responsible business of the Business society of the world. One of the companies of New South Wales is Sunselect Property Group. It is a company of real estate which has been working in building many properties for a long time in NSW in Sydney. They especially work on developing residential and commercial properties. The main thing that matters in this kind of business is the sustainability. The properties which they build should sustain in the society with the Corporate Social Responsibility. So, being a CSR consultant I have to try to work on those problems which are hindering the rise of this in the market. Nowadays the criterion for making property is to be overall sustainability. The proper usage of energy resources including water management and consumption, efficiency of energy and the management of waste in that society is very important. There should not be any sort of problems for the people who are going to spend their lives in that property. The work of a CSR consultant is very profound for any business. It has been defined in different aspects by many different journals and news reports (Rosen, 2012). Findings and discussion As a CSR consultant, it was found out that to regain the name and reputation in the company really had to some sustainable projects. There were many aspects where the company was lagging (Gelbmann, 2010). Hence they decided to make a new project called The Greenfield Development which is going to be sustainable from all the aspects including the energy efficiency to water consumptions to the management of waste in that area. This will provide sustainable living condition with affordable price. There are some problems in this property business. The comfort and longevity of the property are what matters the most. The insulation system of the property should be such that it should be able to optimize the percent of heat gain and heat loss from the houses or building built there. During the summer season, the heat from the houses should be designed in such a way that it should minimize the usage of air conditioners. On the other hand in the winter season, the heat loss system from the house should be done in such a way that it should minimize the usage of heaters. It has been seen in a research that there is almost 40% hike in electricity bills just because of the excess usage of the extra machine to cope with the weather conditions in extreme positions (Johnston and Master, 2004). Water consumption We all are normally advised not to waste water for unnecessary reasons. The water consumption in that property should be done in such a way that it should not affect the natural resource or the environment in any way. The name Greenfields itself recommend the protection of nature in that locality. There is going to be one drinking water management system which is going to take care of the total management of water consumption. The health of the people living cannot be compromised in any way. The reuse of water is highly accepted for the waste water management system of the locality(Geyer-Alle?ly, 1998). Waste Management is one of the important issues of our present day environment department of the government. In Sydney, people are very much concerned about the cleanliness. As it is said that "Charity begins at home", so, in this new project, SPG has decided to give more importance to the comfort and health care of the people who are going to be a part of such a locality or property. SPG has tried to follow the three R's rule- reduce, reuse and recycle. Earlier landfill with waste was the traditional way of getting rid of waste but nowadays that is not accepted to be good for the environment. So, people have given more stress to recycle. While wasting or throwing anything away we really do not go for the calculating whether that can be reused or not, so, for this reason, only waste management or treatment of waste before dumping it has become a big issue for the government. So, here in this project also the waste which will be produced will be treated well before being dumped (Juhas z, Magesan and Naidu, 2004). Recommendations The above-given problems are really worthy to be given importance. There are many types of insulations that can be used while building a property - reflective foils, bulk insulation, polyester, loose-fill insulation and much more. These types of insulation are going to be good for controlling the heat gain and heat loss percentage which will logically be affected in their electricity bills. This is because if some things can be solved without any usage of extra machines then it is good for the people and their economy. Similarly for the waste management and water consumption criterion also many steps have been taken to drinking water management, etc. Conclusion The responsibility of the SPG does not get completed by just making or building the property. After completion of the property, the responsibility actually increases. This is because they have the responsibility of the all the people who are going to live there, comes on them. They are responsible for the safety and comfort of the people. So, I hope that as a CSR, after this survey and research if SPG follows the policies that are mentioned above then they are going to get back the name and fame that they have lost in due time. They have been working in this industry for over 50 years. In these 50 years they have completed many projects for the people but due to some problems in the above-mentioned issues may be they have lost their place in the market. If they follow the instructions and suggestions that have been explained earlier everything will be fine. This is because it is actually the people on whose reviews the reputation of any company is dependent. If they lose their reputa tion then they shall even have the chances of losing future projects. References Gelbmann, U. (2010). Establishing strategic CSR in SMEs: an Austrian CSR quality seal to substantiate the strategic CSR performance.Sustainable Development, 18(2), pp.90-98. https://www.unwater.org/downloads/gwp_inbo%20handbook%20for%20iwrm%20in%20basins_eng.pdf Geyer-Alle?ly, E. (1998).Water consumption and sustainable water resources management. 1st ed. Paris: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. https://www.newsociety.com/Books/G/Green-Remodeling Johnston, D. and Master, K. (2004).Green remodeling. 1st ed. Gabriola, B.C.: New Society Publishers. Juhasz, A., Magesan, G. and Naidu, R. (2004).Waste management. 1st ed. Enfield: Science Publishers. https://www.google.co.in/url?sa=trct=jq=esrc=ssource=webcd=1cad=rjauact=8ved=0ahUKEwjwwIr7gZzTAhUBpY8KHRH7CRIQFggfMAAurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mdpi.com%2F2071-1050%2F4%2F9%2F2270%2Fpdfusg=AFQjCNESNpcPhmm2i4g-qQfmDcuKfK_gkgsig2=AiCntKtalSCQZg-Tso38bQ Rosen, M. (2012). Engineering Sustainability: A Technical Approach to Sustainability.Sustainability, 4(12), pp.2270-2292. https://www.wm.com/sustainability/pdfs/2014_Sustainability_Report.pdf

Tall or Short Powerful or Weak free essay sample

For most people, meeting my eyes requires tilting their neck several degrees beyond the norm; watching them awkwardly pan upward is a part of my everyday life. My height is something that is impossible not to notice. When I am walking on the street or hanging out with friends at a party, people might stare. People might wonder what it feels like, as if the weather were different up here. For some teenagers, being tall feels like being a random tree towering above the short grass; their height becomes a form of insecurity, even as it offers one-of-a-kind access to the best views at a crowded concert. Height can also be perceived as intimidating or frightening, and influence the way that others form opinions of me. A recent incident, though, has cemented my understanding that there is nothing I can do to control my height, so I might as well embrace it. We will write a custom essay sample on Tall or Short? Powerful or Weak? or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page It was a Saturday night, 10:16 pm to be exact. Suddenly, my annoying ringtone goes off; it was my mom. Already at that moment, I was confused as to why she was calling me; she was supposed to be attending an event, and at that time she would usually send a text message if she had something to say. As I answered my phone, I could barely hear my mother’s voice above the chatter and laughter of my close friends; I asked them to quiet down. Hearing the ripple of worry in my mother’s voice, who is usually as calm and serene as a mountain lake, I already suspected that something unforeseen was about to come my way. Fleeing the chaos of my friend’s bedroom, I headed down the staircase to speak to my mom, so distracted that my slippery socks almost dragged me down the bumpy incline. I settled in my friend’s kitchen, and took a seat at the table, telling my mom to go ahead. â€Å"So you know Jennie’s mother, Lucia, right?† â€Å"What about her?,â₠¬  I said, standing up and pacing around the kitchen island in nervous loops like an agitated tiger in a circular cage. â€Å"Lucia came up to me and told me how beautiful and tall you were.† I paused, confused, and suddenly my mounting adrenaline dropped; I had not been expecting a compliment from this acquaintance’s mother to be the reason behind my mother’s odd tone. Unfortunately, it did not end there. â€Å"And?† â€Å"And then she told me that you, Emma, needed to ‘cool down.’† My jaw dropped. I was out of breath, as if I had just ran 20 miles. My palms began to sweat and I felt like my face was going to explode. At first I had no idea where this was coming from, or where it might be headed. She continued to interrogate my mother about my height, of all things! I felt as if this lady had just invaded my sense of self worth, attacking my personal space. â€Å"She said that you were taking your power and putting it on other girls , demanding that they follow you.† At this point, the reason behind my mother’s uncomfortable tone became lucid, and my own outrage began to bubble up again. It was evident that this woman had made this assumption because of my height, influenced only by appearances, and not by experience or valued evidence. Her rambling implied that because I am a tall and a social girl, I have power and am negatively forcing it on others. Of course my height is something that ensures my confidence, but in no way does it give me ‘power’. I left my friend’s house that night, still pondering the distressing idea that someone could have formed such a mistaken image of me. After taking some time to reflect the following week, I have come to acknowledge that my height and the way other people feel about it, are simply beyond my control. It is sad that people make prejudiced assumptions about one another without interacting with them. This experience confirmed for me that prejudiced behavior exists, but in reflecting on the things Lucia said, I began to see how distant they are from myself, and from reality. This distance, however, makes me feel empowered. It helps me to realize what is controllable in my identity and what is not, and to see how much more important the parts are that I can control. Therefore, I refuse to let her comments interfere with my self-assurance. I now know that I need to focus on the controllable aspects of myself, such as my behavior and confidence. Those are things that are more important than the uncontrollable traits with which I was born. Because of this incident, I have begun to look beyond the surface of a persons uncont rollable traits, and more into the things that are controllable in a person. And if you were wondering, the weather is indeed nicer up here.

6 Tips to Get Your Resume Past the Applicant Tracking System Robots

6 Tips to Get Your Resume Past the Applicant Tracking System Robots In the past, HR departments spent hours of time reviewing resumes- sometimes as many as 100 for a single position. Of course, that meant they had very little time to scan through each resume and screen out the best few for further review. As technology developed, however, so did the prospects of digital screening- a process that flags resumes in advance based upon criteria an employer enters for each position. Today, the chances of a robot handling your resume are more possible than not. The Basic ConceptThe operative phrase for these digital robots is known as â€Å"applicant tracking system,† but most all of them are based upon the same general concept. The â€Å"robot† screens each resume for pre-determined keywords and phrases, experience, and relevancy to the posted position. The process goes much like this:The resume is submitted digitally, according to the instructions on the job posting.The robot begins by â€Å"parsing† the resume. This process involves cutting through the styling and formatting and stripping the resume down to recognizable â€Å"strings† of text/characters.The strings of text are then analyzed and broken into categories: education, skills, work experience, contact information.Words/text are then matched with the employers’ criteria.The resume is given a score based upon its relevancy/match to those criteria.The employer determines the top number of resumes or the score parameters he wants.The robot then serves up those resumes to the employer for personal review.Obviously, this process saves the hiring manager a lot of time. But applications that are not designed to â€Å"hack† the system well will be trashed and never seen by that manager.Here, then, are the best tips for avoiding that trash can.1. Watch Your FormattingIf you have added any â€Å"dramatic† flair to your resume, you might want to consider deleting it. While you may believe that makes your resume a bit boring and just li ke everyone else’s, remember that bots know nothing about color, borders, shadings, photos, artistic graphics, and such. In fact, they can become confused by these things, rendering them unable to detect the relevant text.The same goes for formats. It’s fun to use different types of fonts to emphasize different points, but tracking systems don’t think they are fun at all. In fact, they will become confused and unable to read them. So, stick to the common fonts: Times New Roman, Arial, Courier, etc.2. Choose Common SectionsCommon sections for resumes include Education, Work Experience, and Skills. If you add uncommon sections, your important information may be skipped over as not relevant. So, try to get the important information that really relates to the position underneath those common headings. You can talk about your outside interests if and when you get to that interview. It’s fine to â€Å"bold† your headings and to bullet the points under th em, but again, be basic and simple.3. Now, About Those KeywordsEvery career niche has some language specifics: unique terminology, words and phrases that are used when describing skills and task responsibilities, licenses and certifications, etc. Robots will be programmed to look for these. Choosing words and phrases involves some basic review of the job description posting, and some other clever digging that your competition may not think to do.Read through the job description and highlight words and phrases that relate to skills, background, education, etc. Of course, you should include the job title description, but put it somewhere within your experience or education sections and at least in one other place in your resume- at least two places. If the job title is â€Å"IT Project Manager,† for example, find ways to incorporate that title into your resume.  A lot of scanners have gotten pretty sophisticated. They look not only for the job title but also for other related semantic matches. If, for example, you are an accountant and have experience with SEC regulations and compliance, and the position description for which you are applying speaks to that, you will want to insert â€Å"SEC† somewhere. Try to come up with words that are related to your niche and spatter them around.  There are also tools you can use that will provide a type of mind map for keywords you type in. They will give you the most commonly used semantic synonyms for some of the keywords you find in the posting. You can then sprinkle these words throughout your resume. Sophisticated robots will pick them up and your score will rise naturally. Using the same keyword too many times will not improve your score at all.  Prioritize the keywords/phrases you intend to use. Primary keywords are those used in the job title and in the description. Try to use these twice. Secondary keywords/phrases are those related terms you have found. Use these one time each.  If you are un sure about keywords, see if you can find someone in HR in a related company and consult with them about keyword terms. You can also check out the LinkedIn profiles of people who already hold positions similar to the one for which you are applying. You may find in those profiles related keywords/terms you have not considered.  When you use an acronym, such as SEC, use it and also the complete form (Securities Exchange Commission). You do not know whether the system has been programmed to pick up on only one of these forms, so be prepared with both. The same goes for organizations and certifications/licenses you may hold.4. How to Avoid Redundancy of KeywordsRemember, you only want to use your primary keywords/terms twice and your secondary terms once. Once you resume is finished, check this. If you have too many, see how you can cut them out. Either find less common terms as replacements or eliminate them altogether.One thing you can do is eliminate your â€Å"Career Objectiveâ⠂¬  section. These have become a bit passà © anyway, and most recruiters and hiring managers don’t read them. They are really not interested in your career goals; they are more interested in what value you can bring to their organization.You can replace your career goal section with a summary of your qualifications, sometimes called an â€Å"Executive Summary.† But rather than write it in prose, use bulletpoints with primary and secondary keywords in them. Robots will definitely pick these up. When this comes at the top of your resume, the robot is quickly satisfied and any hiring manager reading your resume can find your qualifications easily.5. Watch Your SpellingThis is huge. If there are misspellings, no robot will read and â€Å"understand† those words. They will not form any type of match.Don’t count on spell checks to do this for you. If you type â€Å"SEC† as â€Å"SDC,† for example, spell check will not catch it and a robot will h ave no idea what you mean. The only way to guard against this is to check and re-check and have at least one other person do the same.The other problem is this: If you resume does make it through the digital screening and has minor spelling errors in non-critical words, the human reader will catch them and toss your paperwork anyway- they mean you are not a person with good attention to detail or one who is really serious about making a great impression.Additional TipsDon’t underestimate the power of an applicant tracking system. They are performing more and more functions for the recruiter and hiring manager. And as technology continues to develop, more screening functions will be available.Many recruiters and HR pros are using Reppify, a program that will check social media profiles/pages and perform background checks. You might want to access this site and study up a bit on what the program will check. Just be certain that all of your social media channels, your website (i f you have one), your blog, or any other content you have published anywhere on the web jibes with what you have put on your resume.  Don’t use photos. They won’t be â€Å"read† by bots, and hiring managers now think of them as a bit narcissistic.  Don’t use lengthy prose paragraphs to describe your responsibilities and accomplishments- they are too hard to â€Å"screen.† Always use bullet points.  Remember, after your resume makes it through the ATS screening it will then be reviewed by an actual human. Make sure that you have covered all of the basics of the job description and have relevant experience that speaks to each one of them.  If you are going to list programming languages and other computer skills, do not place all of them in your bulleted executive summary. If there are specific skills in the job description, then list only those in the executive summary. And, a simple listing will not do. Hiring managers want to see your skill s in the context of your job experience. Get them into those sections, not as a separate section.  To keep your resume as short as possible, do not spend time describing experience that does not relate to the specifics of this position. Mention those irrelevant experiences only to fill in the time frame of your job history.By now, you have realized that generic resumes will no longer be effective. Every position and every organization is unique. If you do not tailor your resume with the relevancy and keywords (in the right places and an appropriate number of times) that are right for each position, you will not be getting calls for interviews. Follow these tips, and you will â€Å"outsmart† those bots every time.Veronica Wright is a co-founder of Resumes Centre, career coach, and professional writer. In a free time, she loves to travel and meet new people. Feel free to follow her on Twitter.

Collectivism in the Arab culture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Collectivism in the Arab culture - Essay Example Comparison of Arab and Japanese culture with American culture The Arab culture is predominantly controlled by Islamic influences, Muslims comprising more than 90 per cent of the Arab population. Businesses close at the time of prayers, and there is no room for non-Islamic principles of business like investment on interest. Women have not been allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia for a long time. Workplace is extremely sensitive to gender. American culture is democratic without the domination of one religion. Business norms are established according to market’s interests instead of religious teachings. Women are as involved in the work as are men, and there is liberty of expression. Japanese society is homogenous like the Arabic societies whereas American society is heterogeneous. Arabic society is divided between the rich and the poor. The middle class is non-existent in the Arabic culture whereas most of the population in both Japanese and American societies belongs to middle cla ss. In addition, business norms in Japan are similar to those in America. Hence, of the Arab and Japanese culture, the latter is closer to the culture of America.

Cigarette Taxes and Smoking Bans Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Cigarette Taxes and Smoking Bans - Essay Example Before the provision of this report, taxes fixed on cigarettes were intended just to raise the revenue on the sale of cigarettes. However, after the provision of the Surgeon General's report, the taxes fixed on cigarettes had an additional purpose of discouraging cigarette smoking (Meier & Licari, 1997). The idea of cigarette tax is obtained from "economic theory". An increase in cigarette tax is a direct cause of increase in the selling cost of per cigarette, and hence, as the law of supply and demand states, a comparatively less amount of cigarettes will be sold. (Meier & Licari, 1997). A long-stated supposition of the 'economic theory' declared above was that a rise in cigarette tax would reduce its sales and thus hurt the financial system. On the other hand, Jha, Beyer and Heller (1999) reports that the rise in cigarette tax in reality increased the cigarette tax revenue and hence doesn't harm the economy at all. Tax revenue is actually a source of government income. For this reason, an increase in cigarette taxes is an increase in government income. Cigarette taxes have been increased in thirty one states since 2000 (Capehart, 2004). Further research has shown that these thirty one states have also imposed bans against smoking (Smoke Free World, 2005). Many studies have clearly showed the decrease in the amount of cigarette consumed by the individuals (Brown, 1995; Meier & Licari, 1997; and Showalter, 1998). On the other hand Tax revenues have increased on every sale (Capehart, 2004). Most literature analysis has examined cigarette taxes and cigarette tax revenues without taking the states with smoking bans into consideration. If we consider both sides of the story, the finalized decision of our research both agrees and disagrees with that of the literature. We agree with Meier & Licari (1997) and Gallet (2004) that smoking has been reduced in those states where cigarette bans and higher cigarette taxes have been imposed and differ with Showalter (1998) that higher cigarette taxes reduces higher tax revenue. The limit to which the literature has bounded itself is still clearly observed if the relation between the effects of the bans on smoking and the tax revenue is analyzed. It clearly shows that both these are not related to each other particularly. The revenue generated by the tax imposed on cigarettes was compared and contrasted with the amount of taxes that were imposed on cigarettes. But the laws passed for smoking were never compared or contrasted with these factors. The feature of our research expands its influence by analyzing the affect of the taxes imposed by governments in different states. We developed a new way of thought. One may carry out the fact that states, which imposed smoking bans, obtain a decreased amount of sales and hence have a decreased amount of tax revenue. This fact clearly shows that economy is adversely affected in those states. We proved the theory of demand and supply in relationship to state smoking bans and cigarette tax revenues. We determined if the smoking bans affect cigarette tax

Tourism Economics Essay Example for Free

Tourism Economics Essay Overview According to Dr. Warren H. Lieberman (1993), yield management or revenue management is the practice of maximizing profits from the sale of perishable assets by controlling price and inventory and improving service.   Sheryl E. Kimes of Cornell University, in turn, defines yield management as the control of customer demand through the use of variable pricing and capacity management to enhance profitability.   Finally, Kevin Donaghy, et. al. put forward in 1995 that yield management   is a revenue maximization technique which aims to increase net yield through the predicted allocation of available capacity to predetermined market segments at optimum price. Yield management (YM) has become widely accepted and used by capacity-constrained hospitality and tourism organizations in order to achieve optimum resource utilization and ensure wealth maximization.   Ã‚  For the use of this paper, we shall focus on the hotel industry. Yield Management Hotels Yield management in hotels, as Lieberman (1993) concisely puts, is the use of   information, historical and current, in combination with policy supports, procedural supports, and statistical models, to enhance a hotels ability to carry out a number of common business practices and thereby increase both its revenues and its customer-service capabilities.[1] Hotel capacity is not part of the institution’s inventory, and thus continuous operation without occupancy translates to overhead and opportunity costs.   The yield management approach allows the management to avoid these costs by providing a rational and systematic framework for management decisions.   Huyton et al. (1997) argues that the hospitality and tourism industries of the 90s are best remembered for their adaptation and refinement of yield management systems. Preconditions of YM Kimes (1997) identifies five preconditions for the successful application of YM.   These are: Fixed capacity Hotels are capacity-constrained, i.e., their main products or goods cannot be classified in their inventory. These products or goods are perishable. Capacity can be changed by increasing the number of rooms, for instance, but this entails significant capital outlay, which is discussed next. High fixed costs Adding incremental capacity to a hotel is very costly and time-consuming.   These resource constraints (fund allocation process, planning and construction time, etc.) lead to the fact that capacity cannot be adjusted rapidly. Low variable costs The cost that hotels incur by booking a guest in a room that would otherwise be vacant is classified as a low variable cost. Time-varied demand Due to high fixed costs, hotels cannot match their capacity easily to correspond to peaks and troughs in demand.   Donaghy, et al. (1995), bolstering Kime’s explanation, argues that hotels can benefit during demand fluctuations or variations.   They can do this by controlling capacity when demand is high and relaxing that control when demand is low. Reservation systems are very beneficial in efficient demand management as products and goods are allocated prior to consumption. Similarity of Inventory Units As a general rule, YM systems operate in a situation where inventory units are similar.   Hotel rooms are basically similar. Ingredients of YM Differential pricing is one of the foremost ingredients of YM.   As a prerequisite, hotels must be able divide their customer base into distinct market segments, in order to apply the principles of differential pricing. A manager will be more confident in his/her decisions regarding the acceptance or denial of reservations when he/she is familiar with their organization’s booking and demand patterns. A sound forecasting system for peaks and troughs in demand, based on good knowledge of sales and booking data is essential in the manager’s task of effectively aligning supply and demand.   YM, according to Kimes (1997), is essentially a form of price discrimination[2]. The YM systems being used by hotels and airlines rely on opening and closing rate bands. Logically, periods of low demand prompt the service operator to offer discount prices. Conversely, periods of high demand will normally see the closing off of these discounts.   Ã‚  Offering multiple rates, on a different note, may enable the manager to align price, product and buyer in a profitable manner achieve a greater net yield and therefore. Another essential YM ingredient is overbooking. Overbooking levels are systematically set using historical data, present developments, and forecasted activities that are directly or indirectly related to the business operation of the hotel. As a final ingredient in a good YM system, an effective management information system should be present to handle the substantial amount of information needed for the construction of effective management decisions. YM approaches in the hotel industry Donaghy et al. (1995) discussed three basic YM approaches to the hotel industry in consonance with Kimes.   These are: Rate Controls Under this approach, there are two methods being practiced.   The threshold curve approach or the control chart method deals with opening and closing rate classes. This method makes use of the booking curve as a base. The bid price system is the second method, and it is based upon algorithms.   Put simply, it is a shadow process of the capacity constraint. Availability controls The availability controls approach is based upon the guests’ minimum and maximum lengths of stay.   It isolates arrivals, which, in turn, are managed by manual and/or computerized systems. Allocation approaches Originally, this approach made use of the expected marginal seat revenue (EMSR).   He further explains that it allows the allocation of inventory to price in order to develop booking limits for different categories[3] (Donaghy et al., 1995).   Bedrooms can be booked at the maximum rate as long as they are available.   However, they but may be restricted at lower discounted prices.   Revenue maximization for a given demand and capacity constraint is the focus of this approach.   Donaghy et al., quoting Yeoman and Ingold (1997), proposed an equation for yield management: Yield management : a chaos paradigm x rationale / normative decision model = logical incrementalism. The equation simply means that in an economic and political environment influenced by chaos theory, YM contributes to better decision-making processes. Importance of YM in the Hotel Industry The analysis of actual costs the factor that ultimately influences profitability is a requirement of yield management in its capacity management.   Following a logical pattern, decisions are more likely to generate more efficient yield-focused capacity management methods when they take account of and are based on cost of sales. Of course, the importance of forecasted demand, booking demand patterns and overall historical data cannot be undermined.   This is the main reason why yield is a crucial factor in adding `value to managing capacity. The yield segmentation process (YSP) is one such method that accomplishes this.   By incorporating incurred costs, YSP ultimately adds value to managing capacity.   Cross (1997) identifies segmentation as one of the steps in yield management. The YSP, put simply, aims to determine how much a customer is willing to pay.   By determining accommodation value of targeted audiences, YSP becomes instrumental in identifying a hotel’s target consumers for a given time period. A hotel manager derives answers from the YSP provides using a comprehensive segmentation of market segments, existing and potential. Because of this, practitioners are provided with reliable information and are therefore better-equipped for decision-making, specifically in the following aspects: price structures, preferable target markets (within the context of yield value), potential profit/yield per market segment, actual costs of supporting each market segment and decision-making mechanisms for targeting new market segments. Hoteliers, not unlike most sectors of hospitality industry already analyze their market in their own ways, varying in degree or method of analysis. A manager’s capacity-management methods are not greatly modified when a yield-focused approach is incorporated.   Their analysis of decision factors are enhanced and therefore value is added through:   Delivery products or services that dynamically meets the needs and wants of clearly defined market segments   Shift in increased revenue results and focus from capacity utilization maximization (translating to overall revenue) for every segment to profit maximization within each segment. A comprehensive market segmentation performed by a team qualified hotel personnel is required to achieve these aims.   This team should utilize all resources and make use of all the expertise found in the organization. To illustrate, this requires participation from the hotel’s various departments: sales and marketing, rooms inventory, front desk, finance, accounting, conference and banqueting, and of course, the senior management. Based on the pooling of expertise from the said departments, the management is supplied with essential data on which sound decisions would be based. Yield management can be applied to a wide array of business processes. Successful integration and application will result in higher satisfaction levels for customers, and consequently greater revenues for the hotel. However, substandard integration and application will probably lead to lower customer satisfaction levels and loss of revenue and profit. It is not enough merely to say that a hotel practices yield management. The real question to be addressed is â€Å"how is yield management being practiced?† By addressing this, the hotel will be able to find out what it could do better.   Furthermore, the hotel, through experience and refinement, will be able to identify the additional benefits it could derive from yield management. A successful yield management program continuously evolves according to the needs of the organization using it. Various tools and performance measures have been designed to assist hotels to quantify the benefit streams arising from specific yield-management actions. It must be stressed that yield management is not a computer system.   Moreover, on a more simple definition, it is not a set of mathematical techniques.   Ã‚  To reiterate, yield management is a method or approach to increase revenues and improve service by being agile, dynamic, and responsive to market demand. It is a way of doing business.   It is no question that computer-based tools are very instrumental in achieving higher levels of success for a yield-management program. In this age, the gamut of yield management’s benefits cannot be achieved without the aid of technology-based tools.     These tools facilitate several intrinsic processes of hotel business: demand forecasting, reservation cancellation, and recording/analysis of no-show activity.   This gives the hotelier better foundation on which to base decisions such as: Determining when to restrict discounts Estimating the displaced revenue of transient demand Recommending and controll reservation availability based on particular lengths of stay and rate Applying YM methods appropriately, a hotel can achieve better effectiveness in its business operations.   The results include the following:   Effective pricing or hotel rate structure Prudent limitations on the number of reservations for each room during any time frame, founded on the expected incremental profitability of each reservation. High adaptability of reservation policies leading to well-informed decisions on inventory-control actions Effective and profitable negotiations for volume discounts High responsiveness in providing guests/customers with the product or service they want or may want, coupled with profitable complementation of other hotel services/facilities. A generally healthier revenue generation from current and potential businesses Appropriate empowerment of reservation agents, thus making them more effective business arms. Limitations of YM in the Hotel Industry After establishing the applicability and approaches of YM in the hotel industry, we now discuss the arguments for YM’s limitations as compared to the applicability to the industry that pioneered the use of YM – the airline industry. Multiple night stays An airline seat’s use is limited to a day and a night. Hotel rooms, on the other hand, are booked on an entirely different basis. Hotel guests may arrive on off-peak or low-rate days and stay multiple nights, possibly through some peak or high-rate days. This situation translates to a dilemma regarding the appropriate rate for each guest. Multiplier effect A hotel’s accommodation is but one of the revenue-generating functions of the establishments.   Restaurants, health and wellness facilities, banquets, conference halls, and leisure facilities contribute significantly to the hotel’s profitable operations.   A hotelier is thus prudent to mind all the establishment’s revenue-generating functions and departments and ensure that they become complementary to each other. Lack of a distinct rate structure Hotels seldom have rate restrictions that airlines impose on their passengers. To illustrate, travelers who have paid regular rates are hindered from some benefits appropriated to those passengers who have availed of leisure rates. Decentralization of information Kimes (1997) states that hotel bedrooms in group hotels are often booked at rates below expected â€Å"because the central reservation system is not linked in the unit hotels property management system†. Conclusion The effectiveness of a yield management system is based on the depth of the understanding of the necessary ingredients, preconditions, limitations and decision-making variables of an industry. Flexibility and system adherence are indispensible requirements of any proposed system.   With these conditions in mind, the yield management system is optimized managing capacity profitability. Profit enhancement is the bottom line for YM. In hotel industries, this translates directly to the simultaneous improvement of occupancy and rate. Focusing on either one as a separate goal only   optimizes capacity utilization.   Capacity utilization optimization does not necessarily optimize yield. Yield management systems, applied correctly, can manage capacity profitably in hotels and most tourism and hospitality industries, if not all. Capacity management and yield management must not be confused with each other.   Capacity management refers to the efficient use of available space with the fundamental aim of improving overall revenue.   YM, in turn, also strives for the efficient use of available capacity.   However, its focus is on profit optimization rather than revenue optimization. Yield management is not a panacea for a hotel’s ailing business operations.   It is not a way of luring customers to pay higher rates or for them to simply spend more while in the hotel.   It is a continuously evolving process that, if applied correctly, can increase a hotels revenues and at the same time, be responsive to its market’s demands, enabling it to deliver effectively the goods and services best suited to the wants and needs of its customers.   How well yield management works for a hotel depends on how well the program is designed and implemented. BIBLIOGRAPHY   Belobaba, Peter. â€Å"Application of a probabilistic decision model to airline seat inventory control†. In Operations Research, 37:2. 183-197. 1989 Cross, Robert. Revenue Management.   New York: Broadway Books. 1997 Donaghy, Kevin. and McMahon, Una. â€Å"Managing Yield: A Marketing Perspective†. 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