AP World History DBQ free essay sample

During colonial times, indentured servitude became increasingly popular, notably in the Americas. Underprivileged natives of places including India, China, and Japan sought a better life in the Americas and Africa; however, lacking a sufficient amount of money for basic commodities, such people were promised food and housing from their employers in exchange for their labor. During the 17th and 18th centuries, these people migrated to the Americas to work on plantations, cultivating cash crops like tobacco and bringing great wealth to plantation owners. Unlike slaves, indentured servants were only required to work for as long as their contracts stated. Caused by underprivileged individuals’ desires for better lives and plantations’ need for labor to meet the growing demand for resources, indentured servitude had a negative impact on the world by altering global demographics and forcing servants to face arduous living and working conditions. Indentured servitude, like slavery, was necessary in order to meet growing demands for labor, although indentured servants were not seized by violence and ultimately aimed to better their lives. We will write a custom essay sample on AP World History DBQ or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page In Document1, Herman Merivale makes indentured servitude seem almost ethical as compared to slavery. However, as British Undersecretary of the Colonies, Merivale is a government official who obviously benefits from the servants’ labor. As a man of high status, he profits from their work and feels as if servants are treated fine, at least far better than slaves. His position influences his opinion, making his statement completely biased. An additional diary or journal entry from an indentured servant himself would further support the thesis by providing personal reasons for why someone of a lower status would join the indentured servitude workforce, rather than a statement from an elite official. Furthermore, in Document 2, an editorial from a South African newspaper explains how the need for labor is increasing exponentially, especially in South Africa, which eventually welcomed a great influx of indentured servants from India. Although indentured servitude seemed like the ideal solution to the problems faced by both the underprivileged and the elite, it still had an overall negative effect on the world. Indentured servitude had an effect on global demographics. Documents 3, 4, 6, and 9 illustrate the influx of Indian, Chinese, and Japanese servantsinto areas in Africa, Latin America and the Polynesian islands. Although this allowed for cultural diversity in areas such as the Americas, these migrations caused somewhat of an imbalance in regional populations. Large countries such as India, China, and Japan witnessed population decreases while small islands such as Mauritius, where most of the population consisted of indentured servants and former slaves, might have been suffering from overpopulation. Overpopulation, which subsequently causes food shortages, was just one of the many negative working conditions that indentured servants faced. A graph or chart recording the migrations’ effects on native societies’ populations would globalize the view of its effects. Indentured servitude called for many immigrants to work under unfair policies and arduous conditions. Document 5 depicts the crowded plantations and dense fields in which indentured servants were required to work. The images demonstrate working conditions similar to those of slaves. Moreover, Document 7 demonstrates that servants faced tedious, laborious lifestyles, often working several hours a day, six days a week for little in return. Contradicting Document 7, Document 8 presents a hardworking female servant expressing her discontent with her lifestyle. Due to both her low status and her gender, she is subject to even greater discrimination within the plantation; thus she is treated very unfairly, working longer hours for even less pay than others. Access to a journal kept by a servant would provide for a more thorough view on the hardships of being indentured. Sadly, this was the case for such servants who devoted themselves to lives of labor ultimately to no avail. Indentured servitude had an overall negative impact on the world. Although employers benefited from their work, most others had suffered, and this had a definite impact on the lower classes. Despite the fact that indentured servitude was a more attractive alternative to slavery, it still had a somewhat equally negative global effect.

Shut Up Essay

Shut Up Essay Shut Up Essay Justin Bieber Professor Lioi PHI2600 Ethics. 29 August 2013 Major Influence In My Life My mother has been the major influence in my life. My mother has taught me to have a positive attitude, keep an outstanding behavior, and to stay disciplined. My mother took me to church every Sunday so I could learn about god so I could respect his laws without breaking them. She taught me to love and respect the almighty god. She made me go to church every Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday, and encouraged me to go to bible study and choir. My mother was a single mother that worked two full time jobs so she could only take me to church when her schedule was not full. While going to church 3 days a week, this laid faith in my heart for god and respect. I am thankful that my mom made me go to church. My mother influenced me to become what I am today and some of those characteristics are perseverance, and her sensibility. She taught me to keep loving through the good and the bad. She is also incredible at getting things done. It does not matter of the situation; my mother always comes thro ugh with what needs to be done. My mother would do anything for anybody if they needed the help. When someone asks for something, she is always the first one there before anyone else. I will never understand why my mother’s heart was so big, but I hope to grow up to be just like her. My mother is the best friend that I have ever had. She gives me the best advice to make my life better. My mother always tell me to stop getting frustrated over the smallest things, to be more giving and humble, and to strive for success in school, if there is anyone who knows my insecurities, flaws, and the things that make me mad, it is my mother. She knows when I am happy or sad. She knows exactly how to change my mood from bad to good and honestly, I do not know how she does it. To me, my mother is perfect just the way she is. The characteristic of my mother is none of what other mothers have. Sometimes I feel like my mother is a role model to me because of the things she has done. The persev erance that my mother told me; taught me to never give up on anything I want to go for. She told me if I never give up then I would become a successful person in life. My mother’s dream in life was to be successful and to never give up no matter how hard she tried. When my mother taught me these things, I said to myself that I would not give up in life even if something did not work for me. The last thing my mother had was a sense of responsibility. My mother would cook, clean, and drive us to school, which was being a house wife. Even though my mother was a single parent, she never failed once while taking care of us. My mother was the person who helped the community to make it a better place. My mother influenced me in becoming a responsible young man and I am truly happy I learned from her. My mom was not just a hard working young woman. She is a woman with respect and integrity. She raised and taught me to be just like her or better. The one thing

Dependant Pesonality Disorders Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Dependant Pesonality Disorders - Essay Example (DPD2006) DPD involves a pervasive and excessive need to be taken care of that leads to submissiveness, clinging, and fears of separation. Its primary diagnostic criteria include extreme difficulty making decisions without others' input, need for others to assume responsibility for most aspects of daily life, extreme difficulty disagreeing with others, inability to initiate projects due to lack of self-confidence, and going to excessive lengths to obtain the approval of others. An individual with DPD always seeks a relationship, in which he or she clings to this relationship in very dependent manner and goes to the utmost extent to keep both the ends meet. This disorder includes abnormally high levels of the neuroticism facets of anxiousness, self-consciousness, and vulnerability following dependent individuals desperately seeks another relationship as soon as one ends (i.e. dependent persons are high in extraversion). Excessively dependent behavior may be seen in persons who have developed debilitating mental and physical conditions, such as agoraphobia, schizophrenia, severe injuries, or dementia. However, a diagnosis of DPD requires the presence of the dependent traits since late childhood or adolescence. One can diagnose the presence of a personality disorder at any age during a person's lifetime, but if (for example) a DPD diagnosis is given to a person at the age of 75, this presumes that the dependent behavior was evident since the age of approximately 18 (i.e., predates the onset of a co morbid mental or physical disorder). Differences in personality due to differing cultural norms should not be confused with the presence of a personality disorder. Cultural groups differ greatly in the degree of importance attached to deferent behavior, politeness, and passivity. The diagnosis of DPD requires that the dependent behavior result in clinically significant functional impairment or distress. Etiology and Pathology Insecure interpersonal attachment is central to the etiology and pathology of DPD. Insecure attachment and helplessness may be generated through a parent-child relationship, perhaps by a clinging parent or a continued infantilization during a time in which individuation and separation normally occurs. However, the combination of an anxious and/or inhibited temperament with inconsistent or overprotective parenting may also generate or exacerbate dependent personality traits (Maddux, 2005, p. 219). Unable to generate feelings of security and confidence for themselves, dependent persons may rely on a parental figure or significant other for constant reassurance of their worth. Eventually, persons with DPD may come to believe that their self-worth is defined by their importance to another person. Five-Factor Model Reformulation DPD is characterized by maladaptively high levels of agreeableness and the neuroticism facets of anxiousness, self-consciousness, and vulnerability. Persons with DPD

Neural System Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Neural System Development - Essay Example (Gill, 2008). To understand neural development different experimental approaches are done in different model system. The distinction between inherited genetic code (genotype) and the corresponding organism (phenotype) is the cornerstone of biology. Genotype is the one that is inherited from the parents. The complete individual that is formed according to the instructions specified in the genotype is the phenotype. One of the model is the simple genetic encoding, direct genotype-phenotype mapping. Deciding on how to encode the network in the genotype that suitable for the application of the genetic operators is important to evolve neural networks. To be able for an individual at the level of the genotype assumes the form of a string of identical elements; phenotypical characteristics are coded in a uniform manner. The transformation of the genotype into the phenotypical network is called genotype-to-phenotype mapping. (Canglenosi, Nolfi, Parisi). One to one mapping has several drawbacks one of the m is scalability. The space to be searched evolutionary process increases exponentially with the size of the network (Kitano, 1990), because of the length of the genotype is proportional to the complexity of the corresponding phenotype. Another method using the genotype and the phenotype is the growing method. The genotype-to-phenotype process in nature is not only an abstract mapping of information from genotype to phenotype but it is also a process of physical growth (growth in size and in physical structure).( Canglenosi, Nolfi, Parisi). By executing the inherited growing instruction the phenotype is progressively built. Below is the illustration of the development of an evolved neural network. The upper part is the growing and branching process of the axons. The lower part of the illustration is the resulting network after removal of nonconnecting branches and the elimination of isolated neurons and groups of interconnected neurons. Source: http://www.tech.plym.ac.uk/soc/staff/angelo/papers/cangelosi-in-bentley.pdf Cellular Encodings - In natural organisms folding in of the ectodermic tissue which forms the neural crest is the beginning of the development of the nervous system. This gives rise to the mature nervous system in succession of three phases: the genesis and proliferation of different classes of neurons by cellular duplication and differentiation, the migration of neurons toward their final destination, and the growth of neuritis (axons,dendrites). Several experimental approaches in modelling neural development are increasing. The above models are study focused by the paper written by Cangolosi, Nolfi, Parisi. Above models are only some of the studies done by several researchers. Reference: Cangelosi, Nolfi, Parisi, Artificial Life Models of Neural Development http://www.tech.plym.ac.uk/soc/staff/angelo/papers/cangelosi-in-bentley.pdf Kitano H. (1990). Designing neural networks using genetic

The Shifting Marketing Communications Model Marketing Essay

The Shifting Marketing Communications Model Marketing Essay Integrated marketing communication is a conceptual tool which aim for a marketing campaign, by a carefully coordinated apply to various communication disciplines. The combination of theses disciplines provide a clear, consistent and compelling message for the organisation and its product. Integration has always been an important successful attempt for the early organisation to bring a consistent message of all executable promotional tools during mid 20th century. The change in marketing communication landscape may result IMC become more and more difficult to achieve, owing to the various change in consumers, marketing strategies and communication technology. In this digital and wireless age, consumers are better informed and communicated ; The marketers realized the dramatic shifting from mass marketing to segmented marketing. The new program are developed for a closer customer relationship; New innovative technology gives more media channels that companies interact with the target audience. Meanwhile, customers are better in control of messages that they choose to send or receive. Over the past decades, the development of information technology has facilitated how people communicate. And the internet has played an important role in social media communication. Based on research, theres an increasing number of internet users. About 569million online users of 9.1% of the world population (2012). The number has increased to 2.27 billion by 2012, which is 33% of the world population. The expenditures rates over performance is under expectation compare to the past. Marketers are mostly challenged by the new digital media. They have to design a better strategy to build a marketing communicators with stronger effectiveness and higher efficiency. More narrowcasting is necessary to achieve the interactive IMC, which allows them keep track on their current and future customers for use of long- term interactive relationships. The internet environment joint the connection between consumer and the media. For instance, specialty magazines, cable television channels, video ga mes, e-mail and social internet. A study stated theres an increasing time spent (63%) on mobile websites and mobile devices compare to 2011. In addition, 43 % of people get access to the social media by smartphones, 16% of people interact using tablet. Among all the promotional profile from traditional advertising, mass media, direct marketing, internet marketing, social media to mobile marketing. thereà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s an increasing marketing trend towards à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“more electronic and digitalà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ . Traditional media possibilities for billabong: Television, explores the brand image through vision, sound and motion. It has a wide coverage over mass-marketing. Television commercial is relatively low cost per exposure but high in absolute cost. It also limits audience selectivity. Billabong is a worldwide brand and it keep expanding the business into other country. Television commercial will be an efficient and effective strategy of market penetration where a company has low client base but strong financial base. Newspapers and magazines are practically flexible; timeliness; good local market coverage; brand credibility; costless. While it is limited by its short life; poor reproduction quality. Its still concern as an effective media for Billabong, as the company keep innovating new products to the market. Posted on a printed media is a cheaper way to deliver their product information to the customer regularly. Outdoor medium such as billboard and poster are advanced in its flexibility; repeatable exposure will help billabong to deliver a strong brand image; wide range of positional selectivity. But it also limited the creativity. Emergent media possibilities for billabong. emergent media is refers to Email, podcasts , digital audio/ media player, mobile communication device (e.g., smart phone) ,instant messaging, interactive web pages , and blogs. By research, the brand Billabong has its majority target audience aged from 12 to 35 years old. And it is a fact that this aging groups are spending more of their leisure time on internet surfing over interacting with traditional media. Hence theres more opportunities that the new media transmit the company image to its potential consumer. At the same time, company has more channels to collect their customer information or feedback instead of only relying on Public Relations Agency. A large company with several brands like Billabong could position itself after analyzing the data. And generate a more suitable promotional strategy to beat the competitors. Billabongs Facebook page was set up with assistance of maintaining a closer relationship with their royalty customer. Billabong get their free advertising spread through the social media at each time their post get linked. Youtube is a possible platform for Billabong to post their video or insert it as an ad to other video. The strate gy is costless and have a efficient spread. Statistics is calculated by Youtube for each individual video for further analysis. Billabongs website is also a profitable platform for advertising, it helps to engage with their email subscribers, so as to build a profitable relationship. Which has proven by a sales of $1.67 billion profit from its website in 2008-2009. Marketers need to ensure the advertising is highly relevant and targeted to their consumer. As people has different attitudes toward social ads. Recent surveyed found 33% people get annoyed when seeing ad on social media if there is no relevant to them, may concern as a waste of time. While 26% of people will have a positive attitude to see the ads posted by friends. Generally, a positive attitude(26%) will follow by an action of share at 15% and product purchasing at 14%. In consequence, advertising is generally aiming for inform, persuade and remind. Both traditional media and emergent media have possibilities for Billabongs advertising. The proper mix using of media would have a higher opportunities in success compare to single focused media. Markers still need to re-examine the media mix regularly as it appears to be shifting. For instance, mass-media costs are rising, audiences are shrinking due to the new electronic media appear. The best solution for them is to supplement the broadcasting traditional media with narrowcasting emergent media. In this case, Billabong will not only introduce their company world-wide, but also engage consumers more fully. Image corporation is important to a companys branding and identity. To achieve the brand uniqueness, company need to be carefully treat on its visual image, product consistency in market place and its identity in social media. Importance of visual image After the completely acquisition of Swedish brand Volvo by Chinese unknown brand Geely (2010). Volvo still keep the production line in Sweden and its original brand logo to maintain the image of Swedish made. They concern the brand image as core value of its company. Maintaining the image also hold the companys labor relations in this scenario. Coca- cola works hard to keep its corporate identity consistent. Its not only about keeping red logo and bottle form but also controlling its product quality at a consistent level. This works in many mind that the drink is from coca-cola not an individual brand product even it is labeling in a foreign language. In April 2009, Telstra launched a 3Rs social-media policy, in regard to Responsibility, Respect and Representation. Telstras employees are encouraged to use the social media as a part of work. They are also required to represent themselves as Telstra employees when introducing new service or products on their personal blog site. The strategy helps the company to achieve direct interaction with its current or future clients. Telstra is building up a brand image that they are well communicated to support the brand profile of leading global communication company.

Educational policies Essay

Thus, educational policies in the country instigate the development of learning programs developed with the ultimate purpose of improving English proficiency and academic performance among students. Perhaps the most significant policy is the No Child Left Behind Act implemented in 2001 that includes guidelines on language learning. This policy mandates that all school evaluate the English language competencies of students, and students who will not meet set standards will undergo fast track educational programs that will help them learn adequately and cope with their peers. (EPE Research Center, 2004) By and large, the entire point of the issue is that government policies concerning language education affects the success and achievement of ELLs. A government that supports bilingual education helps ELLs to obtain access to quality education and emerge successful from their undertakings. Changes in political and social trends influence the learning content of ESOL programs simply because the practical use of the English language by ELLs in the real world requires that they are also aware of current social and political issues. Their awareness of social and political trends allow them to not only use the English language but to use the language to relate with other people, especially since societal and political issues are two of the most common topics of conversation. At present time, for instance, most people use the Internet for socialization through social networking sites such as Facebook. To familiarize ELLs with social networking, learning content should include English terms used in cyberspace or in Facebook for that matter, so that they would be able to participate in the online community. In terms of student factors, the cultural backgrounds of ELLs may significantly influence their ability to adjust, learn, and participate in the ESOL program. There are various stages in cultural adjustment wherein one initially experiences feelings of enthusiasm and elation. When an individual begins to realize the great differences between the old and new culture and has trouble of coping or adjusting to unfamiliar cultures, he experiences hostility and loneliness. Through time, an individual learns to adjust until he finally adapts to and accepts the new culture. At times, people undergo re-entry when they climb down to their old ways or culture. (Hernandez-Gantes & Blank, 2008) For ELLs, it is extremely important to understand these four stages of cultural adjustment in the beginning of the ESOL program in order for them to become aware of what they will come to experience as time passes. In doing so, ELLs know the challenges and difficulties that lie ahead and thus, are prepared to handle and overcome them. Consequently, language learning becomes less stressful or complex. However, cultural adjustment, as well as student participation and learning involvement of ELLs, are influenced by their beliefs, ideologies, values, attitudes, etc. as dictated by their culture. For example, ELLs who belong to cultures that value family ties and tradition may experience difficulties in adjusting to a new culture and thus, affect how their participate in class and adapt to the learning process. This is especially the case for ELLs who go to other countries to learn the English language. The distance between them and their families may become a source of distraction due to loneliness and depression that ELLs might feel, disabling them to focus on their studies, learning, and adapting to a new culture. For ELLs, understanding the roles of culture in cultural adjustment, student participation, and learning, enables them to assess or evaluate what part of their culture interferes with their learning of English. In doing so, they will be able to realize the importance of setting aside cultural differences and prioritize their personal learning goals and objectives. The last sub-competency requires ELLs to determine strategies and methods to increase their multicultural sensitivity. Multicultural sensitivity refers to an individual’s responsiveness to cultural differences, allowing him to understand that change and diversity are unalterable. This also allows him to understand his own culture in relation to other cultures as a means to reconcile differences. (Dana, 2005) By and large, multicultural sensitivity influences the achievement of other competencies already mentioned. When an individual learns to understand, accept, and respect other cultures, it will allow him to appreciate his own culture, adapt to a new culture that speeds up cultural adjustment, and ultimately, embrace his learning tasks and responsibilities increasing his student participation, learning, and chances for success. Furthermore, it is also important that in discussing issues in multicultural sensitivity in an ESOL class, the topics of universal ethics and human rights should be discussed to enrich the learning process by means of making it globally relevant and practical. Conclusion Ultimately, the competency and sub-competencies previously discussed covers the social, cultural, and political aspects of ESOL due to their roles in making English language learning relevant, efficient, practical, and purposeful. These competency and sub-competencies do not dwell too much on the technical aspects of learning the English language but on its practical uses as a means to express and communicate with other people, and understand current global or local issues and situations that are affecting the state of the people. Although these competency and sub-competencies were intended for the accomplishment of ELLs, these are also important pieces of information that the teachers and educational institutions should be aware of. These competencies not only ensure that ELLs will be able to achieve learning goals and objectives of ESOL but also ascertain that the teaching process designed, including the learning content, instructional design, teaching strategies and approaches, and so on, are in line with the competencies in order to directly help students in accomplishing them. References Corson, D. (2001). Language Diversity and Education. Hoboken, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. CePH. (2006). Competencies and Learning Objectives. Retrieved from Council on Education for Public Health, 1 Aug 2009. http://www. ceph. org/files/public/Competencies. pdf Dana, R. H. (2005). Multicultural Assessment: Principles, Applications, and Examples. New York, NY: Routledge. http://old.collierschools.com/hr/certification/studyguides/ESOL%20K-12.pdf

Industry Analysis: Airline Companies Essay

The airlines industry contains diverse types of players that compete in distinctive niches each with different business models. Airline companies owned by the State characterized the airlines industry into the 1980s. Because of privatization, this model no longer exists in Europe or in the U.S., but it is still present in Asia and Africa. Standard airline companies offer scheduled flights with flight connections, at least two classes on board, and other services such as in-flight entertainment, frequent flyer program airport lounge, food, etc. The majority of their revenues are earned through ticket sales. Low-cost airline companies offer scheduled flights with only one class on board and without additional service on board like in-flight entertainment, frequent flyer programs, airport lounges, etc. Their business model is different from the standard company because they have a different form of income through the ticket price. Ryanair and EasyJet fall into this category. Regional airline companies offer scheduled flights, usually with small airplanes and for short distances; they previously worked on behalf of other big airline companies (standard, major, government-owned) some of which owned a regional company to provide short route flights. Examples are US Airways Express owned by US Airways and Air Dolomiti owned by Lufthansa. Cargo airline companies offer freight transport. Some cargo airlines are divisions or subsidiaries of larger passenger airlines like Air France Cargo or Alitalia Cargo, but there are also independent companies like DHL and FedEx. Industry competitors are also known to build alliances. Reasons for airline companies to build alliances: scale economies, access to markets or technology, market power, and lower operating costs. Many alliances start as a code-sharing network whose benefits are cost reductions from sharing of sales offices, investments and purchases in order to negotiate extra volume discounts, operational staff (g round handling personnel and check-in and boarding desks), and operation facilities (catering or computer systems). We can find drivers for different types of alliances and divide them into three categories: deregulation of the industry, changes in customer preferences, and changes in technology and infrastructure. Deregulation has opened up the market and led to intensifying competition and consequently a battle to secure market presence and decreased costs. Changes in customer preferences comprise such factors  as overall globalization of businesses, the diminishing role of airline nationality in customers’ choices and the preference by customers for high flight frequencies, and seamless connections to nearly any point in the globe. Technological and infrastructural changes include the introduction of medium size long-range aircrafts and the development of sales and distribution technology (i.e. the Internet and many airports in many areas). The strength of buying power that firms face from their customers, and thus the sharing of the value created by the transactions, depends on two fa ctors: buyer’s price sensitivity and their relative bargaining power. The airline industry shows two sources of potential price sensitivity. First, the importance of flight cost as a proportion of total cost of travel; this is exemplified in leisure travel where price typically represents twenty-five percent of total travel costs. The exact percentage varies depending on the length and type of travel, and increases in the non-liberalized markets. Secondly, the low or non-existent differentiation perceived by the customers increases the willingness of the buyer to switch airlines on the basis of price. Deregulation has increased price competition and has exposed buyers’ price sensitivity. A study by Gillen, Morrison and Stewart found substantial demand elasticity. It established that business travelers are usually less price-sensitive (less elastic) than leisure travelers, and that elasticity on short-haul routes are generally higher than on long-haul routes, a result explained by the presence of potential substitute for the first. The bargaining power of buyers relative to that of the seller is considerably by the size and concentration of buyers relative to producers as well as the buyers’ switching costs. The airline industry has achieved 598 billion of revenue in 2011, carrying 2.75 billion passengers. These figures clearly show that a large number of buyers have very small individual purchases compared to industry revenue, thus losing a single traveler has a low impact on the total revenue. Although we can say that this first factor is favorable for the airlines, in the airline industry switching costs are relatively low, because of the minimal search costs to find alternative suppliers, and learning costs, linked to the specific knowledge required to use a product, as well as the total absence of emotional cost, and psychological and social risk. Airline companies have successfully tried to increase them through frequent flyer programs, which  create advantages to the customer for their loyalty. Finally we can state that the relative bargaining power of buyers is medium, because of the opposite effects of the two described factors. However, when considering the high price sensitivity and the relative economic power of buyers their share of the created value is relatively high. Prices and profits within an industry depend on buyers’ propensity to substitute its products with existing alternatives based on their prices and performance. Air transportation does not have any perfect substitutes for intercontinental flights, however, short-haul routes, have potential substitutes: car, bus, and train. Cars are higher in convenience, allowing the traveler to reach the place nearest the final destination, but are limited by potential traffic and other complications. Moreover the trend of rising gas prices in recent decades has dramatically reduced the feasibility of driving. Busing is a similar substitute to driving, but is less convenient though frequently less expensive. We consider trains to currently act as the main substitute to air transportation. The development of high-speed rails, mainly in Europe and Asia, allows for a huge decrease in the transportation time by train. Considering that trains are often cheaper than flights and allow travelers to reach a destination nearest their final one, they represent a formidable substitute for air transportation. We observed the existence of high supplier power in the airlines industry. These suppliers predominantly consist of airplane providers, airports, labor unions, and fuel providers. These suppliers increase competition in the airline industry as well as decrease the profit potential for airlines by raising prices, decreasing product quality, and by making products scarce. Boeing (US) and Airbus (EU) largely dominate the global airline supply industry. The reduction in product availability resulting from long waitlists, including Boeing’s three years waiting period for the 777 jet, and design/production delays cause complications for airlines attempting to update or expan d their fleets. The new airplanes are designed to increase fuel-efficiency therefore, delays to upgrade may result in higher fuel costs and airlines that do not plan accordingly may also spend more on maintenance and repair costs. Airlines’ technological competitive advantage may largely depend upon being at the top of the waiting list. Boeing and Airbus have the advantage of scarce product availability and expensive prices which gives them high supplier power.  Airlines must pay airport-landing fees. Each airport has different rates for landing fees that are based a measurement of aircraft size that is also unique per airport. In 2007 IAD charged $2.13 per 1,000 pounds of maximum landing weight. This price is on the lower end of a spectrum that can peak around $4.59 charged by DFW the same year. High traffic airports will charge greater airport-landing fees knowing that airlines will pay them in order to have access to those customers. Although the airports’ supplier power is not as high as the airplane providers, they still have a high supplier power because they are able charge higher prices. In addition, the majority of airline industry labor is unionized, which contributes to high supplier power in the industry. This means that in the event of disagreements between airlines and their employees there is an organized system for the employees to unite under. Unions include, Association of Flight Attendants, the Air Line Pilots Association, National Association of Air Traffic Controllers, and the Transport Workers Union. Collective bargaining by these unions raises the cost of labor for airlines making it more difficult to compete on a low cost strategy. Rising fuel costs are also a constant struggle for airlines to maintain. Fuel costs are estimated to be approximately thirty percent of operating cost for each airline. Some companies combat this by hedging costs, but even with these measures airlines have very little control over fuel prices. The ability of fuel providers to decrease the profit potential for airlines and increase fuel costs gives them high supplier power. The capital investment required to start an airline industry alone is a huge barrier to entry. Some of the required equity includes many fixed assets that lead to low profit margins and perhaps the lowest return on equity among competing airlines. The industry is also characterized by a large contribution margin; variable costs are particularly low compared to fixed. Variable costs are: landing fees, paid by the carriers according to the number of passengers, and catering and selling fees, paid mainly to online sellers and travel agencies. Staff, fuel, airplane maintenance and leasing, and amortization and depreciation determine fixed costs. Given the high contribution margin, volatility in the volume of passengers seriously impact companies’ operating profit losing a customer means a large loss for the company. Government regulation limited competition with rules about prices and routes, but deregulation drove the  industry towards ticket price competition. Because of this the traditional business model became unsustainable for almost everyone already present in the business. The deregulation of the airline industry has also given rise to the competitive pricing environment, which enables airlines to freely set price s in order to compete. Airlines have created complex pricing models that essentially improve their service to customers. With the combination of affordable ticket prices and increased availability of travel options, the total customer base has increased significantly. Moreover this difficult situation is compounded because of the low switching cost and lack of brand loyalty. Depending on geographical location and competition, the airports and airplanes comprise such a significant portion of the cost that it is very challenging for any airline to make a profit. Large airlines are able to offset these costs with economies of scale. Airlines must invest in R&D, technology, and management in order to provide services to customers at some profit. Large airlines have also established a global presence that makes it extremely difficult for small, local startup airlines to gain some degree of advantage. A hub of concentrated alliances in vital geographical locations also make it difficult for new airlines to compete. Such alliances provide a network among allies that enable them to efficiently capitalize on their marketing and advertising strategies. Large marketing and advertising efforts are spent in the hope of capturing a large share of the market, and frequent flyer programs are created in an effort to secure this market share. Nevertheless, the regulatory hurdles within the airports are extremely challenging for new entrants. There are a number of federal requirements that airlines must obtain within an airport to include the use of airfields, terminal facilities, limitations on capacity, specifically take-offs and landings, to resolve the issue of air traffic congestion. In addition, the bargaining power of suppliers makes it difficult for new airlines to enter. Today, the two major airline suppliers, Airbus and Boeing, have already established exclusive agreements with firms within their value chain that make it very difficult for new entrants to enter the industry. The high-risk of the airline industry is one of the aspects that make it very unattractive. In the firm analysis we wish to focus and understand how a traditional flagship company and a new low cost carrier has faced this strategic challenge in an unattractive industry. Ryanair The Ryan family with little capital and a staff of twenty-five people founded Ryanair in 1985. In 1986 Ryanair obtained permission from the regulatory authorities to challenge the British Airways and Aer Lingus, flagship of Ireland, a high fare duopoly on the Dublin-London route. In 1991, after an uncertain start and loss accounts, Michael O’Leary got the task of restructuring the company by adopting the economic model â€Å"low fares / no frills†, which was used successfully by Southwest Airlines. In 1995, Ryanair overtook Aer Lingus and British Airways to become the largest passenger airline on the Dublin-London route (the biggest international scheduled route in Europe) proving that Ryanair’s low fares, high frequency formula continues to win acceptance in every market between Ireland and the UK. The European Union finally completed the â€Å"Open Skies† deregulation of the scheduled airline business thereby enabling airlines to compete freely throughou t Europe. In January 2000, Ryanair launches Europe’s largest booking website – www.ryanair.com and becomes the only source of low airfares in Europe. Ryanair spotted opportunities in the market arising from the inefficient traditional business model adopted by the flagship companies; issues such as inflexible labor roles, high staff numbers and salaries, and extravagant airport fees could work adequately only within the previous regulatory constraints. In this environment Ryanair has been able to build a cost competitive advantage that offers air transportation services that are more valuable to its customers than similar offers for a simple reason, price. The airline, in its effort to achieve becoming the lowest cost European airline, has implemented a double faced strategy: it has completely changed its core and complementary services mix and it strives to reduce costs in any possible way, thus dramatically reducing its the core service, air transportation, price, and created new sources of revenue. Ryanair has a different kind of revenue in respect to the other airline carriers. For standard airline companies revenue is made by ticket prices, but not for Ryanair. The goal of the firm is to grow the number of passengers through cost reduction, which allows the company to offer low-ticket prices. Ryanair targets price sensitive consumers, such as young people or occasional travelers that usually use substitute products like trains and cars. The company offers tickets for a price that does not allow  them to cover all operative costs, but their cost structure is built so they get other revenue from additional services. Ryanair charges their customers for the accessory services they offer; the only service that is included in the ticket price is the flight. There is no food service during the flight, there are no assigned seats on the plane, customers must pay for checked baggage, and they pay an extra fee for booking with a credit card. These service charges account for the thir ty percent of the company’s total revenue. On average they charge every passenger 10.8â‚ ¬ when the normal price of a one-way ticket is 50â‚ ¬. With this business model the company does not need to hire as many employees because some the services are provided by the customers, one example is the check in line that is mandatory if you do not want to pay 50â‚ ¬ for every boarding card. This has brought the company to an important cost advantage position with respect to competitors, and their cost structure allows them to win every price war battle. Under the guidance of O’Leary, Ryanair has always sought to reduce its costs, sometimes â€Å"maniacally†. The first element of this effort is their fleet. The company’s fleet history can be split into two epochs. In the beginning, Ryanair followed the behavior a lot of small low-cost companies and bought whatever best met its needs in terms of price, passenger volumes, and financing abilities, this resulted in a fleet with many different types of aircra fts with many different capacities and requirements. This attitude changed in 2002 when Ryanair ordered a hundred of Boeing 737-800, its first move in creating a standardized fleet. Currently the airline has a fleet of 305 Boeing 727-800s with a unique design characterized by having the maximum density possible and the lowest average age among competitors. All these features allow for lower maintenance costs, training costs, fuel consumptions, and cheaper parts and equipment supplies. Regarding aircraft usage, Ryanair has some particular features, mainly focused on reducing turnaround time and fuel consumption, such as choosing to land at secondary, less congested, airports, avoiding large hubs, relying on point to point routes thus maximizing aircraft flying time, and imposing strict fuel consumptions limits on its pilots to avoid repetitive refueling. Ryanair’s human resource policy clearly shows its effort to cut costs. Personnel, both cabin crew and pilots, has a dominant variable component on salary, this is based on hours flown, the same or increased duties relative to other airline  employees, training, uniform costs at the employees own expense, and no trade union representation. Despite the inevitable high turnover ratio and disgruntled employees, these policies allow the company to have a very flexible and relatively cheap labor force. Another important cost advantage is in flying to secondary airports; this policy allows the company to dramatically reduce its fees cost. Frequently Ryanair is the only one that carries in these airports, therefore their and all the linked business’ subsistence revolves around the company having a large bargaining power and some government subsides. Ryanair changed the environment of the industry. Before air transportation was perceived like an elite way of travelling, in fact high prices of the tickets pushed people to use substitutes for the short haul routes, such as car and train. Ryanair’s prices changed the people mind, allowing airplanes to be used more often for short vacation on weekends or even daily. Its main competitor is EasyJet, which uses a â€Å"lighter† low cost business model, focusing on different kind of customers such as business travelers, although with lower margins. The two main differences are its use of primary airports, giving more convenience to the customers, and its unionized labor force. Our analysis regarding to the potential recommendation for Ryanair has started from the consideration that its business model has been successful in facing the challenge and we have identified three possible directions. First, Ryanair could enter into the intercontinental market with new routes between Europe and the U.S. This market is characterized by high ticket prices (a minimum of 500â‚ ¬ round trip). Although the company could utilize some of its sources of cost advantage, such as intercontinental point-to-point routes, personnel policy, revenue from supplementary services, its cost advantage is not completely replicable in this context. Indeed it would have to buy new long distance carriers with more capacity. Sacrificing their fleet standardization and intercontinental flights requires high turnover time for refueling, and the possibilities of using secondary airports are limited by legal issues concerning the necessity of opening new borders. Another potential recommendation is to enter the Chinese domestic market which is a fast growing market (forecasting states that it will represent the 23% of the worldwide growth in passenger number in 2010-2020) and the second largest air travel market in the world behind USA. However, there are some  current constrains, mainly that airport systems are still in development, with a total number planned to increase from 175 to 270 in 2010-2020, and a relatively restricted middle class, only 10% of the country population although strongly growing. According to the present market environment we believe that this might be the best alternative in 5 to 10 years. We believe that currently the best recommendation is maintain its focus on Europe, increase its market share in countries mainly served by Easyjet, such as Turkey and East Europe. We recommend that Ryanair enter the intercontinental market, characterized by high-ticket prices, with new routes between Europe and the U.S. Ryanair could benefit by utilizing some of its sources of cost advantage. Ryanair could use secondary airports in the U.S. and through its intercontinental, point-to-point, routes focusing on the main tourist and business cities. Its personnel policy could also be applied in this market; by offering low core service prices they could increase their revenue with supplementary services. Ryanair could develop an alliance with Southwester Airlines using the same airport and split their transatlantic flights, thus increasing the passenger volume for both companies in their core business continental flights. Lufthansa Since its inception in 1953, the Lufthansa German Airline has been regarded as a premier airline company that has become the largest airliner in Europe. They have diversified both locally within Europe and globally. Their key strategic efforts have led them to be the founders of the world’s largest airline alliance, Star Alliance. They have diversified into various business segments to include â€Å"passenger airline groups, logistics, MRO, catering and IT services. With this combination of efficient business segments, the airline group has been able to generate more than 30.1 billion euros, the highest revenues compared to other European airlines. Lufthansa’s main strategy is to increase the equity/value of the company, maintain and also improve their exceptional reputation on customer satisfaction, be very robust during economic fluctuations, and maintain profitability. In an industry involving high operational costs; where competitors are increasing moving towards c ost advantage strategies Lufthansa aims to meet their strategic goals through a differentiation advantage that emphasizes customer service, alliances, and its reputation as a premium full-service airline. An important resource for Lufthansa is its extensive fleet. Lufthansa Passenger Airlines has a fleet that currently consists of more than four hundred aircrafts; they also enjoy a first-mover advantage by being the launch customers or early adopters of many different aircrafts. These include acting as a launch customer for Boeing 747-8I in 2006 and being the second to operate the Airbus A380 in 2010. By consistently participating in fleet renewal Lufthansa is able to regularly update to more cost-efficient and more environmentally friendly aircrafts. In July of 2011 a Lufthansa Airbus A321 was used in a six-month bio fuel trial expected to reduce CO2 emissions by up to 1,500 tons in the trial period. Lufthansa’s extensive and modern fleet enable the airline to have extensive global reach, cutting edge aircraft technology to increase efficiency, and environmentally conscious technology to define a new environmental industry standard. This attention to fleet quality ensures that customers have an excellent flying experience that is not hampered by old and inefficient planes. Passengers are also able to enjoy the distinctions accompanied with first, business, and economy class. First class seats convert into a bed and seats in all classes feature personal Audio-Video-On-Demand screens. In addition, attentive staff on all flights generously offers a wide range of complimentary food and beverage. Many terminals include lounges for First Class flyers; Frankfurt Airport even features a First Class Terminal that sports a full-service restaurant, bar, cigar lounge, relaxation rooms, offices, and even bath facilities. 55,236 employees as of 2012 are trained to deliver the highest quality customer service. Lufthansa operates as an upscale airline and is therefore able to charge premium pricing to absorb the costs of providing such exceptional customer service. Despite the higher ticket prices the services and ease of use for customers are incomparable to other airlines and often leads first time passengers to become loyal users. Lufthansa services eighteen domestic destinations and one hundred and ninety seven international ones. Its global reach is one of Lufthans a’s key resources; it allows the company to provide greater and improved service to customers. These resources are greatly supplemented by the abilities of the other activities of the Lufthansa Aviation Group and by their participation in the Star Alliance. The Lufthansa Aviation Group is a parent company made up of the passenger airline business, logistics, maintenance, repair, and  overhaul, catering, and IT services. The ability of these sister companies greatly supplement the resources of the passenger airline business. The Star Alliance is another key resource that now operates with twenty-eight partners and services four hundred and ten worldwide destinations. The alliance captures twenty-eight percent of the global market measured by revenue passenger kilometers. Because the frequent flyer program Miles & More is transferable among all members it aids to broaden the scope of Lufthansa’s reach. The alliance makes up the world’s largest airline alliance and is the world’s first multilateral airlines alliance. The abilities of Lufthansa’s othe r alliances would not be possible without OAG, who describe themselves as, â€Å"the most powerful schedule connections analysis tool for modeling flight connections between every airline flight, anywhere.† OAG’s services provide them with current, detailed, and accurate data that enables Lufthansa to drive efficiency and optimize its business processes. The changes Lufthansa makes from this data analysis increase customer satisfaction while reducing costs and increasing revenue. It helps monitor competitor activity, identifies codeshare opportunities, and manages partner schedule synchronization. Due to the timeliness of this data the firm has the capability to quickly react to market changes and counter-attack other competitors’ advantages. Excellent customer service is ensured through the critical connection of this data that enables Lufthansa to continuously improve the customer completion and baggage processing metrics. Lufthansa’s fleet renewal, customer service, terminals, and alliances are scarce resources that are difficult to imitate. The fleet, terminals, and alliance are difficult to imitate because of the sheer size and scale of these resources, whereas its service is costly and would be difficult to incorporate into any firm that does not have the cost structure and capital resources to support it. As the majority of airlines already compete by cost advantage, we feel that Lufthansa would be disadvantaged if they attempted to replicate that strategy. Therefore, we recommend that Lufthansa expand its premium customer service differentiation advantage by partnering with hotels that also provide excellent customer service in areas near its terminals. As Lufthansa’s fliers already value their premium customer service this partnership would ensure that passengers’ luxury experience would not end upon reaching their destination. The range of  hotels to partner with will correspond with flight class and frequent flyer status. First Class passengers will have the option to stay in top tier hotels and Economy Classes will have the option to book with upscale hotels that are more price sensitive. The Miles & More program will be expanded so that fliers earn credits by staying with these luxury partner hotels. The hope is that the fliers will have such a wonderful experience with the complementary services that they will express their delight to current hotel customers. As the hotel customers already value premium customer service it is our hope that in the future they will be inclined to book with Lufthansa as they offer such service. The success of this partnership has the potential to result in a revenue sharing agreement, in which Lufthansa will receive a percentage when passengers book with a partner hotel through Lufthansa. Their risk will also be reduced, as they are engaging in a partnership instead of attempting to enter this foreign industry alone. Although this partnership would be Lufthansa’s first non-aviation venture we believe that they will benefit by offering such a complementary service. The goal of this partnership is to connect customers that value upscale customer service with Lufthansa, who enjoys a reputation as an upscale full-service airline, to increase the ir market share; market share that their cost advantage competitors sorely need.