Others Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Others - Case Study Example nge, entry or exit of key competitors, globalization, the Internet and the new dynamics it creates, decline in business risk and uncertainty, changes in efficiency and cost, changes in the long-term growth of the industry, changing societal issues and concerns, changes in product acquisition and use, influx of technical knowhow in more companies and countries, changes in government policy and regulations, and rising preference among consumers for differentiated goods rather than commodity goods (Hill and Jones 61). Industry key success factors (KSFs) are the forces that have the biggest influence on companies’ ability to flourish in their respective industries. They include core competencies, product features, business outcomes, specific strategic factors, resources, and competitive capabilities that determine the difference between profit and loss and, eventually, between competitive ability and failure (Hill and Jones 48). By their true nature, KSFs are so important that all industry stakeholders must be wary of them; they are the determinants of market success. They are also the doctrines that define whether a firm will be financially and competitively capable. When identifying any industry’s KSFs, three questions can be used to guide the process. These are: Competitor A has more financial resources compared to other companies, but it has huge debts that have lowered its investor appeal and affected its ability to secure financing for key projects. Other firms post average profits but have managed to reduce their debt and achieve slow but stable growth. Colin’s alternatives include reinventing products in order to achieve differentiation. Other options include targeting new markets in which competition is not as stiff (Hill and Jones 26). There is also the option of adopting more aggressive marketing strategies that ensure the market share does not decline. This will facilitate direct competition with rivals and maintain relevance despite prevailing

Piaget Stages of Development Essay Example for Free

Piaget Stages of Development Essay Child development undergoes various stages from infancy to adulthood. This process of development is called by various psychologists as â€Å"progression through development† to which, age is often attached on each developmental stage. The first stage is called the infancy stage which is from birth to one year during which the physical and psychological occur most rapidly. In Piaget’s developmental theory, the child’s development during this stage is called â€Å"sensorimotor† because the child’s behavior at this stage is mostly simple motor responses to sensory stimuli† (Kalat 170). The stage of toddlerhood which is from one year to three years old is partly connected with infancy stage because as Olga Drebben asserts, â€Å"in these early childhood stages, the infants and toddler’s growth and development include very multifaceted processes of physical, cognitive, and psychosocial transformations. Drebben affirms that the primary modes of infant and toddler are sonsorimotor. The childhood stage or as Piaget calls it, the â€Å"preoperational stage of development† is the stage in which children are subject to externally imposed rules and adhere unquestioningly to rules and the directives of powerful adults. In this stage, peer relationship is an important factor towards constructing a self separate from others and towards developing the capacity to think in terms of other peoples’ attitude one self. Deutsch, Coleman and Marcus stated, â€Å"Equal peer relationships give children a chance to experience reciprocity which greatly assists them in perspective taking and problem solving† (Deutsch, Coleman, and Marcus 359). Adolescence stage on the one hand, is seen to takes place at the beginning of puberty or from 10 to 12 year for girls and 12 to 14 years for boys and end and at the age of 18 for girls and 21 for boys. While psychologist admits the lack of precision as to age limit, this stage â€Å"assume more responsibility for personal attainment and well being† (Arnett 168). It is also the stage to earn a living and a time when interest in fun increased. The stage of adulthood on the other hand are divided into three; early, middle and senior adults. The early adulthood which starts at age 21 up to 34 years, is concern on being able to engage in intimate relationships and in finding more satisfying work. This stage is also period of focusing on long term goals, nurturing other physically, finding a meaning in life, and developing a tolerance for delayed gratification to meet long-range goals (Corey and Corey 88). The middle adulthood ages 34 to 49 is regarded as the period of reassessment of one’s work satisfactions, of involvement in the community and of accepting choice made in life. According to Gerald and Marianne Corey, this period of life is a time for â€Å"solidifying one’s philosophy of life. The senior adults 50 to 64 are regarded as the beginning of the wisdom years. This period is characterized as the time for serving the community and planning for work transitions and retirement. Finally, the elderly, 65 years onward is the time â€Å"to find new levels of meaning in life and to appreciate what one has accomplished† (Corey and Corey, 89). This stage is a period of physical weakness because it is a time of diminished strength and increased dependence on others. Of all these stages, the development stage that is more susceptible to schizophrenia are the early adulthood ages 21 to 24 for men, while 40 and above for women. This is because the vast majority of the onset of this disease â€Å"falls within the interval of 15-54 years of age (Hirsch and Weinberger, 215). Steven Hirsch and Daniel Roy Weinberger noted that onsets of schizophrenia in men â€Å"peak steeply in the age group 20-24† (215), and it slowed down at lower level thereafter. This onset for men is the reverse for women above forties. The stages that are more prone to Alzheimer are definitely middle adults, senior adults and the elderly because this disease takes place during these stages of life. Question 2. Two of Piaget’s universal developments are the sensorimotor stage and the preoperational stage. The sensorimotor development stages starts from birth up to the end of the second year. Also called the neonatal stage, it is the period of development when the infant where simply a passive being that acts with out any systematic goal. Sensorimotor stage is the development of the child that includes intelligence based on perceptual experiences such as reflexes from 0-1month, primary circular reactions from 1to 4 months which is a repetition of certain pleasurable behaviors and formation of habits, secondary circular reactions 4 to 8 months, the coordination of secondary schemata and so forth. An example to this is the hand exercises. The child can follow simple instruction to close or open his or her hands as this is pleasurable exercise, during the infancy stage. But when the child is over one year old he can already follow basic instruction with basic understanding. Preoperational stage on the other hand begins at 2 up to 6 years of age. Salkind implies that Piaget’s preoperational stage of universal development is the progression of the infant from a reflexive organism to towards understanding of the symbolic world (248). Michie Swartwood and Kathy Trotter pointed out that in Piaget’s preoperational stage, the key feature of children’s thinking â€Å"is symbolic representation† (69). Swartwood and Trotter cited that during this stage, the child is able to use symbol, an object, or a word to stand for something else (69). Thus, though preoperational stage occurs right after the sensorimotor stage terminates, the child experiences tremendous progress during this stage. An example to this is the ability to follow simple instruction not to touch this or that, or that, on the ground that it will harm him or her, or that it will hurt him. In comparing both stages of development the child acquires certain degree of progression before each stage terminates. Both stages also display some degree of intelligence as the child now learns a lot of things through his or her experiences. But these stages also differ on some grounds. First, children in the sensorimotor stage do not think symbolically, while in preoperational stage they do think symbolically. Second, in the sensorimotor stage, the â€Å"child is limited to direct interaction with the environment, while in the second stage, the children learns to â€Å"manipulate symbols that represent the environment (Salkind, 248). In general however, both these stages show the child’s remarkable and development. Question 3. Some of the major stress that I am dealing with in my everyday life are first and foremost are the pressures from deadlines that must be met. This creates tension in me especially when I am running short of time. Biased treatment and sexism are also a great source of stress because it angers me. I really hate these things and I felt stress every time I encounter it. Some minor stressors however that I encounter everyday are the peer pressures. Peers insistences of something I do not like create pressures on me. Stern and unsmiling faces also s a source of stress especially those I meet daily. Some of the coping skills that I learned over time to keep the minor stressors from becoming major issues are; first, to ease my self of being too competitive. I learned this skill after I realized that I do not actually need to compete with my self. I simply need to make a list of priorities and take things at a time based on the priority list. Second, is to be friendly. I just realized that there is nothing wrong to great people with a smile regardless of how they would respond at me. I realized that by doing this, I could prevent the minor stress from becoming a major stress as I actually overcome it. Question 4. Schizophrenia is a disease. It is a chronic disease and severe mental disorder with a typical onset in adolescence and early adulthood and a lifetime prevalence of 1%. Dwight Evans cited that on average â€Å"male have their illness onset 3 to 4 years earlier than female† (78). Schizophrenia is not a developmental disorder but a chronic mental disease. The four type of schizophrenia are the following, paranoid, disorganized, catatonic, and undifferentiated. The characteristic and symptoms of paranoid are hallucinations and delusions. In the disorganized type, it symptoms and characteristic are reflected by disorganized speech, disorganized behavior, and inappropriate affect. The catatonic type manifest clinical syndrome such as excessive purposeless motor activity, extreme negativism, peculiar voluntary movements and so on. The undifferentiated sub type is diagnosed when the patient â€Å"does not meet criteria for the previous type yet does meet the criteria for schizophrenia† (Maddux Winstead, 182). It is more likely that schizophrenia has a genetic cause than environmental. It is quite common that when there is schizophrenia in the family, it is passed down to another member. Thus this disease is called â€Å"psychobiological† illness amenable to chemical intervention and modification of the environment. An example to this is when a person is exposed to violence and all other abuses since birth, he has the tendency to have psychological trauma which causes schizophrenia. Question 5. One incident that happened in my lifetime was when I read the story about a plane crash killing all the more than two hundred passengers. After I read the story, I was shocked and I developed psychological fear regarding boarding an aircraft. Psychology fit in this scenario because I knew pretty well that it was simply an accident. In this experience, I developed some fear as it would always come to my mind that this plane might crash too. But as I came to realize, accident happens anywhere to anybody, at any given time and cause. Since I cannot prevent it nor predict it, the best thing to do is to just be very careful and avoid those that I can, but those that I cannot; I just leave my fate in the hands of God. The connection here between psychology and life is that, life is real; we should rather be practical and realistic than be overcome by fear and anxiety about our bad experiences. Question 6. I have incorporated in my work of art elements of psychology through my use of colors and designs. In using bright colors, I usually expressed strong emotion such as anger, or fear, or other emotions. I also incorporated psychology in my designs such as shapes that expresses meanings like lovely ideas or joyful situations. I will incorporate them in the future in the same way I incorporated it the last time with perhaps some improvement or modification. I could connect the process that I go through as an artist with psychology through putting meaning on my experiences in the light of what I have learned about psychology. That is, I must seek the context of what I am trying to portray to which I labor so much. It means that my work of art should be reflective of what life is, of the emotions, such love, fear, and other strong feelings that we often encounter or should I say, that always experience on a daily basis. Finally, one influence that will mesh with my future work of art is those that wear green colors, or things that are green. I am fascinated by this color and this influence in me can help meshed up with my future work of art. Work Cited Arnett, Jeffrey Jensen. International Encyclopedia of Adolescence, Volume 1 USA: CRC Press, 2007. Corey, Gerald Corey Marianne Schneider. I Never Knew I Had a Choice: Explorations in Personal Growth USA: Cengage Learning, 2006 Deutsch, Morton; Coleman, Peter T. ; Marcus, Eric Colton. The Handbook of Conflict Resolution: Theory and Practice USA: John Wiley and Sons, 2006 Drebben, Olga. Patient Education in Rehabilitation USA: Jones and Bartlett, 2010 Evans, Dwight Treating and Preventing Adolescent Mental Health Disorders: What We Know and What We don’t Know New York: Oxford University Press Hirsch, Steven Weinberger Daniel Roy. Schizophrenia Great Britain: Wiley-Blackwell, 1995 Kalat, James W. Introduction to Psychology USA: Cengage Learning, 2008. Maddux, James Winstead, Barbara. Psychopathology: Foundations for a Contemporary Understanding USA: Routledge, 2005. Salkind, Neil J. An Introduction to Theories of Human Development USA: Sage Publications, 2004 Swartwood, Michie Trotter, Kathy. Observing Children and Adolescents: Student Workbook USA: Cengage Learning, 2004

Practice of Therapy Essay -- Counseling

Practice of Therapy The actual practicing of therapy is a scary step for beginning therapists, although the education has been received and after practicum there will some experience in practicing with clients, doing therapy on your own seems intimidating. However, I am sure like most other experiences in life, the more you do something, the better you get at it and the more comfortable you feel in knowing what you are doing as well as doing it the proper way. With therapy, an individual can learn all about theories, models and assessments but the rapport and confidence from clients can only come after practicing therapy. Protocol For Initial Telephone Contact I will begin by introducing myself and then explaining my qualifications, I want the client to feel at ease in knowing I am not only capable but educated and trained specifically in marriage and family therapy. The next step would be asking the client to specify the issue that has caused the couple or family to seek therapy and then to determine all family members as well as any other individuals or public agencies that are connected to the couple or family. Next would be determining if the situation is a crisis situation and then deciding if I am able to help with the family or couple’s issues. Then I would talk about fees, payments and ensure the family has adequate transportation to attend sessions. After that, I would set up an appointment date and time, preferably within the next 24 hours. Who Comes To First Meeting? If the clients are a couple, I would prefer both individuals attend the first interview, although I realize this will not always be agreeable. In a family interview I would also prefer all members of the family present, this way each member can expre... ...ions. It has often been said there is no substitute for experience and it appears to me that practicing therapy is one of those situations. Works Cited Grewal, Daisy. (2012). In Atheists We Distrust. Scientific American. Retrieved from http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=in-atheists-we-distrust Hayslip, Bert., and Schneider, Lawrence. (1985). Effects of Counselor-Client Age Similarity and Presenting Problem Intimacy on Client Satisfaction. Retrieved from http://eric.ed.gov/PDFS/ED259254.pdf Locke, H.J., and Wallace, K.M. (1959). Short-term marital adjustments and prediction tests; Their reliability and validity. Journal of Marriage and Family Living. Nichols. (2010). Family Therapy; Concepts and Methods. Patterson, J., Williams, l., Edwards, T. M., Chamow, L., & Grauf- Grounds, C. (2009). Family Therapy; Concepts and Methods.

Lukes Three Dimensions of Power :: Power Society Symbolism Culture Essays

Luke's Three Dimensions of Power   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  "Power serves to create power. Powerlessness serves to re-enforce powerlessness"(Gaventa,1980:256). Such is the essence of the on going relationship between the Powerful and the Powerless of the Appalachian Valley where acquiescence of the repressed has become not only common practice but a way of life and a means of survival. In his novel Power and Powerlessness, John Gaventa examines the oppressive and desperate situation of the Appalachian coal miners under the autocratic power of absentee land-owners, local elites, and corrupt union leaders. His analyses is based on Lukes three-dimensional understanding of power from his book Power: A Radical View. Gaventa applies the three notions of power to the politics of inequalities in the Appalachian Valley and, while demonstrating the inadequacies of the first or 'pluralist' approach and the merits of the second and particularly the third dimensions, asserts that the interrelationship and reinforcing affect of all three dimensions is necessary for an in depth understanding of the "total impact of power upon the actions [or inactions] and conceptions of the powerless"(Gaventa:256)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This essay will examine Luke's three power dimensions and their applicability to Gaventa's account of the inequities found in the valleys of the Cumberland Mountains. Reasons for the mountain people's submission and non- participation will be recognized and their nexus with the power relationship established. In this way, Gaventa's dissatisfaction with the pluralist approach will be justified and the emphatic ability of the other two dimensions to withhold issues and shape behaviour will be verified as principal agents of Power and Powerlessness.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The one dimensional view of power is often called the 'pluralist' approach and emphasizes the exercise of power through decision making and observable behaviour. Robert Dahl, a major proponent of this view, defines power as occurring in a situation where "A has power over B to the extent he can get B to do something that B would not otherwise do"(Dahl as cited in Lukes, 1974:11). A's power therefore is defined in terms of B and the extent to which A prevails is determined by its higher ratio of 'successes' and 'defeats' over B.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Observable behaviour then becomes a key factor in the pluralist approach to power. Dahl's Who Govern's? expresses the pluralist belief that the political arena is an open system where everyone may participate and express grievances which in turn lead to decision making. Those who propose alternatives and initiate issues which contribute to the decision making process are demonstrating observable influence and control over those who failed all together to express any interest in the political process.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Pluralist approach assumes that in an open system, all people, not

The poem Beowulf, edited by Daniel Donoghue and translated by Seamus Heaney, is a masterful piece of poetry

The poem Beowulf, edited by Daniel Donoghue and translated by Seamus Heaney, is a masterful piece of poetry. By looking at the roles that women played back in Anglo-Saxon times, one can get a better understanding into the function of Grendel's mother in the poem. By examining specific examples of other women in this time frame to Grendel's mother it helps to compare the differences from the expected behavior. In one of her essays, Jane Chance investigates some of the possible meanings behind the importance of Grendel's mother and her societal acceptance. Many people still debate the actual function of Grendel's mother, but in previously written words of Jane Chance some answers may be found. Jane Chance, one of the many people who have examined the poem Beowulf, wrote an essay that provided an explanation of the important role played by the women in Beowulf. She states: â€Å"The role of women in Beowulf primarily depends upon ‘peace making' either biologically through her marital ties with foreign kings as a peace-pledge or mother of sons, or socially and psycho-logically as a cup passing and peace-weaving queen within a hall† (p. 156). Chance also goes on to establish how each of the women in the poem are used to prove her point about their symbolic presence. The women of pagan history, mostly notably the queen, portray a symbolic gesture of peace in the form of bringing the mead cup to the men of the hall. Chance believes that as the mead cup is passed around, the people who drink from the cup are tied together. This is a symbol of weaving men and families together. The Beowulf poet also mentions that the women's role is to create a â€Å"peace-pledge between nations† (2017). The standard practice to perform this was to give away daughters, or sisters in arranged marriages to order to bring strong ties with neighbouring or feuding families. Hildeburh, wife of the Frisian king Finn, sister of the Dane Hnaef (249), was given in marriage to fuse both the Danes and the Frisianes together. Freawaru is betrothed to Ingeld for this same reason; to renew alliances within families and countries. A line from Beowulf proves this point, â€Å"The friend of the Shieldings favors her betrothal: the guardian of the kingdom sees good in it and hopes this woman will heal old wounds and grievous feuds† (2026-2029). The expected role of women in this era was to provide harmony and become the symbol of peace in the hearts of men. Women also had an important responsibility to speak for her people during events; a prominent speech was the one that Wealtheow gives to the hall after the death of Grendel. She gives of blessings to the warriors, and speaks of her own children and their importance to the future as the next of kin: Take delight in this torque, dear Beowulf, wear it for luck and wear also this mail from our people's armory: may you prosper in them! Be acclaimed for strength, for kindly guidance to these two boys, and your bounty will be sure. You have won renown: you are known to all men far and near, now and forever. Your sway is wide as the wind's home, as the sea around cliffs. And so, my prince, I wish you a lifetime's luck and blessings to enjoy this treasure. Treat my sons with tender care, be strong and kind. Here each comrade is true to the other, loyal to Lord, loving in spirit. (1216-1229) Wealtheow ‘s responsibility is that of a mediator to make everyone happy and yet ensure that she and her people survive. In comparing the women and their purpose in society to the events concerning Grendle's mother, one can see a female does not usually take action but Grendel's mother does despite her gender. Feeling â€Å"grief-racked and ravenous, desperate for revenge† (1278) Grendle's mother goes on the attack in order to redeem her son who was killed. In doing this she consequently exhibits more masculine traits than other women of the time. She displays quite a different reaction than the one that Hildeburh gave when she lost not only her brother but her son as well. Hildeburh did exactly what was expected of her at the time. She mourned and â€Å"Then Hidleburh ordered her own / son's body be burnt with Hnaef's, / the flesh of his bones to sputter and blaze / beside his uncle's. The women wailed / and sang keens† (1115-1119). Comparatively Grendel's mother does not have a problem in reacting to the wrongs she felt that were done to her: â€Å"monstrous hell-bride; brooded on her wrongs† (1259). Unlike the women of the time she fights her own battles: â€Å"she has taken up the feud because of last night when you killed Grendel† (1333). This is the main difference between the women of the time and Grendel's mother since dealing with grudges was typically a job left up to that of the males in the family. Chance also believes that women's expected place in society at that time was one of non-aggression and they become the ones to make the peace as opposed to men who fight. Chance goes on to explain, â€Å"the idea is stressed that a kinwoman or mother must passively accept and not actively avenge the loss of her son† (p.157-158). Females do not usually take action other than in a peaceful or symbolic sense in this Anglo-Saxon time period. Though Grendel's mother proceeds like a man by acting out her revenge she is referred to in the poem as a: â€Å"ghastly dam† (2120) reflecting that she is still seen as a lady in that time period: Her onslaught was less only by as much as an amazon warrior's strength is less than an armed man's when the hefted sword, its hammered edge and gleaming blade slathered in blood, razes the sturdy boar-ridge off a helmet. Then in the hall, hard-honed swords were grabbed from the bench, many a broad shield lifted and braced; there was little though of helmets or woven mail when they woke in terror. The hell-dam was in a panic, desperate to get out, in mortal terror the moment she was found. She had pounced and taken one of the retainers in a tight hold, then headed for the fen. (1282-1295) These lines from the poem help to show that even though some of the actions taken by Grendel's mother are masculine by nature, she does have some female traits. These traits include not being as strong as the men and fleeing or not staying to put up a fight once confronted. Women stereotypically were seen as being fearful of danger once it has been provoked. The function of Grendel's mother in the poem seems to be quite different from the function that the monsters of Grendel and the Dragon play. She seems to be a symbol of the blood feuds and displays an unwillingness to act as the peace-pledge, which was the normal female role after an injustice. In her essay Jane Chance states: â€Å"As a monstrous mother and queen she perverts a role more important socially and symbolically than that of Grendel† (p. 167). The devoted mother or the feminine side of Grendel's mother comes out in her anger and her sense of loss at the killing of her son. But Grendel's mother's actions are not accepted by the people of this time, as a result there is a conflict between her actions and her purpose. Chance writes about how the poet wishes to â€Å"stress this specific inversion of the Anglo-Saxon ideal of women as both monstrous and masculine† (p. 155). As Grendel's mother changes roles between mother and vengeance seeker through the story one might think that the poet is against women from acting in the same manor as Grendel's mother. By making Grendel's mother feminine but also powerful and ruthless she is then referred to as a â€Å"swamp thing from hell, the tarn-hag in all her terrible strength† (1518-1519) and â€Å"hell-dam†(1292). Grendel's mother seems to be desiring revenge over peace and her contemporaries viewed this as horrible, since women are the symbols of peace, as explained by Chance. The essay written by Jane Chance looks at the women and the roles that they played in that time period and then comparing their behavior to Grendel's mother's ever changing role as mother to vengeance seeker. It also evaluates the function that Grendel's mother occupies in the poem. Grendel's mother in the poem seems to have the most challenging role in the poem itself. She does not seem to agree with the view of women in the time period that the poem was written. By exploring the differences of behavior in Beowulf one can see that Grendel's mother is an important addition to the poem.

Journal#6 Example

Journal#6 Example Journal#6 – Assignment Example Physical and Cognitive Development in Adolescence Question Adolescence is the transition from childhood to adulthood, and it lasts from age 11 or 12 until early twenties or late teens. Puberty marks the end of childhood and it is triggered by hormonal changes. These changes can affect behavior and moods. Puberty usually lasts for four years, and it begins earlier in girls than boys (Kail & Cavanaugh 243). During this stage, both boys and girls undergo growth spurt. They begin to develop primary characteristics, which include the reproductive organs, and secondary characteristics such as growth of pubic hair around their genitalia. The leading characteristics of sexual maturity include menstruation, for females, and production of sperms, for males (Kail & Cavanaugh 296). Menarche occurs between the age of 12 and 13 while spermarche occurs at age 13. The adolescents are often concerned with their body images that lead to obsessive dieting, especially in girls. Peer pressure is more inf luential than parents’ pieces of advice and guides, and this leads to drug abuse and indulgence in criminal activities. Depression is also highly prevalent among the adolescent especially girls. Question #2First, the social environment significantly affects the onset of puberty. I have since known that the onset of puberty is standardized in spite of a teenager’s social environment. According to Belsky, Draper and Steinberge, girls whose mothers use harsh punishment on them usually experience their first menstrual cycle at a younger age. Additionally, Menarche occurs in younger girls who experience depression or chronic stress (Kail & Cavanaugh 298). I also learnt that early maturation varies across ethnic or racial groups. For instance, sexual activity, of early-maturing Latinas, was directly linked with having older boys, in the peer groups, who influence them to engage in negative activities such as smoking, drinking and sex. Question #3 From the leadership perspect ive, I learnt that adolescents’ working memory almost has the same capacity as adults’ working memory (Kail & Cavanaugh 246). This means that they are capable of storing information required for a cognitive process. The processing speed is also sufficient to process information more efficiently. Additionally, early maturing boys are likely to become leaders because of self-confidence and high self-esteem, unlike early maturing girls, who are unlikely to become leaders because of the indifferences they have in social situations. Kail, Robert V, and Cavanaugh, John C. Human Development: A Life-Span View. Australia: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2010. Print.

Services Marketing

Services Marketing Australian Telecommunications Company has continued to expand to address the demands of the market. It has remained a key player in the country’s economic growth, having generated close to $37 billion in 2008 and $98 billion revenue in 2009. The industry has over five hundred thousand employees across the country, working in various capacities (IBISWorld, 2011).Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Services Marketing specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It has arguably been considered as a stimulant for employment in almost every sector of Australian economy. It has local and international companies which contribute to this tremendous global recognition. Among these are Optus and Vodafone which are considered as key players in the market. This paper gives a critique of the performance of these companies based on their weaknesses and threats with reference to the entire telecommunications industry in Australia. Vod afone is a UK-owned company and the leading telecommunications company around the world operating in more than twenty five countries including Australia. Vodafone Australia is the third largest Telecommunications Company in Australia, behind the giants Telstra and Optus. The company runs a GSM mobile network which is approximated to cover 92% of Australian market (Vodafone, 2011). It also boasts of a Globalster satellite which enables it to cover the entire population. Even as the company continues to thrive in an ever-expanding economy and market, it has had its fair share of weaknesses and threats triggered by intertwined factors in the telecommunications market. Vodafone Australia has experienced one of the worst network problems in the Australian market. Towards the end of 2010, the company registered pitiable quality in its calls, data speed, SMS reliability and voicemail services. It was faced with a class action suit for demonstrating incompetence in serving Australian people . To maintain its business reputation, the company responded by blaming customers for using faulty software on their handsets and use of Smartphones (Vodafone, 2011). Although Vodafone CEO offered an apology, the interruption saw several customers terminate their contracts with the company to seek better services.Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Additionally, expansion of the company has been achieved by direct regulation of its operations. Through mergers and acquisitions, the company has not realized organic growth. As a result, the company has a stable customer base at the expense of proper management of its subsidiaries (Vodafone, 2011). With its operational structure centered in UK, Vodafone Australia has failed to address needs of the market allowing effective competition from smaller companies. Moreover, Vodafone Australia continues to experience severa l threats as permitted by market trends and its ability to effectively serve Australians. Competition from major players and upcoming companies is seen as a major threat for the company. Telstra which is the leading player in the market, previously possessed by the government runs most of the copper network, offering landline, broadband and mobile services (Vodafone, 2011). Immense global penetration of internet companies further threatens Vodafone’s ability to penetrate the market in future. It is important to note that though saturated, the market still offers opportunities in terms of the aging population and changing needs for customers. Through strategic plans like simple phones and friendly pricing plans, the company stands a chance of favorably competing in market (IBISWorld, 2011). On the other hand, Optus is ranked second in Australian telecommunications market and is owned by Singapore Telecommunications Company. Headquartered in Sydney, Optus has retained SingTel s ervices and products like Boost Mobile, Virgin Mobile Australia, Uecomm and Alphawest (Optus, 2011). In serving its customers, the company runs its own network infrastructure together with the use of other companies’ services like Telstra Wholesale. It has two channels of service delivery where it directly serves customers in the market and as a wholesale agent for smaller companies.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Services Marketing specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The company also provides internet services through dial-up and broadband services. It mainly serves the government, business owners and residents of Australia. Like other players in the Australian telecommunications market, the company has weaknesses and continues to experience threats from a wide range of areas. Being owned by Singapore Telecommunications Company which has concentrated its operation in Australia, Optus is exposed to high co mpetition from local players and other bigger players in the market. In addition, Optus is faced with management issues manifested through labor strikes experienced before (Optus, 2011). This affects its reputation in maintaining a competitive advantage and customer base. Lastly, service delivery has not been up to date with customers complaining of low network connection speed and Cable TV services. Even though the company is ranked second in Australian telecommunications industry, it faces stiff competition from Telstra and Vodafone among other key players and upcoming companies. It therefore suffices to mention competition as the company’s major threat. Nevertheless, Optus prides on a number of opportunities in the telecommunications industry. With ever-changing technology, the company has a chance to expand its service and product delivery in order to address the needs of its young customers. It also plans to increase its customer base through TV mobile services by the en d of 2012 by use of FetchTV (Optus, 2011). Additionally, the company seeks to access government license to offer provisional satellite services that will cover Australian Broadband Network. This will win new customers across the country including remote regions which are not well covered by its competitors. In general, a survey of Australian telecommunications market indicates various viewpoints with regard to the performance of companies like Vodafone and Optus. It is evident that the two companies have weaknesses which have continued to affect their performances. Nevertheless, there are countless opportunities to be utilized in maintaining competitive advantage.Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More References IBISWorld. (2011). Mobile Telecommunications Carriers in Australia: Market Research Report. IBISWorld. Web. Optus. (2011). Media Center. Optus. Web. Vodafone. (2011). Vodafone Company. Vodafone. Web.