Social Work Student

In this essay I will discuss how I feel that I have developed personally and professionally as a social work student during the first level of the degree course. I will do this through examination of reflective accounts recorded during the placement learning opportunity. I believe that the use of reflection has been very significant in enhancing my personal skills and learning about my own values. I also believe that the course has instilled me with more self awareness and has given me a better understanding of how I am perceived by others.I have learned that through anti oppressive practice, social workers are able to promote inclusion by challenging discrimination and inequalities. In this essay, I will examine the methods, tools, and techniques that I have learned to date. I will conclude by discussing my particular learning needs and plan for the remainder of the course. As part of this, I will consider my learning style and the necessary methods I will utilise to bridge the lear ning gaps. As well as benefiting from the academic aspects of the course, I believe that the work placement has been hugely significant in my personal and professional development.During the placement learning opportunity I was based with a social worker in a small unit attached to a hospital. The unit specialises in palliative care services to patients and carers who are affected by life threatening illnesses. I was also fortunate to have the opportunity to liaise with many other agencies that were in some way related to the organisation. During the first year of the course I have become more aware of the importance of personal and professional development.I agree with Thompson (2002), who states that the development of personal and professional skills is fundamental to becoming a competent social worker and making the transition from student to practitioner. Therefore professional development is essential to social work students and practitioners to increase and revise their knowl edge and skills. Attention must be paid to enhancing our abilities to ensure progression occurs on a professional and a personal front. It is important that individuals develop professionally.Taylor emphasizes this (2010, pg 66) by quoting that ‘students or qualified  practitioners cannot solely rely upon personal experience’. He continues with ‘we need to develop our professional knowledge, otherwise conducting our practices solely upon personal experiences will run the risk of bias’ Professionally, I feel I have matured by transferring skills from previous employments to my present role of student. Throughout my working career I have had experience working in nursing and palliative care. Although these are loosely related to social work by virtue of being in the healthcare industry, when I embarked on the course, I didn’t feel that I had the necessary experience to draw from.However, I have progressively grown to realise that there are indeed som e key skills that I have be able to transfer and apply to this social work degree course and in the placement. I believe that another area of improvement in my professional development is my understanding of principles and key concepts in social work practice such as poverty, social exclusion, and accountability. I have a much deeper comprehension of values including empowerment, rights, respect, confidentiality and honesty. I am able to integrate them into all aspects of social work training and am highly aware of the issues surrounding conflicting values.I am much more familiar with the Codes of Practice for Wales (2003) as a result of identifying them and relating them to practice. In relation to professional development, it is also suggested in the Codes of Practice (2003) that as social care workers, we must ‘undertake relevant training to maintain and improve knowledge and skills to contributing to the learning and development of others’. During my work placement period, I was involved in meetings with many different people working in different streams of the organisation. Additionally, the work placement has also helped me understand how multi-professions collaborate.This has helped me start to appreciate the diversity of a social workers role. From a professional perspective, I also believe that the ECDL training courses have been very beneficial. I envisage that the day to day work of a social worker will involve the use of software such as Microsoft Word for reports etc. I also believe that a basic understanding of software such as Microsoft PowerPoint will be very useful for creating professional presentations. The academic aspects of the course will hopefully prepare me for the professional demands of social work as my knowledge gradually builds over the remainder of the course.In addition to this, self reflection, planning, self evaluation and academic learning such as lectures, essay writing, work placement, will help me succeed in b ecoming a responsible, assertive social worker. As far as my personal development is concerned I feel that there has been a marked improvement in my contribution to discussions and debates. Although some of the subject areas discussed have been extremely challenging, such as issues related to children, I feel that over the year I have started to feel that I have a lot more to offer as my understanding of the subject matter has increased.I feel better placed to question and challenge other people’s opinions on ethical matters and am also far more confident when having to make presentations to the group. I also feel that advancements in my personal development are vital. Thompson (2002, pg66) discusses the importance of it, ‘it is just as important as professional development. Learning provides us with a basis for personal growth and development by facilitating and encouraging self awareness. It also helps us to promote self esteem and a positive self image’.As a s tudent, I understand that I am responsible for my own personal and professional development in conjunction with the material delivered on the course. It is important that I continue to improve my standard of practice by embracing all types of learning opportunities available. Social work is a profession that continues to change and develop rapidly Trevithick (2002). Social workers are involved with individuals who are often in situations where there is high risk, complexity, stress, uncertainty and conflicts. Analytical skills and knowledge are required to assess and make judgement in these situations.Legislation and research is constantly changing and it is imperative that social workers are well informed of any modifications. If we don’t develop personally and professionally and do not keep pace of these changes we will increasingly become more and more out of touch with the reality of clients lives and therefore less equipped to undertake our duties (Thompson 2009). Reflec tion has been described as being central to good social work practice, but only if action results from that reflection (Horner 2007). Having the ability to reflect appropriately and effectively is a vital component to developing professionally and maturing personally.Reflective practice is imperative because practitioners have important roles and the decision we make about service uses should be thoroughly thought through. Reflection helps us to minimise risk and to prevent adopting ‘off the peg’ solutions to practice (Thompson 2009). Reflection supports developing our knowledge and learning from the errors of practice. We can develop ways in which we can empower individuals, be anti discriminatory and have anti oppressive approaches to practice. Interrogation of our actions will provide us with critical feedback and help us assess and evaluate our learning, ultimately enhancing our practice (Oko 2008).Schon (1991) as cited in Adams et al (2009) breaks down the notion o f reflective practice. Firstly, reflection-in-action involves reflecting as the action proceeds. This will evidently help us to identify new aspects of the situation and thinking them through while proceeding with the action. Secondly, Schon writes about reflection-on-action which involves considering what and why something happened after the event has occurred and the importance of translating this information into knowledge (Knott and Scragg 2010).Reflection is a tool that has allowed me to articulate knowledge from theory in a more meaningful way. I recognize that reflection does not always provide answers but does lead to new understanding. It has helped me challenge the reality of theory whilst on placement and through actual experience. An example I can demonstrate this with is that in social work theory, services should be needs-led as opposed to resource-led (Trevithick 2002). However in reality, resource constraints that operate in some local authorities make this unrealist ic. In reality demands far exceed the supply.Reflecting back on the experience of the placement and working in palliative care, at times I did feel quite tense and despondent. I had not worked intensively in those settings for some time and in some ways it was a relief as the placement came to an end, not to be discussing death, diagnosis and prognosis. I often questioned how my practice assessor managed to achieve goals and practice effectively whilst dealing with such emotive cases. There was one occasion when chatting with a service user who had had a terminal diagnosis, she became quite open and frank about her prognosis.I didn’t feel that I was fully prepared for her to start discussing her prognosis with me. Whilst, I felt very uncomfortable having the conversation I did remain professional and controlled. I was concerned that she may become distressed or that I would not manage the situation appropriately. Looking back on this experience, I am much more aware of the im portance of reflecting upon emotions and hopefully this will help me to manage emotive situations appropriately in future. Self awareness is a way in which we are able to explore our own personalities, traits, beliefs, inclinations, values and tendencies (Oko 2008).It is important that we are aware and are able to observe ourselves and the image that we portray to others. Without effective self awareness skills I am not going to be conscious of the ways in which I influence people and the signals I indirectly transmit. Self awareness will also allow me to build upon areas of strength and identify areas that may need addressing. Unless social workers are able to be aware of areas of vulnerability it is likely that they will be unable to react and respond to the service user objectively (Taylor 2008). Whilst on placement I encountered a service user’s son who was a substance misuser.I have previously worked in a drug rehabilitation centre and my experiences of the center were n ot good as I was threatened and intimidated on many occasions. Whilst observing the situation on placement I quickly became annoyed and frustrated by him. At the time, I felt that he was selfish bearing in mind his mothers terminal illness. I found myself thinking about my job in the rehab center which brought back uncomfortable memories. I did not write or discuss this with my practice assessor as I didn’t want to dedicate any time thinking about such negative experiences.On reflection, I now understand that it is my responsibility to confront such issues otherwise I will not successfully continue as a competent social worker student. I am aware that this encounter triggered an inappropriate reaction and I am committed to resolving these issues. Lishman 1994 as cited in Trevithick (2000) pg 84 states that failure to be self aware and confront such issues will lead to ‘falling into pockets of distress that will lead to inattention, poor listening and inappropriate actio ns’.I am able to see the connection between self awareness and managing prejudice, discrimination and oppressive practice. I am aware that I did not have a great deal of empathy for particular groups in society and before the course started admittedly I did feel that certain individuals in society may have contributed to the crisis’s that they found themselves in. I felt that these citizens did not require prioritization or merit support and guidance from a care service as I felt that there were other more deserving individuals.I have grown to understand that my judgments and thoughts were unjustified. By being more self aware and using reflection, I am able to be clear of my own values and how they may shape my practice. As I progress, I feel that by working with these groups of people that I will to grow to understand how and why individuals find themselves in these situations. I will continue to strive to develop my knowledge and hopefully as I progress, I will take time to educate myself and learn more about human behaviour. Whilst on placement, I was unaware of any form of oppression or anysignificant injustice issues. Dominelli (1996) pg states that ’anti oppressive practice is a form of social work practice which addresses social divisions and structural inequalities in the work that is done with people whether they are users (‘clients') or workers. AOP aims to provide more appropriate and sensitive services by responding to people's needs regardless of their social status’. Reflecting back I recall a situation that occurred with a service user who was terminally ill. He had expressed a wish to die at home.Whilst visiting the gentleman with my practice assessor, a community healthcare professional was present. It became apparent that the professional was eager for the service user to be admitted into hospital. She portrayed a negative image of being nursed at home and persistently pointed out the problems that she envis aged. I personally felt that this was because there would be a lot more pressure upon her workload to care for him and make the necessary calls throughout the day. It later became apparent that the community professional were experiencing difficulties with staff sicknesses.This was his final wish to die at home and in my opinion she was using her authority to influence him to be admitted for her own benefit. I believe that her workload pressured her to do this. He was disadvantaged, very poorly and with very little to strength to debate this issue with her. At the time, I didn’t connect this to oppressive practice where the other professional exercised inappropriate use of power. I am now more aware of issues surrounding continuing healthcare and funding. I now feel that I am much more alert to these issues and in the future I would question other individual’s actions.Anti oppressive practise begins with understanding myself and aspects of society were oppression is em bedded. As a social work student, I will strive to value and promote every human being and their rights to be respected. I will attempt to work towards combating oppressive practice by acting as an advocate and practice methods of inclusion. I will try to ensure that I do not contribute to such acts and will become more aware of social divisions, power differences and the relationship between the myself and service users (Adams et al).As part of my progression as a student, I have identified many areas that I need to address and expand upon during the remainder of the course. In order to successfully address these learning needs I have studied a learning model established by Kolb (1975). He suggests that there are four types of concepts that are needed to be effective learners. These include concrete experience, observation and reflection, abstract conceptualisation and active experimentation (Knott and Scragg 2010). I will attempt to adopt his hypothesis to make the learning proces s a more straightforward procedure.The main learning needs I have identified are firstly developing my understanding of theories and acknowledging the importance of the role that they play in practice. Initially I was apprehensive about making links but now I feel more confident as I approach the next stage. I wish to relate and recognize the connections between significant theories and social work thinking and practice and problem solving. I will achieve through this through lectures, reading and from practice on the level 6 placement. I also wish to become more aware of issues surrounding children and young people.More specifically, a deeper understanding of safeguarding issues and the legislation and policies related to this that shapes and guide social work duties. This will be achieved through lectures, learning actual legislation from books, documents and through placement (if this is the area in which I am allocated). I would also like to become more aware of social work in t he Welsh context and familiarise myself with cultures in Wales. The overall picture of the Welsh population is older, poorer and in worse health that the entire UK (Scourfield 2008).I want discover why this is the case and how it impacts upon social work practice. I also wish to learn more about different identities and ethnic groups living in Wales and develop a better understanding of the use of languages and how these compare to other regions in the UK. I also think it is important that I build upon my existing knowledge of the Codes of Practice for Wales (2003), and have the ability to instinctively relate them to practice. This will achieved through lectures, reading literature and hands on learning whilst in practice.In addition to trying to adopt the Kolb learning method, I completed a questionnaire to establish what type of learner I was. After reading Honey and Mumford (1995) literature I was not able to categorise myself into one particular learning style or preference but was able to relate to aspects of all categories. My knowledge and skills will develop with experience over the forthcoming years. I will take full advantage of placement to maximize my learning. I will try to become more observant of others by studying them.I will try to adopt good techniques and practice when I identify them and also to learn from bad practice. I will attempt to make the most of tutorials and supervision particularly in the discussion of emotive, stress and management issues. Additionally, I will try to develop and improve my reflective. To conclude it can be stated that personal and professional development is an essential part of social work practice. Due to the complex nature of social work and the diversity of human behaviour, it is imperative that students and qualified practitioners continue to progress alongside an ever changing society.Reflection is an important catalyst to support social workers in enhancing their practice. I am much more self aware and f amiliar with adopting anti- oppressive methods of practice. Whilst I am pleased with my progression to date, I am fully aware that I have many unmet learning needs which I hope to address throughout the remainder of the course. I am enthusiastic about the journey ahead and look forward to learning the skills that will enable me to launch my social work career.

Irobot Company

g 1. 0| Executive summary| 2| 2. 0| Situational Analysis2. 1. Political factors2. 2. Economic factors2. 3. Social factors2. 4. Technological factors| 3-6| 3. 0| SWOT Analysis3. 1. Strengths3. 2. Weaknesses3. 3. Opportunities3. 4. Threats| 7-9| 4. 0| Marketing Objectives| 10| 5. 0| Targeting and Positioning5. 1. Targeting5. 2. Positioning| 11-14| 6. 0| Marketing Strategies6. 1. Product 6. 2. Price6. 3. Place6. 4. Promotion| 15-19| 7. 0| Implementation and Control| 20-21| 8. 0| Conclusion| 22| 9. 0| References| 23| 10. 0| Appendix| 24-27| TABLE OF CONTENT 1. 0. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Robot Corporation designs, manufactures, and sells a variety of robots include floor vacuuming robots, pool and gutter cleaning robots. Our marketing objectives are to continue to strengthen our brand, which is to continue having advertisement to increase band awareness in the market, to have high market shares of 20% rather than 11. 67% by December 2012, which we believe this product Cleany will very much cont ribute to the increase in market shares, and to have market expansion in different parts of the world. Our new product is the robotic dirt eating machine. It is called Cleany.It is served as a vacuum cleaner, as well as a scrubber. When the floor, sofa or bed has dirt, Cleany will help clean them up. It is round in shape and it has no sharp ends. This product is very convenient to be used. It ensures safety and cleanliness. Moreover, this product is environmental friendly, it uses solar energy to charge its battery. Our packaging focuses on the protection of the product. We use thick polystyrene to wrap our product. We want to make sure it reaches our customers doorstep without any damages. Cleany is a good quality product. It performs well and it’s durable.Irobot plans to use price skimming as our pricing strategy. From time to time, discounts of 15-20% will be given so that customers with lesser income distributions can also purchase Cleany. The budget allocated to advertis e Cleany through television, radio, magazines, and newspaper, to give sponsorship and to create event to create brand awareness in the market is RM 662,000. 2. 0. SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS 2. 1. Political Factors Tax Tax charged by government to irobot varies from different countries. The standard corporate tax rate in Malaysia is  25% since 2009, while resident small and medium-sized companies (i. . companies capitalised at MYR 2. 5 million or less and not part of a group having a company exceeding the above capitalisation threshold) are taxed at 20% on the first MYR 500,000, with the balance taxed at the 25% corporate tax rate. (TaxRate. cc, 2009-2012) But according to our financial position, tax does not very much affect our company. Employment law The legal/political aspect is very important in global marketing. â€Å"International law† can be defined as rules and principles that states and nations consider binding upon themselves. FAO Corporate Document Repository, 2009) Th ere are employment laws that we need to abide to. For example, we are not allowed to hire child labour in our workplace, we are supposed to grant our employees leave and benefits. Our employees have the right to take sick leave when they are not feeling well, we need to pay our employees extra if they are working overtime. This law has widely opened the eyes of our company. It somehow affects our company because now we know how the employment law works and how to make decisions accurately. 2. 2. Economic Factors Economic growth MIER downgrades 2011 GDP growth rate to 4. percent year-on-year. For 2012, MIER revises the GDP growth forecast to 5. 0 percent. (Suzy, 13 October 2011) Malaysia economic grows from year to year and in 2012, It will probably grow up till 5. 0 percent. During economic growth, customer’s disposable income will increase, and therefore, they have more money to spend now. This factor will most probably increase our company’s sale and cause irobot Com pany’s profit margin to increase. Inflation From time to time, there will be inflation around the world. From our pass experiences, each time there’s inflation, it will somehow affect our company.Customers may consider to not purchase our product first until their income is stable. Below is a graph on Malaysia’s inflation rate (International Monetary Fund – 2011 World Economic Outlook) In year 2010 the inflation rate in Malaysia has increase to 1. 7% from 0. 6% in 2009. Irobot is hoping the inflation to decrease in 2011 and 2012. Increased fuel price The current increased price in fuel since 2 years causes irobot Company to have a slightly lower profit margin as now we have to increase our fuel expenses. For every litre of RON 95, the actual price is RM2. 5, and the price of RM1. 90 at the pump translates to a subsidy of 85 sen, or 31% of the actual price. (Anthony, 6 October 2011) Therefore, starting from 2012, the decrease price of fuel will allow our c ompany to spend lesser on fuel which will be an advantage to the company. 2. 3. Social Factors Attitudes to work and leisure In the 21 centuary, people are all so busy with their studies, works and daily activities. This affect out company sales, as more people now purchase our products as our products are all robotic products that will assure our customers convenience. DemographicsWith the population of 27, 467, 837 residents in Malaysia, some of them have very high income distribution and it will positively affect the irobot Company. We will be able to reach higher sales revenue because the chances of them buying our products will be higher. However, we also have customers that have low income distribution. Therefore, we provide discounts at times, so that this group of customers can purchase our product when our products are on discount. 2. 4. Technological Factors Internet The ability to access to the internet grants our company a lot of advantages.We target to increase the comp any’s sale by 4% through internet sales. Earlier a person had to go to the mall to purchase a product. This is not necessary now. The products for sale can be displayed on your website and the customer can order them from home itself. The only thing that you as a seller have to do is confirm the financial transaction and deliver the goods at the place specified by the buyer. This saves a lot of expenditure both on the part of seller as well as the buyer. 2. 5. SWOT Analysis 2. 5. 1. Strength The company receives a lot of positive images and feedbacks from the consumers.The consumers are more than satisfied to work with us. These are some of the company’s strength. Customer service We make sure all of our staffs work effectively and efficiently, and make sure they are accountable of their work. Besides, we provide customers with extremely good services. The workers are given training to be nice and friendly to all consumers. We connect with and laugh with our customers, even if just for few moments. We always believe that being nice has its own rewards. With positive customer’s service, we will be able to make our customers come back.Strong financial position Our company has a strong financial position in the market. The irobot profit margin is 11. 67% this year. Our target is to reach 20% of the market share by December 2012. To achieve that target, we will have more promotions and advertisements to create stronger brand awareness in the market to attract customers to us. Above is the graph of the profit margin of irobot Corporation from year 2007-2011 (irobot Corporation (irbt), 14 November) 2. 5. 2. Weakness Apart from just strength, every company has its own weakness. The irobot Company is weak in these few ways.Realizing our weakness, we promise to improve in the near future. Product pricing The prices of irobot products are higher as compared to its competitors. Although our products qualities are up to the standard, customers might w ant to try something cheaper when there is inflation or when they have other extra expenses to spend that moment. High operating cost The operating cost of irobot is somehow quite high. This includes salaries and wages to the employees, advertising, and cost of raw material, rent, fuel cost for transportation and also all kinds of taxes. . 5. 3. Opportunities Advanced technology With the availability of wifi, Irobot manages to attract more customers. Customers can now buy our product online. It would be very convenient for our customers as they do not have to come all the way to our retail stores to purchase the product. Growth in robotic industry Study shows that the robotics industry will grow from its present $11 Billion status to upwards of $70 Billion by 2025. Therefore, in future, the demand for robot industries will rapidly increase in demand. 2. 5. 4. ThreatLower cost competitors The company has faced tremendous competitive pressure. There will be price wars existing from ti me to time where our competitors lower down the price of their products, causing us to have a lower profit margin if we also reduce the price of our products. For example, if LG vacuum cleaner decreases their price, our competitors will go to them to try their product and this will cause us to make lesser sales. Competitors Even though irobot is a well known brand but they also have threat that they need to consider.They have many competitors in the market such as LG, iClabo, and also Vbot. So we have to be ready with all kinds of technologies updates in order to stay in front of the competitors. 3. 0. MARKETING OBJECTIVES Continue to Strengthen Our Brand. We intend to continue to enhance our brand image and corporate identity. The iRobot brand is designed to communicate innovation, reliability, safety and value. Our robots’ performance and uniqueness have enabled us to obtain strong word-of-mouth that leads to increasing brand awareness.We intend to continue to invest in our marketing programs to strengthen our brand recognition and reinforce our message of innovation, reliability, safety and value. Higher market shares The irobot Corporation currently holds 11. 67% of the profit margin in the market. Its aim is to achieve a higher market share of 20% by December 2012. Market expansion Our objective is to expand our leadership not only in Australia, but in more countries such as the US, Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Africa and many other countries in designing and building practical robots and in developing robotic technology. . 0. TARGETING AND POSITIONING 4. 1. Targeting Targeting strategies Instead of going after a small share of a large market, irobot Company chose to go after large share of few submarkets. The submarkets that we chose are the busy working people and also upper class families. We plan to focus only on two segments because we know that through concentrated marketing, firm will possibly achieve strong market position in the segment that it serve because it has greater knowledge of the segments. In this way, there will also be specialization in production, distribution and promotion.Instead of going after a small share of a large market, our company chose to go after large share of few submarkets. The submarkets that we have chosen are people who are always busy working and the upper class families. We plan to focus only two segments because we know that through concentrated marketing firm will possibly achieve strong market position in the segment that it serve because it has greater knowledge about what two three segments need and want. In this way, there will also be specialization in production, distribution and promotion. Below are few segments that we are targeting.Demographic Segmentation This product is made for both genders, female and male. It is made for all group ages, right from young working adults, to adults, to middle aged people and finally, senior citizen. Both male and female eat chocolate. And peop le with different age groups eat chocolate as well. This product is made for any religion as all religion can eat chocolate. It is also made for people with occupation that are busy working and has high income. Psychographic Segmentation Market is divided into different groups based on social class. We are targeting those upper class families.Looking into the personality characteristic, Cleany is mainly made for busy people. Geographical Segmentation This product is basically marketed to all busy states, regions, and cities in Malaysia where there are more people living in For example, Kuala Lumpur and Malacca. This product is also marketed to different western countries such as Spanish, United States, Australia and New Zealand and also to the Asian countries like Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Korea. Behavioral Segmentation When this product is launched, we would expect people to have certain significant knowledge about our product.We also want customer to have good attitude towards our pr oduct. When they use our product, they will have a good perception about our product. They will give good response to our product. Once they have tried our chocolate, they will introduce our product to their families, friends and colleague and will even think of purchasing it again in the future. This product will grant them ease when they have no time to vacuum their house. Benefits Segmentation Customers nowadays want to look for things that can lighten their burden. Cleanny can absolutely lighten their burden by just needing them to press a button.And the floor, bed and sofa will be all cleaned. 4. 2. Position We want customers to have a perception that our product is a high quality product, a product that can be trusted, and a product that is of reasonable price. We want to be above our competitors in the mind of all our consumers and we want them to be more than satisfied when they use our product and to come back to us and buy them. Besides, they will also recommend our produc t to their friends. In order to be different in the market, we make sure that we position our product in three different ways.Product differentiation, service differentiation and also channel differentiation. Product Differentiation Our product is different than our competitors. It serves as a vacuum cleaner and also a scrubber. When there are dirt on the floor, Cleany will suck up all dirt and when there are small unwanted particle that is sticked to the floor, Cleany will help scrub them off until it is clean again. Apart from that, Cleany does not require electricity. It uses solar energy as a power resource. Service Differentiation Our company produces delivery service.We always believe that the more services we offer, the more satisfied the consumers, the more consumers we will get. After all, all we want to do is to satisfy our consumers’ needs and wants. Whenever consumers want to place an order they can just give our company a call, and we will send them the product t hrough speedy, careful and convenient delivery. Consumers can also place their order online. This will be so much easier for them. They can purchase the product anytime they want. Channel Differentiation In business point of view, we have to be different in order to win our onsumer over our competitors, we tried our very best to be different and to be outstanding, so that we will be win the hearts of our consumers and have good relationship with them. We employ expertise to advertise our product to the market to create brand awareness, to make sure most of the people in the market have heard of our product. We make sure our product will work well and consumers will be satisfied using them. Other than that, we do carry out cause-related marketing (Charity). We give food to the homeless. We sometimes send our people to visit the old folk’s home. Positioning strategiesThe irobot has chosen two positioning strategies to follow. Product attributes Cleany offers several benefits to the user. first of all, this product is so unique. It works as a machine that helps to clean. With just a button, house works are now so much easier. Customers do not need to sweep and mop the floor. When the side of this product touches any hard surfaces, it will automatically change direction. Away from competitors Our product is made away from the competitors. Normally vacuum cleaner works manually where someone has to hold it and move it to places that need to be cleaned.Normally, someone has to scrub the floor using brush. With the existence of this product, customers do not have to worry about cleaning the floor, the sofa, and the bed. 5. 0. MARKETING STRATEGIES 5. 1. Product 5. 1. 1. Product Features The robotic dirt eating machine (Cleany) looks like this. It is round and it has no sharp ends. 5. 1. 2. Product Benefits Convenience Cleany works as a vacuum cleaner as well as a scrubber. This product makes it very convenient for the customers as the customers do not have to v acuum or to mop the floor themselves. By just pressing a button, this product does it all for them.This product can be used on the floor, on the bed also also on the sofa. Customers that have busy schedule will really fall in love with this product. Cleanliness This product will ensures floor, beds and sofas to be clean, shiny and makes dirty stains to leave. When liquid are spilled on the floor, the dirt eating machine will help wipe it clean. When there are small unwanted particles that are sticked on the floor, this product will help to scrub it out. Safety When we produce this product, we make sure that it is not dangerous and it will not hurt people.That is why this product does not have any sharp ends. It is made round in shape so that it can be safely used. Therefore, customers that have children at home will be able to feel at ease to use our product. Environmental friendly This product is environmental friendly. It works on solar energy. In order to fully charge its battery , customers have to just put this machine under the sun for 30 minutes. This product helps customers to save electricity. Warranty If the dirt eating machine is spoilt within 2 years of purchase, irobot will provide a free machine to our customers.But so far, we have not come across any cases like this for other products irobot produces. 5. 1. 3. Product Labelling and Packaging Product packaging is the activities of designing and producing the container or wrapper for a product. Our product packaging will be based on: Product protection Our packaging concept is to mainly offer product protection. The product will be wrapped with polystyrene and be placed in thick brown recycled boxes to prevent any damages while product is sent to each stores and customers. We are using recycle boxes because we are focusing more on environmental concerns.Using methods Outside of the packaging, there will be instructions on how this product should be used. Customers can always read them first before starting to use this product to ensure they know exactly how this product works. 5. 1. 4. Product Quality Good performance Cleany performs very well and we often have good feedbacks from customers that have purchased some other products from our company. First of all, it works very quickly. Apart from that, it is easily used. Customers have to just press buttons and it will work on its own. Durable Cleany is an extremely durable product.It could last customers for years if taken care in proper way. This product is very hard and tough. This does not break or crack easily. Therefore, customers can feel calm using it. 5. 2. Price Price is the amount of money charged for a product or service. Price skimming We are going to use price skimming as our pricing strategies. This is to establish a quality brand image in the market. We are going to set higher price for this product to attract the least price sensitive market segments. From time to time, discounts will be given to our customers, probably about 15%-20% of the normal price.The reason why we do not use penetration pricing is because we do not want customers to have the perception that our product is a low quality product. Therefore, using price skimming, we have decided to set our product at RM539. Customers can either make their payment by cash or by credit card. Although there is a risk we are taking, as this product might not establish too much profit for the company in the beginning, but we believe as customers start using it, they will see all kinds of benefits the dirt eating machine provides and this good news will be spread by word-of-mouth.Also, by strong promotion and aggressive advertising, our products will be widely sold to the market. 5. 3. Place Distribution channel Most businesses use third parties or  intermediaries  to bring their products to market. irobot Company contains one intermediary. The suppliers will send their products to the retail store, and the retail store then sell the go ods to the final consumers. We do not have wholesale in between so that we could save cost so that the price of our products will not increase. Coverage The type of coverage that the irobot Company is using is the selective distribution characteristics.The dirt eating machine is a shopping good where it can be found in quite a number of outlets in Malaysia. Outlets that are chosen are all of the Jaya Jusco in Malaysia, 9 of the Giants in Malaysia and also 11 of the Tescos’ in Malaysia. Transport Lorries will be used in order for manufacturers to transport their products to all retail shops. And from retails stores to customers, we will post the products to their house using Post Laju. Location Irobot Companies are normally built at places where they know they are going to make profit. Stores that do not meet the requirements are closed down.Therefore, only the most profitable stores survive. 5. 4. Promotion Advertisings We have all kinds of advertising in the market such as T elevision ( Astro, TV8, NTV7 ), Magazines (CLEO, Autoworld Emzime, Chip Malaysia), Newspaper (The Star, Berita Harian, Sin Chew Daily), Radio (Hitz Fm, My FM, Mix Fm, light and easy FM) and also billboard in different places in Malaysia. The irobot company does not mind spending money on advertisement because we believe it’s an investment. We spend money to make more money. Once Cleany is able to create strong brand awareness, that’s when our money comes back.We have spent RM602, 000 through all many kinds of advertising to get our product known. Internet activities We have several internet activities. We have our own irobot website which is irobot. com. We have all the updates of our product in that website. Besides, we also have made a Facebook page that we place the price and our product updates there as well. We know that internet is a very efficient way to reach our customers. Events and sponsors Every year we will lay aside RM20, 000 for events and sponsors. Ever y year, in the month of July, we will carry out social events in colleges, children’s home, and old fox home.We also give out sponsor to companies that needed them. Exhibitions We will carry out exhibitions and our employees take down the names and the email address of people who come to the exhibition because we know that those people that come, they are interested in our product. We will email them about the updates of our products, when will we be launching new products, and also when will we have discounts for our products. To promote our company and also to make our products known to the market, we have spent a total of RM662, 000 in year 2011. 6. 0. IMPLEMENTION AND CONTROLTask| Description| Person in charge| Date to complete| 1. | Meeting on how marketing programme will be carry out. | All marketing department staffs| 20/11/2011| 2. | Advertise the new product on television during peak time on Astro, TV8 and NTV7. | Peter| 21/1012011| 3. | Advertise the dirt eating mac hine (Cleany) on The Star, Berita Harian and Sin Chew Daily newspaper for 2 days per week, which are Friday, Saturday and Sunday. | Derek| 21/10/2011| 4. | Advertise new product on Hit, My, Miz and light and easy FM Radio daily. | Isabella| 23/11/2011| 5. | Advertise on magazines. Paul| 24/11/2011| 6. | Carry out event. | Lucy & Michael| 27/11/2011| 7. | Give out sponsor. | Krystle| 12/12/2011| Irobot Company Marketing Programme irobot Company Budget Activity| Budget (RM)| 1. Advertising CampaignTelevision ( Astro, TV8, NTV7 ) Magazines Newspaper (The Star, Berita Harian, Sin Chew Daily)Radio (Hitz Fm, My FM, Mix Fm, light and easy FM) Billboard | RM 550,000RM 8,000RM 35,000RM 7,000RM 2,000| Public Relation – Events and sponsorship| RM 20,000| Sales Promotion (Discounts, vouchers, rebates, free gifts)| RM 40,000| Total| RM 662,000| 7. 0.CONCLUSION In order to successfully sell our products in the market, marketing plan has to be carried out. Company has to plan and discuss in advance about what they want to achieve, whether is it possible to achieve, how are they going to achieve it, and by when are they going to achieve it. Marketing plan is one of the most important tools that a company can use to be successful in the market. The irobot uses concentrated targeting strategy where we go after a large share of a few submarkets. We are targeting the busy working people and also the uppler class families.We believe that Cleany will make it to the market and will bring brand awareness of the company, will product profit for the company and will increase company sales. 8. 0. REFERENCES 1. irobot corporation (irbt) 7 November 2011. Irobot corperation profit margin Available at URL: http://ycharts. com/companies/IRBT/profit_margin [Accessed 5 November 2011] 2. irobot corporation 2011. Company milestone Available at URL: http://www. irobot. com. my/company-milestones. html [accesed 7 November 2011] 3. Jim Riley September 2009. Distribution – introduction Available at URL: http://tutor2u. net/business/marketing/distribution_introduction. asp [Accessed 5 November 2011] 4. Malaysia Monetory fund 2011, Malaysia inflation rate Adopted from URL : http://www. indexmundi. com/malaysia/inflation_rate_(consumer_prices). html [Accessed 15 November 2011] APPENDIX Through this report, I have learnt several things. I have learned that every single company has factors that will either positively or negatively affect the company such as political, economic, social and technological, environmental and legal factors.As a company, we have to always take notes of these factors as it can sometimes be an opportunity to the company or a threat to the company. This report helps me open my eyes to the SWOT analysis that every company has to know of. As a company, we have to know what are our strengths and weaknesses are, the opportunities around us, also the threats that might bring harm to the company. Once we get to know our strengths, we can be better in what we are good at. For example, the location of our business is good. In future, when we were to open another branch in the market, we would think and make good decisions on better locations.Once we get to know our weaknesses, we can always find ways to improve and to be better in areas that we are weak in. For example, our company is lack of marketing expertise. Then, our company should send our employees for marketing training. When we know what our opportunities are we have to grab hold of it and not let it go. For example, the availability of the internet nowadays, if we are able to make use of it, creating a company’s website or allowing customers to buy products online, then it will help generate profit for the company, at the same time, it helps create stronger brand awareness.As for threats, when we know exactly what the threats that we face are, we can avoid it. For example, the price of raw material in a country increases. We can turn the threats into opportuniti es by purchasing raw materials from countries that are selling them at a cheaper price for example, China. Besides that, i have learned so much more about target marketing and positioning as I look into details every single part of it. Target marketing involves breaking a market into segments and then concentrating your marketing efforts on one or a few key segments. Positioning is how you ifferentiate your product or service from that of your competitors. Positioning helps establish your product's or service's identity within the eyes of the customers. Without the knowledge of targeting and positioning, marketer cannot market their product in the market well. It will bring bad effects to the company. Company will not be able to understand the market. They will not know which segments are measurable, accessible, substantial, differentiable and also actionable. Moreover, they will not know which market segment to target in order to get most of the customers.Without knowing how to pos ition their product, they will lose their place in the market sooner or later. They will lose out in the market. This is because other marketers know what targeting and positioning are and have applied it to their product and company. To have an effective and efficient marketing plan, we have to make marketing strategies that are good. We have to be good and try as much as we could to be different in the 4P’s that are product, price, place and promotion. This is because, when the 4P’s are not good enough, customers will not be attracted to us.Instead, they will turn to our competitors. We have to be different and unique in our products features, we have to make our products provide benefits to our customers, the packaging and the labelling of our products should be interesting to be able to attract our customers over from our competitors, and that the quality of our product should be good so that customers will think that our product is worth the price. Apart from just the product features, the price of the product is another main thing that we should consider. Imagine wanting to buy something that you like, but it’s extremely expensive.You would think of other alternatives rather than really purchasing that particular product. The third P Is the place of the company that sells the product. It should be located at places that have potential customers. Also, the types of intermediaries used. We can choose between one, two, three or four depending of the types of products that we are selling and how many intermediaries that we want to have. As for promotion, we can have various kinds of promotion in order to attract customers to us. We can sometimes give out discount and promotions in ways of vouchers, and free gifts to our customers.This is actually for short term sales. We can also carry out events, charity works, give out sponsors. In order to finish this report, I have read through each and every page of my lecturer’s note so that I would not miss any important thing out. I realized I have learn so much more about marketing plan compared to before. Previously, I had no idea that political, economic, social and technological factor can affect a company. Now I know that all these factors are important for a company to take note of, so that they could avoid harmful factors. Previously, I did not know that being different in the market is so important.Now I know, in order to win customers away from our competitors, we have to stand out in the market. I am really grateful and thankful to my lecturer of her lecturer that she has always wrote extra notes on the whiteboard to make sure we understand what she’s teaching and that she had taught us well. When I’m studying the other marketing modules, I have noticed that what my lecturer teaches me, I have heard of it before, I have studied a bit of it before. I realized that it helped me get better understand of my other marketing modules as well because they are almost about the same.

Aspects of British Culture

Aspects of British Culture Aspects of British Culture What is culture? Is it the language we speak, overall ethnicity in a region, or the simple customs of a daily routine? Culture is something we are all a part of whether we like it or not. Your family may have certain customs and routines. This is culture. In this research paper I will be analyzing British culture in four categories: history, ethnicity, customs, and also the future direction of British Culture. How did Britain become so rich in culture? Well Britain certainly did not just appear one day. The name of the country and the term â€Å"English† derive from the Old English word for one of the three Germanic Peoples that invaded the British Isles in the 5 th century (Countries and Their Cultures). The Angles â€Å"Britain† and â€Å"British† derive from a Roman Term for the inhabitants (Countries and Their Cultures). In fact, written records of British History do not exist until the arrival of the Romans (J.P. Dommerville). Be fore the arrival of the Romans, there is only archaeological evidence of Britain’s inhabitants (J.P. Sommerville). The earliest inhabitants of Britain for whom there is compelling evidence are bands of hunters living in Southern and Western England during the Hoxnian (J.P. Sommerville). Many peoples make up the rich history of British Culture. There were many immigrants that came to found The United Kingdom. Their genes still walk the grounds today. Just like America this country was founded, and made by immigrants from many different backgrounds. Like many cultures, there are different peoples whom make up the general ethnicity. British Culture is no exception to this understanding. Britain or the U.K. known to others is located in Western Europe, islands including the northern one-sixth of the island of Ireland between the North Atlantic Ocean, and the North Sea, northwest of France (UK – Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette). The capital of the United Kingdom is London (UK – Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette). The population is roughly 60, 766, 238 people; with an ethnic make-up of White, Black, Indian, Pakistani, Mixed, and Other (UK – Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette). The White Population is composed of: 83.6% English, 8.6% Scottish, 4.9% Welsh, and 2.9% Northern Irish (UK – Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette). The other ethnic populations are composed of: 2% Black, 1.8% Indian, 1.3% Pakistani, 1.2% Mixed, and 1.6% Other (UK – Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette). As you can see, all of these different ethnicities will definitely impact culture. So what customs will follow this diverse cultural background? Many people may assume that British Culture is defined with scones and tea, or the rich writings of Shakespeare; however it is not like this at all. There are many customs that British people practice, that Americans or any other type of nationality may find odd. Many customs are a ssociated with the annual climate, and British Culture is once again no exception. The annual climate of the United Kingdom has temperatures that are moderated by southwest winds over the North Atlantic Current, and more than one-half of the days are overcast (UK – Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette). The U.K. is also home to a constitutional monarchy (UK – Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette). Although there is no defined official language due to the diverse cultural background, the primary language is English (UK – Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette). About 70% of the population speaks English (UK – Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette). Other languages that are frequently spoken include: Welsh, Irish, Ulster Scots, Cornish, Gaelic, and British Sign Language (UK – Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette). The United Kingdom is comprised of four countries: England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland (UK – Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette). Now all of these countries share a common thing, and that is to address a person from a country properly. For instance, English and British do not mean the same thing (UK – Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette). The term â€Å"British†, denotes someone who is from England, Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland (UK – Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette). The term â€Å"English†, refers to people from England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland (UK – Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette). People from different countries want to be known for what they are; another example is people from Scotland are identified as â€Å"Scots†. People from Wales are identified as â€Å"Welsh†. People from Northern Ireland are identified as â€Å"Irish† (UK – Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette).

Child Rape in South Africa Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Child Rape in South Africa - Essay Example Crime is occurring at an unprecedented rate and South Africa now boasts some of the highest rates of violent crime in the world (De Capua & Robertson 2009). Yet, one of the most pressing social issues to emerge is the sexual violence of children. Child rape is occurring at unprecedented proportions resulting not only in the trauma of children but in the increase of HIV/AIDS infections. The South African legal system is struggling to cope with the number of child rape cases and many children's rights advocates argue that the system is flawed in its handling of sexual abuse victims, in particular children. This paper seeks to examine the issues surrounding child rape in South Africa including the role of the legal system in combating this issue. Apartheid emerged in 1948 and was a legalized system of segregation separating the white Boer minority from the Black, mixed-race and Indian majority (South African Government Information 2008). It was a complex set of laws that resulted in the oppression and marginalization of all non-whites in South Africa. Apartheid was brutally enforced by the white minority and state-sponsored violence was commonly used to maintain order and suppresses social uprisings. With the end of Apartheid in 1994, this legacy of social and economic inequality has remained resulting in extremely high levels of violence of which women and children are often victims (Human Rights Watch 2001). Due to social inequality, women and girls are often the most vulnerable victims of violence, in particular, gender-based violence such as rape and sexual abuse (Human Rights Watch 2001). Apartheid was deeply entrenched in South African society and it continues to impact the political, social and economic conditions of the country. Schools, in particular, have felt the brunt of the pervasive violence that has wrecked havoc on the country and its people. According to Human Rights Watch, "the South African education system today is still scarred by the racially discriminatory policies of apartheid and in particular the system of 'Bantu Education' imposed by the National Party government" (2001). During the period of resistance, where freedom fighters waged war against the oppressive Apartheid system, "schools were often transformed into sites of political struggle and frequently become violent spaces" (Human Rights Watch 2001). Since the dismantling of Apartheid, the government has struggled to compensate for the lack of professional teachers.

Australian Company Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Australian Company Law - Essay Example Tom and Adam are in a partnership business even though no written agreement has been made. Partnership business can be established through written partnership deed, orally or by estoppels through the actions of the partners1. Rule 6 (3) of the Partnership Act is mainly used by the courts in determining the existence of the partnership relationship. This rule provides that sharing of the profits and losses is enough evidence of existence of a partnership. Joint ownership of property or sharing of the gross returns does not necessary create a partnership association. According to the case of Smith v. Anderson (1880), partnership business must intent to carry on business and not domestic transactions since the repletion or continuity of business transactions will be evidence of a partnership business2. Adam and Tom must be aware that every partner other than in limited partnerships, or incorporated limited partnerships can act as an agent of the business and his actions are binding to t he business.. Partnership business is not regarded as a separate legal entity thus third parties will be contracting with the partners as individual agents of the business. In the case of Mercantile Credit Ltd v. Garrod (1962), the courts held that partners have the capacity to bind the firm and third parties must not have the knowledge that such partner lacks the authority to transact on behalf of the business3. There are numerous advantages and disadvantages of Tom and Adam conducting their business as a partnership. The main advantages of a partnership business include the ease of formation. Partnership formation does not require many legal formalities but only business registration and business permits. Partnerships offer certain tax incentives since each partner share of profits is added to his or other sources of income and taxed as personal incomes. Partnership business allows for flexibility since the partners can easily alter the partnership deed that contains the rights an d obligations of each partner, the profit and loss sharing ratios and liability of each partner depending on the nature of the partnership. Partners can access 50% CGT discount since they hold an interest in each business asset as an individual. The partners also share losses, decision making and responsibilities of running the business. However, Tom and Adam must also understand the disadvantages of partnership form of business since partners are jointly and severally liable for the liabilities of the business. Partnership business lacks continuity since dissolution can be occasioned by the death of the partner, or disagreements of the partners, bankruptcy of a partner, and retirement. It is difficult to transfer the ownership of the partnership business and partners have unlimited liability for the debts of the business. Since Tom and Adam have the intention of expanding their Winery business, I would advice them to form a limited company since their liability will be limited and their business will be a separate legal entity that can incur debts, sue or be sued. A limited company will allow them easy access to expansion capital. Tom and Adam will be able to easily transfer their ownership in the company through sale of their shares to third parties. Limited Liability Company will allow Tom and Adam to limit their tax liabilities since the company is taxed on its own entity. However, there are many legal formalities and strict regulations that guide the registration and operations of

Sustainability Written Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Sustainability Written Report - Essay Example Originally, geothermal energy was used in hot springs as early as Paleolithic times according to a study made by Cataldi (1993) about the history of hot springs before the Modern Period. Technically, the first geothermal energy harnessed lighted a few light bulbs. The following accounts relate how the world recognized geothermal energy: On July 4, 1904, Prince Piero Ginori Conti tested the world’s first geothermal generator at the Larderello dry steam field in Italy. Merely a couple of years later, this invention was deployed commercially and used to operate drilling equipment. Soon the small town of Larderello was using geothermal power for all its electricity requirements. (History of Geothermal Energy, http://www.economywatch.com) Because of the said event, it is no wonder that Italy maintained the position as being a top producer of geothermal energy for many decades. New Zealand followed suit only fifty-years later. The United States took the risk and invested in the Geys ers Geothermal Field in California which is currently the largest producer of geothermal energy in the world. This location has five power plants and Chevron Corporation spearheads in providing geothermal energy to millions of American homes. Uses of Geothermal Energy Geothermal energy has many useful purposes, with electricity generation as its most widely-known use. Bioeconomicfuel.com cites the 5 different uses of geothermal energy (Stern, 2009): 1. Industrial and Agricultural Uses A good example of which is the role of geothermal energy in drying up timber. In New Zealand, the â€Å"Tasman Pulp and Paper Mill uses geothermal steam in heat exchangers to heat kiln air to 140?C for timber drying†( Stewart, 2009). Aside from timber, crops can also be dehydrated using geothermal energy which makes this type of energy very useful for agriculture. 2. Food Processing The food processing industry can harness the heat from geothermal energy for sterilization process as well as dryi ng. In India, Chandrasekharam (2001) published a paper that advocated the use of geothermal energy in food processing since India’s topography is viable for this type of food processing. However, the United States had already applied that concept way back in 1978 when it opened the geothermal food processing plant in Brady Hot Springs, Nevada. In fact, â€Å"More than 25 million pounds of dehydrated onion and garlic are now being processed annually in Nevada â€Å"(nrel.gov, Oct 2001). This fact just attests to the huge capacity of geothermal energy in providing clean energy at a lesser cost. 3. Electricity Generation The Geothermal Energy Market Report shows that in 2005 alone, the top ten countries used 97% of geothermal energy for electricity generation purpose (refer to Appendix A). According to the International Energy Agency, â€Å"geothermal energy currently supplies less than 1% of the world's total energy demand†. Nevertheless, it has an enormous potential t o mitigate climate changes by reducing the use of carbon fossil fuels. It is a considerable source of renewable energy. In the case of Philippines, (which is second to the United States in using geothermal energy), it has a potential to become one of the world’s largest producer of geothermal energy. Currently, geothermal energy supplies 27% of the country’s electricity (www.philippines. hvu.nl). During the World Geothermal Congress in 2000, it was declared that the â€Å"

Organization's Market Orientation Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Organization's Market Orientation - Assignment Example Market orientation and organizational performance are linked and a critical evaluation is provided for firms which are not market oriented such as M&S yet perform well and recommendations are provided for firms which don't perform well. The importance and characteristics of market orientation are studied along with the barriers to market orientation, how to overcome these barriers, the importance of change management and policies in human resource management, the attributes of internal marketing, quality systems and customer relationship management. The theories and applications of market orientation are also studied using examples of the large companies such as Virgin and M&S. Adoption of market orientation could motivate companies to provide better service provisions and quality and Green et al (2007) argued that within an organization, customer care is primarily important and marketing orientation helps in understanding the needs of customers. By satisfactorily identifying customer needs, organizations could provide quality services that would highlight the positive links between market orientation and service quality. In another related study, Racela et al (2007) show the market orientation in international business relationships with emphasis on cooperation, dependence and relationship distance between organizations or individuals. A survey of Thai exporting firms was done considering business units and Thai export firms. The results obtained from more than 200 firms show that export market orientation of companies enhances cooperation between exporters and distributors and export performance is higher with greater export cooperation and lower relationship distance. The influence of exporter dependence on export performance tends to vary among industry groups. Market orientation is thus essential to the development of business to business relationships that enhances export performance and shows how exporters could manage their relationships to achieve better performance. Marketing orientation is thus helpful in developing cooperative efforts and Racela et al (2007) recommended that overseas dist ributors develop cooperative norms for marketing decisions and actions and also establish some form of mutual dependence for superior performance enhancement. The relationships between market orientation, export performance and behavioral aspects of business relationships are investigated and the paper suggests that market orientation practices help in enhancing cross cultural relationships.A multilayered model of market oriented organizational culture tends to distinguish between market oriented values and norms. The different aspects of market oriented culture within organizations can affect attitudes and behaviors of the sales force and market orientation values can have a substantial impact on role conflict, role ambiguity, job satisfaction and organizational commitment of such employees (Farrell, 2005). However market oriented norms do not substantially affect customer orientation of salespersons. Considering these background studies, we can analyze whether a specific chosen company has adequate market orientatio

Issues That Lead to the Recession Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Issues That Lead to the Recession - Term Paper Example What are the correct investments in a recession and the revised policies and procedures put into operation by the government to combat recession. Thirdly, this report will discuss the impact of the recession and the lessons learnt from it. Definition of Recession â€Å"The NBER does not define a recession in terms of two consecutive quarters of decline in real GDP. Rather, a recession is a significant decline in economic activity spread across the economy, lasting more than a few months, normally visible in real GDP, real income, employment, industrial production, and wholesale-retail sales.†(Business†¦.) â€Å"A significant decline in activity across the economy, lasting longer than a few months. It is visible in industrial production, employment, real income and wholesale-retail trade. ... With the steep rise in the unemployment levels, the government is obliged to extend unemployment benefits to a wider section of the society. Higher borrowing leads to higher taxes and additional interest payments in the future. As shares turn unattractive, the prices begin to dip. Lower profitability and lower dividends create a depressive mood for the investors and they look out for alternative sources of investment. The fall in share prices continues in anticipation of recessionary trends prolonging. But this is only the initial phase. When recession is at its hardest phase, the developments take a strange turn. In anticipation of economic recovery, share prices begin to recover, as the prudent investor calculates that it is the favorable time to invest from the point of view of long term gains. Falling prices of shares may be due to various other factors as well, not alone recession. The normal reaction to recession is that it should result in a lower inflation rate. The highlight of recession is it reduces demand and wage inflation. The issue to be examined is what economic factors impact the recession hard. The current recession is due to rise in oil prices. The expert opinion about this inflation is, it is bound to reduce demand, will result in price wars, as the firms will make all-out efforts to retain consumers. The scenario of falling investments takes volatile shape and hampers economic growth. The vicious circle begins. The slowdown in the growth rate, with the economy expanding with a slower pace, may result in substantial fall in investment. Fall in employment opportunities is the most feared factor during recession. The demand for labor takes a down turn. Not all sectors are impacted hard in equal measure

Response paper about what you thought about Gandhi's work and his Essay

Response paper about what you thought about Gandhi's work and his life. Be sure to include citations - Essay Example According to Francis Sejersted, Alfred Nobel is quoted in his will as having stipulated that his wealth was to be devoted to the annual award of five prizes "to those who, during the preceding year, shall have conferred the greatest benefit on mankind." With regard to the Peace Prize, Nobel defined this as having "done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies, and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses." (Sejersted) It is difficult to imagine how a man who dedicated his life not only to the freedom of his people but to abolishing well-established systems of institutionalized racism and religious oppression could have been overlooked for so many years. In my opinion, this oversight is one of the greatest failings of the Nobel committee in its entire history. Despite the failure of the Nobel committee to recognize the work of this great man, his legacy remains a shining example for all who wish to change the world (or even their own small corner of it) through non-violent

Public speaking Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Public speaking - Assignment Example She pointed that the government could do something of the kind to accept all the oppressed people. The auditorium applauded when she finished but they didn’t listen to her answer and applauded only after the last words ‘Statue of Liberty’. The feedback of the audience wasn’t called by the core of her speech, but by the fact that need to somehow react. The negative feedback of the opponent of the main character was based on the personal hostility and shouldn’t be taken as a constructive critic. Speaking about the main character’s response to the opponent’s aggression, we should mention that as an argument pro her words that it was the 50th birthday. It wasn’t, actually, an argument or even an important fact. So, being in the same situation I would feel quite nervous and annoyed and react another way, for example - try to provide another argument. The girls started arguing on the field of their mutual dislike and provided the far-f etched arguments. So we can conclude that the feedback of the audience and the opponent wasn’t objective at

Birth Order and Aggressive Behavior Essay Example for Free

Birth Order and Aggressive Behavior Essay ABSTRACT The purpose of this research is to determine if birth order correlates to a demonstration of aggressiveness in kindergarten aged children. It is hypothesized that middle born children will demonstrate the most aggressive tendencies, last born children would experience less than the first born, and only children would have the least when compared to all other birth orders. This quasi-experimental methodology will involve a field study of children from the ten kindergarten classes at the Seoul American Elementary School (SAES). Teachers will be asked to complete the Child Behavior Scale (CBS) inventory on each child, used to measure six behavior categories related to aggression. Each CBS inventory will include birth data for the student whose behavior was observed. The findings are expected to show a correlation between birth order and a tendency toward aggression. INTRODUCTION Everyone who is born into a family arrives relative to other children who have already been born or will be at some point in the future or perhaps as an only child. Birth order does not permanently mark each child such as race or gender, but it can impact on the way a person responds to the environment. There have been a number of studies done on the relationship of birth order to personality, intelligence, anxiety and other characteristics with the belief that each child born into a family is treated differently based on their birth order, family interaction and subsequent challenges. Some birth order theorists believe that a childs position in the family greatly influences their personality characteristics which directly affect their behavior both inside and outside of the home (Morales). Not every theorist has the same view and there are those that believe a psychological birth order has more impact than the physical birth order on the development of personality characteristics (Campbell, White Stewart, 1991). In his book, Born to Rebel, Frank Sulloway describes how birth order influences our lives in many different ways from achievement to rebellion and from conformity to creativity (The Edge, 1998). While firstborns and laterborns are not much different in overall levels of creativity, the differences in how that creativity is exercised is very different. Firstborns are more likely to win the Nobel Prize by intellectual achievement within the system while the younger siblings will be more inclined to accept radical innovations in science and social though. His findings showed that revolutionaries and those who supported them were disproportionately likely to be later-borns (Sulloway, 1999). While not every social scientist agreed with Sulloways research (Harris, 1995; e.g., Falbo, 1997 ), others conducted follow-up studies that confirmed the original findings (Zweigenhaft Ammon, 2000), and Freese, Powell Steelman discovered measures in addition to birth order to help explain reasons for various behaviors (1999). This study hopes to build on previous research to determine whether a correlation exists between birth order and a childs tendency to demonstrate aggressiveness. METHOD Coordination with the Seoul American Elementary School (SAES), a Department of Defense Dependent School located on Yongsan Army Base, Yongsan, Seoul, Korea, will be done to get permission for the study. Permission from the school and the parents of the children selected will be obtained prior to the start of this study. PARTICIPANTS This study will be conducted in the classroom during normal school hours for all students attending the ten full day Kindergarten classes at SAES during a specified 30 day period of the school year. There will be approximately 360 students for this study with an equal number of girls and boys, with 45% of the class comprised of Asian-Americans, 20% African-Americans, 15%Â  Latin-Americans and the remainder Caucasians. APPARATUS/MATERIALS Teachers will be provided the Child Behavior Scale (CBS) inventory as a means to assess aggressive, prosocial, and withdrawn behaviors of children ages 5-6 years of age. The CBS contains 59 items for which the teacher must respond using a 3-point response scale (1=doesnt apply, 2=applies sometimes, 3=certainly applies) (Ladd Profilet, 1996). The CBS measures six categories of behavior as follows: aggressiveness with peers, prosocial behavior with peers, exclusion by peers, asocial behavior with peers, hyperactive-distractible behavior, and anxious-fearful behavior. Copies of the CBS inventory and permission for its use will be obtained from its author, Dr. Gary Ladd, at Arizona State University (an email request has been sent copy of email attached). PROCEDURE Teachers from the 10 Kindergarten classes will observe their students for a specified 30 days during the school year, completing the CBS inventory for each student during that time. The teacher will indicate the birth order of the child on the completed inventory which will then be turned in to the SAES front office to be picked up by the study group. RESULTS The expected results will validate the hypothesis that middle born children will tend to demonstrate more aggressive behavior than either first born, last born or only children. Tables are expected to be used for this study and will include a listing of the CBS subscale items related to firstborn, middleborn, lastborn and onlyborn, further identified by girl and boy. An example follows: DISCUSSION Apart from the effects of birth order, there is little information about the ways in which the nonshared environment influences human development, mainly because psychologists have not been successful in developing direct measures of this environment. The challenge for future researchers lies in devising ways to test competing hypotheses that bear on the nature and influence of this elusive environment. Peer groups are an important aspect of this type of environmental influence, but so is the family environment and life experiences as well (Sulloway, 98). REFERENCES Campbell, L., White, J., Stewart, A. (1991). The relationship of psychological birth order to actual birth order. Individual Psychology, 47: 380-391. Falbo, T. (1997). To rebel or not to rebel? Is this the birth order question? Contemporary Psychology, 42: 938-939. Freese, J., Powell, B., Steelman, L.C., (1999). Rebel without a cause or effect: birth order and social attitudes. American Sociological Review, 64: 207-231. Harris, Judith Rich. (1995). Where is the childs environment? A group socialization theory of development. Psychological Review, 102: 458-89. How is Personality Formed? A Talk with Frank J. Sulloway (1998). The Edge Foundation, Inc., Third Culture. Accessed on 13 Feb 2004 at: www.edge.org/3rd_culture/sulloway . Ladd, G. Profilet, S. (1996). The child behavior scale: A teacher-report measure of young childrens aggressive, withdrawn, and prosocial behaviors. Development Psychololgy, 32 (6), 1008-1024. Morales, C. (1994). Birth Order Theory: A Case for Cooperative Learning. Journal of Instructional Psychology 21: 246-250. Rubin, R. Hubbard, J. (2003). Childrens verbalizations and cheating behavior during game playing: the role of sociometric status, aggression, and gender. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 31: 65-78. Solo, R., MacLin, M., (2002). Experimental Psychology. Boston: Allyn Bacon. Sulloway, F. (1999). Birth Order in Runco, M. Pritzker, eds., Encyclopedia of Creativity, 1:189-202. Zweigenhaft, R., Ammon, J., (2000). Birth Order and Civil Disobedience: A Test of Sulloways Born to Rebel Hypothesis. Journal of Social Psychology, 140: 624-628.

Matrimonial Rights of Women Essay Example for Free

Matrimonial Rights of Women Essay Islamic law is a very great jurisprudence worldwide, Islamic law is defined as the law according to the Muslim faith and as interpreted from the Quran also known as Sharia law. The sacred law of Islam is an all-embracing body of religious duties, the totality of Allahs commands that regulate the life of every Muslim in all its aspects. Important feature of Muslim law is the fact that there is no clear separation of Mosque (is a place of worship for followers of Islam) and state. Under Islamic law, the religion of Islam and the government are one. Islamic law is controlled, ruled and regulated by the Islamic religion; a theocracy. Islamic law purports to regulate all public and private behavior including personal hygiene, diet, sexual conduct, and child rearing. Islamic law now prevails in countries all over the Middle East and elsewhere covering 20 per cent of the worlds population. Despite its relative inflexibility, in some ways, Islamic law is superior to other systems of law, such as the preference given to arbitration in civil disputes. Islamic law composed of following elements * Sharia: * Quran * Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (generally known as Hadith) * Sunnah, literally means path. * The Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad consists of his sayings, actions, approval and disapprovals. * ?Fiqh: * Collection of juridical opinions given by various jurists as they pondered over the day-to-day application of Sharia * ?Fatwa: * Legal opinions (typically non-binding) issued by qualified jurists. * Usually provided as an answer to a specific question. Sharia is based on wisdom and achieving people’s welfare in this life and the afterlife. Sharia is all about justice, mercy, wisdom, and good. Thus, any ruling that replaces justice with injustice, mercy with its opposite, common good with mischief, or wisdom with nonsense is a ruling that does not belong to the Sharia even it is claimed to be so according to some interpretations. The main criticism on Islamic law from the western society is â€Å"Islamic law discriminates women’s rights†. Western society has identified so many women’s right violating incidents occurred in the countries which practices Islamic law or the countries which identify themselves as an Islamic republic. For example the following incidents could be recognized as the discriminatory aspect of Islamic law. Traditionally, the Muslim woman marries at a young age to a man of her fathers choice. A husband is entitled to divorce any time, even against his wifes will, by merely declaring verbally that this is his intention.Although the image of the egalitarian woman is slowly developing within some more secular Arab states, it remains largely confined to urban centers and upper-class circles. Ritual sexual mutilation of females is still common in rural areas of Egypt, Libya, Oman and Yemen. According to the UN, utilization of Arab womens capabilities through political and economic participation remains the lowest in the world in quantitative terms†¦.In some countries with elected national assemblies, women are still denied the right to vote or hold office. And one in every two Arab women can neither read nor write. Wife-beating is a relatively common practice in Arab countries, and abused women have little recourse. As the State Department has noted regarding Jordan (and most of the Arab world): Wife beating is technically grounds for divorce, but the husband may seek to demonstrate that he has authority from the Quran to correct an irreligious or disobedient wife by striking her. Abstraction of all above issues points out that most of the restriction on Muslim women connected with their marital life. A patriarchy family system has been formed through Islamic norms and values. however Islamic legal experts and scholars denies the above statement and they strongly argue that Islamic law grants much wider rights to women’s especially in case of marriage life the Islamic women enjoys much wider rights other than non Islamic women’s. Now let’s analyze myths and facts regarding the matrimonial rights provided under the Islamic law. First of all let’s see how Islamic laws treat gender equality. â€Å"And women shall have rights similar to the rights upon them in a just and equitable manner; but men have a degree over them† (Holy Quran2:228). Interpretation given for the above verse by Islamic scholars is the rights of the wives in relation to their husbands are equal to their obligations toward their husbands but men in their obligations toward their wives stand a step further The â€Å"step further† of which the Quran speaks is not a position of greater rank or nobility. The â€Å"step† the Quran makes reference to is the obligatory duty given to the man in the care of the woman; it is not a degree of superiority. Allah ordained men with the responsibility to preserve and solely sustain women. The â€Å"step further† is in no way a form of dominance or preferment. The Quran consistently makes reference to equity, parity, and equilibrium among the genders. It disposes of genders and makes no distinction whatsoever between the superiority or inferiority of men and women. On the contrary, it is the piety of a person that distinguishes him or her by ranks or degrees, not gender or lineage. As stated in this verse â€Å"step further† husband duty bound to maintain his wife, Now let’s see how does Shariah law ensures the Right to Maintenance of a wife. The duty to maintain a wife is the sole responsibility of a husband under Islamic Law. This can be seen in the Quran where it states that: â€Å"Men shall take full care of women with the bounties which Allah has bestowed more abundantly on the former (men, with several special merits) than on the latter (women) , also because they spend a part of (their wealth) to maintain them†¦.† This command is further strengthened by a number of Hadith as follows: Prophet said the following concerning women,   Ã¢â‚¬  And their rights which are your responsibility is to feed and clothed them in accordance to their needs† Hence, from the above it is the duty and responsibility of a husband to support his wife from the day he married her. This responsibility continues as long as they are married to each other. Upon divorce, a husband has to maintain his wife during the iddah period which is approximately 3 months. After the 3 months is completed, a husband may no longer have to support her. Apart from maintenance a woman is also entitled to mutaah (consolidation payment upon divorce) and matrimonial property (harta sepencarian) In case of Maintenance Srilankan Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act provides that any claim for maintenance by or on behalf of a wife, legitimate child or illegitimate child (where both parents are Muslims) falls within the exclusive jurisdiction of the Quazi. A Muslim woman’s right to maintenance during marriage is derived from the concept of nafaqa, which encompasses the provision of basic needs such as food, clothing and accommodation to the wife. In contrast to the Maintenance Act, the husband has the primary obligation of providing support and a wife’s own financial means are irrelevant in determining her claim for maintenance. Maintenance after divorce is not recognized under Muslim personal law. However, the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act provide three situations in which a divorced wife may claim maintenance: 1. until registration of the divorce; 2. During iddat (the period of time that a divorced wife must remain unmarried); and 3. If such woman is pregnant at the time of registration of the divorce, until she delivers the child. A wife who leaves her husbands house without valid and sufficient reason is not entitled to claim maintenance from her husband under section 21 of the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Registration Ordinance. In the case of Seyed Mohamed V. Mohamed Ali Lebbe Court held that â€Å"When the woman abandons the conjugal domicile without any valid reason she is not entitled to maintenance. Simple refractoriness, as has been popularly supposed, does not lead to a forfeiture of her right But if she were to leave the house against his will without any valid reason, she would lose her right, but would recover it on her return to the conjugal domicile. What is a valid and sufficient reason for the wife to leave the husbands home is a matter for the discretion of the Judge. As a general principle a wife who leaves her husbands house on account of his or his relations continued ill-treatment of her†¦. continues entitled to her maintenance . Custody of the child Shariah law give priority to women’s in case of custody of child, One of the key relevant hadith is the following:, a woman came to the Prophet and said: Truly my belly served as a container for my son here, and my breast served as a skin-bag for him (to drink out of) and my bosom served as a refuge for him; and now his father has divorced me, and he (also) desires to take him away from me. The Prophet said: You have a better right to have him, as long as you do not marry again. From this hadith we could arrive a clear understanding that in case of child custody the Mother has the priority. However, if the mother marries again she would generally forfeit her right to custody. This concept in custody which favors to mothers has been adopted in several legal systems which include Muslim law as a personal law. For example in India the first and foremost right to have the custody of children belongs to the mother and she cannot be deprived of her right so long as she is not found guilty of misconduct. Mother has the right of custody so long as she is not disqualified. This right is known as right of hizanat (custody) and it can be enforced against the father or any other person. The mother’s right of hizanat was solely recognized in the interest of the children and in no sense it is an absolute right. Srilankan legal system also follows similar phenomena in regarding the custody of Muslim child which ensures the priority of the mother to keep her children under her custody even without the consent of her husband. In re Wappu Marikar case Wood Renton CJ stated that according to Shafii school, the custody of a girl remains with the mother, not merely until puberty, but till she is actually married; and in the case of a boy, till completion of his seventh year at all events, and from thence until puberty he may place himself under either parent whom he chooses. This case is a clear example to quote that srilankan Muslim law provides a wide safeguard to women’s in regarding the custody of child. Rights on matrimonial property Shariah law clearly defines the rights of women on property. The Muslim woman has always had the right to own and manage her own property. Marriage in Islam does not mean that the man takes over the womans property, nor does she automatically have the right to all his property if he dies. Both are still regarded as individual people with responsibilities to other members of their family parents, brothers, sisters etc. The husband has the duty to support and maintain the wife, as stated in the Quran, and this is held to be so even if she is rich in her own right. He has no right to expect her to support herself, let alone support his children or him. If she does contribute to the household income this is regarded as a charitable deed on her part. Because of their greater financial responsibilities, some categories of male relations, according to the inheritance laws in the Quran, inherit twice the share of their female equivalents, but others, whose responsibilities are likely to be less, inherit the same share -mothers and fathers, for instance are each entitled to one sixth of the estate of their children, after bequests (up to one third of the estate) and payment of debts. Women are thus well provided for their husband’s support them, and they inherit from all their relations. They are allowed to engage in business or work at home or outside the house, so long as the family does not suffer, and the money they make is their own, with no calls on it from other people until their death. â€Å"Men shall have their share of that which they have earned, and women a share of that which they have earned†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Quran4:33) From the above verse from Quran married women’s are treated sole owners of their property husband cannot claim any part of her property while marriage exist of dissolved. Moreover Upon marriage the husband is required to give his wife a mahr (dowry) which then becomes her exclusive property. A woman can work for financial gain, without any obligation on her part to contribute to the household expenses. Islam also gives her inheritance rights, making it a requirement for women to get their determined share. Two significant features regarding Muslim women matrimonial property are Mahr and Kaikuli. Mahr is like dowry in other communities which is demand by bride and provided by groom when marriage is solemnized. Mahr is a sole property of wife and husband did not have any interest on mahr property. Even after the dissolution of marriage husband cannot claim the mahr from wife but if there any balance has to be settled on agreed mahr the wife could claim that balance mahr after the dissolution of marriage. kaikuli means any sum of money paid or other movable property given or any sum of money or any movable property promised to paid or given, to a bridegroom for the use of bride, before or at the time of marriage by a relative of bride or by any other person. Husband has the ownership of kaikuli property but he is liable to pay it over to the wife if she demands it, even during the subsistence of the marriage. The obligation is to return the property to his wife whenever she demands it or, if she dies, to her heirs. Rights on marriage and divorce. Marriage in Islam is viewed as an important and sacred union between a man and woman that fulfills half of one’s religious obligations. A well-known passage in the Quran discusses marriage as follows: â€Å"Among His signs is that He created for you spouses from yourselves so that you might find repose with them. And He has placed between you affection and mercy. In that there are certainly signs for people who reflect.† (Quran 30:21). Marriage requirements There are basic requirements for marriage in Islam. First, a couple must mutually consent to the marriage. This requires both a clear proposal and acceptance. A woman also must have a WALI or legal guardian present during the process. If a WALI is not present a woman must be past puberty and competent to make the decision to marry. Brides are also entitled to a dowry that is typically negotiated at the same time as the marriage contract. The dowry is specifically a gift showing love and devotion to the bride. There are two types of dowries a bride is entitled to: the mahr and the MUAKHR, first, the mahr is the dowry given to the bride at the time of marriage before consummation takes place. She is not required to share this dowry and is free to do what she wishes with the gift. The bride is often asked her opinion to make sure she receives a gift she enjoys. MUAKHR is the second type of dowry that is given upon the death of the husband or the couple’s divorce. This is also referred to as the â€Å"deferred† dowry. MUAKHR is meant for both financial support and as a large consequence that the couple should consider when contemplating divorce. In situations of death, this amount is paid out before the estate is divided. If the estate cannot cover the entire amount, the wife is entitled to collect the amount from the husband’s surviving family members who are also heirs to the estate. She can also waive the obligation for any reason, including hardship on her husband’s family. Polygamy The most controversial topic in Islamic law is polygamy some critics say this concept is is a distinct violation of married women rights. However now let’s analyze what Islamic law says about polygamy and polyandry ‘If ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal justly with the orphans, Marry women of your choice, Two or three or four; but if ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal justly (with them), then only one, or (a captive) that your right hands possess, that will be more suitable, to prevent you from doing injustice’. (Quran 4:3) Historically, the practice of polygamy existed before Islam without restrictions. Islam limited the number of wives to four and established clear rules and regulations for the practice to ensure fair treatment of each wife. Polygamy is an option and not a requirement in Islam. As was mentioned earlier, Muslims must follow the laws of the land that they live in as long as it does not contradict the requirements of the faith. Polyandry, or marrying more than one husband, is not permitted to maintain the children’s lineage for purposes of inheritance and protect children’s rights as heirs. Monogamy is the normal practice in the majority of Muslim communities due to the financial and emotional burden it carries. Divorce TALAQ is the word, used in Islamic law for divorce. It is an Arabic word and means â€Å"set free†. It is only in unavoidable circumstances that TALAQ is permitted as a lawful method to bring marriage contract to an end Requirements for divorce in Shariah Law 1. He or she must have reached puberty and be capable of making a decision 2. He or she must be sane, conscious, alert, and free from intoxication or anger 3. He or she must be free from external pressure 4. His or her intention must be clear Divorce must take place after the wife’s menstrual period and no sexual relations have occurred since her period ended. If all the above factors are present, either the husband or wife can pursue a divorce or they can pursue a divorce jointly and amicably. In SriLanka Muslim marriage and divorce act provides clear guide line for the marriage and divorce procedure for Muslims. Most of the provisions in this act accordance with shariah law. In case of consent of the bride did not taken in account for marriage, consent of the bride is deliberate through the WALI (guardian of bride). This provision seems to be a clear violation of women’s right however he movement for Muslim personal law reforms in Sri Lanka from a feminist perspective has been spearheaded by the Muslim Women’s Research and Action Forum (MWRAF), a small group of professional Muslim women continuously emphasis the legislation to bring changes to ensure that the consent of both parties are obtained as an essential condition of a Muslim marriage and to make provision for the bride’s signature, given the fact that there is no space for her signature in the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Registration Form and it is the wali or marriage guardian who conveys her consent on her behalf. However this recommendation has not been taken account by the legislation yet. In case of divorce, second schedule of Muslim marriage and divorce act defines the steps to get a divorce by women which obviously accordance with Muslim Shariah Law. Eventually the authority of implementing the divorce is vest ed with the Quazi. Conclusion Sharia has certain laws which are regarded as divinely ordained, concrete and timeless for all relevant situations. It also has certain laws which are extracted based on principles established by Islamic lawyers and judges. The sharia as interpreted by Islamic lawmakers is believed by Muslims to be merely a human approximation of the true Sharia, which is understood as the divine and eternal correct path. In deriving Sharia law, Islamic lawmakers are not, therefore, actually creating divinely correct or incorrect actions beyond question, but rather attempting to interpret divine principles. Hence Sharia in general is considered divine, but a lawyers or judges extraction or opinion on a given matter is not, though the process and intention to refer to Allahs law is divinely sanctioned Muslim laws developed from the shariah law are not merely reflecting shariah principles. It purely based on circumstances, traditions, communal influences and etc. as I stated earlier most of the critics from western society comments that shariah law lays some savage rules regarding women’s. But actually Islamic laws are the pioneer laws which grant wider rights to women’s. this article could only analyze the matrimonial rights grant to Muslim women’s by shariah law apart from this rights shariah laws has given adequate rights on each social activities for women’s. Islam provides rigid guide lines for pleasant domesticity. In Quran most of command orders the men to safeguard the women and to provide them all necessary rights and to treat hem equally. One of my favorite quotes in Quran is â€Å"The most honored of you [male] in the sight of Allah is he who is most righteous of you†: (49:13). Interpretation given by Islamic scholars for â€Å"righteous† is â€Å"maintaining the wife with equal rights† from this verse we could realize how far the Islamic shariah law ensures matrimonial rights of women. Srilankan Muslim law is Constructed from Muslim social and communal structure which consist Islamic shariah law as a core part of it. SriLanka Muslim law deals with almost all social conduct of Muslims. Most of the matrimonial disputes arises in Muslim families has been amicably solved by Quazi courts which operates under Muslim marriage and divorce act. As we have discussed earlier part of this article srilankan Muslim law tries to ensure the married women right and it bound to operate within the criteria of shariah law. However the core concept of shariah law is to prevent party (husband and wife) from exceeding their limits. I had an interview with a Quazi judge who had come across more than 3000 of matrimonial disputes he stated that â€Å"Muslim Marriage and divorce act bound by shariah law is primarily intended to bring a peaceful settlement regarding family issues. It provide safeguard to the married women for an extend, but we are required to act in moral manner which should give remedies for the weaker party (mostly women’s). Moreover most of the divorce application initiated by women’s and their husband are duty bound to provide adequate financial support to them even after dissolution of marriage this is a very essential safeguard for women’s. As per the Muslim law, matrimonial properties of women are entirely belonging to her. Even though I wish some changes should be brought in Muslim law regarding the consent of bride at the time of marriage and the duties of register when he registers a second marriage† -M.I. Abdul Qader Quazi Judge Akkaraipattu From the above statement we could understand Srilankan Muslim law has given matrimonial rights to a Muslim women for an extend. But it should be amended to meet the needs of modern era therefore government should take essential steps to find put the contemporary life style of Muslim people and Srilankan Muslim Law has Amend according to satisfy the modern need of the people. [ 1 ]. Ibn al Qayyim (One Islamic Scholar, d. 1347) [ 2 ]. Arab Human Development Report 2002, NY: UN, 2002. [ 3 ]. U.S. State Department, Reports on Human Rights Practices for 1999. [ 4 ]. Quran: Surah An?Nisa’:3 [ 5 ]. Riwayat Musli [ 6 ]. sec 34,35,36 and 38(2) of MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE (MUSLIM) act [Cap. 134 [ 7 ]. S. C. 565-Board of Kathis Appeal 488 [ 8 ]. 14 NLR 225 [ 9 ]. (Quran 4:11) [ 10 ]. sec 47 64 of Muslim marriage and divorce act. [ 11 ]. Sowdoona v. Muees 1[(1955) 57 N. L. R. 75; 53 C. L. W. 47.] [ 12 ]. Abu Dawoud, a companion of the Prophet, reported the following: Omair al-Asdee was reported as saying: ‘When I accepted Islam, I was married to eight wives. I discussed this with the Prophet Muhammad who said: â€Å"Keep four only, and divorce the other four.† [ 13 ]. See Hammudah Abd al Ati, Family Structure in Islam 54-56 (American Trust Publications 1977). [ 14 ]. sec29(4) of muslim marriage and divorce act.