Saturday, December 28, 2019

The Effects of Child Sexual Abuse - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 3 Words: 915 Downloads: 2 Date added: 2017/09/26 Category Psychology Essay Type Argumentative essay Tags: Childhood Essay Childhood Memory Essay Did you like this example? Suad Abdulahi Perspective 2002 B. Payne 4. 28. 2010 The Effects of Child Sexual Abuse What is child sexual abuse? The term child sexual abuse is somewhat ambiguous, covering a broad spectrum of acts and meanings, but according to Finkelhor â€Å"general, legal and research definitions require two elements: (1) sexual activity involving a child and (2) an ‘abusive condition’ such as coercion or a large age gap between the participants, indicating lack of consensuality† (Finkelhor,1994, p. 32). Although child sexual abuse is tricky to define, there is no debate against its destructive effects on the victim. The trauma of repeated child sexual abuse can have long lasting adverse psychological and emotional effects that may manifest themselves into damaging after-effects like delinquency, substance abuse and suicide. Child sexual abuse (CSA) can result in both short term and long lasting psychological effects. General psychological distress and disorders su ch as depression, anxiety disorders and post traumatic distress disorder are some of the manifestations of sexual abuse during childhood. Gibb, Chelminski, and Zimmerman (2006) state that â€Å"Theorists have long thought that negative experiences in childhood may contribute vulnerability to development of psychopathology across the lifespan [with] studies supporting the relationship between a history of childhood physical or sexual abuse and diagnoses of depressive and anxiety disorders, particularly posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in adulthood† (p. 256). PTSD is the most common manifestation of childhood sexual abuse trauma and is sometimes related to disassociation disorder. In his article, David Finkelhor communicates that â€Å"studies suggest that a significant fraction of sexual abuse victims suffer from PTSD-type symptoms including fragmentation of memory, intrusive memories, flashbacks, nightmares, and dissociation (or the unconscious separation of some m ental processes from the others† (Finkelhor, 1990, p. 328). Along with psychological effects, childhood sexual abuse victims exhibit a wide range of emotional disturbances resulting in an overwhelming sense of emotions and the inability to understand certain feelings. Finkelhor states â€Å"a number of mechanisms may traumatize the child by distorting their cognitive and effective capacities, so that when children try to deal with the world through these distortions, we see some of the symptoms and dysfunctional behavior that characterize victims of abuse† (Finkelhor, 1990, p. 329). This incapacity to come to grips with a victim’s sexual abuse trauma may result in lack of self-confidence, guilt, shame, isolation and a distorted of view sexuality. Beitchman, Zucker, Hood, DaCosta, and Akman (1991) report in their studies of preschoolers â€Å"a purported effect of sexual abuse [as] the display of some form of sexual behavior judged to be abnormal. Abnormal or ‘sexualized’ behavior was operationalized to include sexual play with dolls, putting objects into the vagina or anus, masturbation, seductive behavior, requesting sexual stimulation, and age-inappropriate or precocious sexual knowledge† (p. 539). Beitchman et al. 1991) also report in their study of the development of sexualization of children that â€Å"sexually abused school-age children of both sexes, like their sexually abused pre-school counterparts, appeared more likely to manifest inappropriate sexual behaviors like excessive masturbation, sexual preoccupation and sexual aggression† (p. 544). The psychological and emotional effects of childhood sexual abuse discussed above generate and contribute to multiple detrimental after-effects such as delinquency, substance abuse, self-destructiveness, and suicide. Children and teens affected by sexual abuse may feel isolated during and after the abuse because they are unable to relate to others their age or because of the shame and stigmatization behind their trauma. Feiring, Miller-Johnson, and Cleland (2007) demonstrate a correlation between stigmatization and delinquency. In their study â€Å"According to the labeling perspective, stigmatization can engender a deviant identity that reinforces deviant behavior consistent with this self-view. Disintegrative shaming whereby an individual’s whole (rather than a particular action) is seen as bad, combination with social rejection, is likely to lead to association with deviant peers and to delinquent and criminal behavior† (p. 221). In other words, stigmatization, which involves negative feelings and thoughts about the self as bad or damage goods, can lead to anger and the increased likelihood of association with deviant peers and thus delinquent behavior (Feiring et al. , 2007, p. 221). In addition to stigmatization and delinquency, victims of childhood sexual abuse may demonstrate self-destructive behavior (e. . sui cide) and turn to substance abuse to cope. Boudewyn and Liem (1995) state in their study that â€Å"Findings from both clinical and nonclinical samples suggest that adult survivors of CSA are also more self-destructive than those without CSA histories. Self-destructiveness has been characterized as consisting of those behaviors committed and those omitted which tend to shorten or diminish life. These can be classified as suicide ideation and attempts, substance abuse, and self-harm or self-mutilation† (p. 446). The effects of childhood sexual abuse are plentiful and debilitating in many ways including those discussed above and so, it’s imperative that society takes productive steps such as raising awareness and educating the masses about CSA; how to spot abuse, ways to report it in hopes of decreasing the cases of childhood sexual abuse. ? Citations ?Finkelhor, D. (1994). Current information on the scope and nature of child sexual abuse. Family Research Laboratory, University of New Hampshire, Retrieved April 19, 2010, from https://www. ncbi. nlm. nih. gov ? Fering, C. Miller-Johnson, S. Cleland, C. (2007, August). Potential pathways from stigmatization and internalizing symptoms to delinquency in sexually abused youth. Sage database, 12, 221-232. Retrieved April 23, 2010, from database. ?Boudewyn, A. , Liem, J. (1995,). Childhood sexual abuse as a precursor to depression and self-destructive behavior in adulthood. University of Massachusetts at Boston, 8, 445-459. Retrieved April 23, 2010, from Jstor database. ?Beitchman, K. , Zucker, J. , Hood, G. , DaCosta, A. , Akman, D. (1991). A Review of the short-term effects of child sexual abuse. Health and Welfare Canada, 15, 538-556. Retrieved April 23, 2010, from LexisNexis database. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The Effects of Child Sexual Abuse" essay for you Create order

Friday, December 20, 2019

Using Evaluation Tools To Assess Quality Improvement Efforts Term Paper

Essays on Using Evaluation Tools To Assess Quality Improvement Efforts Term Paper Using Evaluation Tools to Assess Quality Improvement Efforts Using Evaluation Tools to Assess Quality Improvement Efforts It is important for healthcare managers or leaders to understand and comprehend the importance of measuring performance and outcomes. This paper describes a balance scorecard as an example of an evaluation tool, the benefits of applying it, and explicates how I could use the results from the evaluation to support the organizations overarching goals for quality improvement. A balanced scorecard is defined by Kaplan and Norton (1992) as "a set of measures that gives top managers a fast but comprehensive view of business and includes financial measures that tell the results of actions already taken" (p. 71). Additionally, Kaplan and Norton (1992) notes that a balanced scorecard makes it possible for leaders to perceive their businesses in different viewpoint including the customers, stakeholders, growth, and financial viewpoint. In addition, it allows leaders to iden tify whether they can maintain their endeavors through constantly creating value and also allows them to focus on a range of measures of importance as it does not limit them (Balanced Scorecard Institute, 2015). In relation to reducing clinic wait times therefore, a balanced scorecard allows the healthcare leaders understand the needs of the patients and stakeholders as they are able to envision outcomes from different perspectives. Based on the course project, the overarching goal for quality improvement is to reduce overall clinic wait times A balanced scorecard can help me understand all the processes necessary to achieve improved quality hence enhancing the implementation of quality improvement plans. Thus, I can use the results from the evaluation to identify areas of weakness that need improvement in a bid to reduce the clinic wait times. In a nutshell, a balanced scorecard is a performance evaluation tool that makes it possible for managers to view their business a range of perspectives particularly the customers, financial, stakeholders, and business development perspectives. ReferencesBalanced Scorecard Institute. (2015). Balanced Scorecard Basics. Retrieved from http://balancedscorecard.org/Resources/About-the-Balanced-Scorecard Kaplan, R. S., Norton, D. P. (1992). The balanced scorecard—Measures that drive performance. Harvard Business Review, 70(1), 71–79.

Wednesday, December 11, 2019

Market Analysis of Tesla

Question: Discuss about the Market Analysis of Tesla. Answer: Introduction: Tesla is the well known American automaker company which also stores the energy source. It specializes in the production of electric cars, the equipment of battery charging and the components of the powertrain. This organization produces several types of cars such as Tesla Roadster as the first sports car of electric, the luxury electric vehicle of the Model S and many more. According to Asseraf Shoham (2014), the innovative product and unique marketing strategy help to capture the world market easily in the competitive situation. It spreads its business all over the world mainly in United States, Europe, Asia, Canada and Australia successfully. Moreover, the partners of this company are Toyota, Panasonic, Daimler AG and Airbnb which help to foster the growth of Tesla (About Tesla | Tesla Australia, 2017). From the current study, it can be stated that Tesla delivered approximately 50,000 cars in 2015 from which near about 17,000 cars are demanded from Australia. The city New South Wales, Victoria and the Northern Territory of Australia has a high demand for Tesla's car from which it earns a huge amount of profit. The amount of revenue is approximate $4.05 billion in the year 2015 (Tucker, 2017). In this research analysis, the brief analysis has been done on the marketing strategies of Tesla. In order to evaluate the marketing strategies of Tesla, the brief overview of the company and its products, services, target markets and the suppliers of the company have also been discussed. Moreover, the marketing strategies used by Tesla have been stated through the pricing, promotion and distribution strategy. On the other hand, a comparative study has been made with the marketing strategies of the rivals. The SWOT analysis reveals the strengths and weaknesses of this organization. Lastly, the suitable recommendation has been provided on the improvement of marketing mix products of Tesla along with the sustainability aspects. Background of the company: Tesla is a car producer company related to the automotive electronic storage industry. It was established in the year 2003 by the group of engineers of Silicon Valley. The primary motive of the engineers was to prove the fact that the electric cars are better than the cars of gasoline-powered. The mission statement of Tesla is to move forward the transition of worlds transport and energy through the sustainable way. As a result, this organization launches the unique types of cars with the incredible power, zero emissions and instant torque. However, each and every new generation can afford the Teslas car only because of their effective pricing policy (About Tesla | Tesla Australia, 2017). By launching advanced types of cars and technology in the automaker industry, Tesla has been able to create its strong position in the competitive market. It gives the energy sustainable vehicles which are better than the gasoline-powered cars. By sharing the technology and using the auto pilot and Tesla glass advanced technology, it can control the gas emission power of the cars. The Tesla Motors awarded the Global Green of USA product or industrial design for its production of Tesla Roadster which is Lithium-ion battery made and all-electric made. Moreover, they also achieved the Secure and Sustainable World Awards by Green Cross International and Global Green by the USA. In short, Tesla receives the Environmental Leadership Award which signifies that it strictly focuses on the environmental sustainability factor during the production period (Tesla Energy | Tesla Australia, 2017). As per the high demand of Teslas car in Australia, it captures the overall market successfully. Its position in respect of the Australian market is significant as it can accelerate the share price from $30 to $291 in the year 2012. On the other hand, the company forecast the information that in next few years it can be able to increase its profit from $80 million to $100 million (Electric car maker Tesla charges into the Australian market, 2017). Products and services of the company: The main products of Tesla are the Automotive Electric Vehicles (cars) which focuses on the energy consumption factors. The Model S, Model X and Roadster have a high demand in the Australian market. Moreover, beside these models of cars, the associated products of the model cars such as Adapters, Charging, Tires, Tire Covers and Wheels are available on Tesla shop. Apart from this, Tesla launches five unique products which control the gas emission along with maintaining the environmental sustainability such as Autopilot 2.0, Tesla Truck, Ride-sharing service, Model 3 and Home Energy Storage devices (Knight, 2017). On the other hand, Tesla spreads its business over launching the products of phones, smart meters, communication and phone towers, NBN boxes transformers and the overhead high voltage power lines which have a high demand in the Australian market. In this perspective, it can be concluded that the services of this company are excellent and effective. As opined by Park et al., (2014), by selecting and producing the products of electric energy, the organization can ensure to pursue the good and healthy lifestyle of the customers. Tesla always highlights on the customer satisfaction factor for which they change and improve their service quality and concentrates on the healthy and emotional issues (Tesla plates, Tesla Pendants, Tesla Phone Tags, Geopathic stress reducers, Electromagnetic stabilizers, 2017). Target market and suppliers of the company: Like the North America, Tesla targets its business as the first market in Australia for the products of Powerwall residential type battery storage method. The main cities of Australia are recognized as the target market of Tesla which also considered as the growing list of energy partners of Tesla (Vorrath, 2017). Furthermore, Tesla found that Australian market is the key market place for efficient and cheap solar and the storage system. To manufacture and sell their products related to the solar city and solar roofing, the modern and developed cities of Australia are the target market of Tesla. By following the mission statement of Tesla, the Australian market is a suitable market for expanding the automotive industry which mainly concentrates on the generation of sustainable energy power. Moreover, the Home Battery Systems of Tesla Powerwall 2 has a significant demand in the Australian market from which it earns a huge amount profit (Vorrath, 2017). Most of the raw materials namely bauxite, boron steel, copper, rubber, silicon, leather, carbon fiber and many more things gathered from the best mining industries of the world (Sharma, 2016). They supply the raw material to Tesla and Tesla makes it better and useful by implementing the technology. Marketing strategies used by the company: The marketing strategies of Tesla are unique and effective to catch the market demand. The pricing policy, advertisement and promotional event and the distribution method are efficient to give the tough competition to the rivals. Now, the marketing strategies of Tesla have been discussed in the following manner. Pricing: The organizational head of Tesla Motors of Australia set the price of the car by considering the vision of the brand name. It is a well known famous brand of car which produces and launches some unique types of car that have maintained the environmental sustainability system. As a result, it has a significant and modest price. Now, the price of Model S by Tesla is slightly lower in the region of ACT than New South Wales and Victoria. The price is near about $120,000 of the Model S there due to the non-existence of the stamp duty (Leading the charge: Inside Tesla's quest to put Australia on the grid, 2017). Moreover, to attract more and new customers towards them, Tesla offered some discount. The way from Sydney to Melbourne is covered by the Supercharger stations of Tesla. Now, Tesla offered the free charge in this route to all customers in the year 2014. Mostly, it set its price in that way which all the customers can afford it smoothly (Wright Snook, 2017). Specifically, Tesla provides the best quality and advanced technology cars which have a high demand throughout the world. However, it has the problem of range anxiety which creates the adverse effect on the price of the products. Now, it is trying to overcome this issue to maintain its good will in the market. Promotion: Though it is a well known brand of cars and high demand in the world market, it does not concentrate on the investment of paid advertisement process. They do not believe in the marketing of their products through the paid advertisement or sponsorship programmed (Birk, 2015). The main motive of Tesla to doing this is that reinvestment in the production procedure. According to the concept of Tesla, they want to reinvest the money into the production procedure instead of advertising. This marketing strategy will help to gift the advanced and modern technology cars and many more things to the customers. As a result, it naturally makes its advertisement (Leading the charge: Inside Tesla's quest to put Australia on the grid, 2017). Distribution: The distribution process of Tesla also significant and effective which help to run the business successfully. The distribution process and service coverage of Tesla are very much effective. There are approximately 85% of the reservation holders of Model S within the 50 miles from the Service Center of Tesla and 92% within the 100 miles. It signifies the fact that service and distribution are their main priority to please the loyal customers. By merging with the automotive franchise dealers, they distribute and reach their cars towards their customers. The Fisker dealer ties up with the Tesla organization for distributing their products. Moreover, Tesla opens some new store in the main cities and location of Australia to reach the people easily. Comparison of the marketing mix strategies to its competitors: Tesla is one of the famous cars producing company related to electric vehicles which has a direct competition with the Ford Motors, General Motors, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic and Smart Car and many more. The Ford Motors gives the new information to the customers that they will invest the extra amount of $4.5 billion in the production of more electric cars by 2020 (Innovation, 2017). Moreover, the battery powered of Chevrolet Bolt by General Motors is expected to come on the market in 2016 providing the range of 200 miles. On the other hand, it also gives the advantages of clean vehicles along with the targets of the zero emission. Now, the marketing strategy of General Motors is changed to the environmental sustainability factor on the production of electric vehicles (General Motors Corporate Strategy | GM.com, 2017). Apart from this, Ford Motors emphasize on the sales promotion, advertisement, direct and personal selling of their products along with making the good relations with the public. On the contrary, Tesla does not consider the promotional event as the marketing strategy. Moreover, Fords sets the premium price and market-oriented price for their products which is lower than the price of Tesla. The Chevrolet Bolt by General Motors gives the tough competition to the Model 3 through reaching to the average customers. In this perspective, Toyota focuses on to maintain the low cost of their products along with the use of the traditional mediums for advertisements. Furthermore, they capture the huge dealership networking system throughout the world (Toyota Special Offers, 2017). Though Tesla has faced the tough competition by them, it still maintains its position in the market by applying the strong marketing strategies. SWOT analysis: According to Bull et al., (2016), with the help of SWOT analysis, the associated strengths and weaknesses of an organization can be accounted. The SWOT analysis helps to evaluate the organization in the structured planning way. Moreover, it assesses the opportunities and threats of the business venture along with the strengths and weaknesses (Hollensen, 2015). The SWOT analysis of Tesla has been critically discussed in the following manner. Strengths The unique position of Tesla in the Auto market: Tesla is not only a car selling organization, but also it delivers the cars with new technologies. It offers the electric vehicles and automobiles for the luxury market. Moreover, in the long range, it dominates the market and captures the market over the business of gas-powered cars. Robust amount sales growth: Tesla has been emerging its business rapidly. The increased amount of customers demands ensures the prospective business growth of this organization (Krebs, 2016). Due to an increase in the sales of Model S, Model X and Model 3, the sales figure rose from 27% to 59% approximately. As a result, Tesla provides the lower price of the car such as $35,000 to the customers. This organization is the sole producer of electric cars and the strong suppliers of the manufacturers namely Toyota. Tesla has the strong and efficient technological experts for performing the electric transmissions system and driving train. It can develop the vehicles and produce new types of products. Tesla concentrates on the environmental sustainability factor during the production period. It reinvests their profit to use the new technology during the time of production of cars (Steenkamp, 2017). Weaknesses Burning through the cash flows: Tesla invests a significant amount of cash due to the investment purpose in the research and development section. To get the transformative technology in cars, it spends lots of money on RD which is approximate $200 million in a year. It creates the adverse impacts on the cash flows of Tesla. The pressure of High debt: It has near about $2.5 billion long-term debt in the balance sheet. Due to insufficient cash flows and a smaller amount of cash on the hand, the high debt appeared on the balance sheet. The high debt would result in the delay in capital expenditures and investments which hamper the foster growth of Tesla (Oliveira, 2014). The prices of the products are high than their competitors. The costs of the production are high due to diseconomies of scale (Krebs, 2016). Opportunities The Australian governments support Tesla for their environmentally friendly nature by lowering the duties and tariffs. The improvement in the process of quality control will help to reduce the cost of the production (Liu et al., 2014). By launching the Model 3 at the cheaper rate, it can reach to the average customers easily. Threats The pricing strategy of Tesla is not so much significant in the automotive industry. The new technology combustion engine gives a tough competition to them (Blakeman, 2014). Tesla has faced a severe problem of liquid cash and the budget deficit issue which holds back the growth of the company. Table 1: SWOT analysis of Tesla Source: (As created by author) Conclusion: Based on the above analysis, it can be inferred that Tesla has a strong market demand for the electric vehicles in the automotive industry. The innovative production process, strong brand image, high control during the production of the vehicle and mostly maintain the environmental sustainability factor by controlling the gas emissions make them different from the others. However, the high cost and prices, debt burden and lower level promotional event hold back the prospective growth of this organization. In this perspective, Tesla needs to improve the technological system to reduce the price and cost of their products. The new facilities, presence in the international market and sales operation should be properly advertised so that it can reach to all customers. The RD procedure needs to be continuing for upgrading the technology and products. Thus, by following the above-stated recommendations, Tesla can achieve the foster growth easily. Reference List: Asseraf, Y., Shoham, A. (2014). 3 The impact of strategic orientations on export marketing strategy: new classification and typology.Research Handbook on Export Marketing, 60. Birk, D. (2015). Tesla Motors, Inc. Market Analysis and Definition. Blakeman, R. (2014).Integrated marketing communication: creative strategy from idea to implementation. Rowman Littlefield. Bull, J. W., Jobstvogt, N., Bhnke-Henrichs, A., Mascarenhas, A., Sitas, N., Baulcomb, C., ... Carter-Silk, E. (2016). Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats: A SWOT analysis of the ecosystem services framework.Ecosystem services,17, 99-111. Hollensen, S. (2015).Marketing management: A relationship approach. Pearson Education. Krebs, S. (2016). Silent by design? Tesla's Model S and the discourse on electric vehicle sound: Tesla Motors Germany, Model S 85D (2015).Sound Studies,2(1), 93-95. Liu, Y. E., Kang, Y., Wu, H., Chen, C., Hon, E. (2014). Tesla Motors Inc. Case Synopsis.Burnaby BC: Simon Fraser University. Retrieved,10(18), 2014. Oliveira, J. P. (2014). Sustainable development, strategy and costs at Tesla. Park, J., Rast, J., MacDoughall, T., Nitti, B., Sinton, D., Geissler, A., Roseli, K. L. (2014). Marketing Plan for Tesla Motors Model S. Sharma, S. (2016). The Tesla Phenomena A Business Strategy Report. Steenkamp, J. B. (2017).Global Brand Strategy: World-wise Marketing in the Age of Branding. Springer. Wright, T., Snook, C. J. (2017).Digital Sense: The Common Sense Approach to Effectively Blending Social Business Strategy, Marketing Technology, and Customer Experience. John Wiley Sons. Official websites and newspaper articles: About Tesla | Tesla Australia. (2017).Tesla.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017, from https://www.tesla.com/en_AU/about Electric car maker Tesla charges into Australian market. (2017).ABC News. Retrieved 30 January 2017, from https://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-12-03/electric-car-maker-tesla-charges-into-the-australian-market/5938528 General Motors Corporate Strategy | GM.com. (2017).Gm.com. Retrieved 30 January 2017, from https://www.gm.com/investors/corporate-strategy.html Innovation. (2017).Ford Corporate. Retrieved 30 January 2017, from https://corporate.ford.com/innovation.html Knight, E. (2017).Tesla earmarks Australia for battery invasion.The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 30 January 2017, from https://www.smh.com.au/business/comment-and-analysis/tesla-earmarks-australia-for-battery-invasion-20151104-gkqmf3.html Leading the charge: Inside Tesla's quest to put Australia on the grid. (2017).Marketing Magazine. Retrieved 30 January 2017, from https://www.marketingmag.com.au/hubs-c/tesla-australia-interview/ Tesla Energy | Tesla Australia. (2017).Tesla.com. Retrieved 30 January 2017, from https://www.tesla.com/en_AU/energy Tesla plates, Tesla Pendants, Tesla Phone Tags, Geopathic stress reducers, Electromagnetic stabilisers. (2017).Ehh.com.au. Retrieved 30 January 2017, from https://www.ehh.com.au/ Toyota Special Offers. (2017).Toyota Australia. Retrieved 30 January 2017, from https://www.toyota.com.au/special-offers-and-great-value Tucker, H. (2017).This is how many Tesla cars are in Australia.Business Insider Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2017, from https://www.businessinsider.com.au/this-is-how-many-tesla-cars-are-in-australia-2016-1 Vorrath, S. (2017).SolarCity, Tesla see Australia as key market for cheapest solar and storage.Renew Economy. Retrieved 30 January 2017, from https://reneweconomy.com.au/solarcity-tesla-see-australia-as-key-market-for-cheapest-solar-and-storage-48029/ Vorrath, S. (2017).Tesla Model X Australian price revealed.Renew Economy. Retrieved 30 January 2017, from https://reneweconomy.com.au/tesla-model-x-australian-price-revealed-54130/ Vorrath, S. (2017).Tesla targets Australia as 1st market for Powerwall, deliveries in 2015.Renew Economy. Retrieved 30 January 2017, from https://reneweconomy.com.au/tesla-targets-australia-as-1st-market-for-powerwall-deliveries-in-2015-2015/

Wednesday, December 4, 2019

Strategic Analysis for StartSynth Samples for Students †MyAssignmenth

Question: Discuss about the Strategic Analysis for StartSynth. Answer: Introduction The paper discusses the strategic potential of a non-profit organization, StartSynth in providing essential aid in the worst affected areas around the world. The primary goal of the organization is to provide essential items such as food, water, medical supplies and many other basic products to people suffering in East Africa. Funded by Giving Pledge, the Australian company is aimed to address some of the grave and pressing problems around the world. As the United Nations has warned of extreme drought condition in East Africa, the company has decided to provide essential aid to the affected regions. However, the company would have to conduct in-depth research of the targeted region in order to formulate effective strategies to achieve the mission. The report divides the entire strategic plan into different sections involving PESTEL analysis, Porters five forces model, and value chain analysis. The vital information gathered helps in determining the ways and means to overcome the chal lenges in the targeted region to accomplish the mission. It is hoped that this report would shed light on some tangible problems aid organizations face on their humanitarian mission. Background Rapid aid delivery has been a constant concern for companies supporting underprivileged or poor parts of the world. There are many countries in the world struggling to sustain proper living conditions owing to weather calamities or long running warfare situations. Of all, East Africa has been battling with the worst famine condition in the last six decades. The back to back seasons of no rains combined with rising food prices, and limited humanitarian accessibility has exacerbated the situation resulting in extreme shortage of food and water, extreme cases of malnutrition and massive displacement across the region. As per UN estimates, there are over 20 million people suffering from extreme starvation and various other diseases (Karimi, 2017). In specific, the United Nations has expressed grave concerns over the rapidly worsening condition of some parts of southern Somalia, Somalia, Yemen and Northeast Nigeria. Many national and international aid organizations have come to the rescue of the people by supplying essential items including food, water, medical supplies, clothes, and more. StratSynth Group is one such corporation based in Australia which will work in the direction of proving rapid aid to the flood and disease stricken regions of the world due to war or economic crunch. Funded by Giving Pledge, the organization is currently aiming to meet the basic needs of people living in the drought hit regions of East Africa. Given the severity of the situation as alerted by the UN, the organization is looking forward to map the entire conflicted region and figure out a blueprint to achieve long term recovery and rehabilitation of the region. As accessibility has been a constant roadblock for aid organizations, people continued to suffer in despicable conditions. However, with the introduction of advanced technologies, aid organizations have been able to make a breakthrough to reach out to remote areas to provide the much desired assistance. PESTEL analysis Companies are influenced by a number of factors when they start operating in a market. Be it domestic or international, external factor impacts an organization both directly as well as indirectly. PESTEL analysis is used in order to figure out the impact of macro environment on an organization. The factors are namely political, economic, social, technological, environmental, and legal. The PESTEL framework is utilized to combine all the macro-environment factors to provide the much desired information to the market strategists to explore the options of growth and risks (Witcher and Chau, 2010). Lets delve into the impact these factors would have on the organization as it enters East Africa: Political Factors The political factors are linked with the operating government regulations and legal issues that are companies expect to adhere to in order to operate in the host nation. Given the political mayhem in most of the countries across East Africa, the company would have to remain cautious about its primary approach to provide the aid services. The gross failure of the existing political system to control the spiralling situations in East Africa has left with hardly any option for companies to operate comfortably. The long running conflicts have ruined the infrastructure of the region, thereby impacting the connectivity to the worst affected regions. The company must remain wary of the insurgents as they tend to hinder the progress of rehabilitation work in the region. Economic factors The economic factors are primarily linked with the matter concerned with the cost parameters of a firm (Witcher and Chau, 2010). The economy of the region is in shambles despite having rich source of resources. Though Kenya is leading the GDP growth in the region, other countries such as Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda, South Sudan, Burundi and many others are struggling with numerous problems. The combined Gross Domestic Product of EAC stands at US$ 146 billion (as in 2016), thereby reinforcing its geopolitical significance (www.eac.int, n.d.). The economy is highly dependent on agriculture as industrial sector has hardly seen any development for years. However, it makes Kenya and other regions all the more vulnerable to global economic uncertainty. And with poor rainfall, the region has been badly affected with people living on the edges. There is massive shortage of food, water, medical supplies, jobs and much more. As the company is not looking for financial gains, the GDP factor does n ot hold much importance. But the company must be prepared to operate in a constrained economic environment where they are likely to face many challenges. Social factors The East African Community (EAC) has around 20 countries in total and they all share similar resources and trade profiles. The EAC homes around 150 million citizens including 22% of the urban population (www.eac.int, n.d.). If the IMF estimates are to be believed, then the total population of the EAC is around 130 million with a GDP of $80 billion (2012). All the countries share regional and trade commonalities which make them all susceptible to similar problems. For instance, the dependency on agriculture is widely spread in the region, making it all the more sensitive to fluctuations in the agriculture market. The region is plagued with all sorts of problems such as class difference, poverty, gender bias and much more. Though people speak in English language, there are many regions where local languages are more prevalent. The company would have to make suitable arrangements to adjust with the social and cultural set up of the place to avoid any sort of backlash. They may have to t ake the help of the local citizens to target the most affected regions. Technological factors Though technology has made huge leaps around the world, the EAC has been late to embrace it like other parts of the world. Of all the countries, Kenya has been in the front to acknowledge the importance of technology in improving the existing situation of the industry. However, the other countries are way behind in creating much scope for the IT industry to penetrate, let alone flourish. In fact, most of the companies are reluctant to enter the region given the overall landscape of the region. StratSynth would have to rely on its own IT tools and other devices to improve its services and provide better help to the affected regions. There are many digital tools which help in providing suitable medical care to the patients and it can facilitate education for the local citizens as well. There is huge opportunity for the company to introduce technological assistance to rehabilitate the people. However, lack of IT infrastructure in the region makes it all the more challenging for the comp any. Environmental factors It has become an important factor over the years as companies have realized the severity of global warming. However, they tend to figure out a balance between economic, environmental and social performance. Marketers would have to explore the connection between environmental factors and financial performance to integrate sustainability principles in its core fabric. Herein, the StratSynth would have to ensure that its aid services do not cause any environmental harm. Also, the company could make use of green technology to run its business operations in the region. However, to look on the brighter side, it can educate the citizens about cutting down pollution for better living conditions. Legal factors Legal factors are required to be studied to fall into the line of the existing norms under the law. The legal norms are very tedious in Kenya, thereby prohibiting companies to explore the potential in the region. Most of the official procedures are tedious and consumer lot of time. This is one of the primary reasons of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) badly affected by the poorly written legal regulations. Unfavourable legal environment discourages potential investors and badly impacts the existing ones (Wanjohi, 2009). Thus it becomes all the more essential that the government creates a conducive environment for companies to invest in the poor region. StratSynth has its main office based in Australia, so it need not register the office in the region. But it would certainly have to dig out more information about any permission from the local authorities to operate as aid provider in the region. Porters Five Forces analysis There are many aid providers working to provide the much desired help the war-stricken regions in East Africa. The providers include many renowned international organizations that are dedicated to provide sustainable solutions to stabilise the situation in and around the war-stricken region. StratSynth is a new organization and hence will have stiff competition from the already active organizations. Porters five forces model helps in determining the real nature of the market competition in East Africa. based on microeconomics, Porters (1985) five forces analysis is considered to be among the most sought after strategic frameworks applied for business enterprises today (Pringle and Huisman, 2011). Hua (2011) asserted that success of a firm depends on its strategic positioning under the impact of operating market forces in its industry and its inherent capacity to sustain against rising competition. The five forces are as follows: Threat of new entrants: East Africa region is gravely hit by drought and extreme situation of food and water shortage. There are many international organizations working to provide the essentials and medical aid to the affected regions. There is more help needed in the region and hence there is no direct threat from any other aid provider. In fact, it may actually provide assistance in giving direction to the mission. Bargaining power of suppliers: Suppliers can be defined as the source agencies providing essential raw material, information or knowledge to produce goods and services (Martinez and Wolverton, 2009). StratSynth would have to rely on the local suppliers to provide the essential items. The country is battling with severe poverty, and all the essentials are heavily priced. They are likely to charge more on the essential products and other support services. In this context, the company may have too little say in the price. Bargaining power of buyers: In any industry with multiple options, buyers or customers will have more choices and hence their buying power soars (Martinez and Wolverton, 2009). As the number of aid organizations increases in the region, the suppliers are foreseeing financial profit to run their business. As there are limited job opportunities, the local citizens provide paid assistance to fulfil their needs. It in fact encourages creation of new startups to provide paid assistance to the aid organizations in the foreign land. StartSynth though is a new set up in the region, it has got huge financial backing to accomplish the long term goals. As the local organizations need funds, non-profit organizations like StartSynth would hold an edge to propose the right price for products and suppliers. Threat of Substitutes: There is no real substitute to aid organizations at the moment. Though advanced technologies could improve the accessibility issues, it wouldnt eliminate the need of actual people working on the ground level. The war affected regions need a large number of volunteers to provide direct help to suffering people and help them in rehabilitation. So there is no major threat from advanced technology solutions as they provide assistance and does not erase the need of actual aid organizations. Rivalry: Rivalry among firms can be reflected in terms of price, new products, marketing campaigns and services (Porter, 2008). However, StartSynth is not competing on any of these grounds and in fact, is more dedicated to figure out ways and means to provide the necessary aid to the affected people. These market dynamics provide relevant information for StartSynth to formulate its strategies within the market dynamics. Value Chain Analysis for business level resources and capabilities StartSynths mission is to provide rapid aid of essential items to the war-stricken regions of East Africa. However for that, the company would have to strengthen itself on various grounds such as human resources, key resources etc and gain other capabilities to stand a chance in the competitive market. Value chain analysis is another strategic tool to formulate strategies based on the value added by various organizational activities. It provides the relevant information about activities adding to the competitive advantage for a firm. Human Resources: StratSynth would have to hire skilled and experienced people to manage the internal operations as well as for field work. Currently, the organization needs at least 50 people to initiate the planning, organizing, and effectively execute them on the ground level. Marketing activities: The Company needs to be cautious of the latest business practices to promote the business services. As its a non-profit organization, it requires promotion on a different level given its main agenda being rehabilitation of suffering people. Services: The Company will operate in impoverished regions in developing countries around the world. Thus it has to improve its services to connect with the suffering people, and reach out to them in the best possible way. The company would have to provide requisite training to its employees to help them work in the affected areas. Inbound logistics: There are massive logistics involved in acquiring, and distributing the aid from the source to the target location, i.e war-affected regions in East Africa. The company needs huge storage space to stock all the essential items and supplies in a safe and secured condition. They ought to have proper quality checks and tests to ensure safe supplies to the affected people. However, for that the company will need to sign up contracts for regular supply of all the essential products. Outbound logistics: This is possibly the most challenging part of the logistics to transport the essential items to the targeted location. It requires lot of information to find the best routes and modes of transport to ensure timely delivery of essential items. Given its a costly proposition and an operational challenge, the company needs to make a consolidated plan to effectively execute rapid transportation of essential items to far off areas around the world. Identification of 5 Organizations for Corporate Level Strategies The 5 organizations that have been identified with whom corporate level strategies can be applied and a partnership can be done to work towards the provision of extensive aid to countries are as follows: Care: the first organization in focus is Care. This not for profit organization has been focusing on the provision of aid to a number of countries in need for the same. The organization has been lending a hand to the Syrian and African countries to improve their living conditions, get access to education, providing aid in terms of food and sanitary napkins and offering medical aid to reduce the medical problems in these countries. The organization poses a strong opportunity for the StartSynth to work together and provide aid to countries in dire need of support and the basic necessities of life (Care Australia, 2017). Australian Red Cross: the second company of focus is Australian Red Cross that focuses on the provision of medical and food aid to countries that have been disturbed considerably after many wars in the past. It has been learnt that a number of companies are still suffering from problems of medical and food provisions after the series of wars that have been witnessed by the world in the past. This non profitable organization has been offering considerable amount of support to numerous countries and their people in the past. It invites volunteers and providers care to individuals across the globe. Red Cross has offered relief in times of varied crises and is among the top most NGOs in the country today (Australian Red Cross, 2017). APHEDA: this is the third company of focus that can be used for corporate level strategies and partnerships to accelerate the amount of opportunities in terms of medical and food aid that can be provided to countries and their people across the globe. This organization has been engaged in promoting the needs of the people and giving them the courage to stand up for their own rights. A number of success stories can be read and witnessed over the website of the organization. The contributions are never ending and they are known for consistently inviting new applicants for volunteering to make a change in Asia. It has also been offering employment opportunities and developing the skills of individuals to help them make a suitable living for themselves in their respective countries (APHEDA, 2017). Rotary International: this is another reliable NGO that can be approached for a strategic corporate partnership with StartSynth. The Organization primarily focuses on promoting the interests of South Pacific countries and Philippines. It has offices in these countries that tend to report the existing problems and the dire needs of the people that are later catered to after a strong contribution from the headquarters. It has been fighting terrorism and other health related issues in the under developed and developing countries. Africa has been a strong focus of the organization until now and it has worked on a number of programs to support the people largely (Rotary, 2017). iCare: this is the fifth and the last organization that has been identified to be ideal for a corporate level strategic partnership to improve the conditions of the citizens of developing nations. Like StartSynth, the focus of the organization is also on the provision of medical and food aid to African countries and those who are disturbed due to diverse problems that arise from time to time. The organization not just assists women and youth of these countries but also the governments to decrease poverty and improve the level of education in these countries. iCare has made considerable progress in countries like Uganda and their contributions have been deemed as exemplary (iCare, 2017). Organisational Structure at StartSynth Headquarters group Every successful business has a very strong organizational structure at its backdrop. Such an organizational structure is based on the company strategies. Following is the organizational structure of Syntrat Headquarters group comprising of 6 individuals. Command Chain- This is a chain which starts from top of the organization consisting of the company CEO and goes all the way to the very bottom of the organization. Under this structure it is clearly mentioned about who will be reporting to whom in the organization. In case of this company it is the Ceo, Vice President, Director and head managers of various departments which comprises this Chain of Command. Their mail job role is to take important administrative decisions. Control Span-These are the various subordinate members in the organisations who effectively manages the day to day operations of the firm. If in a company there are more subordinates than its supervisors it signifies that it has a wide control span. Centralization - This part of the entire organizational structure deals with the decision making in the firm. This is the centralised aspect with the CEO in the middle. Specialisation- In this structure employees are further categories as per their specialists. Based on their area of expertise they specialize in a particular area of work. This affects the productivity of the firm in a highly positive manner. Formalization- A formal structure is maintained in this company. It is the area which decides how each job area will be structured in the firm (Devaney, 2014).Such a formalised structure also covers employees tasks being governed by rules. mechanisms and governance. Departmentalisation- Jobs here are grouped together to form departments. Little or no interaction occurs in between different departments. Here job in each department is autonomous in nature. In this organisation, departmentalisation is based on rigid structures. Vision and mission statement for the StartSynth Group The vision and mission statement for the company have been carved out in the following few paragraphs: Vision Statement: The vision of the company is to offer aid of all types and nature to countries that need it the most. The organization strives to become the largest supporter of under developed and developing countries in times of distress and natural calamities especially. Mission Statement: the mission statement of the company is to join hands with some of the leading organizations in the same industry and offer reliable solutions in terms of aid to countries like East Africa that are the most affected by Famine since the past few decades. We thrive to bring about revolution in terms of extending a helping hand towards people in need irrespective of the caste, skin color, religion, gender or any other disparity. References APHEDA. (2017). About Us. Union Aid Abroad APHEDA Official Website. Available at: https://apheda.org.au/about-us/. Last Accessed: 26th May 2017 Australian Red Cross. (2017). About Us. Australian Red Cross official Website. Available at: https://www.redcross.org.au/about-us.aspx. Last Accessed: 26th May 2017 Care. (2017). About Us. Care Official Website. Available at: https://www.care.org.au/ .Last Accessed: 26th May 2017 Eac.int. (n.d.).Overview of EAC | East African Community. [online] Available at: https://www.eac.int/about/overview Devaney, E. (2014). The 6 Building Blocks of Organizational Structure. Available: https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/organizational-structure-building-blocks#sm.00013wzwww19bxensr86saina3k0j. Last accessed 26th May 2017. Hua, L.T. (2011). Sustainable competitive advantage for market leadership amongst the private higher education institutes in Malaysia, Journal of Global Management, 2(1), pp. 227- 251. iCare. (2017). About us. iCare official Website. 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Wanjohi, A. 2009.Challenges Facing SMEs inKenya.Available online at https://www.kenpro.org/challenges-facing-smes-in-kenya-and-the-efforts-in-progress/ Witcher, B.J. and Chau, V.S. 2010, Strategic Management Principles and Practice, Cengage Learning EMEA, United Kingdom