Fashion Retail Management

Question: Discuss about the Fashion Retail Management. Answer: Introduction The case of Burberry not only highlight the struggle of a company to evolve which lost focus on its roots but not to forget the very remarkable role of unwavering executive that turned the lights on for Burberry. As in the case we observed a brand which lost the platform of its business with the aim of bring luxury to the omnipresence state and that was time which brought setback to Burberry business. After the new CEO Angela stepped in, she observed that top notch employees of the company were not promoting anything about Burberry as they do not own anything under thing brand and as a CEO, she easily analyzed the unspoken truth about the business situation of the Burberry. Burberry had around 23 licenses under which different products were being sold around the globe but there was no focus on its core strengths area- Trench coats. In the beginning, trench coats were its iconic wear but now company was not realizing anything on them. The only focus on leather goods and modest luxury clothing did not brought enough cash on the financials of the Burberry. Re-invention of the any brand is the world of competition is not easy process because it involves a complete refreshment of product lines with the aim of connecting the products with the customers. Burberry was mainly concentrating on the competition whereas to regain its brand value, it should have fostered its areas of strength. The case of Burberry also highlighted that for all business aiming to showcase themselves to be brand icon need to stick to the core of their business. Every business start with something exclusive and if they move ahead leaving the roots, it is nearly impossible to form a structured brand no matter how much is the investment made. The recovery plan strategies need to optimize the best resource Burberry had it from base. Business experts believe in the power of innovation and as per business needs and goals, accordingly installation of strategies should be the priority. (Brooks, 2013) Strategies Issues For Burberry, there were voluminous unsolved questions which need answers soon because future of the business was at stake and there was no strategy of comeback. The sales were highly impacted and questions were raised on the direction of the business. Superfluous interrogations were about what Burberry was selling, to whom was selling and who they were competing. All business activities are different and management need to analyze to understand the thin line difference between critical and strategic issues. (Halter, 2010) Major strategic issues that triggered business problems in Burberry are identified as follows: Burberrys efforts to be omnipresent-Though Burberry was presenting the face of luxury in the luxury sector which was growing in tremendous way, the company did not earn well because in the efforts of being present everywhere in the world, it was no more luxury. Due to this, elite customer base moved away from Burberry and financial situation was at stake. There was around 23 licenses with Burberry and under those different licenses. Product being sold were like Kilts, dog cover ups, leashes and so on. Though these products were bringing usual revenue for the business but again these products were generic and not highly exclusive. (Sherman, 2009).Consumer anticipation is the high when products are exclusive and are available at specific outlets or stores. Burberry was not making efforts to be have selected products and be at only good real estate locations to optimize on customers available on such locations. Burberry lost its charm by having something for everyone and being at locati ons without elite crowd. In marketing positioning of products is a crucial thing. Not sticking to the core business line-The business of Burberry did not enjoyed many advantages in spite of its rich growth history of trench coats. The core strength of the business was its iconic wear trench coats but Burberry didnt capitalize it and thus lost its focus from being a luxury brand to something else that later did not proved fruitful. The valuable assets of the company were ignored and profits were very low as compared to competitive firms such as LVMH, PPR. When company was selling trench coats initially, they became famous in short period. The fabric of the trench coats was unique and this was produced at the Yorkshire facility of Burberry but both, this location as well as the fabric produce were ignored and problems were invited. The unique business line which was core of the business soon became very down and just contributed one-fifth to the total sales. The advantage of central focus was lost. It is not always beneficial to go for more leaving the core behind. Prospects of new venture need to scrutinize before the final move is taken. (Waite, 2002) Lack of one attribute consistency- One of the unique feature that every brand possess is uniqueness of the products or services. For example, Macdonald restaurant will have the nearly same taste of burger and courtesy of the staff will be similar to each other no matter which restaurant you step in across the globe. Burberry didnt had same kind of consistency in relation to the products it was selling. Every time a customer would visit stores of Burberry at different locations, the experience of each store was different whether it be sales associate ability, infrastructure, and product line and so on. This was a major hurdle in the line of Burberry to be a brand. It is not always that customers will share same value across the globe there could be conflicting viewpoints so branding is a thoughtful process and the best that can be made common is superior quality. (Holt, Quelch and Taylor, 2004). Recovery Plan Recovery plan of Burberry was not easy as expected because some breath-taking decisions were required and they made the road to better future clearer. There was need to look back to the roots and actual problems were figured out. Efforts started to revive the core strength of the business and later, this proved worthy enough to be called as brand Burberry. The new CEO, Angela took all steps to regain focus of the business and she stood by her vision of bringing back charm which was lost. Angela made it sure that lead in the category of newcomers was captured. Whether the business is small or big, it do not matter because one have to compete for business continuity and there needs planning for the same. Business continuity is one thing on which recovery plan is actionable. (Lindros and Tittel, 2013). Steps implemented in recovering the lost focus of the business: Getting back to the basics- Since we analyzed that Burberry lost its core strength and concentrated only on competition, now was the time to get the basics right. The Burberry top management under the vision of Angela started the efforts to bring trench coats back to its product line and present the come through well-established marketing campaign. To reinforce rich heritage of Burberry, the goal was set to put weight on progress of core luxury products and everything in the business should relate to core of the business. Share, Engage and Involve-The change was not be overnight possibility for Burberry and management knew it. Angela had a clear and big picture in her mind and this picture was about bringing drastic opportunities to the business. She conveyed the message and confirmed that change makers of Burberry are through with what they are doing and how they will be doing. In a nutshell, recovery mission with effort based vision was shared, people got engaged with the enthusiasm of the CEO and time was near to see the expected results. Bringing in Christopher Bailey was thoughtful move and all the products of the Burberry were passed through his eyes which were sharp with fashion. (Rose, 2015) Shaking decision of layoffs and closures was right move- Closing factories of New Jersey and Wales, people lost jobs and these all decisions were never without controversies. Closing few outlets was must have step to move towards branding of the business. Closing the factory which was only producing polo shirts was not a loss and the capital and human resources were invested in Castleford facility to produce the core products. Questions were raised by shareholders, government with the position of the firm but all was handled well by the CEO with her strategies and revival plan and we all know, rest is history. Change in the corporate structure- The changes made were big enough and now was the time to reflect those changes through set mechanism. To do this, shift was made from Burberrys historical structure to new classical and it was necessary because new things packed in old packets will never be sold. There are always different legal formalities associated with corporate structures of the business and several criterias need to be evaluated. (Khwaja, 2013) A functional expertise was hired to strengthen the retail activities and sales people were trained. The target of training was also to ensure that sales people do not neglect customers, not just target on selling regular products and the purpose of training proved worthy. Sales associates know that selling a unique product was way better than putting efforts on numerous budgeted items. Recent Strategies Implemented After the revival of Burberry and now as a brand, it understand well that being stagnant in the fashion industry will bring them back in menace, they already dealt with. In business word, there is no certainty is respect to markets and its reactions Highly profitable businesses can get eroded if there are no back up strategies. (Toner, Ojha, Paepe and Melo, 2015) To manage challenges of the competition and other factors, Burberry implemented following strategies to keep the momentum of growth on and enjoy the perks: Focus on product line areas: Burberry have always believed in its products. Products are the groundwork of growth and efficiency goals. The company have set its focus on end to end category management of key products with the aim and target of inventiveness towards both heritage and fashion. After the recovery of trench coats, the next area of force which is drive the company is bags. Burberry believe that they need to infiltrate more into the section of bags which in future will turn beneficial for the financial health of the company. (Burberryplc.com) Optimize Channels- The purpose of this strategy is to cover all the market routes whether making sales online or offline, whether selling products through own stores or third parties. Burberry have put customer as center point for its activities with the aim of maintaining customer loyalty and their retention. Enhancement of the services and effectively managing the profile of existing customers and warm welcome of the new leads put a point that the company has come all the way to create happy customers. (Burberryplc.com) Investing in digital-Today technology is moving the world and being digitally advanced will add up the value of the firm. Burberry made investment in Burberry.com and this platform delivered strong growth. Burberry provided the customers with the opportunity to view all its products, varieties available with locations with enhanced delivery. This provided customers with delighted shopping experience. Recent add on of 18 more fashion and beauty product platforms have enabled Burberry to compete with difference against other digitalized commercial players. (Burberryplc.com) Store Investment-Burberry is focus to brace its stores through openings in key location with strategies of reallocations and renovations. Burberry have recently launched new 18 leading stores (closing 17 at different locations across the globe) with the target of value presence. (Burberryplc.com) Unlock market opportunities- Burberry is leaving no stone unturned and evolving its footsteps and stand in all differentiation of markets such as developed markets, younger markets, new customer lines and so on. During 2015/16, Burberry have moved its focus untapped areas such as engaging the Chinese luxury customers to bring and maintain the luxury sector trend, transforming Japan with the aim of building strong brand awareness and building young markets because early growth markets need to be tapped early and Burberry is smart organization to do so. (Burberryplc.com) Conclusion Burberry was established in 1856 and after a rise, there were losses of both finances and brand value. But comeback was tremendously happening to regain the brand and reinvention of the brand today have expanded a lot. The credit of this retaliating success is exceptional leadership and innovation. After setbacks, Burberry learnt the changing customer needs and market demands and then accordingly strategies were made and implemented. This case also put light on the business working strategies whether focus was need for expansion or core line of products could bring better sales and loyal customers. Any business with trusted roots can continue to grow its line and enhance its market credibility. To make a comeback from setback situations, there is always need for clear vision and organized leadership which will make a stand in the adverse situations. References Sherman, L. (2009), How and how not--to sell luxury, Forbes, accessed on 15 August 2016, https://www.forbes.com/2009/04/16/luxury-strategy-marketing-opinions-book-review-vuitton-hermes-fendi.html Brooks, C. (2013), Innovation: key to successful business, Business news daily, accessed on 15 August 2016 https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/5167-innovation.html Halter, J. (2010), Strategic issues vs. critical issues, Street smart leader, accessed on 15 August 2016, https://streetsmartleader.com/2010/08/16/strategic-issues-vs-critical-issues/ Waite, T. (2002), Stick to the core or go for more, Harvard business review, accessed on 15 August 2016, https://hbr.org/2002/02/stick-to-the-core-or-go-for-more Holt, D. Quelch, J and Taylor E. (2004), How global brands compete, Harvard business review, accessed on 15 August 2016, https://hbr.org/2004/09/how-global-brands-compete Lindros, K. and Tittel, E. (2013), How to Create an Effective Business Continuity Plan, CIO, accessed on 15 August 2016, https://www.cio.com/article/2381021/best-practices/how-to-create-an-effective-business-continuity-plan.html Rose, F. (2015), Burberry: How a failing English luxury brand managed to turn itself around, Deep media, accessed on 15 August 2016, https://www.deepmediaonline.com/deepmedia/2015/04/burberry-how-a-luxury-brand-turned-itself-around.html Khwaja, A. (2013), Choose your business structure, Entrepreneur, accessed on 15 August 2016, https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/38822 Toner, M. Ojha, N. Papae, P. and Melo, M. (2015), A Strategy for Thriving in Uncertainty, Bain and Company, accessed on 15 August 2016, https://www.bain.com/publications/articles/a-strategy-for-thriving-in-uncertainty.aspx Drive future growth and productivity, Burberry, accessed on 15 August 2016, https://www.burberryplc.com/about_burberry/our_strategy

Internet Technology Role

Question: Internet technology plays a prominent role in todays society. The Internet is used in all industries. Select an organisation of your choice that uses Internet to operate the business. Based on the selected organisation, analyse and report the following: 1. The organisation and type of products sold. 2. Features and functionalities of the website. 3. The information requirements and the type of systems used in the website. 4. Impact E-commerce has on the organisation. You may include benefits, challenges and risks. Answer: 1. Introduction Amazon.com. Inc, popularly known as Amazon is a retailer organization that sells products over the internet. Headquartered in Seattle, Washington, the efficiency of the electronic commerce and cloud computing services of the organization has made it the largest inter based retailer that presently operates in the United Sates (Amazon.com, 2016). The organization had initially started as an online bookstore: however it slowly diversified into selling digital materials like that of audio books, mp3s, Blue Rays, DVDs, CDs and so on and so forth. At present, the organization sells a wide range of products: starting from software to jewelry, books, apparels, household items, food products, furniture, toys and much more. Amazon has also started consumer electronics under their brand name: the e-book readers popularly known as the Amazon Kindle being the most popular ones along with Fire Phone, Fire TV and Fire Tablets (Curty and Zhang, 2013). Bedsides this, at present, Amazon is being consi dered as one of the largest cloud infrastructure service providers of the industry, surpassing the US based retail-giant Walmart in terms of market capitalization. Thus, it can be said that the main goals of Amazon .com include the maintenance of a link between the consumers and the suppliers, improving communication with the retail customers, improving the sales target and enhance the level of services being provided to the customers. Besides this, the organization also intends to serve customers from various markets and create more customers from the daily visitors. Trough this report, we intend to explore the extent to which the electronic commerce facilities provided by the organization facilitate the process of realizing their goals. 2. Analysis 2.1 Features and functionalities of website In this section of the report, we intent to discuss the various features and functionalities that are available on the e-commerce site of the amaazon.com. As present in all other electronic commerce sites, Amazon has a dedicated home page. The home page hosts the various promotional offers that are currently being made available to the customers, information regarding the top selling products of the website, the new products or services that are about to be launched by the organization, the price reductions that are currently available, etc (Huang, and Benyoucef, 2013). Besides this, the home page also contains information regarding the promotional offers that would be available in the near future, along with the links to the products pages. Amazon displays all available products and services under different categories. All electronic gadget are to found under the Home, Kitchen Pets section, computer devices and accessories are to be found under a separate section of their own, the books available on the store are either available under the kindle readers and e-books category or under the books category and so on and so forth (Rahman and Dominic, 2012). The various features that are available in the products ages have been discussed in the following sections of the report: 2.1.1 The transaction processing system: Once the customer visits the products page, he or she is able to select a specific product by scrolling down the entire webpage. Amazon allows their users to select and buy products and services through easy steps and make online payments through secured transaction gateways: the following processes help in providing the said services to the customers: 1. One click ordering: Amazon provides one click ordering facilities to the customers which allows them to select and order the products on a single click (Bao and Chang, 2014). Besides this, the facilities of personalized purchase services and easy online transactions are also available to the customers. One of the commonly used features that deserve a special mention include the one click ordering services available to the existing customers: while new customers have to fill up the order details after making a one-click purchase, the existing customers are exempted from performing this activity. 2. Secured card payment: Amazon.com not only encourages the customers to make payments online but also provides secured gateways to make payments through debit and credit cards. 2.1.2 The product recommendation system: Amazon generates list of products, based on the last purchase habits of the customer and the products (belonging to the specific category that the customer is visiting) that are most popular among the other customers. This list displayed in the products page, as the customer scrolls down to search for specific items. Needless to say, such a recommendation system encourages the customers to purchase products in much larger volumes than they would have made by going through all the available products by themselves and selecting one from those (Turban et al. 2015). 2.1.3 An interactive searching option: While a customer can go through the entire range of products present in particular methodology, the website also provides them with options to select products based on certain filtering criteria ( like that of price, color, features, material etc) (Klaus, 2013). This interactive searching option makes that task of purchasing items from Amazon.com much easier. 2.1.4 Order tracking: Amazon.com allows their customers to review the status of the orders placed by them (Eames et al. 2014). Besides this, the customers are also provided with various updates as and when the orders are processed. 2.2 Information requirement and types of systems used in the website On its initial days, Amazon used separate system for taking orders from the client and a separate system for fulfilling the orders: the objective behind such a system was to avoid the internet security issues that might result from maintaining both the systems on the same server. At present, the organization had renovated the entire system and utilizes software packages (Epiphany for data analysis and the Manugistics for the maintenance of their logistics) from reputed IT vendors, for collecting and analyzing the customer and enterprise data(Imran, 2014). The database maintained by the company runs on Oracle DBMS. In order to maintain information related to the large number of services and products that are available on the website the organization utilizes the custom made Simple Storage Service (SS) and the Amazon Web Service (AWS) (Crowston, 2012) . The Smart Analysis search or the SAS allow the organization to map the characteristics of the purchase behavior indicated by the purchases made by the clients and the products that they are currently searching for, in order to make recommendations to them (Solaymani et al. 2012). 2.3 Role of information system in achieving the goals of the organization In this section of the report, we provide a brief description on how the various business goals of Amazon.com are met by the information system that is currently being used. 1. Smart Innovation Strategy: Although Amazon conducts business based on the basic business to consumer or the B2C model, yet bringing about strategic changes in the way in which their website operates have been helpful in generating a sense of curiosity among the target customers (Beynon-Davies, 2013). As for example, at present the organization allows small business groups to utilize their platform, in exchange of which they receive commission from them. Thus the business model has changed from sales to sales and service. The goal of maintaining the links between the suppliers and the retail customers and providing services to both the groups have become possible due to the utilization of this model. 2. Customer relationship management: Maintaining a good relationship with the customers and providing efficient and timely services to them is one of the major goals of Amazon.com. The information system has been effective in fulfilling this goal as the Simple Storage Service (SS) and the Amazon Web Service (AWS) help the organization to record all information related to the purchase orders placed by the customers (Marz and Warren, 2015). This in turn facilitates the process of after sales services. 2.4 Impact of e-commerce on the organization (Amazon.com) In this section of the report, we discuss about the effects of electronic commerce system on the operational system of Aamzon.com. A brief discussion has been provided in the benefits of the e-commerce system, the challenges that Amazon.com experiences due the e-commerce system and the risks associated with this system. 2.4.1 Benefits of e-commerce system on Amazon 1. The first and foremost point that should be considered while discussing the benefits that Amazon avails from its electronic commerce system huge operational costs that the organization saves. Maintaining a physical store is associated with various costs like that of paying rents for the store space and paying electricity bills, along with the initial set up cost that the organization would have to incur. Besides this, the ecommerce model helps Amzon.co to serve larger customer base than a physical store could have (Traver and Laudon, 2012). 2. Availability of large scaled customer information helps in decision making. 2.4.2 Challenges of e-commerce system of Amazon At present, Amazon.com faces the following challenges: Uniqueness of content: Since Amazon sells a large number of products to the customers, the description of each of the products must be unique. Such uniqueness would ultimately reduce the time required to search products from the store. However, currently, such unique contents are not available in Amazon.com (Crowston, 2012). 2. Improve the mobile version of the website: The full-fledged mobile version of the website puts certain restrictions on the purchase of products. Although the organization encourages the customers to use their smart phone applications, yet the mobile website should also be enhanced (Klein, 2012). 2.4.3 Risk associated with the e-commerce system of Amazon. In the very recent past, Amazon has invested highly in developing their cloud service infrastructure. At present, the cloud infrastructure of the organization is considered to be at the same level as that of Microsoft. However, the later, having high scale revenue generating from the said infrastructure would be able to make further investment on it (Bergstrm, 2013). On the other hand, it is less likely that that Amazon would be able to upgrade the cloud infrastructure on a regular basis (due to very high investment issues) thus any break down of this infrastructure actually has the potential of destroying the entire business venture of Amazon. 3. Conclusion Recommendations This report provides a detailed discussion on the various aspects of the e-commerce business model used by Amazon.com. The business goals and objective of the organization have been discussed in the introductory section of the report, along with the background of the organization. In the following section, the features and functionalities of website have been reviewed. The discussion made in this section of the report is indicative of the fact that the business success of the organization is largely based on the features that have been included in the e-commerce site. These features have been custom built so as to provide better buying experiences to the customers. In section 2.2, a discussion has been provided on the information systems that are currently being utilized by Amazon to maintain the functionality of their website. The research work that has been conducted so as to reveal the true nature of the IT system of Amazon has lead us to believe that the organization utilizes custom-made cloud-based platforms in order to store, manage and analyze the huge amount of data that are being generated and accessed through their website on a regular basis. The next section provides a discussion on how the e-commerce model is being helpful in realizing the business goal of the organization. It has been noticed that the e-commerce site not only helps to cater to the needs of large section of target customer, but Amazon can better understand the requirements and the buying behavior of the customers by analyzing the huge amount of data that is collected through the website. The availability of large scale of data also facilitates the process of developing business/ market strategies. While considering the effects of e-commerce on the business of Amazon, it has been noticed that the very same cloud based infrastructure that is providing Amazon an added benefit over the other market competitors is also the sole risk sector of the organization. Besides this, Amazon should also emphasize on developing unique content for each of their products and re-designing their mobile website for enhancing their services. In the light of the discussions made in the report, the following recommendations are being made to the management of the Amazon.com: 1. Regular up-gradation of the cloud infrastructure should be performed so as to maintain the sustainability of the e-commerce platform. 2. The mobile website and the applications should be re-designed from time to time in order to keep pace with the emerging technologies, besides catering the security concerns of the customers using such devices. 3. The management should also start investing in innovative technologies in order to enhance their brand value: as for example delivering products using unmanned drones might be considered as an interesting option. References Amazon.com, (2016). Amazon.com: Online Shopping for Electronics, Apparel, Computers, Books, DVDs more. [online] Amazon.com. Available at: https://www.amazon.com [Accessed 7 Jan. 2016]. Bao, T. and Chang, T.L.S., (2014). Why Amazon uses both the New York Times Best Seller List and customer reviews: An empirical study of multiplier effects on product sales from multiple earned media.Decision Support Systems,67, pp.1-8. Bergstrm, J. (2013). What Is the Risk That Amazon Will Go Down (Again)? - O'Reilly Radar. [online] Radar.oreilly.com. Available at: https://radar.oreilly.com/2013/05/what-is-the-risk-that-amazon-will-go-down-again.html [Accessed 7 Jan. 2016]. Beynon-Davies, P., (2013).Business information systems. Palgrave Macmillan. Crowston, K., (2012). Amazon Mechanical Turk: A Research Tool for Organizations and Information Systems Scholars. InShaping the Future of ICT Research. Methods and Approaches(pp. 210-221). Springer Berlin Heidelberg. Curty, R.G. and Zhang, P., (2013). Website features that gave rise to social commerce: a historical analysis.Electronic Commerce Research and Applications,12(4), pp.260-279. Eames, M., Berkhout, F., Hertin, J., Hawkins, R. and Mackerron, G., (2014). 2 E-topia? Scenarios for e-commerce and sustainability.Digital Futures: Living in a Networked World, p.39. Huang, Z. and Benyoucef, M., (2013). From e-commerce to social commerce: A close look at design features.Electronic Commerce Research and Applications,12(4), pp.246-259. Imran, A. (2014). A STUDY ON AMAZON: INFORMATION SYSTEMS, BUSINESS STRATEGIES AND e-CRM. [online] ResearchGate. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/261440748_A_STUDY_ON_AMAZON_INFORMATION_SYSTEMS_BUSINESS_STRATEGIES_AND_e-CRM [Accessed 7 Jan. 2016]. Klaus, P., (2013). The case of Amazon. com: towards a conceptual framework of online customer service experience (OCSE) using the emerging consensus technique (ECT).Journal of Services Marketing,27(6), pp.443-457. Klein, D., (2012). How to decide: Mobile websites vs. mobile apps.Inspire, February. Marz, N. and Warren, J., (2015).Big Data: Principles and best practices of scalable realtime data systems. Manning Publications Co.. Rahman, H.K. and Dominic, J., (2012). An Analytical Study of Online Public Access Catalogues in Comparison with Features of Amazon and Google: A Checklist Approach.Asian Journal Of Information Science Technology (AJIST),2(1). Solaymani, S., Sohaili, K. and Yazdinejad, E.A., (2012). Adoption and use of e-commerce in SMEs.Electronic commerce research,12(3), pp.249-263. Traver, C.G. and Laudon, K.C., (2012).E-commerce: business, technology, society. Pearson Higher Ed. Turban, E., King, D., Lee, J.K., Liang, T.P. and Turban, D.C., (2015).Electronic commerce: A managerial and social networks perspective. Springer.

Music Appreciation Final Essay Example

Music Appreciation Final Paper Romanticism, as a stylistic period in western music, encompassed the years 1820-1900 Drawing creative inspiration from cultures of lands foreign to the composer is known as exoticism Program music is instrumental music associated with a story, poem, idea, or scene Which of the following statements is NOT true Fascination with the melodies, rhythms, and colorful materials from distant lands is a romantic trend known as musical nationalism The deliberate intent to draw creative inspiration from the composers own homeland is known as nationalism An orchestra toward the end of the romantic period might include close to ______ musicians 100 The 1844 Treatise on Modern Instrumentation and Orchestration that signaled the recognition of orchestration as an art in itself was written by Hector Berlioz A slight holding back or pressing forward of tempo in music is known as rubato Altering the character of a melody by changes in dynamics, orchestration, or rhythm is a romantic technique known as thematic transformation Because of the French Revolution and the __________, many aristocrats could no longer afford to maintain private opera houses, orchestras, and composers in residence Napoleonic Wars The composer whose career was a model for many romantic composers was Ludwig van Beethoven A romantic composer who made his living as a touring virtuoso was Franz Liszt The rise of the urban middle class led to th piano becoming a fixture in every middle-class home formation of many orchestras and opera groups development of regular subscription concerts When music conservatories were founded, women were at first accepted only as students of performance, but by the late 1800s could study musical composition A very important musical part of every middle-class home during the romantic period was the piano Music criticism was a source of income for both Hector Berlioz and Robert Schumann An art song is a musical composition for solo voice and piano The word ________ is commonly used for a romantic art song with a German text. lied The German composers of art songs favored, among others, the lyric poetry of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Heinrich Heine The mood of an art song is often set by a brief piano introduction and summed up at the end by a piano section called a postlude When the same music is repeated for two or more stanzas of a poem, leading to new music for other stanzas, the form is known as modified strophic Instrumental music associated with a story, poem, idea, or scene, popular during the romantic period is called program music Non program music is also known as _________ music. absolute A _________ is an instrumental composition in several movements based to some extent on a literary or pictorial idea program symphony A __________ is a one-movement orchestral composition based to some extent on a literary or pictorial idea. symphonic poem Todays movie scores may be regarded as examples of incidental music The citizens sense of national identity and patriotic feelings were intensified by romanticism, which glorified love for ones national heritage common bonds of language, culture, and history military resistance to Napoleon The strongest impact of musical nationalism was felt in Russia. the Scandinavian countries. Poland and Bohemia. Who laid the groundwork for a nationalistic style in Russian music? Mikhail Glinka In music, the early twentieth century was a time of revolt and change The most famous riot in music history occurred in Paris in 1913 at the first performance of Igor Stravinskys The Rite of Spring Composers in the twentieth century drew inspiration from folk and popular music from all cultures. the music of Asia and Africa. European art music from the Middle Ages through the nineteenth century In twentieth-century music string players are sometimes called upon to use the wood instead of the hair on their bows. percussion instruments have become very prominent and numerous. dissonance has been emancipated. Among the unusual playing techniques that are widely used in the twentieth century is the _______, a rapid slide up or down the scale. glissando A piano is often used in twentieth-century orchestral music to add a percussive edge. Which of the following is NOT an alternative to the traditional organization of pitch used by twentieth-century composers? Tonic-dominant harmonies A chord made of tones only a half step or whole step apart is known as a tone cluster The first significant atonal pieces were composed around 1908 by Arnold Schoenberg Ostinato refers to a motive or phrase that is repeated persistently at the same pitch throughout a section. Radio broadcasts of live recorded music began to reach large audiences during the 1920s The first opera created for television was Gian-Carlo Menottis Amahl and the Night Visitors When did the first pairing of music and film take place? 1895 Impressionist painting and symbolist poetry as artistic movements originated in France The most important impressionist composer was Claude Debussy The term impressionist derived from a critics derogatory reaction to Impression: Sunrise, a painting by Claude Monet When viewed closely, impressionist paintings are made up of tiny colored patches Many of Debussys songs are set to poems by the symbolist poet Paul Verlaine The neoclassical movement in music roughly encompassed the years 1920-1950 Neoclassical compositions are characterized by forms and stylistic features of earlier periods Neoclassical composers modeled many of the works after the compositions of Johann Sebastian Bach The expressionist movement in music and art flourished in the years 1905-1925 Expressionism grew out of the same intellectual climate as Freuds studies of hysteria and the unconscious Richard Strauss operas Salome and Elektra were known for their chromatic and dissonant music Expressionism is an art concerned with social protest Expressionist composers avoided tonality and traditional chord progressions Since World War II, musical styles have taken many new directions and changes All of the following are major developments in music since 1950 except the continued composition of symphonies in the classical style Minimalism as an artistic movement was a reaction against the complexity of serialism and the randomness of chance music. Many composers since the mid-1960s have made extensive use of quotations from earlier music as an attempt to improve communication between the composer and the listener Since 1950 many composers have returned to tonal music In electronic music, there is no need fo performers Intervals smaller than the half step are called microtones Composers who have returned to the use of tonality have been called new Romantics Minimalist music is characterized by a steady pulse, clear tonality, and insistent repetition of short melodic patterns An example of aleatoric music is John Cages Imaginary Landscape No. 4 for twelve radios Around 1940, John Cage invented the prepared piano, a(n) grand piano whose sound is altered by objects such as bolts, screws, rubber bands, pieces of felt, paper, and plastic inserted between the strings of some of the keys. John Adams Short Ride in a Fast Machine is scored for a large symphonic orchestra and two synthesizers

Essay Topics That You Can Use With Alexander the Great

Essay Topics That You Can Use With Alexander the GreatWhen you are looking for essay topics, you might have noticed that there are quite a few different options out there. What are some of these essay topics?One of the most common topics is the list. Lists are one of the most often used and popular essay topics that will give you a chance to explore different topics. This means that it is fairly easy to write an essay that is very related to this topic. In addition, lists can be changed or added to quite easily as well. You can also easily create variations of the list to fit with your other essays.History is another of the great essay topics that will allow you to get into more depth in your own history. These types of essays can focus on any aspect of history. This means that you do not have to take the 'full history' approach to your topic. Instead, you can focus on specific events or even the whole time period that you are talking about.Sports is another favorite topic that will help you to get more detailed in your writing. You can go from the great game of baseball to the great sport of basketball, etc. The topics are endless and when you explore all of them, you can learn so much about your subject matter.One of the great essay topics that you should explore when trying to write a thesis is religious texts. The reason why this is such a good topic for you to research is because you can easily create a conclusion to your essay that will stand on its own. It also allows you to show a contrast between two very different perspectives of the subject. Since there are many different aspects of religion that you can explore, this is a very broad topic.Character development is another great essay topics that you can use. You can focus on a real life example that you can take into your essay. You can also take an episode of the television and turn it into a writing exercise. This will allow you to work on developing different characters and will keep your focus on your thesis.Another of the great essay topics that you can use is the truth. When you focus on truth, you are allowed to get very specific about what you want to prove in your essay. This means that you can do a lot of experimenting with how you present your information and you can also test the truth of your theories.There are several other essay topics that you can use as well. However, in order to get as many different topics and research material into your essay, you should do more research on them yourself. Then you can choose which ones you want to include and which ones you want to leave out.

The Best Blogs That Keep You Up-to-Date

The Best Blogs That Keep You Up-to-Date If you put all present-day bloggers in one place, they can occupy the whole country, at least such countries, as Andorra or Vatican. The web is overcrowded with regular blogs and how the hell to find a prominent blog then? We tried to help you a bit and picked out blogs that will keep your finger on pulse. Each of the listed blogs is constantly updated with the latest news in a certain sphere. Career Opportunities Check these blogs to increase your chance of choosing the best occupation for you and getting a desirable well-paid job. Follow them to be familiar with new approaches to recruitment process, tips on how to stand out during job interviews and the ways to get a promotion. Simply Hired Blog This one is very handy. It is divided into categories – â€Å"job search tips,† â€Å"resumes,† â€Å"interview,† â€Å"career† – so that you can easily focus on what you currently need. No matter whether you are looking for a new job or want to develop as a professional in the company you already work at, this website will be helpful for you. The Muse Here, you can get advice on your current career or job search. What special about that blog is that it also contains the section dedicated to finding your passion in life. Such information will be useful for students who don’t know what profession to choose yet and for adults who are eager to change their career. Indeed The editorial staff of Indeed publishes reports on what jobs are currently popular, gives tips on what companies to join and provides with the predictions on what industries have huge potential to develop. They use statistical data from their job-seeking website that make their reports appear even more reliable. Lindsey Pollak Lindsey Pollak is â€Å"a millennial workplace expert† according to her own words and she really is. Her tips are extremely useful for students and young people as she know them better than they even know themselves. Lindsey also is a public spokesperson. If you are feeling too tired to read posts, you can listen to her interviews. Believe us, they are worth it. Penelope Trunk As a co-founder of Quistic, this lady has been around the block in finding her own career path and helping others with that. In her blog, Penelope discusses the ways of coping with challenges while working, such as getting-up early, and the ways to find the best occupation that fits you. Campus to Career by Kirk Baumann The name of this blog totally reflects its purpose which is to guide students through the challenges they meet on their career path. You’ll find a bunch of practical advice that is given in text or in a graphical form. The blog is frequently updated. Follow it to be aware of the latest news in the sphere. Idealist Careers What fascinating about this blog is that it fits everyone. There are many informational articles about career development. The category â€Å"Internship† is highly-recommended for students. From this section, you will know about available internships and tips how to get them. The Voice of Job Seekers by Mark Anthony Dyson This is not just a regular blog, however, we decided to mention it for several interesting features. First of all, you can find e-guide with job tips for 2018. Also, you have the ability to read other guides and resources that are mentioned on the blog for building up your career. Also, Mark Anthony Dyson, the founder, has his podcast so that you can listen to tips instead of reading. Careful Cents by Carrie Smith Nicholson Carrie Smith Nicholson, the blogger of Careful Cents, works with entrepreneurs and small businesses. If you are interested in founding a start-up, this is what you need. Follow the blog and become more decisive to start your own business. Education Schools and colleges have pre-agreed educational programs and this is the reason why some knowledge you get in educational affiliations can be out-of-date. So, you need to use other sources to learn about new features in industries you are interested in. The Ed Tech Round Up by Michael Karlin Though this website was completed for teachers, it can serve well for students, too. Michael Karlin who is the owner of the blog provides the readers with reviews on educational technologies and other essential information about education and technologies. He also suggests other sources to be smart and up-to-date. Eudemic On this blog, you can also find useful data for teachers and students. There is even a separate section called â€Å"Trends† in which you can get acquainted to current trends in studying and technologies. E-Learning Provocateur by Ryan Tracey Ryan Tracey is an eLearning Manager who writes about his own experience in higher education, eLearning and technologies. It is the case when a blogger learns himself by sharing information with readers. What this means is that Ryan Tracey says that the blog helps him to organize his own thoughts and make his thinking deeper. Technology Enhanced Learning Blog by David Hopkins David Hopkins is an eLearning Consultant who constantly shares his thoughts on various eLearning topics. The aim of this blog is to evolve, search for better ways to work and learn. Besides the blog, David also writes books and articles for other sources. Scholarships-Postitions Guess what you can find out from the blog? That’s right, the latest news on scholarships and free online educational courses. Also, you can keep track of internships in USA. The blog is regularly updated so that you should follow it in case you would like to get a scholarship, deepen your knowledge for free through online courses or look for an internship to start your career. Sholars4dev This doesn’t actually look like a blog but we couldn’t pass is by. This is an extremely helpful source for students who are in search of scholarships. You can find scholarships by categories which is really handy. And again, all information is up-to-date. Lifestyle Today, we’ve got so many opportunities to travel, to cook, to share, to write, haven’t we? However, sometimes having too many options leads to problems with making a choice. We’ve gathered several blogs that will inspire you on what to do, where to go, how to look and actually how to live. Hello Gemma Gemma’s blog is very nice. It is filled with high-quality pictures, interesting thoughts, ideas, recipes etc. There are several categories, such as beauty, food, lifestyle, interiors and vegan kitchen. Looks like Gemma is a very creative person and she has a lot to tell to the world. So, if you are looking for ideas on what to cook, where to travel, how to decorate your room, just visit Gemma’s blog! No doubts you’ll like spending time here. A Pair and a Spare Here, you can find a bunch of ideas for your personal style, for DIY, for interiors, for traveling, for creative activities, for fitness and so on. The blog has nice design and easy navigation. You can even be the part of it if you are looking for a writing job. 2 Cats and Chloe Though it can seem that the blogger’s name is Chloe, it’s not. Actually, the author is called Susan and Chloe is her dog’s name. That’s funny, isn’t it? The blog depicts personal experience of the author. Susan shares her own experiences in traveling, cooking, decorating. Her writing is easy and interesting to read. Check it out! Blue Perk by Freddy Rodriguez Primarily, this blog is about outfits and grooming. If you are interested in men’s fashion, you’ll be really interested to follow Freddy Rodriguez’s blog. Read tips and thoughts from Freddy and admire nice pictures. Barking Up The Wrong Tree Quite an unusual name for a blog, isn’t it? The author of this blog is Eric and according to his own words the blog brings you â€Å"science-based answers and expert insight on how to be awesome at life.† The blog is constantly updated but not every day because the articles are lengthy and high-quality. Writing such content takes some time. Music We don’t want to say much about music because you know all that well. Music is everywhere. Music is an important part of people’s lives. Follow the listed blogs to be aware of musical novelties. AR Factory This is one of the best blogs about various things happening in musical world. There are some categories on the website, such as music, interviews, news. Actually all these are related to music not only tagged â€Å"music.† If you would like to know about the latest hits and concerts, read this blog. For the Love of Bands This source provides you with data on new bands that are not popular yet but have good chance to become. Also, they can promote you if you have your own band. On this source, you can find reviews, industry tips, ideas for playlists. If you get tired from popular radio hits, this is what you need. Indietronica This one is specific. Indietronica focuses on new music genre which combines the elements of indie, electro, electronica, rock and pop. This blog contains information about bands, artists and tracks that are related to the genre of indietronica. Are you interested to hear something brand-new? Join the readership of this blog. KMM Reviews Are you looking for good reviews on music? Here they are. Read reviews and find new music you’d like. Guys form KMM Reviews always provide you with up-to-date data in industry. Also, you can submit new music on this source if you wish. AMBY AMBY is a great place for music lovers! This blog contains various interviews with artists and actors. Bloggers from AMBY always try to find content that attracts music fans. Find the latest news about music from here. Besides, AMBY already has many awards. Caesar Live N Loud On this blog, you are able to know about new music, new artists, mixtapes, read interviews and reviews. The blog is updated every day. The website has a comprehensive navigation and the bunch of attractive articles. That was all about the best blogs that keep you up-to-date for today. Hopefully, at least some of them will inspire you and help you with reaching your goals and fulfilling your dreams.

Impressionism and The Famous Cafes of Paris Essay

Impressionism and The Famous Cafes of Paris - Essay Example The essay "Impressionism and The Famous Cafes of Paris" provide a detailed information about impressionism movement and gives a review on famous cafes of Paris in the 19th century. Impressionists painted day-to-day events instead of extraordinary occurrences. All this had to take place in a very unconventional setting. What better setting could they find than the famous cafes of Paris? How did the cafes relate with the impressionists and the post-impressionists? How much did the cafes influence the artists' work? How different they are now from what they were in the 19th century? These are some of the questions this paper tries to explore. Impressionism was an important movement in painting which began in the late 19th Century and developed through the early 20th century in France. It began when a few of the French artists became disillusioned with the way painting was taught in those days -- the mythological or historical subject matter. â€Å"They also rejected the conventional, i maginative or idealizing treatments of academic paintings.† Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renior, Camille Pissarro, Alfred Sisley, Berthe Morisot, Armand Guillaumin and Frà ©dà ©ric Bazille comprised the initial artists of the movement. Among those who adopted the impressionist style of painting for some time were Edgar Degas and Paul Cà ©zanne. Édouard Manet was the painter who had inspired the impressionists to adopt the style in which they painted. Later, he also joined the movement and adopted its style. The impressionists were not hitherto known by this name. In 1874, when the group organized its own exhibition, an art critic, Louis Leroy, wrote a scathing criticism of the painting Impression, soleil levant (Impression, Sunrise), by the then unknown artist Claude Monet. Louis titled his review, The Exhibition of the Impressionists, and had this to say in his article: Impression - I was certain of it. I was just telling myself that, since I was impressed, there had to be some impression in it and what freedom, what ease of workmanship! Wallpaper in its embryonic state is more finished than that seascape.2 It was from here on, that the group came to be known as the Impressionists and hence, the movement came to be known as Impressionism. This was the identity, which while the world derided, the artists of the group were proud of it. Neo-Impressionism and Post-Impressionism Impressionism, as a technique is still being practiced among the contemporary artists. However, the movement began to wane very shortly. The greatness of the movement does not lie in its longevity, its greatness lies in influence and productivity. As a reaction to Impressionism, two new movements came into being. Artists reacted against the empirical realism3 of the impressionists and devised a new technique based on scientific application of the optical principles of light and color to render the transient nature of time. This technique came to be known as Neo-Impressionism. Georges Seurat, Paul Signac, Henri-Edmond Cross, Albert Dubois-Pillet, Maximilien Luce, Tho Van Rysselberghe and the Impressionist painter Camille Pissarro, formed the first Neo-Impressionist group. Together, in 1881, they formed Socit des Artistes Indpendants (Society of Independent Artists). Like its predecessor, this movement also waned quickly, but not without having a lasting influence on the works of such great artists as Vincent van Gogh, Paul Gauguin, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, and Henri Matisse. An English art-critic, Roger Fry, gave the name Post-Impressionism to the works of artists like Paul Czanne, Georges Seurat, Paul Gauguin, Vincent van Gogh, Henri de Toulous

Human Resources Management Pay for Performance at Dee's Personalized Case Study

Human Resources Management Pay for Performance at Dee's Personalized Baskets - Case Study Example The company needs to analyze following determinants before designing any PFP model. Employees value outcome of their effort in terms of monetary benefit and other recognition Monetary outcome is more valued than any other kind of recognition Performance level expected by the company must be measurable Performance measurement must synchronize with strategic goal of the company Reward must be tempting enough to motivate workers It is evident from the case study size of the organization is not big hence measuring performance of each employee is possible hence the company should adopt individual level PFP system. Merit pay plan and incentive system will complement individual level PFP program. In merit pay plan payment is done as certain percentage of base salary and distributed in top down approach. Research report shows that workers prefer merit pay plan over straight fixed salary. Merit pay plan helps the employee to assume that employer has recognized his/her performance. The company should adopt the system for all employees. Incentive schemes can be applied to all employees of the company. The company can use incentive scheme rigorously to improve performance of sales team. Key Performance Indicator (KPI) model can be used to design PFP system for the company (Parmenter, 2011, p. 3-15). KPI will help the company to identify key performers responsible to increase sales and based on appraisal the company can decide salary structure for key performers. Dee’s Personalized Baskets should introduce performance based incentives for all the employees to motivate them to perform well. The company needs two types of additional information to build effective PFP model (Bernardin & Russell, 2013, p. 753). It is evident from the case that the company is lacking in creating sustainable performance standard and appraisal system. The company should try to design a consistent incentives system to fulfill expectancy of employees (Kreitner & Kinick, 2013, p. 222). Externa l information (industry average for incentives and salary structure and how much competitors are paying to their staffs). Internal data (annual performance report for employees). PFP system of the company needs to address following issues. Annual bonus system not tied with base salary. Bonus pay level should be adjusted to 0% to 20% for non supervisory personnel and 20% to 40% to supervisory personnel. Forced distribution should be used for performance appraisal. Proper alignment between job designation and performance measurement. Designing annual merit pay program for major achievement Key performance indicator should be integrated in the system to monitor performance of employees and KPI should be used improve performance on monthly basis. Answer 2 Gain sharing is the process of sharing financial benefits of increased productivity or cost reduction with employees. Gain sharing plans aim to reduce level of human resource pool required to produce certain output or increase producti vity from existing human resource pool. Research suggests that maximum effectiveness of gain sharing can be achieved by 1- cooperative union, 2- utmost faith between employee and employer, 3- participation of worker and management to achieve common organizational goal. Research scholars believe measuring gain sharing is difficult because involvement of complex financial