Different types of tourism destinations

Different types of tourism destinations Introduction This report is going to look at the key appeal factors of France, USA, Spain and China. It will identify different types of tourism destinations and look at arrivals statistics to these countries. According to UNWTO (2008) in the Worlds Top Tourism Destinations 2008 first four places by international tourism arrivals were occupied by France, Spain, USA and China. First of all this report will identify the meaning of travel destination and tourist destination. A travel destination is the end point of the journey (Marvell and Hayward 2005). People travel to a destination for a variety of reasons, including holidays, business and visiting friends and relatives. A tourist destination combines travel with facilities and attractions that appeal to tourists (Marvell and Hayward 2005). There are many different types of tourist destinations; however this report will discuss coastal, urban and rural tourism and give examples of places that appeal to the destination. Main part Coastal tourism Coastal destination usually associated with the image of seaside resort. Holloway (2006) pointed that it is the most popular appeal of a destination. The attractiveness of the seaside resort is the combination of sun, sea and sand. Page et al. (2001) stated that it remains one of the most significant types of holiday in the world. The Spanish Costas are found along the southern coastline, on the shore of the Mediterranean Sea. Spain has many resort areas: Costa Blanca, Costa Almeria and Costa del Sol. While some of the Costa names may not be familiar, the resort of Benidorm is well known. Benidorm is the most popular resort in the Costa Blanca. According to Dale et al. (2006) resort attracts approximately five million visitors each year. Tourists are attracted by its wide sandy beaches and warm climate with average summer temperature around 30oC. The beaches are gently sloping and the water is warm and clear, making the sea safe for adults and children. Behind the sandy beaches are many high-rise hotels with plenty of nightclubs, bars, restaurants and casinos. There are places in France which are as popular as Spanish Costas. One of the famous seaside areas in France is the place called Cote dAzur which is famous for its resort Nice. It is a capital of French Riviera situated on the Mediterranean coast. According to Williams and Le Nevez (2007) Nice is well-known holiday destination on the Cote dAzur. Williams and Le Nevez (2007) in addition pointed that resort attracts visitors to take a delight in its beautiful beaches and warm climate. Tourists enjoy dining at the restaurants located along the French seaside. Appetizing seafood and delicious wines can be enjoyed at many seaside restaurants in this Mediterranean city. Nice has something for everyone: a medieval old town and other grand architectural monuments; a wide selection of museums; lots of bars and restaurants of all standard and type; the fine Mediterranean climate; and of course easy access to beaches. Besides, America is very famous for its beaches too. According to Fry (2008) places like Florida or California, or even further to Mexico, the Bahamas and the Caribbean are popular tourists destinations. According to Fry (2008) Florida is well-known for its famous Florida Keys and the resort of Key Largo. The Keys are long, low islands at the south of Florida. This place has many beaches and blue waters that are popular with divers. The Keys are also famous for swim with dolphins. Urban tourism Urban tourism is another type of tourist destination. Holloway (2006) stated that towns and cities attract many tourists by growing interest in cultural activities for example visits to museums and art galleries, leisure activities like shopping, and entertainment to sports. There are many different towns in France, Spain, USA and China which are famous for its rich culture and heritage, delicious food and designer shops. Holloway (2006) says that Paris in France, Madrid and Barcelona in Spain are popular destinations where tourists arrive for city holidays. They combine all the factors for a good stay: high quality hotels and restaurants, fine museums, outstanding architecture, festivals and many beautiful eye-catching shops. According to UNWTO (2008) Spain ranked on the third place in terms of arrivals-57, 3% in 2008, with France continued to lead the ranking of the worlds major tourism destinations in terms of arrivals-79, 3% in 2008. The French capital Paris has a reputation as a very charming and romantic city with popular attractions, including the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre museum, Notre-Dame and Arc de Triomphe. According to Law (1996) there are approximately 800 festivals held annually in France. The theme varies, but amongst well-known is festival related to the cinema-Cannes. Law (1996) stated that attractiveness of the Paris is incomparable and millions of tourists come here to admire the elegant beauty of the city, enjoy its rich cuisine and certainly exclusive shopping. Law (1996) also says that Barcelona is a very amazing town too, known for its rich culture, architecture and unforgettable beauty. On city break in Barcelona tourists will enjoy museums, statues on the streets, delicious Spanish food and famous boutiques. According to Holloway (2006) cities like New York in USA and Shanghai in China are popular tourist destinations for shopping. By UNWTO (2008) the USA is ranked second in arrivals-58, 0% in 2008 and China held onto their 2007 position in terms of arrivals and ranking fourth-53, 0% in 2008. As an example, according to Zhang et al. (2005) China is the worlds factory where can be found just about anything. Chinas biggest city is Shanghai. Zhang et al. (2005) says that it has a status of cosmopolitan centre of design. Shanghai is a fantastic shopping destination. Shopping here is simple and suitable for all type of tourists. Shanghai has a range of shops from roadside and boutique shops to the busy shopping centres where different types of goods and clothes can be bought. And finally, New York undoubtedly has a lot to offer to its visitors. New York has many attractions, including the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, museums and Central Park. And also its well-known for shopping. The Fifth Avenue offers a range of fashionable shops. Broadway offers entertainment in the evening and the range of nightlife. Rural tourism And the final type of tourist destination is countryside. The combination of lakes and mountains attract different markets. Leisure visitors enjoy the scenery, while more active tourist enjoys climbing in summer, and do winter sports at other times. According to Andalucà ­a website (2009) Spanish countryside will give a chance to enjoy the peaceful and calming environment of old-fashioned villages. There is a large variety of accommodations like cottages, farmhouses and mansions. It will offer to visitors a variety of activities like, walking and trekking, horse riding, cycling and mountain bicycling, bird watching and camping. Andalucà ­a for example is the best place for camping, mountain bicycling and horse riding. It offers almost a year-round sunshine and wide natural environment. French Alps on the other side are very popular to active-minded tourists like skiers and snowboarders. According to Collins (2004) the Alps has more than 200 resorts and one of the famous is Chamonix. Chamonix is an alpine town which a best place for ski lovers. Collins (2004) says that sky-scraping mountains, majestic ice falls and glaciers will make everyones journey memorable.

African Caribbean Pentecostal Churches Theology Religion Essay

African Caribbean Pentecostal Churches Theology Religion Essay In this essay, I will establish why African-Caribbean Pentecostal Churches in the United Kingdom are experiencing phenomenal growth in contrast to the decline in the growth of traditional Churches, such as the Church of England and Roman Catholics. I will also enumerate on some Biblical principles that was used in relation to Church growth and other influence of past revivals which the African-Caribbean Pentecostal Churches exploited to arrive at this creditable accomplishment. Similarly, I will indicate some probable cause of the decline in growth of the traditional Churches and ideas borrowed from the Afro-Caribbean Churches that could create a positive change to the growth of the traditional Churches in the United Kingdom. AFRO-CARIBBEAN IDENTITY AND WORSHIP MODE. The Afro-Caribbean Pentecostal Churches are generally the offshoot of African Independent Churches, which are African expression of worldwide Pentecostalism by virtue of their characteristics and origins. According to Harvey Cox, despite the common theological origins, the unique innovative methods of worship differ from those Pentecostals that are influenced by Western Pentecostalism. With time scholars began to recognize their distinct Pentecostal character such as: unique prayer methods, preaching of the word, speaking in tongues, and the praise and worship methods including accentuated music and dancing during services  [1]  . According to Parsons, all Afro-Caribbean or Black-Led Pentecostal Churches do uphold evangelical and fundamentalist understanding of the Bible, of which the texts are considered inerrant and applied strictly to the individual and Church life. This requires a stringent ethical lifestyle that encompasses areas such as being stern against perceived social vices such as: smoking, specific dress code and other distinction between Saintly Holiness and Sinful Worldliness. The required lifestyle is being effectively achieved with week days of Church programs that occupy members leisure time. While the leadership of an Afro-Caribbean Church is potentially hierarchical and authoritarian the system allows for multiple leadership opportunities such as: Sunday school leader, Youth work, Choirs, elders, Women ministry deacons etc. On the contrary, the leadership opportunities given to qualified Afro-Caribbean members in Orthodox Churches are very much limited. This could influence the movement of Black members to Black led Pentecostal Churches.  [2]   The typical Afro-Caribbean Pentecostal Church structure agrees with the analysis of Mclntosh (a professor of pastoral ministry), who reiterated that for a Church to experience Biblical growth they must adhere to some principles indicated below: A commitment to the absolute authority of the Bible, holding on to salvation with a strong desire to abide by Gods great commission (missio dei ) with the monitored evidence of bearing fruit of new converts. Involvement with glorification of God through praise and worship modes, alongside creation of ministries and programs. Development of an effective method of welcoming and nurturing new converts to a maturity level which incorporates baptism and teaching. Recognize Divine empowerment and guidance through the Holy Spirit, which is acquired through prayers. Maintain effective leaders and cultural relevance to the community which they operate, with a structure that is void of barriers to the outside world and a focus on Church planting.  [3]   The foregoing principles are manifested by the Afro-Caribbean Churches which their leaders religiously apply, with a resultant phenomenal growth of members. The zeal exhibited in Church planting explains the wide spread success of Afro-Caribbean Churches all over the United Kingdom, which matches the geographical extension Church growth principle that was demonstrated by in the apostles in the Book of Acts 9:31 where Judea, Galilee and Samaria were reached from Jerusalem.  [4]   Nevertheless, there are viewpoints in opposition to emphasis on acclaimed numerical growths that are comparable with the Afro-Caribbean Churches. An example is that of Newbigin who is a proponent of the spread of the gospel with full consideration of the positive and negative aspects of Culture. He opined that there is no Biblical basis to dwell on successes from numbers related to Church Growth and goal setting. He said that it is a matter determined by the Holy Spirit. In lay terms it would seem that a Church with a lot of people may not really have a sizeable number of people who are genuinely born again, if the ethical dimensions of the gospel were neglected. In the same vein he objected to the reluctance of Orthodox Churches to change from their traditional worship and evangelical methods which remains obsolete to the demands of modern times. Another critique to Church Growth principles is Elmer Towns, who warned of the great danger in allowing the ascribed success of social science methodology to overshadow the associated theological Church Growth principles, with attendant risk of ignoring human and godly aspects. In response to their criticism, McGavran objected to their remnant theology argument which favours a small community of genuinely born again Christian to a largely populated Church of yet-to-be perfected Christians. He reiterated that it is a defeatist position which can only be held by a failing Pastor  [5]  . IMPACT OF HISTORICAL EVENTS ON AFRO-CARIBBEAN CHURCH GROWTH In consideration of the past decades, Parsons opined that a great influence on the Afro-Caribbean Church Growth is the rejection that antagonised the Afro-Caribbean immigrants and their children in the 1950s and 1960s. Which continued in 1970s and 1980s. The rejection from predominantly White Churches was also experienced by Afro-Caribbean Anglicans, Methodists, and Catholics in the 1960s. The coldness and hardening of race relations in Britain led to the Afro-Caribbeans search for of sense of identity, they therefore needed to restore the status which they were deprived. Additionally, this Afro-Caribbean Christians who were members of historic (Orthodox) Churches from their own country, prefer the spontaneous worship mode mostly used by the Pentecostals and Holiness Churches, in contrast to the comparatively low keyed worship at the Orthodox Churches. Another factor that accounted for steady growth of Afro-Caribbean Churches is their engagement in socio-political matters in Britain, which led to creation of organizations that tackled education and social issues. Examples of such organization are the Council of African and Afro-Caribbean Churches as well as the West Indian Evangelical Alliance. The Afro-Caribbean Churches from mid 1970s also joined and complemented the efforts of the ecumenical mainstream of British Christian community and Religious life in general. The advancement of the Growth of Afro-Caribbean Churches can also be traced to their media evangelism drive. This was achieved through religious broadcasting accorded to them through the Songs of Praise presented by Southwark Cathedral in 1987. It featured Black congregations and gospel choirs. Additionally in 1990, TV Channel 4 featured documentaries that cover Black led Churches.  [6]   EMULATING CHURCH GROWTH THEOLOGY The North American Society for Church Growth defined Church Growth as the discipline that researches the nature, expansion, planting, multiplication, function and health of Church as related to the Great Commission.  [7]  The Afro-Caribbean Churches are fully aligned with the three fundamental principles of Church Growth derived by Donald McGavran (1897-1990) the renowned father of Church Growth movement as itemised below: a) Numerical Growth as evidenced by countable converts to the Church is in fact the raison de etre of missions, which must remain an utmost priority, void of distraction from other Church programs. The Bible book of Acts confirms the Church Growth principle of numerical increment of the Church in Acts 2:47 by daily addition of converts by the Lord. The Afro-Caribbean Pentecostal Churches in a typical interactive Sunday service will formally welcome new comers into the Church and also initiate a follow up and visitation process. b) The concept of identifying and profiling an ideal target: implies and all out study of sociological and anthropological approaches that can be strategically directed to particular set of people with the aim of maximising their Chances of conversion to Christianity.  [8]   As earlier mentioned, the Afro-Caribbean Churches imbibe an evangelical culture of reaching out to communities in their immediate environments as well as those very far off with the strategies that bear Church planting in mind. In reaching out to certain cultures with predominantly different migrant groups at various settlements, they essentially use linguistic approaches whereby interpretation of the English language to the local language of certain category of a targeted audience in a community. c) People movement concept describes how the gospel gain access and thrive in denominations consisting of ethnic and social units. People movement is the end result of the determination of individuals from the same group, to become Christians without social dislocation, while maintaining interaction with unbelieving relatives. These unbelieving relatives and other sections of the group, eventually take a similar decision to become Christians after much interaction; hence they form Churches that have majority of the members wholly made up of the people of the same ethnic and social circle. Furthermore, exemplar lifestyle and welfare of the Church, known as Institutionalized philanthropy will then influence the attraction to the Church of the remnant of the people in the same aforementioned category. An example of the People movement concept which reflected growth principle from the Bible is the Lyddic Movements which described the conversion of the Lydda and Sharon communities. (Acts 9:35)  [9]  . MEMBERSHIP GROWTH DUE TO IMMIGRATION ASISTANCE. It has been identified that growth in membership of some Afro-Caribbean Churches at the United Kingdom are also greatly influenced by the various social and legal services associated with their corporate identity. New members are welcomed to utilize the vast knowledge and services of the Church in the areas of their immigration challenges.  [10]   THE INFLUENCE OF PAST REVIVALS PRINCIPLES ON THE AFRO-CARIBBEAN CHURCH GROWTH. The great historical Revivals such as the Welsh and Azusa Street Revivals that led to origin of Pentecostalism involved a common pre-condition of prayers and qualitative feeding on Gods word. The tradition of continuous prayers and ardent focus on Gods word were continually upheld as constant pattern of services of the Afro-Caribbean Churches. This consistency according to McGavran led to: Holy Living, operating with empowerment of the Holy Spirit and having a genuine drive for evangelism. The dynamics of Revivals within a Church actually lead to positive impact on Church Growth as the members of the Church channel their spiritual energy into evangelism.  [11]   Conclusion. When the Afro-Caribbean success in Church growth is considered in the light of McGavran principles and the critiques of some aspect of the Church Growth movement such as Newbigin and Elmer Towns, I concur with the McGavran arguments that having an increasing number of attendance in the Church is more beneficial to the Church members notwithstanding their status as mere Church goers or truly born again Christians. However, despite the likely presence of mixed multitude in the congregation of Afro-Caribbean Churches, I believe that as long as they are in an environment where the word of God is continually preached, the Holy Spirit will perfect their salvation with time. Consequently, the remnant theology and the excuse that highly populated Churches might possess very few perfected Christians, is not an excuse to be slack in the area of adopting and planning a modern day strategy geared towards soul-winning. BIBLOGRAPHY Bennett, C. Problems and Possibilities of Church Growth. Journal of Unifications Studies Vol. 8. Falola,T Agwuele,T.Africans and the Politics of Popular Culture. Suffolk: Boydell Brewer Limited; 2009. Koschorke, K Schjorring J.H. African Identities and World Christianity in the Twentieth Century. Wiesbaden, Germany: Otto Harrasowitz, Verla; 2005 Holy Bible NKJV. Nashville: Thomas Nelson; 1982. McGavran, D. A. Understanding Church Growth. Grand Rapids: Wm.B Eerdmans Publishing Co. 1990. Mclntosh, G.L. Biblical Church Growth: How You Can Work with God to Build a Faithful Church. Grand Rapids: Baker Books; 2003. Parsons, G. The Growth of Religious Diversity- Vol 1 Oxford: Alden Press; 2012 Payne,J.D. Kingdom Expressions: Trends influencing the Advancement of the gospels. Nashville: Thomas Nelson; 2012.

Hoosiers Essay -- essays research papers

Hoosiers   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As driving into Hickory, Indiana, a tiny town, I see that every house has a basketball hoop on the side of their barn. The little town consists of one main street. It has the local supermarket, barbershop, hardware store and some other small stores. While driving on the main street, I noticed that everyone notices a stranger coming into town. That is how small Hickory is. Driving into the high school parking lot I see that the girls dominate the young men by far. Looking around I also see that everyone is talking about the basketball game that night.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  When hearing that Norman Dale was going to coach a high school basketball team, I figured it was worth a shot to see how he would handle high school basketball rather than college. His experience in college was once hailed, but then dramatically failed. I was glad that I took the time to see how much talent coach Norman Dale could dish out of his players. I heard through some townspeople that the practices were unreal. Coach Dale was very intense and had the young men were worked very hard. Coach Dale believed that in every practice it should be helping you to get better for your next game and how you practice is how you play.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There were only nine players on the team and they did have talent. It was whether or not it all worked was up to coach Dale. From watching their first game to the game, there was a great journey that the Hickory Hoosiers had. So many things happened and many memories were made. It is a special journey that needs to be shared.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Hoosiers started out rough, but held their composure. They were losing and the townspeople didn’t like how coach Dale was coaching. They disagreed with his decisions that he made during the game and they didn’t like his attitude. Coach Dale believed that his style of coaching was appropriate and he wasn’t going to change. The townspeople decided to have a meeting to see whether or not they should keep coach Dale. The players were waiting for the answer of if Coach Dale was being fired. The players felt that Coach Dale shouldn’t be let go. As the meeting was going on a young man, Billy, from school who was in excellent basketball player but didn’t play on the team, due to his home life, came to talk. He said that he would come and p... ...o have a chance to win. The Hoosiers got lucky and made a terrific steal to get the ball back. A time out was called and Coach Dale told a play to run with 16 seconds to go. The players slumped in their chairs. Coach Dale didn’t know what was going on and asked them to tell him. The guys wanted Billy to take the last shot. Billy said he would make it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  With 16 seconds left Billy dribbled the ball up the court and took his time. Five seconds were left and Billy took three dribbles and pulled up for the shot, nothing but the bottom of the net. The entire place went crazy. The little town of Hickory all rushed the floor. The Hickory Hoosiers were a team of composure and a team that would do anything to win. To see a team from the first game and to the last, it was quite a journey. The love for the game was expressed through the coach to his players and from the players to the coach. The journey is now over but will never be forgotten. This journey shows that no matter how small you are, no matter where you come from, or the past doesn’t matter. What does matter is how much heart you put into something. What a great journey.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

Bermuda Triangle :: Devils Triangle Paranormal

Bermuda Triangle, region of the western Atlantic Ocean that has become associated in the popular imagination with mysterious maritime disasters. Also known as the Devil's Triangle, the triangle-shaped area covers about 1,140,000 sq km (about 440,000 sq mi) between the island of Bermuda, the coast of southern Florida, and Puerto Rico. The sinister reputation of the Bermuda Triangle may be traceable to reports made in the late 15th century by navigator Christopher Columbus concerning the Sargasso Sea, in which floating masses of gulfweed were regarded as uncanny and perilous by early sailors, others date the notoriety of the area to the mid-19th century, when a number of reports were made of unexplained disappearances and mysteriously abandoned ships. The earliest recorded disappearance of a United States vessel in the area occurred in March 1918, when the USS Cyclops vanished. The incident that consolidated the reputation of the Bermuda Triangle was the disappearance in December 1945 of Flight 19, a training squadron of five U.S. Navy torpedo bombers. The squadron left Fort Lauderdale, Florida, with 14 crewmen and disappeared after radioing a series of distress messages, a seaplane sent in search of the squadron also disappeared. Aircraft that have disappeared in the area since this incident include a DC-3 carrying 27 passengers in 1948 and a C-124 Globemaster with 53 passengers in 1951. Among the ships that have disappeared was the tanker ship Marine Sulphur Queen, which vanished with 39 men aboard in 1963. Books, articles, and television broadcasts investigating the Bermuda Triangle emphasize that, in the case of most of the disappearances, the weather was favorable, the disappearances occurred in daylight after a sudden break in radio contact, and the vessels vanished without a trace. However, skeptics point out that many supposed mysteries result from careless or biased consideration of data. For example, some losses attributed to the Bermuda Triangle actually occurred outside the area of the triangle in inclement weather conditions or in darkness, and some can be traced to known mechanical problems or inadequate equipment. In the case of Flight 19, for example, the squadron commander was relatively inexperienced, a compass was faulty, the squadron failed to follow instructions, and the aircraft were operating under conditions of deteriorating weather and visibility and with a low fuel supply. Bermuda Triangle :: Devil's Triangle Paranormal Bermuda Triangle, region of the western Atlantic Ocean that has become associated in the popular imagination with mysterious maritime disasters. Also known as the Devil's Triangle, the triangle-shaped area covers about 1,140,000 sq km (about 440,000 sq mi) between the island of Bermuda, the coast of southern Florida, and Puerto Rico. The sinister reputation of the Bermuda Triangle may be traceable to reports made in the late 15th century by navigator Christopher Columbus concerning the Sargasso Sea, in which floating masses of gulfweed were regarded as uncanny and perilous by early sailors, others date the notoriety of the area to the mid-19th century, when a number of reports were made of unexplained disappearances and mysteriously abandoned ships. The earliest recorded disappearance of a United States vessel in the area occurred in March 1918, when the USS Cyclops vanished. The incident that consolidated the reputation of the Bermuda Triangle was the disappearance in December 1945 of Flight 19, a training squadron of five U.S. Navy torpedo bombers. The squadron left Fort Lauderdale, Florida, with 14 crewmen and disappeared after radioing a series of distress messages, a seaplane sent in search of the squadron also disappeared. Aircraft that have disappeared in the area since this incident include a DC-3 carrying 27 passengers in 1948 and a C-124 Globemaster with 53 passengers in 1951. Among the ships that have disappeared was the tanker ship Marine Sulphur Queen, which vanished with 39 men aboard in 1963. Books, articles, and television broadcasts investigating the Bermuda Triangle emphasize that, in the case of most of the disappearances, the weather was favorable, the disappearances occurred in daylight after a sudden break in radio contact, and the vessels vanished without a trace. However, skeptics point out that many supposed mysteries result from careless or biased consideration of data. For example, some losses attributed to the Bermuda Triangle actually occurred outside the area of the triangle in inclement weather conditions or in darkness, and some can be traced to known mechanical problems or inadequate equipment. In the case of Flight 19, for example, the squadron commander was relatively inexperienced, a compass was faulty, the squadron failed to follow instructions, and the aircraft were operating under conditions of deteriorating weather and visibility and with a low fuel supply.

Book Review of Lytton Stracheys Elizabeth and Essx :: essays research papers

The tragic but yet romantic novel I read was called, Elizabeth and Essex. This novel is a biographical and historical book. The subject of the book is a â€Å"tragic history†. The author, Lytton Strachey, tells the reader a lot about these two â€Å"love birds† that were destined to be together. Whose name’s were Elizabeth and Essex. Lytton Strachey presents a very â€Å"well-rounded† picture of the book. I think it is very important for an author to present a good picture of the book because of one very IMPORTANT reason, for the reader to understand and to become more interested in the book, the author has to make the reader feel as if they were there discovering that piece of history that was created or a joke that was told. To me I think that the author’s purpose was several different things. Only because the book wasn’t only entertaining , but it was informing, and instructive. The author will do anything to make his/her book interesting and enjoyable to the public, so they try to squeeze in entertaining, informing, and instructive material into the book. The style of the book is what made it so special. It was VERY easy to understand, and at the same time it was exciting. Some readers may think a tragic, but yet romantic novel is hard to understand, but what they don’t know is that all books are easy to read. You are just stopping yourself too soon to learn it. This book had no problems with being beautifully written and understandable. Compared with the first book I read for the first nine weeks, I would say this book is 110 times better. (The book that I read the first nine weeks was called Abraham Lincoln as I knew him.) This book, Elizabeth and Essex, had everything that a book worm could ask for. Some interesting quotes and passages that I found were: on page 3 it said that the Earl of Essex, Elizabeth’s lover, was once her first cousin twice removed. Another one I read was on page 91. It was a quote that was quoted by Portia to Bassano, â€Å"but I fear you speak upon the rack, where men enforced do speak anything.

Sandwich Blitz, Inc Bio

Sandwich Blitz, Inc. Sandwich Blitz, Inc. is a small growing specialty sandwich shop chain in a large metropolitan area. The business is owned by Dalman Smith, who is the President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Lei Lee who is the Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer (CFO). The company currently operates eight free-standing sandwich and beverage shops located near three universities, one hospital, and four high-traffic office complexes in the metropolitan area. The firm serves mostly upscale breakfast and lunch customers and specializes in organically grown food ingredients and health-conscious beverages.Currently, the firm employs a staff accountant, eight unit managers and forty employees. The corporate headquarters occupies rented space in an office park which houses Dalman, Lei, and the corporate accountant, Jayin Chopra. Each operating sandwich shop is staffed with a manager, a team supervisor, and four customer associates. Revenues from 2011 operations were substan tial with a ROI (Return on Investment) of 30%. Beginnings Sandwich Blitz was the idea of Dalman Smith whose previous experience was in middle management for a wholesale food distribution company headquartered in a large European city.An ardent devotee of healthy food, Dalman received the inspiration for Sandwich Blitz while visiting the Mediterranean area on corporate business. Dalman noted the presence of healthy sandwich shops in that area of Europe and was surprised on his return home that no such models were in operation in his local area. After considering the idea for several weeks, Dalman approached his long-time friend Lei Lee, a CPA working within the insurance industry with his idea. Lei considered the idea a good one but was concerned with the overhead expenses involved in leasing and developing retail commercial space in the expensive urban area.One day, while driving to work, Dalman noticed a small, free-standing prefabricated building located on a piece of land adjacen t to a shopping center. Suddenly, he envisioned the Sandwich Blitz model- small space, great location, negotiated low costs on small parcels of land unsuitable for most commercial purposes and most of all, great healthy food! Dalman couldn’t wait to show Lei this model. Within three weeks, Sandwich Blitz, Inc. was born. The sufficient start-up capital was evenly split between Dalman and Lei. Dalman was able to btain a loan using his house for collateral and his personal credit line for most of his share. A gift from Dalman’s father completed his share of the funding. Lei was able to use her substantial personal savings to finance her share of the capital. The first lease of land was signed and a prefabricated unit was ordered on July 21, 2004. Both Dalman and Lei considered this date to be a good omen for the both of them Sandwich Blitz opened its doors for business on October 15, 2004. Dalman, Lei, and two college students were the first employees.Each signed the firs t currency note received during that first day of operation. It is still proudly displayed in the corporate office. Operations The Sandwich Blitz operational model reflects both Dalman and Lei’s management philosophy that allows each operating unit a great measure of autonomy. This allows each location manager to make the day-to-day decisions dealing with their unit budgets, employee matters, and customer service issues. Each location manager is carefully chosen and given a compensation package which includes incentives based on the performance of that location.Each location manager is presented with quarterly budgets and is accountable for meeting these guidelines. Each work team supervisor is responsible for ensuring good customer service by making sure that all customer associates adhere to the Sandwich Blitz Motto which is proudly displayed over each location’s counter: â€Å"Sandwich Blitz – Where our quality, freshness, and customers always come first. â €  Based on this motto, each customer associate is empowered to resolve any customer-related complaint.This allows the customer associate to refund purchases, replace food, and take other measures to satisfy the Sandwich Blitz customer. The original location also serves as a training center for the company and Dalman is a regular fixture at these training sessions. Food recipes and preparation techniques are of particular concern to Dalman since he feels that a consistent product is critical to the company’s competitiveness. Dalman considers a few ingredients in their products to be important enough to justify making them into private brands that are owned by Sandwich Blitz to protect them from potential competitors.Lately, Dalman has mostly been visiting the operating locations and dealing with problems and issues that each manager requests help with while Lei has concentrated on financial matters like budget preparation, leases, taxes, and overseeing the daily accounting process. Both Dalman and Lei are pleased with Sandwich Blitz’s past performance but feel that they are each unable to devote their time and energy to expand the business significantly. All of their time seems to be expended taking care of these problems and issues within the existing operation.AB140 Unit 3 Case Study: Sandwich Blitz, Inc. Narrator: Sandwich Blitz, Inc. is a small growing specialty sandwich shop chain. The business is owned by Dalman Smith, who serves as President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Lei Smallwood who serves as Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Sandwich Blitz currently operates eight free-standing sandwich and refreshment shops located near three universities, one hospital, and four high-traffic office complexes in the area.The firm caters to an upscale breakfast and lunch crowd and specializes in organically grown food ingredients and health-conscious beverages. Sandwich Blitz employs a staff accountant, eight location manag ers and forty employees. Each operating sandwich shop is staffed with a manager, a team supervisor, and four customer associates. Revenues from 2011 operations were substantial with 2011 Return on Investment of 30%. The corporate headquarters occupies rented space in an office park which houses Dalman, Lei and the corporate accountant, Jayin Chopra. Operational MeetingLei (speaking to Dalman and Jayin): Hi Dalman. Hi Jayin. Thanks for joining me today. We have some exciting things to discuss. The Sandwich Blitz operational model reflects both Dalman and my management philosophy allowing each operating unit a great measure of autonomy. This translates to allowing each location manager to make the day-to-day decisions dealing with their unit budgets, employee matters, and customer service issues. Each location manager is carefully chosen and given a compensation package which includes incentives based on location performance.These are based on location sales projections. Each location manager is presented with quarterly budgets and is accountable for meeting these guidelines. Dalman: Each team supervisor is responsible for ensuring good customer service by making sure that all customer associates adhere to the Sandwich Blitz Motto which is proudly displayed over each location’s counter: â€Å"Sandwich Blitz – Where our quality, freshness, and customers always come first. † Lei: Each customer associate is empowered to resolve any customer-related complaint.This allows the customer associate to refund purchases, replace food, and take other measures to satisfy the Sandwich Blitz customer. The original location also serves as a training unit for the company and Dalman is a regular fixture at these training sessions. Food recipes and preparation techniques are of particular concern to Dalman since he feels that consistency of product is critical to the company’s competitiveness. Dalman considers a few ingredients to be of sufficient impor tance to justify a private branding of these to protect these from potential competitors.Dalman: Lately, I have been visiting the operating locations and dealing with matters that each manager requests help with while Lei has concentrated on financial matters like budget preparation, leases, taxes, and overseeing the daily accounting process. We are both pleased with Sandwich Blitz’s past performance but feel that they are each unable to devote their time and energy to take the business to the next level. All of their time seems to be occupied with handling small problems within the existing operation.

Internal vs External Change Leaders Essay

Introduction Organisation development(OD) is a planned process of change in an organisation’s culture through the utilization of behavioral science technology, research and theory (Warner Burke, 1982). It also refers to a long range effort to improve an organisation’s problem solving capabilities and its ability to cope with changes in its external environment with the help of external or internal behavioral-scientist consultant or change agents (Wandell French, 1969). Organisation transformation(OT) is a term referring collectively to such activities as re-engineering, redesigning and redefining business systems. It is often used when there is existing issue faced by the organisation. Organisation development is the preferred choice that an organisation wants to be in and continually improve their products and service in an incremental manner. In order to achieve OD, organisation need internal or external change agents to aid them. However, after assessing the advantages and disadvantages of the change agents (Appendix 1 & 2), Internal change agent will be better for organisation to achieve OD as compared to external change agent. Internal and External Change Leadership External change agents are consultants who are temporary employed in the organization to remain engaged only for the duration of the change process. An internal change agent is a staff person who has expertise in the behavioural sciences to help in the OD. Various reviewers of change management argue that OD applied by managers, rather than OD professionals has grown rapidly. It has been suggested that the faster pace of change affection organisation today is highlighting the centrality of the manager in the managing change. Therefore, OD must become a general management skill. Many managerial staffs in an organisation are equipped with this relevant skill. Internal Change Leadership in the Action Research Model The Action Research model focuses on planned change as a cyclical process in which initially research about the organisation provides information to guide subsequent action. The model emphasises on data gathering and diagnosis pior to action planning and implementation. The result will be carefully evaluated after action has been taken. Data gathering and preliminary diagnosis: Although Internal change agents are often limited by perceptions and position in the organization, but they have the value of in-depth knowledge of the business, the organisation and the management. This in-depth knowledge makes them particularly valuable on sensitive implementation of strategic change projects or culture transformation initiatives, managing processes or projects, and integrating or leveraging initiatives across the organisation. It can also help to reduce the time spent on data gathering as internal change agents will have intimate knowledge of the organisation and its dynamics, culture and informal practices. Being part of the organisation, internal change agents are able to interact more freely with the fellow employees. This enable the internal change agents to gather a more reliable information as compared to external change agents. Feedback to client: In this step, clients are given the information gathered by the change agent to help them determining the strengths and weakness of the organisation. Internal change agents are employees and they have a better understanding to the organisational structure. Thus, after gathering the relevant information, it will be easier for them to feedback to the client as the client need not afraid that information on the organisation’s weakness will be exposed. Internal change agents have the knowledge of the politics in the organisation, this will enable to effectively establish rapport and trust better than external change agent. Organisation may be also wary of the external change agents as the organisation may fear that confidential information will be exposed. Joint diagnosis of problem: At this point, fellow employees discuss the feedback and diagnosis with the internal change agents whether they want to work on the identified issues. Strong inter-relationship between internal change agents, the fellow employees and clients can help in the understanding of the result gathered in the earlier steps. This is important as the failure to establish a common frame of reference in this relationship will lead to faulty diagnosis or to a communication gap whereby client become unwillingly to believe the diagnosis. By using internal change agents, organisations are more likely to have the trust in the diagnosis as compare to external change agen ts because internal change agents have the more sense of ownership to the OD as compare to external change agents. Joint action planning: At this stage, further action for the OD had been decided. Internal change agents will have the advantage of getting hold of the first hand information. Any immediate follow up action can be access and rectify Action: This stage involves the actual change from one organisation state to another. It may include installing new methods and procedures, reorganising structures and work designs, and reinforcing new behaviour. This stage may also take a long period to reach the ideal outcome. Although external change agents are often viewed as professional and has more credibility, internal change agents have the advantage of the sense of ownership to the change. Internal change agents are viewed as part of the organisation and fellow employee will trust them and will result in a smoother transition period. Data gathering after action: This research action model is a cyclical process. Therefore, internal change agents can more effectively gather the output of the change result and feedback to the client. The result obtained will also most likely be more accurate and timely. This will enhance the effectiveness of the process of rectification and also to stop OD if the result obtained is deem as a failure. This will help the organisation to cut cost if the change is a failure. Circumstances whereby Internal change leadership were preferred Planned change can be contrasted across situations on 2 key dimensions, namely the magnitude of organisational change and the degree to which client system is organised. One of the planned change is magnitude of organisational change. Planned change can be either incremental or quantum. Under incremental change, OD practitioners help to solve specific problems in particulars organisational systems. Example of such problem are poor communication between inter-departments, low productivity and continuous improvement as a quality management process etc. These issues are mostly solved by internal change agents because of the nature of the problems. Most of these issues are smaller problems faced by the organisation. By hiring external change agent for these problems are too expensive and time consuming. Under the quantum change, OD practitioners help to create a vision of a desired future and energise movements in that direction. Examples of quantum change are changing an organization’s structure and culture from the traditional top-down, hierarchical structure to a large amount of self-directing teams. Another example might be Business Process Re-engineering, which tries to take apart the major parts and processes of the organization and then put them back together in a more optimal fashion. These changes are more complex. Therefore, more people are involved in the change. The advantage of using internal change agents in this scenario will be the fact internal change agents have more in-depth knowledge of the structure of the organisation. By hiring external change agent, employee may have ‘fear’ to the outcome of the change. This can affect the morale of the organisation and data obtained from employees of the organisation may be untrue. Although quantum is a complex change, a more professional change agent is needed and more professional change agents should be involved in the process. However, by having different internal change agents from department of the organisation to work together can also have the same result of hiring the external change agents as mentioned earlier that more employees are equipped with the knowledge of OD. By having internal change agents, not only they have the ownership of the change and also it is cheap for the organisation. This could be useful for some smaller organisation. The 2nd dimension of planned change is the degree of organisation of the company. The system of a company can vary between overorganised situations to under-organised manner. In an overorganised system, the structure and leadership style of the company is usually bureaucratic and rigid. Most organisation that are in such organised manner usually have conducted OD before. Thus, having internal change agents should be sufficient for the organisation. Conclusion Internal change agent are preferred to External change agent for various reasons as mentioned as above. Internal change agents are closer to the organisation and have the ownership to the change and organisation. They are most likely to understand what is require and have a clearer picture of the change. However, if the change is drastic, organisations should consider hire a small group of external change agent as consultant for the internal change agent as external change agents are more experienced in OD. Organisations should not depend only on external change agent for OD because it may expose the weakness of the organisation and endanger the competitive edge of the organisation.