Evacuation was a great success Essay Example for Free

Evacuation was a great success Essay Source A is a picture of all the happy school children all lining up to be evacuated. Now this is not a reliable source when trying to prove if evacuation was a success or not. This is due to the fact that during the war the government had emergency powers. This gave them power all over the newspapers. So this meant that the newspapers posted propaganda about how successful the evacuation was. In the picture, there are all smiling faces, and no signs of a resistance. It almost looks like the kids want to be evacuated. This photo has been used to give an overall positive impression of the evacuation. Now in the picture, the kids look happy, but in reality there was a lot of resistance against evacuation. Parents didnt want their kids to leave them, and kids didnt want to leave their parents. In Grimsby, more than seven thousand children were eligible to be evacuated, but on the day only 1,854 children had been evacuated. Showing that there was a reluctance to evacuate children. In the evening telegraph it even described the evacuation as Though some omnipotent pied piper had been thought the cities of England, stripping them of their children. Source B is a teachers recollection of being evacuated with her children from her school. Now this has to be looked at carefully, as it was written a while after in 1988. Now memories could be different. She explains, All you could hear was the feet of the children and a kind of murmur. This shows that the children arent the smiling people as shown in the papers. This shows that they werent really pleased about leaving their homes and families to live with complete strangers. This could also not be reliable because it could be over exaggerated. Source C is an extract from a novel about evacuees. Now before we analyse this we have to take into consideration that this was written for the younger audience. So facts could have been altered to make the story more interesting. First of all, we can rely on this source too highly as it is a fiction piece, which is made up. And also it will not be too graphic as it is intended for the children. Secondly it was written in 1973, nowhere near the time of the war. Source D is an appeal for more people in Scotland to provide homes for evacuee children. Now this source was probably published in a newspaper. Seeing as first looks at it, it looks like propaganda. In the passage, it is trying to get more people to take evacuees in. It does this by saying two of the strongest words ever, thank you. These words are the words that most reach out to the people, as humans like being appreciated. Now after they feel good form the thank you, thats when they appeal to you to get those sweet looking children in the picture. But it wasnt like this. Some of the children contained lice, and some had never had a bath in their lives. Some of them were under clothed, some had came in all the clothes they had. These mislead people thinking that they would get a nice quiet child, clean and happy. Instead they got unhappy crying children, suffering from chronic bedwetting. Source E is an Interview with a parent in may 1940. Now 1940 was the beginning of the bombing of the cities began. And during the text, you can see that he was reluctant to evacuate his child, and kept him with him in the end. As you can see from the way he speaks, he has a lack of knowledge and therefore is scared of the unknown; he has no concept of what it would be like to live in the shires. You can tell that he knows if the kid goes away, he knows that the dad dies, and the kid will come back to no family what so ever. This is a useful source because it gives us an idea of what the parents thought about the evacuation. I agree with the fact that the evacuation was a success. It kept the children safe, but the Evacuation failed in keeping the children mentally safe. Most parents who preferred to keep their children with them instinctively realised what was not known: That sending off young children could have serious repercussions.

Methodologies For Ecommerce And Web Systems Information Technology Essay

Methodologies For Ecommerce And Web Systems Information Technology Essay This paper introduces software development methodologies (SDM) and compares three approaches that are suitable for an e-commerce system. The three approaches of SDM selected in this paper were based on the proliferation of web based information system or e-commerce. Since the popularity and commercialisation of the Internet in the 1990s, software development has been evolving and brought new ways of doing and building software using the web technology environment and tools available. Software development methodology was popularised by the software development life cycle (SDLC) for building information systems in the late 60s. Currently, modern and advanced software tools are being used to exploit the rich resources of the Internet in building systems. The web now offers more complex, distributed, concurrent and connected applications (Surcel, 2009). Web information systems exploit web applications and other non-web components to deliver information and services to other systems and users via the Internet. Traditional SDLC methodologies can still be used in building e-commerce and web applications for the Internet. However, the traditional SDLC approach may not work for different object oriented design methodology for the web,like web site design methododlogy (WSDM), relatioshipship navigational analysis, MacWeb approach, hypermedia flexible modelling, and other object oriented and software engineering pattern approach (Masrek,et.al, 2008). As the web intially sta rted from static pages and eventually to a more dynamic and complex rich information and transaction based application, the software development processes and methodolgies present greater challenges and opportunities to software developers. 2. Software Development Methodologies There have been a lot of software development methodologies investigated by researchers of software systems in the past four decades. Elliott (2004) considered the SDLC as the oldest formalised model for building information systems. According to Silberberg (2006) these prescriptive process models bring useful structure to software development work and provide a roadmap for software teams. The prescriptive models include the waterfall model, incremental process models, rapid application design (RAD), spiral model, and concurrent development models. Agile processes for software development are focused more on the early delivery of software and customer satisfaction. Most of the web-based applications like e-commerce have characteristics that are network intensive, and have a high level of concurrency that is right for agile process models. Agile process models inlcude extreme programming, adaptive software development (ASD), dynamic systems development method (DSDM), scrum, crystal, a nd agile modelling (Silberberg, 2006). 2.1 The Software Development Methodologies in E-commerce Surcel (2009) suggests that IT professionals, web designers, IT managers and executives and all involved in the e-commerce software development must understand how to apply software engineering concepts for e-commerce systems, for better integrate their software with the needs of their business. IT professionals need to establish a methodology that resolves all the problems of e-business applications. Software developers, who understand the concepts of analysis, architecture and design, will have the success in developing the e-commerce systems. The traditional SDLC is not enough to get the job done in e-commerce systems. Building information system is far more different with e-commerce systems because there are distinctive characteristic of the web application like creative design, advertising, marketing concepts and software engineering (Surcel, 2009). According to Coda et.al (1998) The web infrastructure is going beyond the mere distribution of information and services towards the development of platform for generic distributed applications in the world-wide setting. This promising scenario is endangered by the weakness of the current methodologies that support the development of web-based applications. In terms of user participation towards the development of e-commerce applications Fraternali (1999) suggested that applications for the Internet is such domains as e-commerce ..[à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦].. are characterized by an unprecedented mix of features that makes them radically different from previous applications. Terry and Standing (2004) added to this challenge that e-commerce development faces the same demands and risks as any other application development projects. However, the intimate connection of users, customers, vendors and suppliers in the development process makes it more difficult and distinguishing the identity of the users who will the system is larger in scale since it considers the world at large. With the advent of Web 2.0, social networking and media, innovative approach of doing software development methodologies are needed in order to sustain the needs of the growing interests of users on the Internet that is not just doing online transactions but consuming most of the applications and services beyond what is being offered by e-commerce. 2.2 Agile Methodologies Agile methodologies are the best candidates for e-commerce systems that incorporate the innovative and dynamic nature of the web. Agile web development is a development model for web applications that follow the same concept as the agile methodologies. This approach is more efficient and powerful to ensure every piece of functionality is delivered early in the development stage and improves throughout the life of the web application. Agile web development has the following characteristics according to Clark (2008): Iterative and incremental development methods that is aimed to deliver the application at shorter period of time; The production progress is measured based on the complete and tested features during the schedule release of the application; Tasks are broken down into smaller increments that make it more adaptable to some changes; A working application is the principal measure of the development progress. This methodology follows planning, requirements analysis, designing, coding, testing and documentation in parallel during the stage of production process. Customer involvement during the development process by getting their feedback improves the confidence of making changes, error free, and customer-oriented approach. Agile web methodologies also cover the following approaches that are presented in this paper: feature driven development (FDD), adaptive software development (ASD), and dynamic systems development method (DSDM). 2.3 Feature Driven Development (FDD) FDD is a model-driven short-iteration process that consists of five activities was described by Luca (no date) as patterns of play that brings success. The five basic activities of FDD are: Develop an overall model described as the high-level walkthrough of the scope of the system. These are composed of meta-models that are pieces of the model in the domain and combined to form an overall model based on the consensus of the peer review and discussion of the development team. Build a feature list are the ideas generated from the overall model and decomposing the domain into subject areas. Plan by feature is using the list from the second activity to produce the development plan. Design by feature is a design package made from the third activity. Build by feature is the task that generated the completed client-valued function state. According to (Martin, 2003), FDD can be used in web development. However, web development covers a lot of project types and it is dependent to the nature of the project where FDD can be applied. The effective way to get the development process done right is to start it with the FDD approach. FDD understands, embraces, and accepts software construction as a human activity. Process is needed, as is technology, but it is knowing of where to specify what should be done and where what to do. That is the essense of a well-bounded process in recognition of people and thier role in software construction projects, and knowing what needs to be written down (as a process) versus what ius simply delegated to the right role. The patterns of play that brings success (Luca, no date). Almost all projects can use FDD regardless of the size and technology. Defining and mapping the features in a web development project can be described into requirements and specifications. The requirement should establ ish the concise project objective that put everything in place. Then document the specifications that defines the project itslef like, interaction design (frontend and backend), page flow and logic, page wireframes, database schema, class diagrams, and feature list. Features can be described as the the view/add/edit/delete functionality relevant to the users/customer needs. The features are mapped according to the interactions of the screen design. Technical implementation where a specific technology is used to describe business logic of model-view-controller (MVC) to separate data and layers of the interface (Martin, 2003). 2.4 Adaptive Software Development (ASD) ASD software development approach use the continuous adaptation and learning that described the dynamic speculate-collaborate-learn life cycle (Highsmith, 2000a). ASD approach is dedicated to constant change, re-evaluation, and collaboration among all members of the development team and clients. The conceptual notion of ASD was based of complex adaptive systems (CAS) that is designed for complex, high-speed, high-change, and uncertain projects. The change-oriented life cycle has a direct relation to speculate-collaborate-learn concept. Speculate is to have a clear realization of understanding the plan. Speculation is recognizing the uncertainty of the problem that needs to be explored. Collaboration is the giving importance to teamwork that encompasses the development team, customers, suppliers, vendors, and others that is directly and indirectly involved in the process. Learning is the product of acknowledging the course and the result of the development process. The learning proces s is test of knowledge and can be derived from the organizational practices, being committed and adaptive to retrospective and focus group discussions. According to (Arthur, 1996) ASD addresses the economy of increasing returns. The Internet and the dot com markets are characterized by the high-speed, high-change economy(Arthur, 1996). This approach makes the market unpredictable and unplanned developmental process in the normal or traditional way of controlling the project (Riehle, 2001). CAS model as described by (Highsmith,2000a) in software development that explain the world of agents, environment, and emergence is translated to the development organization as the environment; members as agents; and the product as the emergent result of competition and cooperation within the uncertain and unpredictable world of software development (Riehle, 2001). ASD lifecycle has six characteristics: mission focused, component based, iterative, timeboxed, risk driven, and change tolerant (Highsmith, 2000b). In e-commerce projects mission focused projects are guided by the boundaries of the mission statements. Application components are the result that defines the group features. During the iteration cycle the components are developed and the documentation are deliverables which are secondary to the software feature that is needed by the client. Timeboxing are deadlines or fixed delivery times for the iterative processes and project itself. Then this is analysed according to the risks associate during the adaptive cycles. Change tolerance is the ability to view and incorporate change in the process that take advantage of the make it more error-free and compliant with the set requirements (Highsmith, 2000b). 2.5 Dynamic Systems Development Method (DSDM) DSDM is a model that has the resemblance of project management. This model is the convergence of software development and process engineering that makes DSDM a good tool for complex problem solving (Voigt, 2004). DSDM is the best approach for projects that are charcterised by tight schedules and budgets. It is composed of three phases: pre-project, project life-cycle, and post-project phase. The project life cycle has five stages that includes: feasiblity study, business study, functional model iteration,design and build iteration, and implementation. Other software methodologies can be used and allowed to mix with the DSDM practices. The DSDM nine principles are essential in any type of software project and departure from any of the nine principles will have a significant risk of failure. The nine principles are: [1] active user involvement is imperative; [2] teams must be empowered to make decisions; [3] focus on frequent delivery; [4] fitness for business is criterion for accepted deliverables; [5] iterative an dincremnetal development is mandatory; [6] all changes during the development must be reversible; [7] requirements are baselined at higher-level; [8] testing is integrated throughout the lifecycle; [9] collaborative and co-operative approach (Voigt, 2004). To make DSDM successful the nine principles should be followed and the interactivity with the project team, end user as well as the higher management should be realised. Finally, DSDM projects should be decomposed into smaller parts to use iterative approach. Recommended core techniques for DSDM are timeboxing, MoSCoW (Must have, Should have, Could hav e, Want to have), prototyping, workshop, modelling, and configuration management (Voigt, 2004). Key success factors based on the DSDM experinces of its members from the DSDM consortium are compiled and was published. Most of the key success factors are pointing to leadership and executive responsibilities, that reflects the advance corporate culture that should be practiced. More importantly, acceptance of the DSDM nine principles, commitment of senior management, incremental delivery, esy access by developers and end-users,stability of the team,size and development team skills, development of technology, and lastly supportive commercial relationship (DSDM consortium, 2010). 3. Methodology This study adopted an exploratory approach and search of available published articles and journals on the Internet on the theme of agile software methodologies in e-commerce and web systems. Literature review, survey methods and case studies were selected from the pool of articles and journals. An exemplar of the agile software methodology and its application to e-commerce and web systems was also presented to define the advantages and disadvantages of the selected methodology. 3.1 Literature Review Agile software development returned 1.8 million searched items in Google and 57,200 in Google scholar. The rich resources of agile methodology have been exploited in the 90s and until the present saturation of Internet, e-commerce and web systems. According to Meso and Jain (2006) agile software development methodologies allow organisations to rapidly evolve systems, primarily the Internet and web software development. ASD must be considered in heavy weight methodologies rather than integrating and hacking approaches. Successful web development methodologies (Bauer 2005) are going agile and are best suited to FDD. Bauer was able to get FDD working in his several web development projects and refine the process to come up with successful approach that worked effectively from his experience. His high-level overview of FDD was described in his article that successfully launched completed web projects ranging in size from 2 weeks to 6 months (Bauer 2005). For DSDM (Voigt, 2004) concluded that the model is straight forward based on the best practices, strength in simplicity, extendibility, and has proven successful work in the past and albeit not a solution for all projects. The disadvantages, like other structured methodology has a high barrier to entry, significant cultural paradigm shift is not as fast and cheap. 3.2 Surveys The investigation survey that was conducted by Silberberg (2006) suggests that some applications of agile methodologies were used as a tool to speed up the development process that was being developed under prescriptive approach for organisations that developed their own software. The organisation groups surveyed was in financial services, mining, healthcare, communications, transport and construction that have heavy weight use of software development and the build versus buy approach. DSDM was identified in use in the construction sector, where cost effective and rapid relevant results were needed by most of its users. Another survey made by Lim and Venable (2001) is the web information system survey usage by the Australian Web Site consultants reported that low methodology usage when it comes to applying any web information system methodology. This survey failed to present the value of formal development methodologies. Information systems development in Australia as reported in a survey (Dawson and Gibson, 2007) concluded that there is an increasing research activity and the growing interest in the area of software development methodologies primarily in web-based development, including portal and intranet development. Shine Technologies (2003) conducted an online global survey about agile methodologies to measure the interest of several organisations using the said approach. The survey consisted of 10 questions using closed-ended questions. The survey was available from the Shine Technologies website from November 2002 to January 2003. The survey results highlighted the following: lower costs; better productivity; better quality; and better business satisfaction. Most of the respondents, 95% of them are in favour of the agile methodologies. The most used agile methodologies are the Extreme Programming (XP) with 59%, followed by FDD, scrum and others. 3.3 Case Study DSDM Case study (DSDM consortium, 2010) presents several case studies that were used by organisations dealing with software development activities. A sample case from the DSDM case study The National Packaging Waste Database (NPWD) is an online system that tracks how much packaging has been put into the UK market and much packaging waste has been recovered and recycled (DSDM consortium, 2010). This project was able to utilise DSDM and implemented the electronic evidence of reprocessing and doing away with the paper-based process bringing online or web-based approach. The DSDM consortium (2010) has published a method suitability filter covering three areas such as business, systems and technical aspect. Adoption consideration of DSDM can be found in the DSDM manual. The e-DSDM version that is customised for e-commerce and e-business projects are available from the consortium for the public review and reference. 4. Comparison From the gathered literature, articles, case studies and surveys the comparison of the three agile methods (FDD, ASD and DSDM) is based on the following components: general features, adoption of the methodology, and successful implementation to e-commerce and web-based systems. FDD and ASD are the most recognised software development methodologies in software development market while DSDM is recognised for being well documented since the DSDM consortium is in collaboration with the PRINCE2 which is adopted in UK. According to Abrahamsson, et al., (2002) the agile software development method status can be nascent, building-up, and active. The method can be nascent if it has been available less than a year and the no research and experience were identified and reported. Building up phase is a method that is recognised by many of its community of users and publication of the report and research were identified. The active method has been identified in several places, and there is a wide community base of research and reports that publish their experiences and interest on agile methods. DSDM is categorised as active, FDD and ASD belongs to building up status (Abrahamsson, et al., 2002). The general features of FDDs main selling points are the five activities and the short iteration of features. However it falls out of support for visual design, testing and deployment, which does not provide the all-in-one solution for software development. However, it was successful in e-commerce implementations as reported by Bauer (2005) and the FDD community group. ASDs main key points are: adaptive approach, collaboration, and mission-based iterative development labelled as speculate-collaborate-learn cycle. The special features seen in adaptive systems are the emergent creation of order from the interconnected individuals. This methodology covered more discussions about principles rather than software practice. In DSDM main approach is more on the extensive application of rapid application development (RAD). There is an active consortium of experts who stands for the steering of the methodology development. Main features of DSDM is being a true agile method and the nine practices that are innate with the activities that strongly followed by its members. The shortcoming for DSDM is the availability of the resources which is exclusive only to members of the consortium, that makes the use of the model only restricts to its members. 5. Recommendation The strongest candidate for the agile methodology is FDD. According to Bauer (2005) the strongest selling point of FDD is that it really worked on his projects that were refined according to the approach of core FDD methods. However the trade off of not having the complete answer to requirement gathering, visual design, testing and deployment that are significantly needed in the project can be amenable to some by tweaking some of the processes. It is important to acknowledge that doing the way software developers do their job in the software development process without any formal methodologies can be described as shooting the bird in target without the pellet. Software development working teams usually had a history of adopting and adapting from an existing methodology or inventing their own informal methodology. Bauers experience showed FDD had a positive effect since getting everybody on board made their team more responsive to the project that was put in place using FDD. FDD was a ble to provide solutions for their software development issues, constant over-time, over-budget and underestimation of the work required to complete the project that makes worse scope creep, low staff morale, and unrealistic deadlines. With FDD, the solutions are clear from the plan. The reports were excellent, clear and disciplined customer-focused approach. The reduction risk was measured based on the iteration of design and build approach; clarity of requirements, better understanding of building the system; and no wiggle room for decisions. 5. Conclusion The agile methodologies presented in this paper provides a better deal of understanding what approach should be used depending on the type of software development project at hand. For web development or e-commerce system, the traditional software methodologies are not enough to describe the dynamic and complex nature of web systems and its relative activity on the Internet. The nature of software applications running on the web space is simple to develop yet too complex that different technologies are competing with one another. However, the technology is only a tool that has been exploited by the developers themselves. The agile methodologies put more importance on the role of people, its interaction, collaboration, change and adaptive approaches. ASD is primarily much more focused on principles, while FDD is more on simplicity of its five step process and DSDM is excellent in the strong support of its consortium. The agile methodologies are effective in utilizing iterative developm ent and every phase of the development processes has its own unique application that fits the needed development strategy. In summary, the agile methods are more inclined to the people who are working behind the software itself. The person building the software is the main point of how the methodology becomes successful. Human capital and strategic skills that complements the software development process leads the best production of software and ways to improve how to solve the problem in this information age.

Strategic Thinking And Swot Analysis Commerce Essay

Strategic Thinking And Swot Analysis Commerce Essay In this study, SWOT analysis is presented with elaborating the steps. Defining and articulating it roles in strategic planning and development steps are also covered. Besides, it exemplified in the case of organizational performance for small and medium enterprises in Egypt. SWOT which stands for an abbreviation of (strength, weakness, opportunity and threat); is an analysis that defined as method to examine organizations internal factors dealing with strengths and weaknesses, and its environmental opportunities and also the threats. SOWT analysis usually use in the preliminary phase of decision making as a general tool which it designed for being antecedent to strategic planning in different case and applications. (Johnson et al., 1989; Bartol et al., 1991). Based on some other definitions like Formisano (2003), SWOT Analysis can be used as a model, process, technique or framework to generate information about those factors in organization by having many applications with possibility of being used in all the levels of the organization. So, SWOT can be defined as internal analysis of organizational Strengths (what an operation does well) and Weaknesses (what an operation does not do well) and as well as the external analysis of environmental Opportunitie s (potential favorable conditions for an operation) and Threats (potential unfavorable conditions for an operation); and it is a general tool at the initial stages of policy making and strategic planning and as well, it is a part of the latter stages of analyzing the performance and planning for further development of the organization on. SWOT analysis is used as a technique in order to develop a planning process and solutions for the problems that are related with different internal and external factors and maximize the potential of strengths and opportunities as well as minimizing the negations of weakness and threats (Sharma Singh, 2010; Schermerhorn, 2006; Bennett, et al., 2003). The first step of SWOT analysis is a systematic evaluation of the organizations resources and capabilities. Strength in SWOT analysis is connected to competitive advantages and distinguishing competencies of the company in its market environment. But weaknesses can be considered as limitations that can affect the progress of the company in a negative way. This evaluation includes identifying core competencies by considering special strengths which are superior to the competitors. The core competency is a special strength which gives an organization a competitive advantage and it may be found in special knowledge or expertise, superior technologies, efficient manufacturing technologies, or unique product distribution systems, among many other possibilities. Strategy formulation has an aim which is to form strategies that leverage core competencies for competitive advantage by constructing organizational strengths and minimizing the impact of weaknesses (Houben et al., 1999; Schermerho rn, 2006). Figure 1. SWOT Analysis of Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (Schermerhorn, 2006, p.88) Strengths: Strength of an operation is the first internal element of the SWOT analysis. The strengths cover what an operation does well. The strengths may be being low-cost producer or high quality product producer. It depends on the perspective (Bennett, et al., 2003, p.2). Weaknesses: The weakness of an operation is another internal element of the SWOT analysis. Examining weaknesses cover identifying what an operation does not do well. They must be examined from the internal and external perspective of the operation. Usually all operations, regardless of size or profitability have weaknesses (Bennett, et al., 2003, p.2). Opportunities: Opportunity is the first external element of the SWOT analysis. The opportunities cover any convenient situation in the businesss environment that the operation may gain an advantage form. The range can be from diversification and the use of new technologies to market trends and relationship developments. And usually all operations have some opportunities. It is important to analyze them well (Bennett, et al., 2003, p.2). Threats: Another element of the SWOT analysis is the external threats. All operations can face threats and the threats can range from lower international prices to key relationships that have some problems. The operation of the organization must take some actions to prevent the external threats (Bennett, et al., 2003, p.2). SWOT analysis is used as inputs to generate possible strategies. And next step is to decide these strategies after the identification and analysis of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (Houben et al., 1999). 2.1 SWOT Analysis Steps Based on Houben et al. (1999) as a first step in the development of a strategic planning system, business managers therefore commence with the identification and evaluation of these strategic factors which assist or hinder the company in reaching its full potential. Normally every company is confronted with a dynamic environment; the relative importance of a strategic factor will change constantly, so the SWOT analysis is correspondingly to be of a permanent nature. The list of strategic factors can be used as a point of departure for the actual strategic plan within a small or medium sized enterprise. It is a flexible instrument. The greatest advantage is that it helps managers of small and medium sized enterprises survey the different management areas, gain insight into the significance within the framework of the company, and accordingly initiate suitable actions. Bartol et al. (1991) mentioned that responding to internal strengths and weaknesses is therefore an essential componen t of the strategic management process. But success can only be achieved in this respect to the extent that one is familiar with the opportunities and threats resulting from the external environment. The recognition of the internal strengths and weaknesses, as well as external opportunities and threats, takes place on the basis of a study, which called SWOT analysis. Generally no standard list of crucial factors which apply for all companies exists because of the specificity of this set. Within the framework of this study, however, we chose to concentrate solely on the internal business environment. This therefore only concerns the identification of strengths and weaknesses. Strengths thereby relate to the competitive advantages and other distinguishing competencies which can be exploited by the company on the market. A distinguishing competence is something which can be done very capably by a company. Weaknesses, on the other hand, are limitations which hinder the progress of a company in a certain direction. Weaknesses are those attributes of the organization that impede achieving the objective and limitations or deficiency in one or more resources or competencies relative to competitors that impedes a firms effective performance. Opportunities are outside conditions that help to achieve the objective major situation in a firms environment. Key trends are one source of opportunities and identification of a previously overlooked market segment, changes in competitive or regulatory circumstances, technological changes, and improved buyer or supplier relationships could represent opportunities for the firm. Threats are also outside conditions that impede achieving the objective and impediments to the firms current or desired position. The entrance of new competitors, slow market growth, increased bargaining power of key buyers or suppliers, technological changes, and new or revised regulations could represent threats to a firms success (Mintzberg and Quinn, 1991). According Johnson et al. (1989) ; Bartol et al. (1991) taking strategic actions is advised for the organizations to preserve or sustain strengths, offset weaknesses, avert or mitigate threats, and capitalize on opportunities. Strategies can consider as the balancing act between the external environment like opportunities and threats and the internal capabilities of the firm such as strengths and weaknesses. Basically SWOT analysis is an extremely useful tool for understanding and decision-making for all sorts of situations in business and organizations. As a first step in the development of a strategic planning system, business managers should therefore commence with the identification and evaluation of these strategic factors which assist or hinder the company in reaching its full potential. Because every company is confronted with a dynamic environment, the relative importance of a strategic factor will change constantly, so this analysis is accordingly to be of a permanent nature. In identifying SWOT a particular factor is relevant only with reference to a specific objective. For example, a large cash balance is strength if the objective is expansion. If the objective is to discourage a hostile take-over, a large cash balance is a weakness. The SWOT analysis headings provide a good framework for reviewing strategy, position and direction of a company or business proposition, or any other idea. Completing a SWOT analysis is sometimes simple and useful which can be used for business planning, strategic planning, competitor evaluati on, marketing, business and product development and research reports (Houben et al.1999). The strengths and weaknesses can be found in the functional company fields, or they may be a consequence of abnormal interaction between different fields. Furthermore, the strengths and the weaknesses of an aspect must be measured at different levels of the organization; this can be at group level, at individual company level or at product or market level. The evaluation of the performances of the past may not be neglected with the measuring of strengths and weaknesses because it provides historic insight into the strategy of the company previously implemented as well as the successes accordingly achieved (Glass, 1991). Historic investigations may not only be limited to the pure analysis of the paths followed by the company in the past and the results achieved, they must also devote attention to the reasons for this success. With the lists compiled, sort and group facts and ideas in relation to the objectives. It may be necessary for the SWOT participants to select their five most im portant items from the list in order to gain a wider view. Clarity of objectives is a key to this process, as evaluation and elimination will be necessary to cull the wheat from the chaff. Although some aspects may require further information or research, a clear picture should, at this stage, start to emerge in response to the objectives (Johnson et al., 1989; Bartol et al., 1991). 3. SWOT Analysis and Strategic Planning SWOT analysis is mainly part of the strategic planning process buy studying on internal and external forces in the business environment of a company of organization. As a first step of a strategic planning system, the strategic factors that are related with the potential of the company, should be identified and evaluated. The identification and evaluation of the strategic factors helps to reach an actual strategic plan and as a result the managers are able to gain insight of internal and external nature of the company and establish suitable actions in order to reach good performance (Houben et al., 1999, p.2) In order to have good performance in strategic planning, the future objectives on the companys strength and the weaknesses of the company must be considered by the company. Internal strengths and weaknesses are the main components of the strategic management process but it must be reinforced with considering opportunities and threats from the external environment. According to Hill and Roy (1997, p.46), SWOT analysis is one of the most straightforward approaches for analyzing the strategy of an organization. SWOT as it explained before, is the acronym for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats which according to Zack (1999, p.126) SWOT framework is one of the well-known approaches to define a strategy. Considering Zack, Hill and Roy statements about SWOT, it can conclude that this approach can be used in order to define and analyze organizations strategy. This analysis consists of two parts. First, we have to analyze the internal characteristics and capabilities of the organization, which analysis helps us to identify the strengths and the weaknesses that the organization has. In the second part, we have to analyze the external situations in the competitive environment, which this analysis helps us to identify the opportunities and the threats that the company may faces. After identification of these four factors, a strategy for the company can be presented. Based on Zack statement (1999, p. 127) strategy is the act of balancing between internal and external situations of a given organization. And a good strategy is the one which ensure a fit between external situations of the company with its own internal capabilities (Hill and Westbrook, 1997, p.47). This analysis was in power for at least 30 years. Zack (1999, p.128) believes that companies who have superior knowledge, can sustain their competitive advantage by the use of those knowledge in order to combine, coordinate, develop and exploit their resources and capabilities in a new way and better than their competitors. Buckman Labs competed in certain markets based on its superior knowledge of how to apply its chemicals to solve the process treatment problems of its customers. After explaining SWOT framework in previous section, and talking about knowledge as a strategic asset and the sustainable competitive advantage which could be achieved through the application of the knowledge that exists in an organization, the author (Zack, 1999, p. 130) proposes that: Firms need to perform a knowledge-based SWOT analysis, mapping their knowledge resources and capabilities against their strategic opportunities and threats to better understand their points of advantage and weakness. The outcome of this analysis could be a map that can help the organization to strengthen its knowledge advantages and reduce its knowledge weaknesses. This map reveals the knowledgebase resources and capabilities of one organization and the knowledge that this organization needs in order to be competitive in the market by providing the products and services. As we mentioned earlier, we can thought of this as a knowledge strategy. Zack (1999, p.131) mentions three steps that should be taken in order to describe the link between strategy and knowledge: 1. Organization needs to identify its strategic goals. 2. Organization must evaluate the knowledge that it needs in order to achieve its strategic goals. 3. Comparison between the knowledge that one organization has and the knowledge that one organization needs reveals the strategic knowledge gaps of that organization. A firm, according with its current knowledge, must identify the best product and market opportunities for exploiting that knowledge. For example, Most importantly, it recognized the difference and managed and developed its strategic knowledge accordingly (Zack, 1999, p.131). Therefore, we can consider the knowledge as an important strategic resource for sustaining the competitive advantage. There are 3 reasons why knowledge makes the advantage sustainable, as first that knowledge which is gained from organizational procedures through experience is unique and cannot easily be reproduced. Because acquiring this knowledge require competitors to engage in similar experiences which need time and money. Second is that, those firms which know more can learn more in comparison to their competitors who have just started to gather knowledge. Third reason is that, the integration between newly gained knowledge and the knowledge that the firm already has can create unique insights and more valuable knowledge that is difficult for the competitors to gain. These reasons all lead to a sustainable competitive advantage. Strategic management is a collection of decisions and actions that are taken by the business management to determine the long-term activities of the company. Basically strategic management has three elements (Houben et al., 1999, p.126), the formulation of a strategy; the implementation of a strategy; the control and evaluation of the strategy. Internal and external environment analysis must be done before applying these stages. While analyzing of the internal and external environment will result in an overview of all opportunities and threats and also weaknesses and strengths will be reviewed and these are SWOT analysis results. If we want to define the internal and external environments, the external environment include the variables existing outside the company, they are in the short-term and not under the control of the company and they are from the context in which company exists and functions. The external variables are divided as; direct and indirect environment. The elements or groups are directly influenced by the actions of the company are considered as the direct environment (industry environment), such as; the shareholders, the government, the suppliers, the local authorities, the competitors, the clients, the creditors and the employees organizations. The general forces that have an impact on the long term decisions of the company are considered as indirect environment (macroenvironment) such as; economic, socio-cultural, technological, political and juridical influences (Houben et al., 1999, p.126; Schermerhorn, 2006, pp.87-88). The variables of the internal environment within the company belong to the business management of the company that does not have an influence in the short-term. These variables include the company structure, the company culture and the resources of the company. One of the three elements of strategic management was the formulation of a strategy and it is a process for the development of long-term plans, to respond to environmental opportunities and threats effectively by considering the strengths and weaknesses of the company (Houben et al., 1999, p.126). Figure.3.1.1 illustrates the SWOT analysis of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Companies need to take some specific actions to identify and understand their competitive strengths and weaknesses; and the development of the competitive strategy depends on building a global overview that considers the strengths and weaknesses. The strengths and weaknesses can place in the functional company fields, or can be a consequence of unusual interaction between different fields. In addition, the strengths and the weaknesses must be analyzed at the different levels of the company such as; organization, group, individual, company, product or market level (Houben et al., 1999). The current strategic position forms a very important point of departure for the development of a future strategy. It is very difficult to understand the current strategy if a formal planning system was previously absent. The studying of the competition, the current strategic prospects, performances from the past, the market possibilities and the market environment provide us with insight concerning information required for the indication of strengths and weaknesses. Where possible these strengths and weaknesses are to be represented in objective terms. It must be commented that most strengths concern the capabilities of certain personnel members or the resources at hand. A distinction can accordingly be made according to the present product/market combinations. It is therefore sensible to make a distinction according to the extent to which these strengths and weaknesses are of a critical nature. As regards the critical factors, an attempt must be made to sort them on the basis of st rengths (Johnson et al., 1989; Bartol et al., 1991). Good performances within a company are the results of correct interaction of the business management with its internal and/or external environment. To operate successfully in this respect, the company must concentrate its future objectives on its strengths, while averting tendencies related to the companies weaknesses. Responding to internal strengths and weaknesses is therefore an essential component of the strategic management process. But success can only be achieved in this respect to the extent that one is familiar with the opportunities and threats resulting from the external environment. Mintzberg and Quinn (1991) explained the recognition of the internal strengths and weaknesses, as well as external opportunities and threats, takes place on the basis of a SWOT-analysis. Within the framework of this study, however, we chose to concentrate solely on the internal business environment. This therefore only concerns the identification of strengths and weaknesses. Companies must und ertake specific actions in order to distinguish their competitive strengths and weaknesses. The strengths and weaknesses are found in the functional company fields, or they may be a consequence of abnormal interaction between different fields. Furthermore, the strengths and the weaknesses of an aspect are measured at different levels of the organization; this can be at group level, at individual enterprise level or at product or market level. 4. SWOT Analysis in Practice In this section we can overview the SWOT analysis of organizational performance of small and medium enterprises in Egypt through promoting the human factors in quality management systems. This analysis has been done by the survey results (the answers in the studied questionnaire) were analyzed by the SWOT method in order to identify the Egyptian manufacturing SMEs Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats, in order to generate information about their effects on organizational performance and to determine if there is a need to support systems for the organizations development or a need for system improvement (Shobery et al. 2010). This analysis the research team used as a guideline for developing the QMS model with focus on human factors. Egyptian manufacturing SMEs (Small-Medium Enterprises) have much strength and weaknesses, and many opportunities and threats which are generated from the business environment and have effects on the whole organization. Strengths of SMEs were confirmed by the results of the questionnaire and have supported, developed and promoted as a part of the basic infrastructure needed to achieve the criteria of the business excellence practices. Weaknesses indicated the problems and ineffective work systems which need to be solved and improved gradually to get a new and better infrastructure (Shobery et al. 2010). In their research they figured it out that opportunities mainly increase the number of international markets open to Egyptian manufacturing SMEs. Threats are mainly generated through competitive situations from the international trading competitors and free trade areas (FTAs). There is an increase in the number of overseas competitors most of which have a higher potential for international trade than Egyptian firms. Generally, strengths and opportunities influence the organizations performance in positive ways and also support the development of a QMS. In contrast, the weaknesses and threats have negative effects on the organizational performance, which hamper a successful implementation of a QMS. Effects of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats on the organizational performance in Egyptian manufacturing SMEs are presented in Table 1 and Figure 2. Based on their findings, a systematic schedule for the analysis of strengths and weaknesses is something constantly gaining popularity. Companies must undertake specific actions in order to distinguish their competitive strengths and weaknesses. History has shown this to be not particularly simple. Many companies only have vague ideas of the source of certain competencies and the extent to which they possess them. The absence of a global company overview prevents a clear picture being obtained. Despite these problems the development of a competitive strategy depends on having a global overview as regards strengths and weaknesses. 5. Conclusion By doing the SWOT analysis usually there are some ready expected advantages such as, an impetus to analyze a situation and develop suitable strategies and tactics, a basis for assessing core capabilities and competences, the evidence for, and cultural key to, change, a stimulus to participation in a group experience.

Elective Cesarean Section Procedure Health And Social Care Essay

Elective Cesarean Section Procedure Health And Social Care Essay Cesarean sections, once performed to save the life of mother or baby, are now offered as an elective procedure. Women choose elective cesarean sections in the belief that the surgery is safe and vaginal birth poses risk of harm to themselves or their child. A look at studies and literature shows that these unwanted consequences of vaginal delivery result from the aggressive management of labor by obstetricians. Rather than resorting to major surgery, a return to the midwifery model of care will benefit mother and babies in low-risk pregnancies. Elective Cesarean Section Once reserved as a procedure of last resort to save the life of mother or baby, cesarean section (CS) surgery is now offered as an elective procedure to mothers who wish to avoid the experience of labor and delivery. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) published a committee opinion in November 2003 supporting the permissibility of elective cesarean delivery in a normal pregnancy, after adequate informed consent(American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists [ACOG], p. 1101). Women may choose this option in the belief that circumventing vaginal delivery preserves the integrity of their pelvic floor, or provides better outcomes for their children. Although some believe birth by elective cesarean section (ECS) is preferable to vaginal birth, it can be shown that in low-risk pregnancies, vaginal birth is safer for both mother and baby. Supporters of ECS believe vaginal delivery results in damage to the pelvic floor, which may lead to urinary incontinence (UI), anal incontinence, sexual dysfunction, or pelvic organ prolapsed (Nygaard Cruikshank, 2003). There are studies that support this belief. In one study of primiparous women twenty-six percent had incontinence at six months postpartum, the rate being lowest with elective cesarean (five percent), higher with cesarean during labour (twelve percent), higher still following a spontaneous vaginal birth (twenty-two percent) and highest following a vaginal forceps delivery (thirty-three percent) (Hannah, 2004, p. 813). The physicians that champion the cause of ECS and the women who buy into their sales pitch for ECS believe they are preventing this damage. However, an ECS may not guarantee prevention of pelvic floor damage, and its benefits are at best short-term. Some women who undergo ECS suffer from incontinence, suggesting pregnancy itself, along with hereditary indications, are risk factors (Leeman, 2005; Nygaard Cruikshank, 2003). Other studies indicate there are no significant differences between the vaginal birth and CS groups at two years postpartum (Goer, 2001). Buschsbaum, Chin, Glantz, and Guzick (2002) found no significant differences exist in the prevalence of UI between nulliparous and parous women after menopause. Before we point the finger at the natural process of vaginal delivery as the cause of this pelvic floor damage, we should look at the interventions that may cause these problems. Goer (2001) suggests obstetric interventions of second stage labor, not vaginal birth, causes damage to the pelvic floor. Obstetric management such as episiotomies, forceps and vacuum extractions, dorsal lithotomy position, and the Valsalva maneuver may be the cause of the pelvic floor compromise the ECS supporters are concerned about. Goer suggests using upright positions for pushing, following the patients natural urges to push, and elimination of routine episiotomies to decrease the damage to the pelvic floor. If she is correct, and alterations in routine obstetric care remove the concern of pelvic floor damage, then the safety of the baby becomes the cry of ECS supporters. The ECS supporters argue the safety issue with multiple claims for the protective value of skipping labor and vaginal delivery. They claim we can preemptively protect the fetus by CS prior to the onset of labor. This protection can include: the reduction of stillbirth related to post-maturity, damage from oxygen deprivation secondary to cord compression during labor and delivery, and birth trauma related to use of forceps or vacuum extraction (Armson, 2007). For mothers with medical conditions or the compromised fetus, a scheduled CS is a valid option. However, labor and vaginal delivery is a natural, generally safe, process, not something from which the low-risk fetus needs protection. Those opposed to ECS believe risks to the infant from vaginal birth are minimal and adverse fetal outcomes rare, however, we may be increasing risks due to unnecessary obstetrical interventions during labor and birth. For the low-risk patient, the increase in maternal morbidity and mortality (Armson, 2007) resulting from major surgery does not justify the possibility of preventing the rare adverse fetal outcome. Better screening of those patients at risk will properly identify those patients who would legitimately benefit from surgery. Similar to the suggestion that obstetric management causes damage to the mothers pelvic floor, Goer (2001) argues that obstetric interventions also put the baby at risk. In first stage labor these interventions include pitocin augmentation and artificial rupture of membranes. In second stage labor, the same interventions that injure the mother, such as forceps, vacuum extraction, and sustained Valsalva maneuver, cause trauma for the infant. She suggest s patience, gentle management of labor and delivery, and respect for mothers natural pushing ability to reduce injury to the infant. Vaginal delivery with minimal interventions does not need to be feared. Despite improvements in the safety of CS over the years, vaginal birth remains safer than a CS for both mother and baby in low-risk pregnancies. In contrast to ACOGs committee opinion, The American College of Nurse-Midwives Identifies vaginal birth as the optimal mode of birth for women and their babies and this practice [cesarean section] is not supported by scientific evidence (American College of Nurse-Midwives, 2005). Cesarean sections carry significant risks to mother, baby, and interfere with the mother-baby dyad. Short term, vaginal birth is the safest choice for low-risk women, eliminating many of the complications inherent to a CS as listed by Armson (2007): The overall risk of severe maternal morbidity was 3.1 times that in the planned vaginal delivery group, including increased risks of postpartum cardiac arrest, wound hematoma, hysterectomy, major puerperal infection, anesthetic complications, venous thromboembolism and hemorrhage requiring hysterectomy . . . hemorrhage requiring transfusion, hysterectomy and uterine rupture; intensive care admission; and postpartum readmission to hospital (p. 475). Women who birth vaginally face fewer complications, leave the hospital quicker, and have a shorter recovery time (Hannah, 2004). The benefits of vaginal birth are not limited to the immediate period of birth and postpartum. The choice between vaginal and CS impact the entire range of a womans childbearing years. Future labors tend to be shorter for women who birth vaginally. Their deliveries are quicker, and they are less likely to need a CS in the future. In comparison, internal scar tissue and adhesions following a CS increases risk factors for future pregnancies, independent of the future method of delivery (Leeman, 2006). These risks include: infertility; ectopic pregnancy; miscarriage; placenta abnormalities such as placenta previa or placenta acretia; [and] complications of repeat cesarean birth (Armson, 2007, p. 475). Women with placental abnormities face higher maternal mortality and morbidity rates (Lyerly Schwartz, 2004), as well as an increased need for hysterectomies (Armson, 2007). Primary cesarean birth is also associated with increased risks in subsequent pregnancies of preterm delivery, low birth weight, stillbirth and neonatal death (Armson, 2007, p. 476). The mothers choices regarding mode of delivery have long reaching effects for herself, as well as the child that she carries. Vaginal birth is also the safest choice for babies, as they avoid many of the neonatal complications which follow pre-labor CS. These risks include: respiratory problems, persistent pulmonary hypertension, asphyxia, delayed neurologic adaptation and neonatal intensive care admission (Armson, 2007, p. 476). Many et al. (2006) suggest that the mechanism of labor benefits the babys respiratory system. Other complications CS babies face are iatrogenic prematurity (Lyerly Schwartz, 2004), and lacerations or other neonatal trauma during surgery (Armson, 2007). Babies born by CS also face long term health risks; they are more likely to develop asthma, diabetes, food allergies and obesity than vaginally born children (Steer, 2009). The benefits to the mother and the baby as individuals also benefit the mother-baby unit. Finally, mother-baby couplets benefit from a vaginal birth in multiple ways. The natural hormonal rush which occurs in labor prepares a woman for breastfeeding and facilitates bonding. Women who birth vaginally have less discomfort and shorter recovery times following birth and are thus better able to care for, and bond with, their babies. This enhances mother-baby interaction and supports babys emotional development. Breastfeeding rates are higher and depression rates are lower following vaginal birth (International Cesarean Awareness Network, 2008). These benefits extend long term; they establish the foundation of the lifetime mother-child relationship. The decision to give birth by CS greatly affects mother, baby, and future pregnancies and should not be offered electively as if it were a minor cosmetic surgery. The benefits of ECS compared to vaginal birth have not been proven, and the risks are substantial to not just one, but two (or more) patients. Women may fear labor. Birth attendants may fear legal risks from adverse fetal outcomes. These fears do not indicate that womens bodies are incapable of birthing; rather, they indicate the failure of obstetric management of labor. We should not base our decisions on fear or faulty research. We should address the concerns of ECS proponents raise. We need to conduct more research into prevention of pelvic floor damage. The American College of Nurse-Midwives (2005) offers the follow guidelines: Supports womens right to accurate, balanced and complete information regarding the risks and benefits of both vaginal birth and cesarean section. Promotes decision-making about mode of delivery that is evidence based and not unduly influenced by factors such as liability, convenience or economics. Supports further research to evaluate the short and long-term medical, psychosocial, economic and cultural sequelae for mothers, babies, including future pregnancies associated with elective primary cesarean section. As birth attendants follow these guidelines, women will be empowered to make informed decisions about their care. These decisions affect the physical and emotional health of these women and their children for a lifetime. We have an obligation to manage birth in a manner that causes the least harm to mother while providing the best outcome for babies.

R.C. Sherriffs Journeys End :: R. C. Sherriff Journeys End Essays

R.C. Sherriff's Journey's End Set on the Western Front, ‘Journey’s End’ is based on R C Sherriff’s experiences as an Officer in the trenches of the First World War. It was the first war play to look at the reality of the day to day life of soldiers. Prior to ‘Journey’s End’, plays either demonised the enemy, and focused on deeds of heroism, or preached the futility of war. This play was one of a number of literary works, produced about 10 years after the end of the war, which showed the horror of war by looking at the mens’ day to day lives. These included ‘Undertones of War’ by Edmund Blunden, ‘Goodbye to All That’ by Robert Graves, ‘All Quiet on The Western Front’ by Remarque, ‘Her Privates We’ by Frederic Manning and ‘Memoirs of an Infantry Officer by Siegfried Sassoon. In a ‘Journey’s End’, the horror of war is often shown in the subtext, of the soldiers conversations, not by the direct actions of the men. Although in the first instance it was rejected by theatre managers, the play went on to strike a chord with the public and had a two year run in London. They responded to the play because it showed them, for the first time, the fear and squalor that the men faced continually and how they dealt with it. Extract 1 (Pages 1-4) gives the audience the opportunity to understand the terrible conditions in which the characters lived. The characters engage in sarcastic banter as they can not afford to give into their true feelings towards the situation. Everyone does what they can to keep each others spirits up. The Director would need to enhance the horror of the mens’ situation in the way that he sets the stage. The setting is a dug out in a trench during World War I. A depressing mood and claustrophobic atmosphere needs to be created by this set and the lighting. The beds, table and stalls need to be on top of each other, rotten wood, the occasional sound of dripping water and a muddy floor are essential. Bottles, glasses and papers need to be piled high on the small table. The dugout should be poorly lit, by a candle or oil lamp. The sky, visible through the door, needs to be bright. The contrast between light and dark represents the soldiers’ confinement versus the world that they knew before the war. If the characters had the choice they would not talk about death and squalor, however it is the stuff of their daily lives. They get around talking about the subject but using light hearted banter.

Tropical Africa: Food Production And The Inquiry Model :: essays research papers

Tropical Africa: Food Production and the Inquiry Model Hunger is the result of disasters such as drought, floods, the changing of the jet stream patterns and other natural disasters. They are beyond our control. It has been estimated that one third of the land in Tropical Africa is potentially cultivable, though only about 6% of it is currently cultivated. However, to change farming from a low-input low-yield pattern to a high-input, high-yield pattern necessitates the use of more fertilizer and the planting of high-yielding varieties of crops There are a number of environmental factors, related mostly to climate, soils and health, resisting easy developmental solutions. Rainfall reliability is closely connected to rainfall quantity The rainfall in the equatorial heart is very plentiful and reliable. However, there is much less rainfall towards the outer edges of the rain belt. Periodic and unpredictable droughts are a characteristic feature of these border zones. There are three climatic zones in Tropical Africa: 1.a region of persistent rain at and near the Equator 2.a region on each side of this of summer rain and winter drought, and 3.a region at the northern and southern edges afflicted by drought. All the climates listed in the previous paragraph are modified in the eastern parts of Tropical Africa by the mountains and monsoons. The soils of Tropical Africa pose another problem. They are unlike the soils of temperate areas. Soils are largely products of their climates, and tropical soils are different from temperate soils because the climate is different. Because of the great heat of the tropics tends to bake the soils, while on the other hand, the rainfall leaches them. The combined heat and moisture tend to produce very deep soils because the surface rock is rapidly broken down by chemical weathering. All this causes the food's rate of growth to slow down or maybe even stop and as a result food production won't even come close in catching up to the rate of population increase; therefore starvation and hunger is present. In the process of a flood and drought, the roots of trees are shallow and virtually no nutrients are obtained from the soil. The vegetation survives on its own humus waste, which is plentiful.

Ecuador’s Economy: Oil and Agriculture, Overdependence Essay -- Ecuado

Ecuador’s Economy: Oil and Agriculture, Overdependence One of the main features of Ecuador ’s economy is its dependence on only a few key export commodities, most importantly oil and bananas. Oil accounts for approximately 40% of the export economy, while bananas are responsible for about 17%, and Ecuador is the largest producer of bananas in the world. The rest of the economy is mostly based on less important agricultural exports, such as shrimp and flowers, which account for 6% and 4% of exports respectively. Ecuador is almost completely reliant on the success of these few industries, particularly oil, and so has suffered through a cycle of boom and bust economies over the past several decades, since oil was discovered in the 1970s. Furthermore, in the last six years Ecuador has had four different presidents, and the national office has been dogged by scandals and corruption. This environment has made it very difficult for the government to accomplish the reforms that are necessary to stabilize the nation when the economy faces a serious downturn. There are two main factors that have been very significant in determining the health of Ecuador ’s economy at any given time, and those are oil prices and extreme weather events. Ecuador’s major agricultural exports are, of course, very susceptible to damage from harmful weather; while the oil industry, until quite recently, has been dependent on only one major pipeline for transport, the Sistema Oleoducto Trans-Ecuatoriano (SOTE). In 1987 a large earthquake rocked Ecuador, destroying a large stretch of the SOTE pipeline, which, when combined with a decline in world oil prices, nearly resulted in a complete collapse of the economy. Another devastating weather event, which also... ...gale, Marcelo, and Lopez-Caliz, Jose (ed.), Ecuador: An Economic and Social Agenda in the New Millennium, (The World Bank: Washington DC, 2003). â€Å" Ecuador Country Analysis Brief,† Energy Information Administration, http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/cabs/ecuador.html, vie we d on 18 November 2004. â€Å" Ecuador Business > Economic Overview & History,† Ecuador Explorer, http://www.ecuadorexplorer.com/html/business_in_ecuador.html, vie we d on 18 November 2004. â€Å" Ecuador,† InfoPlease, http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0107479, vie we d on 8 December 2004. â€Å"Foreign Trade,† Ecuador Exports, http://www.ecuadorexports.com/foreign.htm, vie we d on 8 December 2004. â€Å" Ecuador Country Case Study: Impacts and Responses to the 1997-98 El Nià ±o Event,†Institute for the Study of Society and Environment, http://www.esig.ucar.edu/un/ecuador.html, vie we d on 2 November 2004.