Website Proposal For Holiday Inn Hotel Tourism Essay

Website Proposal For Holiday Inn Hotel Tourism Essay The shrinking world is expanding the outreach of tourists. No more do hotels have a fully staffed reservation department with managers, assistant managers, supervisors and agents. The internet has conveniently replaced numerous phone calls, faxes and payment issues. Now potential guests just dial a toll-free number or book directly on the internet. According to Forrester Research 32% of hotels revenues come through online bookings. They include both direct reservations and those made through third party websites. The travel industry allocates 29% of its marketing budget to online marketing. (Cullen)This is so because the importance of integration of E-Commerce with business strategies is realized. This is also because the nature of the traveler and travelling is changing. Present day travelers are hyper-interactive, who are texting, tweeting, emailing, communicating with friends via face book and commenting on their current or previous travels. The advent of social media and mobile Web means that potential guests for the hospitality industry have continuous access to multi-channel interaction and sharing opinions. Thus hotel websites have to be designed in order to handle this hyper-interactive user. Thus hotel websites can no longer be static brochures with stale and boring context. (Max Starkov). Back ground The Holiday Inn hotel is a subsidiary of the IHG group of companies. It is a brand which remains consistent towards the board. Guests at the 1874 Holiday Inn hotels around the world know that they will be treated well and have certain level of expectations regarding the service. In fact the idea for the Holiday Inn hotels came into the mind of its founder, Kemmons Wilson, when he was disappointed with the consistency of road side motels during a trip to Washington DC. Consistency is a great advantage when it comes to providing services. The art of total quality management lies with the hospitality greats like Marriott, Hilton and of course Holiday Inn but when it comes to social media policies and the ever changing world of the internet consistency has a huge down side. Consistency is not the only key feature of the Holiday Inn hotels and resorts. Innovation goes side by side with consistency. Holiday Inn hotels were the first ones to introduce the Holidex reservation system giving its competitors a run for money. Holiday Inn hotels also initiated the idea for indoor pools, termed Holidromes, turning its hotels into resorts. This innovation and comfort, which is the landmark of the Holiday Inn hotels, should be made evident in the hotel website. With the advent of time, Holiday Inn is now an established name in midscale provision of hospitality. This midscale travel market consists of 43% of travelers worldwide. (Hospital and tourism industry report:Q2 2010) and is the sector of the tourism industry which faces the highest competition. With the tourism industry recovering from the economic depression of 2009, the number of tourists is increasing, but at the same time the new tourist is more cost conscious and e-savvy. With social medias burgeoning levels and websites like tripadvisor advising tourists on the wide range of living options available, the tourist might not fall for the reliability of brand names as the previous guests were. The increasing travel trend resulting from economic recovery also means that the internet is bombarded with tourism information. This is so because due to economic conditions many hotel websites were abandoned during the past two years. The waking up of hoteliers means that new websites are profoundly different as they now cater to a different inventory distribution system, social media and cross channel marketing. Almost all new websites cater to mobile web applications and so does the Holiday Inn website. With increased globalization of the economy and increased competition hotels cannot rely on their past successes. Holiday Inn and IHG are bound to know this well as the hotel chain lost considerable market share in the 1980s. it is only after its re launch in 2007 that the hotel has again captured some part of its market segment. At the time of the re launch, the new hotel website was also launched. Consumers that visit the hotel website find a user friendly environment. The site provides availability details, locations, room features and descriptions of the surrounding area. But provision of these details is not enough for the highly competitive hospitality industry. Holiday Inn hotels needs to develop a website which highlights its core competencies, tackles competition from market rivals and eliminates the bargaining power of buyers. During the pre recession times, visitors were more satisfied with the Holiday Inn website than the industry average. This data was deployed from studies based on 31 websites of leading hospitality brands. It checked data based on the five most crucial dimensions of a visitors online experience. They were navigation, content, interactivity, motivation and adoption. The customer satisfaction was generally higher ranking in the 92nd percentile. (Website Satisfaction Soars at InterContinental Hotels Group) In the year 2007, the content dimension was an area of strength for the website. The amount of details provided covered a vast range of aspects of visitor concern. Coupled with this was the fact that the data was very well structured and easy to navigate. This led to an adoption rating higher than the industry average, pointing to future site referrals and a strong likelihood to return. The website also fostered brand loyalty. According to Sasha Paine, an analyst at iperceptions, There is no clearer indicator of a sites effectiveness than its ability to build loyalty among its visitors.(Website Satisfaction Soars at InterContinental Hotels Group) The new virtual market place allows small companies to compete with industry giants. This means that Holiday Inn faces competition not just from hotel chains like Ramada and Hilton but also from small hotels. By looking at the hotel website we can easily find out that the website is high in content. The most critical section, which is the reservations section, is right in front for customer ease. The reservations section helps finds locations and provide all details regarding the Holiday Inn hotel in the area to be visited. On the downside it is known that only 32% of visitors visit a hotels website to make reservations. (Hospital and tourism industry report:Q2 2010) The rest visit either to find information or to compare rates. For visitors who are not lured by the brand into booking, the website should be appealing and catchy enough to ensure adoption or at least a revisit. But what the website lacks is targeting new customer strategies. It seems that unlike other websites which appeal to new guests by providing reasons for staying at their hotels, the Holiday Inn relies on its brand name and preconceived notions about its excellence to get potential guests to make reservations. What is not realized is that website design is an illustrative art and making correct use of this art might ensure that visitors will not have to change pages or scroll down for the required information. A look at the key competitor Ramadas website demonstrates this very well. Though the reservation section is still on the main page of the site, the opening window encompasses much more than only the reservation section. It eyes potential customers and not just visitors by ensuring that new deals are right under the visitors nose. The slideshow of the Holiday Inn website is not very creative and is short with only 4 slides. Though it instantly appeal to the comfort factor and attracts business travelers immediately. The family and friends factor and fun travelling and living is excluded from the slide show. In contrast other websites have wider navigation menus and longer, swifter slideshows. Websites are using rich media foreg the Pueblo Bonito website and the Atlantis hotel in Dubai. Websites foreg theurbansuites.com are also trying to split visitors by demographics and visitor types to provide custom services. Websites have an increasing number of testimonials, blog links and some even have the press singing their praises. (Mackenzie) This you attitude employed by the website and marketing strategy appeals to visitors. This paper looks at the need for developing a new website for the Holiday Inn hotels. It observes the changing trends in both website designs of the hospitality industry and nature of travelers. Data is collected from visitors to the website and their satisfaction is analyzed. Satisfaction is measured using variables which include content of the website, ease of navigation, interactivity, motivation and adoption. This is done by e-surveys and observing visitor behavior on the website. Conclusions are then drawn regarding visitor satisfaction. Since online reservations make up a chunk of all hotel reservations, it will be very important to pay due attention to either reconstructing or renovating the website if needed. The new website can be developed by outsourcing the development of the website to some leading website developers specially related to the hospitality industry. Budgetary allocations will have to be made. They include consultancy costs, advertisement of the new website, Search Engine optimization costs and website development and mantainence. Research will have to be made on the percentage of revenues generated by the website, the potential for development and the amount competitors allocate towards online marketing and website development. Budget allocation and trends in the hospitality website industry along with weaknesses in the current website will provide guidelines for the new website. Rationale The hotel marketing industry is a booming industry which caters exclusively to hospitality providers. Surveys are done and researches made to find out about visitor and guest behaviors. These researches aid hotel marketing advisors in development of new websites and to target customers. Special online surveys are designed to get visitor opinions and rate their satisfaction. Some of the works done in this regard are The Iperceptions satisfaction index It is the only metric device to measure exclusively customer satisfaction with an online channel. It provides advice to hoteliers on data mining and analyzes that data to provide results and draw conclusions. The hospitality and tourism industry report This caters to timely changes in the hospitality and tourism industry providing hoteliers with the current trends and predicting the future condition of the market. Best practices in Hotel website design by Hospitality e-business strategies. A report prepared by hospitality e-business industries which looks at the importance of websites for hotels and outlines ways to do so. Best Practices for Maximizing Your Hotels Online Revenue ROI by Kathreen Cullen. This white paper is a survey which as the name suggests helps hotels maximize their online revenue. Although the content of these reports and many others which try to integrate E-Commerce with hospitality are industry specific but they provide broad guidelines for the Holiday Inn hotels. This paper will focus on how the Holiday Inn hotels should conduct its research? what would be the methodology of research and what strategies would be involved. The limitations of the research and the potential for advanced features on the Holiday Inn website will also be discussed. As Del Ross, vice president of Americas Distribution marketing for IHG, claims We truly believe in the paramount value of knowing our customers and capturing their opinions in the context of their actual online experiences by implementing improvements research for the new website will be centered around customer opinion and satisfaction. Data collection and methodology. Advanced research methods will have to be employed to gather data from website visitors. According to Cooper and Schindler (Methods) qualitative studies may be combined with quantitative ones to increase the perceived quality of the research, especially when a quantitative study follows a qualitative one and provides validation for the qualitative findings. There is a strong suggestion within the research community that research, both quantitative and qualitative, is best thought of as complementary (Malhotra) and should therefore be mixed in research of many kinds. There is a strong suggestion within the research community that research, both quantitative and qualitative, is best thought of as complementary and should therefore be mixed in research of many kinds. Both qualitative and quantitative data sets will have to be used. Since customer satisfaction regarding the website has to be measures, offline data collection can prove to be useless and mundane. Online data collection approach can be utilized in two ways and can result in both objective and subjective responses. The difficult part about this research is that though secondary data relevant to the industry is abundant, but none of this will be specific to the Holiday Inn hotel. Thus researchers will have to gather primary data from the scratch, analyze it and form conclusions about the current state of the hotel website. Sampling methods The sampling method will mostly be a non probability method as the only visitors cannot be forced to take part in the research. Probability sampling will be reserved for a small focus group. Quantitative research will depend upon visitors and visitors will only participate in qualitative research by choice. Quota method of sampling will be the most convenient. This is so because only potential travelers should be included in the research. Only people with annual income above $50000 will be sampled. Population below this income group generally is observed not to travel frequently. Similarly other characteristics of current guests can be used to find the different quotas which should be used in sampling. This kind of sampling will make it impossible to assess the sampling error as the results will not be representative of the population as a whole. Focus groups of targeted market will need to be used. Since the current website of the hotel and the general notion about the hotel chain is that it caters to mostly business travelers, business travelers can be selected randomly. They can be chosen from firms where work entails frequent travelling. These business travelers will be then asked to navigate through the website and answer relevant questions about the website content, ease of navigation, interactivity and adoption. The results can be classified and then visitor perceptions about the different aspects of the website can be rated. They will provide a clear guideline about the positive and negative aspects of the website. This focus group will be coupled with quantitative and qualitative data. The focus group technique will allow better screening of the focus group respondents to ensure that they are the people whom the hotel is most interested in and thus provides an in-depth insight. Descriptive data from the survey and the questionnaire will reveal information that could not be easily explained by the statistics from quantitative data. This survey will be limited to a very small population of potential Holiday Inn customers. It can be both biased and non-representative of the actual feelings of the general public. But this data will target the largest niche of current customers. Gathering quantitative data Quantitative data can be gathered by observing visitor behavior on the website. It can be done on a large scale on the website. The behavior observed includes number of clicks, time on site, no of visitors who made a reservation, net promoter scores and the page from where visitors are exiting. Relationships between variables can be observed. This can be done from web analytics of the website. The sample size from this kind of web analytics has to be large and therefore will have to be done over a period of time. For much of its history, web analytics has been concerned with measuring behavioral phenomena. Unique visitor counts, pages viewed/visit, time on site, bounce rates, click through rates, ad impressions, and, more recently, rich internet application events have But studying clicks alone can never tell more than a part of the visitors story and will never bring to light true engagement data. Behavioral analytics is akin to paleontology, in the sense that it presents a fossilized record of a visitors site experience, at least as much as can be captured through page tags with optimal cookie deletion rates. However much scientists study the material implements of the past, however, they will never truly be able to gauge whether people were happy and led meaningful lives. This is the primary shortcoming of behavioral research; the tracks a visitor leaves are necessarily incomplete without knowing intent, attitude, and satisfaction. Further, engagement indices will always be hollow metrics unless they can be made to account for loyalty, trust, and advocacy (iperceptions) Gathering qualitative data. Qualitative research will take more time and preparation. Different sampling methods and full time researchers will have to be employed to monitor data. The basic format will be inviting all visitors to the website for a short survey or questionnaire. It will have to be ensured that the questionnaire is short and to the point yet it is fulfilling the purpose. This is necessary because abandonment of questionnaires will lead not only to loss of data but will also cause distaste for the website in visitors. Like all qualitative and naturalistic research methods, questions will have to be developed which are clear and unambiguous but open to change as the research develops. It is necessary because both qualitative and quantitative research goes hand in hand. It is qualitative research which will give a holistic view of the complexities which the website poses to its visitors. In the course of the survey visitors will be asked to provide scores for the website attributes related to their online experience. Each of these attributes will be related to specific dimensions of the website. It can include questions such as whether the visitor likes the site enough to recommend it to another friend or colleague. The scaling can be done on a 1 to 10 scale ranging from very bad to outstanding. The attribute sets that will be selected will be in accordance with both the E-commerce and hospitality industry standards. They will be content, navigation, motivation and interactivity in this case. It might also address the most crucial section of the website which is the reservations section. Thus the questions to be addressed are Navigation Website functionality must be intuitive and easy-to-use. If visitors are cannot find the information they desire, they may lose interest and move on to another hotels site. It is also important to be sure that hotels provide the capability to allow customers to book via the method of their choice such as mobile and smart phone technology. Content The website must provide all necessary information. This information should not only be limited to the hotel but also about the area and activities where the hotel is located. The content of the website should be accurate, up-to-date, detailed and relevant. Interactivity This will address questions about the visitors ease of communication with the website and therefore the hoteliers. It measures functionality, collaboration, informational exchange, and the intuitiveness of transactional tools. Motivation This measures whether the online content matches with the services the hotel provides. It questions whether the customers feel that the site was trustworthy and if their time on the site was well spent. All these factors eventually answer one question and that is of adoption. This is the main factor of concern for the Holiday Inn hotels that whether the visitor will re-visit the website or refer the website to somebody else. Potential for new features New vanity websites can be added which cater to different locales. It should be ensured that the feel of the different websites remains the same but better search engine optimization can be achieved. The Holiday Inn website can be optimized in two ways. It is the need of the time to modify the contents for Search Engine optimization. The second is the renovation and restructuring of the website. New website design Visual content It has been observed that the Holiday Inn website has a subtle color appeal. It stands true to catering to business travelers as they can visualize themselves in that situation. But simultaneously excludes a large travelling class. A glimpse at the Marriott hotel website speaks loads about integrating target markets at one place. A boost of color on some place in the Holiday Inn website will provide the required energy to indicate that the hotel welcomes both fun and families. Selling travel is all about selling a vision, a dream-an intangible product. Rich media and its many formats-from photos and visual galleries, to videos and virtual tours, e-postcards, web cams, interactive maps, etc.-can truly present your travel product and make it tangible and real. Seventy-two percent of US Internet users view video online on the same scale as network television and 89% of users surveyed said video influenced their booking decision. Usability surveys about hotel websites show that the majority of users think hotel websites are lacking or need more pictures and images The website can also add more visual content as the number of slides on the main page slide show is only 4 and only targets limited audience. The website can make use of good photography which provide more details about rooms and amenities. Demand generator content. The website should add more localized content to each of its franchise content sites. This will not only aid in showing up on search engines but a description of the area and the activities of the areas helps visitors thus creating better chances of adoption. More navigation options can be introduced on the main page as even though the current website has a high content percentage but the visitor has to scroll and search for it. More tools can easily be added in the navigation tool bar without making the site look congested. Scalability The website platform should have the ability to grow with the needs of the growing Hotel Inn. Holiday Inn is launching new hotels so it should be ensured that the new website keeps pace with both the rapidly changing face of the hotel as well as the fast changing tourism industry. Thus new development should be both easy and inexpensive. It should be easy to add new pages without the returning visitor to find a change which hinders his navigation. Conclusion The rapid pace of change of tourism industry and the changing face of the traveler requires the Holiday Inn hotel to maintain a website which is intuitive and adaptative. Regarding this concern quantitative data can be analyzed from the websites web analytics. An understanding of this quantitative data can be done by a focus group survey of the target market and online questionnaires. Visitors to the website can be surveyed about their views about the website. This will be random non-probability sampling. The questions have to be short and succinct as target specific attribute. This is to ensure that the visitor does not abandon the survey midway. After the online survey, a deep understanding can be gauged by using a focus group. This can be done either online or offline. The focus group can be small but chosen by quota or snowball sampling. The target audience should be used as the part of the focus group. The sample can be small but the questionnaire has to be extremely detailed. This will address all questions which arose from the satisfaction or non-satisfaction of the online survey participants. The final data set will lead to a certain conclusion about the visitor satisfaction index. This can be used to provide guidelines about visitor expectations from the website and how and how much the website should be modified. The modified website will lead to higher revenue and return on investment. Online questionnaire Based on todays visit, how would you rate your site experience over all? Very bad Bad Fair Good Outstanding Which of the following best describes the primary purpose of your visit? Make a reservation Compare rates Find more information View/cancel reservation Other please specify Were you able to complete the task you visited the website for? Yes No What do you value most about the website? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ What did you most dislike about the website? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Would you recommend the site to somebody? Yes No If you answered in negative to the previous question, why? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Would you recommend any changes to the website? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ How did you arrive at the website? Typed the URL in the browser Search engine Advertisement Link on a Blog Another website Link sent by somebody Other. Please specify _______________________________________________ The offline questionnaire presented to the focus group. This will be modified according to the response generated from the online website survey. It will be more detailed so as to sound explanations of the data derived can be provided. Offline questionnaire What is your age category? 15-20 years 20-35 years 35-60 years 60 or above What is your gender? Male Female Are you single or married? Single Married Your email address? _____________________________________________________________________ How often do you travel? More than four times a year. Twice or thrice a year. Once a year Less than once a year Is your travel related to work most of the time? Yes No Do you always make your bookings online? Yes No What features of the website did you use? _____________________________________________________________________ Did each page load quickly enough? Yes No On a scale of 1 to 5 where 1 is poor and 5 is excellent rate the following Reservation procedure Website speed Ease of navigation Visual appeal Information Your overall satisfaction Was the reservation process efficient? Yes No Were you tempted were you to abandon the reservation process midway? Yes No If yes then why? Choose one that is applicable Technical difficulties Rate issues Difficulty in finding Unfriendly website Other. Please specify ______________________________________________________________ Did you easily find what you were looking for? Yes No Did the website design confuse you? Yes No Was the language easy to understand? Yes No Was navigation comfortable? Yes No Was the information you were looking for easy to find Yes No Was the information useful? Yes No Was the information detailed? Yes No Was the information accurate? Yes No Was the information up-to-date? Yes No Did you like the appearance of the website? Yes No Do you think more visuals should be added to the website? Yes No If yes, do you think it will make the hotel more appealing? Yes No Will a more detailed, illustrative website, aid or hinder you in your work? Yes No Do you think the overall design of the website can be improved? Yes No If yes then how? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Can the website alone without the Holiday Inn brand name lead you to make a reservation? Yes No What did you like the most about the website? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ What did you dislike most about the website? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ What problems if any did you face when navigating the website? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Was the website user friendly? Yes No If no why not? Would you recommend the website to someone you know? Yes No If no, then why not? __________________________________________________________________ Would you navigate the site from your phone? Yes No If no then why not? _____________________________________________________________________ Do you think your time on the website was well spent? Yes No If no then why not? _____________________________________________________________________ What are your overall suggestions for the website? ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Field guidelines The research survey will look at the need for developing a new website for the Holiday Inn hotels. It observes the changing trends in both website designs of the hospitality industry and nature of travelers. Data is collected from visitors to the website and their satisfaction is analyzed. Satisfaction is measured using variables which include content of the website, ease of navigation, interactivity, motivation and adoption. This is done by e-surveys and observing visitor behavior on the website. Conclusions are then drawn regarding visitor satisfaction. Since online reservations make up a chunk of all hotel reservations, it will be very important to pay due attention to

Economics Essay

And economy is a system that deals with human activities related to the production, distribution, exchange and consumption of goods and services of a country or other area. Lionel Robbins defined economics as â€Å"the science which studies human behavior as a relationship between ends and scarce means which have alternative uses. † (Robbins L. 1932) Economics is based on the principle of scarcity of resources to satisfy human wants. As the resources to cater for the various human needs are limited, consumers have to make choices. Scarcity of resources creates an economic problem that the economic systems try to solve. Economics uses different techniques, tools and theories to carry out analysis and to explain various actions and behaviors in the economic systems. Economics may be studied in various fields including environmental economics, financial economics, game theory, information economics, industrial organization, labor economics, international economics, managerial economics and public finance. The two main areas of economics are macroeconomics and microeconomics. Macroeconomics deals with the aggregate national economy of a country while the microeconomics deals with the economics of an individual firm or person and their interactions in the market, given scarcity of resources and regulations by the government. Micro-economics is much concerned with the behaviors of individuals and firms in an industry and how these behaviors affect supply and demand of goods and services. These behaviors also affect the prices charged to the goods and services. Supply and demand are affected by the prices while price is affected by supply and demand. Hence these three aspects have to balance at certain equilibrium. At this point, the price charged to the goods and services will attain equilibrium between supply and demand of the goods and services. The theory of Demand and supply is one of the fundamental theories in microeconomics. This theory explains the relationship between price of goods and services in relation to the quality sold. It also explains the various related changes that occur in the market. The theory of demand and supply helps in the determination of prices of commodities in a competitive market environment. Demand of a commodity is the amount of goods and services that consumers are willing and able to buy at a certain price. Besides the price demand of a commodity is affected by other factors such as the income of the consumer and tastes and preferences. The demand theory suggests that consumer are rational in choosing the quality of a product that they will consume at a certain price and also considering other factors like their income and tastes. Most of the time, the consumption of goods and services by these customers is constrained by their income. As consumer seek to maximize the utility they obtain from a certain good or service, their income will act as a limiting factor. Thus the demand of a commodity depends on the purchasing power of the consumers. The purchasing power is determined by the amount of income the consumer gets. At a fixed income the demand of consumers will be determined by the price of the commodities. The law of demand suggests that demand and price of a commodity are inversely related. The higher the price of a commodity, the lower the demand of that commodity. When the price of commodity rises consumers will demand less of that good. This is because their purchasing power decreased. This is called the income effect. Increase in the price of a commodity will also result to the customers changing their consumption of the commodity preferring other less expensive commodities. This is called the substitution effect. The demand of the planes I sell will depend on their price and other factors such as tastes and preferences of the various customers in different parts of my market. However their demand will also be constrained by their level of income. If I increase the price of the planes my customers will demand fewer quantities due to income effect. Some other customers may change to other similar products thus causing substitution effect. When the income of the consumer changes, his consumption of the commodity will not move along the same demand curve, his demand curve will shift in proportion to his change of income. If the income increases the demand curve will shift outwards for a normal good. This means that at a certain price the consumer will now consume more goods than he could with his earlier income. If the income decreases the demand curve will shift inwards and the consumer will demand fewer quantities of commodities at a certain price. Supply is the quantity of a commodity that suppliers are able and willing to bring to the market at a certain price. Producers seek to maximize their profits and so will bring to the market quantities of commodity that will result to highest profits. The quantity of goods and services supplied depend on the prices of those commodities. Supply and price of commodities are directly proportional. This means the higher the price of the good at the market the higher the quantity supplied. For the prices of a commodity to be stable, the quantities of the commodity demanded must be equal to the quantity supplied. When demand and supply are equal on equilibrium in price is attained. The equilibrium price is that which results to equal quantities of demand and supply. When the price of a commodity is higher than the equilibrium the quantity demanded will be lower than the quantity supplied. There will be excess quantities in t he market. The price will have to come down until the excess quantities are eliminated. IN the same way if the price is lower than equilibrium the quantities demanded will be higher than quantities supplied and hence the price will have to be increased until the demand equates supply. The demand and supply theory is used to determine prices in perfectly competitive markets. Price is the value paid by the consumers for the utility they receive from a commodity. The price of a commodity affects the demand, supply and the quantities of the commodity sold in the market. The market price of a commodity is the intervention between marginal utility of the consumer and the marginal cost of the supplier. The equilibrium price is the point where these marginal utility and marginal costs equate. Elasticity measures the changes of one thing in relation to another. Elasticity of demand is the rate of change of quantity demanded of a commodity for a particular change in the price of the commodity. Different commodities will change different for the same change in their prices. For example two products may have the same price and the same demand but different elasticities, meaning when their prices change by one unit, their demand will change with different quantities. The commodity with higher demand elasticity will have a greater change in demand for the same change of price than a product with a lower elasticity. This can also happen in the case of supply resulting to price elasticity of supply. Both price elasticity of Demand and price elasticity of supply are the two types of price elasticities. Another form of elasticity is income elasticity of demand which measures the rate of change of demand in relation to change in income (Nelson, Salzmann). If the price elasticity of supply of my panels is high, then a little change in the price will greatly affect the quantity of panels the suppliers will bring to the market. On the other had if the price elasticity of demand of the panels in my market is high, my varying of the prices at which I sell the panels will greatly affect their demand. Monopolies are whereby one firm controls the whole market or a big percentage of the market of a commodity. When a firm have monopoly over a commodity the operations of the market as in a perfectly competitive market will not be possible. The monopoly will set its own prices whether they lead to equilibrium of demand and supply or not. Unless the monopoly is highly regulated the monopoly can manipulate the market by unfair practices like hoarding and price hikes. If I have a monopoly on the sale of the panels in my markets, I will have the liberty to set any price as far as it gives me maximum profits in disregard of the needs of the consumers. However, if there is only one source of the panels then I will have to accept any price the supplier determines. Monopoly is one cause of market imperfections. Market imperfection is where by the market systems are inhibited from operating normally as in a perfectly competitive market. Other causes of market imperfection are externalities, public goods, uncertainties and extreme interference in the economy by the government. Market imperfection can lead to market failure. Macro economics deals with performance of the national economy as a whole. It describes the behavior and structure of the economy using indication such as GDP, unemployment rates and price index (Mark Blaug 1985). Gross Domestic product â€Å"is the sum of the market values or prices f all final goods and services produced in an economy during a period of time† according to Sparknotes (http://www. sparknotes. com/economics/macros/measuring1/section1. html). Gross domestic product (GDP) is calculated by summing all the private consumption in the economy, investment by business or households, government expenditure and the net of exports and imports. The formula GDP = C + I + G + (X-M) is used where C is private consumption, I is investment, G is government expenditure and X is gross exports and M is gross imports (Sparknotes). Unemployment is whereby a person who is willing and able to work has no work (Burda, Wyplosz 1997), Unemployment rates show the performance of the economy as a whole. Unemployment is caused by different reasons. Unemployment rate can be calculated by dividing the number of unemployed workers by the total labor force. Philips curve was a theory that suggested that unemployment reduce inflation stating that unemployment reduces inflation stating that unemployment was inversely related to inflation. Inflation is the percentage rate of change of a price index (Burda, Wyplosz 1997). Inflation leads to general increase in the prices of gods in t he economy. Inflation affects the value of money in that it makes the purchasing power decrease. There are several theories used to explain practices in macro economics. The quantity theory of money is one of these theories that give the equation of change. It explains the relationship between overall prices and the quantity of money. The equation of change is given as M. V= P. Q where M is the total amount of money in circulation on average in an economy. V is the velocity of money P is price level Q is Index of expenditures. There have been different approaches to economics. These approaches differ on their view on certain aspects of economics. Some of the approaches that are there include Keynesian, monetarists, neo classical and the new classical. These different approaches led to up come of different schools of thoughts according to the inclination in the approach. However new developments have been advanced leading to acceptance of some of the aspects that had been disputed before by some approaches. Keynesian economics supported the use of policies to control the economy. The argument was that to reduce fluctuations the government had to base on actions (fiscal or monetary policy) on the prevailing conditions of the economy. The new Keynesian economics tried to provide microeconomic to the older Keynesian economics Monetarism was against fiscal policy as it has a negative effect on the private sector Monetarists argued that government intervention through fiscal policy could lead to crowding out o f monetary policies rules (Mark B. 1985). Fiscal policy is government intervention in the economic operations aimed at bringing stability of affecting certain changes in the economic environment. Fiscal policies are carried out though control of the government spending in the economy and use tax charged Fiscal policies are aimed at influencing the level of economic activities in the economy resource allocation and income distribution. The two tools, that is, Government spending and taxation is used differently to achieve different results. Incases of recession expansion fiscal policies are utilized. In this case the government increases its spending in the economy and reduces taxation. Contractionary fiscal policies are utilized by reducing government expenditure or spending in the economy and increasing tax charged. Contractionary fiscal policies can be used when there are high rates of inflation. Monetary policies are a form of intervention of the government into economic operation through interest rates so as to control the amount of money in circulation. Expansionary monetary policy is applied during recession to increase the amount of money in circulation. Expansionary policy can also be used to curb unemployment in this case interest rates are lowered hence encouraging circulation of money. Contractionary monetary policies are applied by increasing the rate of interest rates in order to reduce the rate of money in circulation in the economy. Contractionary monetary policy can be utilized during high rates of inflation. Economic growth can be achieved by leaving the competitive market conditions to prevail. However the government should intervene where the market is so unstable so that to bring regulation aimed at attaining optimum operation in the economy.

Essay on Male Circumcision Debate - 994 Words

Male circumcision has long been a debate with decisions based on cultural, ethnic, religious and social preference of the parent. There are both benefits and risks associated with the procedure of male circumcision. The procedure involves the removal of some or, the entire foreskin around the penis. Neonatal circumcision is rising among English speaking countries and it is known now that more than 80% of the male population has been circumcised. (CDC, 2006) This number is rising however; studies show that there is insufficient evidence to recommend neonatal circumcision as a routine decision. (AAP, 2006). Many debates of this procedure relate to the benefits versus the risk and medical costs that the procedure entails. This paper†¦show more content†¦The results of this study show that after 2 years there was a 53% less change of acquiring HIV in the circumcised males. (Science Daily, 2007) This study does not seem valid to me due to the fact that the age gap is ve ry wide, the sexual practice and preference were not stated, doesn’t include number of partners, whether sex was protected or unprotected, and doesn’t state whether these men were sharing needles if using drugs. There were several other studies conducted that showed an increase in risk of STD’s with uncircumcised males and I also question the validity of these studies due to the same questionable variables in the HIV studies. The most common risks associated with neonatal circumcision include loss of penile sensation, bleeding, infection, unsatisfactory cosmesis because of excess skin, skin bridges, and urinary retention. Most complications are minor and studies show that there is a 0.2% to 0.6% complication rate. (WHO, 2009) More drawbacks of circumcision can include different elements that effect sexual function. The removed foreskin is erogenous tissue that contains a number of nerve endings that can contribute to the sexual response of the penis. When retracted, the foreskin provides loose skin on the shaft of the penis, which facilitates sexual intercourse. Also, the foreskin is a protector of the sensitive glans that can lose sensitivity from constant exposureShow MoreRelatedEssay on Male Circumcision: A Social And Medical Misconception1614 Words   |  7 Pages Male Circumcision: A Social and Medical Misconception University of Johns Hopkins Introduction Male circumcision is defined as a surgical procedure in which the prepuce of the penis is separated from the glands and excised. (Mosby, 1986) Dating as far back as 2800 BC, circumcision has been performed as a part of religious ceremony, as a puberty or premarital rite, as a disciplinary measure, as a reprieve against the toxic effects of vaginal blood, and as a mark of slavery. (Milos amp; MacrisRead MoreWhy Arent Jewish Women Circumcised? by Shayne J.D. Cohen1326 Words   |  6 Pagesquestion in a number of different and unique ways. He writes this book in hopes to inform and educate the curious mind such as scholars and lay people. Furthermore, he states that â€Å"In this book I am interested not only in the history of Jewish circumcision but also, and perhaps even more so, in the history of Jewishness.† (Cohen, pg.xii) In other words, Cohen not only presents the reader with the history of the question, but also the history of the Jews and Christians. Overall, Shayne J. D. CohenRead MoreFemale Genital Mutilation ( Fgm ) Essay1236 Words   |  5 Pagescommonly referred to as female circumcision. The process of FGM involves altering the clitoris, sometimes removing it partially or entirely. FGM is a social construction practiced by a myriad of countries, although no construction is absolutely universal for every culture. For my multicultural pap er am going to discuss in detail, the historical orientation of FGM. Additionally I will compare and contrast the practices of FGM versus the western version of male circumcision through a religious lens.Read MoreEthical And Legal Aspects Of Nursing Practice1473 Words   |  6 Pages 2015 Professor  Ovidio  Viera Florida National University Circumcision...Is it an issue? Explore the human and ethical issues surrounding circumcision. Is this a medical right or a human rights issue? Why are people so against it...why are some so for it? What is the role of the nurse in relations to an ethical dilemma involving circumcision? In this paper will be talking about predominantly male circumcision. Circumcision is the oldest optional surgical procedure known to human kind andRead MoreThe Debate on Infant Circumcision Essay1442 Words   |  6 Pagesinstances of circumcision have declined â€Å"to just 32.5 percent in 2009 from 56 percent in 2006. The numbers are based on calculations by SDI Health, a company in Plymouth Meeting, Pa. that analyzes health care data†. Why are so many deciding to not have the elective procedure even though the rate of complication is extraordinarily low? What about the arguments for hygiene, sexual satisfaction, psychological and social concerns and, lest we dismiss, religious views? Per WebMD â€Å"Male circumcision is a surgeryRead MoreThe Pros And Cons Of Admissions In The Media1279 Words   |  6 PagesTwo projections were generated for each scenario of interest modeled by DMPPT- a baseline projection, in which male circumcision coverage is held constant at the prescale-up level, and a scale-up projection where VMMC coverage is scaled up to a coverage level as desired. For a coverage of 80% by 2015, a total of 430,000 HIV infections can be averted in thirteen countries in five years from 2011- 2015, 20.34 million VMMCs would be required. Increasing VMMC coverage to reduce the number of new HIVRead MoreHow Does Aristotle Address The Issue Of Individual Rights And The Freedom Of Choose?940 Words   |  4 Pagesaddresses the issue of individual rights and the freedom to choose. Aristotle believed that in order to allocate rights, one must first have to figure out the purpose or end of the social practice at question (Sandel, 2009). For example, people can d ebate and resolve the question at hand. After, one must look at justice as its matter of fit, by fitting persons with their virtues to their appropriate roles. Aristotle gives the example of slavery (Sandel, 2009). In order for slavery to be just, itRead MoreThe Practice Of Genital Mutilation1741 Words   |  7 Pagesparts of the world, including Australia, Cana-da, New Zealand, the United States, and in European nations. Circumcision is a religious or cultural ritual for many Jewish and Islamic families, as well as certain aboriginal tribes in Africa and Australia for men. Circumcisions for men are preformed all over the world. Female genital mutilation is the term in reference to non-medical circumcision. â€Å"FGM is recognized internationally as a violation of the human rights of girls and women. It reflects deep-rootedRead MoreFemale Circumsion1179 Words   |  5 Pagesbetween human rights and cultural relativism with my personal stance about these two ethical dilemmas. Female genital mutilation is considered as unlawful act by many people while in several cultures it is a common cultural practice. â€Å"Female circumcision is mainly carried out in western and southern Asia, the Middle East and large areas of Africa† (bacquet, 2009). In several cultures, some elderly women carry out these practices without any medical backing. It is a shared practice in many culturesRead MoreScientific Ethical Controversy Over Male Circumcision4072 Words   |  16 PagesCONTROVERSY OVER MALE CIRCUMCISION Debate Topic Description: Male circumcision is an old traditional practice where the foreskin of the penis is removed by surgical means. The practice also has religious significance in a number of communities. The practice is less common in the West because of a poor awareness of the medical benefits. Recent research has shown that male circumcision significantly lowers the risk of infections and sexually transmitted diseases, AIDS in particular. However, male circumcision

Policy and Procedures Book for Club Seven Volleyball - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 5 Words: 1446 Downloads: 9 Date added: 2019/04/02 Category Sports Essay Level High school Topics: Volleyball Essay Did you like this example? This program consists of the vital items that are needed to increase the skills of coaches and players in all aspects of the game. With the help of our equipment coaches will be able to drive our athletes to give their best in the gym by proposing many skills training. Our staff also have access to up-to-date information about new ways to teach skills following up closely to USA Volleyball and AVCA (American Volleyball Coaches Association.) Club Seven Volleyball commits to building an inclusive and diverse environment, which is vital to accomplishing the goals of any athlete to become successful. Here, we are obligated to knocking down all difficulties and to create opportunities for all players to participate in all activities. However, we are directing to get our players to join and to be successful in a high competition level all year around. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Policy and Procedures Book for Club Seven Volleyball" essay for you Create order The faculty and staff of the Club Seven Volleyball are committed to cooperate with the USA Delta Region Volleyball Guidelines to ensure a safe environment for those attending our facility on a daily basis. POLICIES AND PROCEDURES 1. EMERGENCY PLAN: An action plan at this department was created to improve the care of our athletes in the event of an emergency. Emergencies can happen at any time, and during any activity, all staff must be prepared to provide proper standards of emergency care to all athletes attending our facility. Club Seven Volleyball requires that all coaches are trained in First Aid, Cardiovascular Resuscitation (CPR), and Automated External Defibrillator (AED). Since a team physician may not always be present at an organized practice or competition. Any training required will be covered by the club. The club is responsible for maintaining the first aid kits to the required standard 1.1. In the Event of an Emergency: Components of the Emergency Plan: CHECK: The scene for safety and victim for consciousness, breathing, signs of life and severe bleeding. CALL: Dial 9-1-1 or local emergency number CARE: For conditions you find Activating the EMS System: Providing Information: Name, and Address Nature of emergency Number of Athletes involved Condition of Athletes First Aid Treatment Initiated Specific Directions to locate the facility 1.2. Non-Emergency Situation: Incident Reports: In the event of an incident occurring either at practices or game day situations the Head Coach is required to complete an incident report. Club Directors should be advised as soon as possible, and the completed forms should be completed as soon as possible. 2. IN CASE OF SEVERE WEATHER: Club Directors and Coaches are required to have the Sentry App on their phones. Sentry will alert us of any weather condition in our area and other locations Coaches must make the calls about canceling practices due to the weather conditions that might interfere with the safety of our members Directors must make the calls about canceling home or away tournaments due to weather conditions. 2.1. Tornado Policy: In the event of a Tornado, all staff and players must take cover in the basement of the building. The safest location is in any interior hallway or small interior room on the lowest floor of the building away from windows and doorway. Players and Staff cannot leave until club directors, and local police give the all-clear signal. 3. HIRING POLICY: USA Volleyball and the Delta Region have a minimum level coach education requirement to coach in a USAV junior Volleyball Program. The IMPACT course is required for all USAV Junior Club Coaches. 3.1. The IMPACT course is offered in two different formats: 3.1.1. IMPACT ONLINE COURSE FOR ALL COACHES: Coaches can take the Impact online course for certification. After completing the online course, the individual will receive an Impact and SafeSport Certification. The online course takes about six hours and includes a test at the conclusion of the course. Included with within the online Impact course is SafeSport training. Coaches and players will be requested to complete SafeSport training and receiving certification this includes coaches and chaperones. Since chaperones do not have to take Impact, they will need to take SafeSport as a stand-alone online course. SafeSport certification expires after two years. 3.1.2. IMPACT ONSITE CLINIC: Coaches can attend the onsite clinic where they can interact with the clinician for their questions. The delta region near us will hold onsite IMPACT clinics during November and December. The course length of the onsite clinic will be 3-4 hours. After completion of the onsite clinic, the individual will receive an IMPACT certification. Those that attended the onsite clinic will also have to take the SafeSport online, which takes about 90 minutes. There is a fee of $20 for those attending the onsite clinic. However, Club Seven Volleyball will pay for the certification of the coaches in our facility. 3.2. SafeSport Training: All adults involved with Club Seven Volleyball must take the SafeSport training according to USA Volleyball Delta Region. The safety of its participants is a priority to USA Volleyball and our facility. Therefore, Club Seven Volleyball has a ZERO TOLERANCE policy for abuse and misconduct of staff and players. All of those involved with our facility has the responsibility to respect the sports and all of those involved. The USA Volleyball SafeSport Program raises awareness about possible misconduct in our sport, promotes open dialogue and provides training and resources. SafeSport training takes about 90 minutes, and its FREE for all of USAV members. 3.3. Background Screening: All coaches will be submitted and must pass a Background Screening. It is a policy of USA Volleyball and the Delta Region that any club/entity planning to hire or use Registered individuals in any authorized junior volleyball competitions and activities will accept and follow by this background screening policy. The following individuals, 18 years of age or older, will be screened: Club Directors Club Administrators Team Representatives, Coaches, Chaperones, and Trainers. Individuals that did not pass the screening through Delta Region will not be allowed to continue their application with 4. DRUGS AND ALCOHOL: Club Seven Volleyball has a ZERO TOLERANCE for drugs and alcohol abuse in our facility. We strongly enforce a strict no-alcohol policy during practices or matches. Individuals that might attempt to consume any type of drugs underneath our roof will be removed from our facility until further notice. 5. COMPLAINTS: Often, people may have issues that concern them and their child or another member of our facility. Therefore, Club Seven Volleyball requires that all issues are resolved to the satisfaction of all parts involved. All staff and members have the responsibility to approach the issue respectfully towards our program and other members around: Procedure: Any person that wishes to raise an issue must contact the following people: Sport-Related: Team Manager, Captain or Player Representative Coaching Related: Head or Assistant Coach General issues: Club Directors If the Initial parties cannot resolve the issue, the Team Manager, Captain or Coach will refer the matter to the club directors. It is the best of our interest to solve any issues involving our community. All persons must take reasonable actions to avoid situations that could cause serious injury or harm the health of players, officials or the public. If any hazard is identified Club Directors must be informed and those involved in any type of violence will be banned from our facility 6. RISK MANAGEMENT: Club Seven Volleyball is committed to reduce the risk of injury and illness to the participants and staff and to decrease the liability of injuries if they occur. Risk management is the clubs effort to prevent future risks and safety planning. Listed below are the preventive measure that is our legal duties to our clients and staff. Player safety The courts conditions, and net system Qualified coaches and volunteers Players medical history Locker rooms First Aid Equipment Availability/accessibility to emergency services Official safety Locker room Hospitality room Recreation Reserve Parking area Public convenience Food/beverage handling and selling areas General Child safety aspects of the club Money handling Player/officials security Building security 7. SPORTSMANSHIP POLICY: Club Seven Volleyball and USAV Delta Region strongly support our players not only on the court but also later on in their lives. To achieve this goal Club Seven Volleyball is committed to modeling the types of behavior and qualities we espouse. Players, officials and spectators, should ensure that both on and off the court behavior is consistent with the principles of good sportsmanship. Therefore: Swearing or abuse by club officials, spectators, players, and coaches is not allowed at any time. Questioning the referees decisions or behaving aggressively toward them is unacceptable. If a genuine concern, there are many ways to have appropriate communication in place, it is recommended that team manager, coaches or captain to address any concerns. Aggressive behavior and abuse toward opposition players, coaches, club officials or spectators are unacceptable.