The Literary analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

The Literary analysis - Essay Example Some of the things that the soldiers from the platoon Alpha Company carried with them from the war were material things while others were mental. The mental issues such as fear and guilt that they carried from the actions that they did during the war are the focus of the book with a keen eye being on the death and life. Most stories in the book are not definite as having a resolution except only when a character dies inclining that the anecdotes used to not help in illustrating closure for either of the platoon Alpha Company. The only true representation is that the death of a soldier at the war had a significant impact on the life of those that survived making it to be a worthy war story. With this overview, this essay will delve into the literary analysis of this text by making a personal claim about the impact of the book and its relevance to readers by highlighting what is either valuable or not within the same. Additionally, the essay will also suggest the context that readers should consider as they read it and explain about the place of O’Brien’s book in modern literature. According to O’Brien, it is not easy to narrate a war story but fictional writing can be used to immortalize the dead, which can be valuable to the readers as it helps in understanding the narratorâ₠¬â„¢s past, present and future if they were involved in war. In the initial pages of the book, the narrator starts by explaining some of the material things that the soldiers came with from Vietnam that they considered them to be what used to make life bearable for them there. Some of these physical things included lighters, cigarettes, chewing gum, bible, Kool-Aid, condoms, while another carried pond cake and peaches among a list of other items (O’Brien 2). The emotions of the narrator are triggered from time to time through the thoughts of death of fellow officer Lavender, which

Review Questions 9 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Review Questions 9 - Essay Example It turns into a binding contract when assented by the associated parties (Orford 2005). There must be an individual, clearly stated offer to do something. For instance: A reference by sub-contractor to the chief contractor and an offer to rent. An offer lapses when the time for acceptance expires; if the offer is withdrawn prior the receipt; or subsequently a reasonable time in the circumstances (typically the bigger the value of the contract, the lengthier the life of the offer Just what is offered can be accepted. It implies that the offer must be accepted precisely as offered without conditions. In the event, that any new terms are proposed this is viewed as a counter offer that can be accepted or rejected. There could be various offers and counter offers before having a consensus. It is regardless of who makes the last offer, and it is the acceptance of that offer that brings the transactions to an end by creating the terms and conditions of the agreement. Acceptance can be given verbally, in written, or surmised by activity that unmistakably shows acceptance that is the execution of the contract). Overall, the acceptance must acclimate with the method endorsed by the offerer for it to be effective. A contract obliges that the parties expect to go into a legitimately binding assention. That is, the parties going into the agreement must plan to make lawful relations and must comprehend that the agreement can be authorized by law. For a contract to be tying, it must be upheld by profitable thought. That is one collaborate guarantees to do something consequently for an assurance from the other party to give an advantage of quality (the consideration). Consideration is what each partner provides for other as the agreed cost for others promise. Typically, the consideration is the installment of cash however, it require not be; it can be anything of worth the installment does not have to be a

Internal Audit Example of Educational Institution

Internal Audit Example of Educational Institution Internal Auditing – Cass Business School Question 1 Control Environment The attitude and actions of the board and management regarding the significance of control within the organization. The control environment provides the discipline and structure for the achievement of the primary objectives of the system of internal control. List and discuss the methods that the management of Cass Business School might use to encourage and develop an effective control environment. Cass Business School is one of the leading schools for business research in London. Being in a thriving cosmopolitan and commercial business centre, the school seems to have a strategic and business advantage and can test its theoretical approaches against practical realities. The school focuses on a rigorous research practice combined with a productive and dynamic relationship with business groups and academic organisations (Cass report 2005). In areas of finance, Cass Business School is known for its contributions to financial markets, money and banking, real estate finance, investment and risk management, strategy, innovation and entrepreneurship, Governance and pay, e-business, international business, voluntary sector management, pensions, life insurance, health insurance, reliability and dependability of computer based systems. In this discussion, we highlight the importance of effective internal control that can provide discipline and structure for achievement of primary objectives within the organisation. The control environment of an organisation includes the following elements: Organizational structure. Managements philosophy and operating style. Integrity and ethical values. Assignment of authority and responsibility. Human resource policies and practices. Competence of personnel. The success of an organisation in developing an effective management structure depends largely on its mission, aims and objectives. The mission of the school is to carry out multidisciplinary research in corporate governance issues which can be applicable at National, European and Global levels. The set of research objectives translated into research themes address specific dimensions of corporate governance process. Corporate governance and organisational performance are closely associated as appointment of high level officials defining internal control actually has an impact on the market performance of a company. The operating style and key activities of the management of the school include: Conducting funded research to produce scholarly publications and reports for policy makers and for practitioners; recruiting post graduates and research students to research on various research themes in management; organising workshops and conferences to promote and disseminate research findings within the school’s RD department; and also contributing to public debates on business strategies and Corporate Governance to improve the image and reputation of the school’s research faculties. As a strategic plan of infrastructure development, the school replaced all previous methods of assessment of students by building a new central computerised database for IT management, and new infrastructure. Organisational structure and assignment of responsibility and authority to board members is a mechanism of internal control and appointment of executive and non-executive directors tend to have a direct impact on the market as the main hypothesis in this case is that since appointments are driven by the financial situation of the company, it is expected that market reactions would be positive to the appointment of non-executive directors to the board and negative for executive directors (Cass report, 2005). The market valuation of appointment of board members defining the control environment is an essential measure of governance and the balance scorecard gives a detailed picture of the performance of a particular company and its use in improving corporate and internal control environment of an organisation. For developing an effective control environment, a close knit board with a clear strategic approach can be recommended. Question 2 The chief audit executive should effectively manage the internal audit activity to ensure it adds value to the organization. (Standard 2000) Critically discuss the potential benefits that internal auditing might bring to Cass Business School. You should consider both financial and non-financial benefits in your answer. Internal auditing has emerged as a distinct profession with its own philosophy, principles and practice. Managerial communities without internal audit systems also lack a proper operating control system (Beale and Bradford, 1993). To minimise work errors, impropriety as business organisations and to audit work omissions, internal auditing is necessary and standards for professional Practice of Internal Auditing have been established along with a code of ethics and statement of responsibilities for internal auditors. The chief audit executive determines the course of an audit system in an organisation. The role of internal and external auditing in serving shareholders and board of directors in different communities has been highlighted in mergers and acquisitions as also the potential role of internal auditors in strategic management (Melville, 2003). There are significant changes in the roles and mission of external and internal auditors and in their activities in consultancy, risk management and governance to investigate the contributions of audit to organisations and stakeholders. The role of the external audit firms, including providing tax advice to clients as well as research into the implications of legislation and regulations are also important strategic considerations. Senior security management standards and effective controlling of their IT infrastructure are issues within IT governance and drawing up a critical infrastructure. Research concerning internal audit results has to consider whether these results have any predictive value relative to actual company outcomes. In this context the internal auditor’s role in assessing and contributing to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and sustainability are one of the key issues for senior management. The focus of internal auditing has been redefined to address consultative, risk and assurance activities. The need for further research in these areas to evaluate actual and potential role of internal audit can be emphasised to understand its potential benefits (Ruskin and Estes, 1984). The financial benefits of internal auditing for Cass Business School are increased contributions to stakeholders and directors and improved analysis of mergers and acquisitions. The non-financial benefits include risk management analysis, corporate governance reports, predicting performance outcomes and effective control of IT and strategic management systems. Question 3 The internal audit activity should assist the organization by identifying and evaluating significant exposures to risk and contributing to the improvement of risk management and control systems. (Standard 2110) List and describe the key risks in Cass Business Schools financial and non-financial systems. In its report on corporate governance and corporate performance, Cass Business School emphasised the linkages of governance and performance and examined the role of the board of directors in mitigating firms’ agency costs and also in creating shareholder value. The hypothesis put forward was that a large proportion of non-executive directors and chairman and CEO will over-perform in terms of rates of return and stock returns whereas companies with boards dominated by insiders will tend to under-perform. Internal and external control mechanisms such as managerial ownership, bondholders, block ownership and market for corporate control have to be taken into consideration while measuring corporate performance and this is mainly reflected in annual reports of companies. Other factors of corporate governance are important as are identification of the risks, roles and responsibilities of governance (Helliar et al, 2000). Risk management is at the centre of decision making processes in organisations at all levels and research into the different ways of assessing, managing and reporting risks within the organisations and reporting risks to outside stakeholders for achieving benefits is important within the context of management and board responsibilities. Hallikas et al (2002) provide a conceptual framework for risk analysis in networking for a company and note that to analyse and assess the risks associated with networking, either internal audit or computer aided cause and effect analysis can be used as tools for analysis of risks. Considering these factors, in the study of Cass Business School the key risks in financial and non-financial systems seem to be High and increasing tuition fees, increased competition from other schools, legal actions, and internal conflicts between members. However there is a risk management methodology and the Risk Management University Council has agreed to this risk management process. For several years the University has scored the relevant risks for each risk management strategy as to impact and likelihood using a defined scale. The control environment around the high-scoring risks has been reviewed. Question 4 Based on the results of the risk assessment, the internal audit activity should evaluate the adequacy and effectiveness of controls encompassing the organizations governance, operations, and information systems. These include: Reliability and integrity of financial and operational information. Effectiveness and efficiency of operations. Safeguarding of assets. Compliance with laws, regulations, and contracts. (Standard 2120.A1) For each risk identified in Question 3, identify the potential impact of control weaknesses and recommend appropriate controls that might reduce the impact of the threat. Give reasons for your recommendations. Within the Cass Business school management system, the annual report states that risk management Council has agreed to risk management methodology and processes and risks of the University are defined in the methodology. The University has reviewed its corporate risk register and has consolidated risks that have a high impact and likelihood score and has also reviewed the control environment for high scoring risks. The university council receives regular reports on progress of risk management implementation and within each school a risk register exists with each risk scored against a defined scale. There are future School plans to integrate risk reviews in the University’s general management and planning process. Bainbridge and Paul (1986) have effectively related control objectives with internal audit systems. In case of ineffective internal auditing, with unreliable financial information and flaws in accounting, complete transparency of financial data might help to overcome the weaknesses considerably. In case of inefficiency of operations and control, a strong project management approach and board internal control is suggested. The measurement and appraisal of intangible assets, especially human capital as a key factor of wealth creation is a key objective for improving organisational effectiveness. Safeguarding of company or organisational assets is possible through stakeholder or director support as well as general corporate performance and in this case, the overall annual performance of the school which is required to show financial profits. Compliance with laws and regulations can improve credibility and appropriate company objectives and codes of ethics and practice as well as strict management guidelines should be put forward. Bibliography Relating audit and internal control objectives: A missing step in specifying compliance tests Journal of Accounting Education, Volume 4, Issue 2, Autumn 1986, Pages 63-74 D. Raymond Bainbridge, John W. Paul The effects of information order and hypothesis-testing strategies on auditors judgments Accounting, Organizations and Society, Volume 14, Issues 5-6, 1989, Pages 471-479 Jane L. Butt, Terry L. Campbell Chan, K. C.; Chen, C. R.; Steiner, T. L. Production in Finance Literature, Institutional Reputation, and Labor Mobility in Academia: A Global Perspective, Financial Management, (2002) 31(4) pp131-156 Risk analysis and assessment in network environments: A dyadic case study International Journal of Production Economics, Volume 78, Issue 1, 1 July 2002, Pages 45-55 Jukka Hallikas, Veli-Matti Virolainen and Markku Tuominen Internalization versus externalization of the internal audit function: an examination of professional and organizational imperatives Accounting,Organizations and Society, Volume 26, Issues 7-8, October-November 2001, Pages 617-641 Larry Rittenberg and Mark A. Covaleski Managing the internal audit A practical handbook, : by Ian Beale and Roy H Bradford (1993), Kogan Page Computer Law Security Report, Volume 9, Issue 4, July-August 1993, Page 154 Internal vs. external IT audits — or — Mapping out a war zone? Computers Security, Volume 14, Issue 5, 1995, Pages 419-420 Doc Farmer and S. G. Warburg Internal Audits Metal Finishing, Volume 98, Issue 11, November 2000, Pages 73-78 Leslie W. Flott Evidence of agency conflict among management, auditors, and the audit committee chair Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, Volume 9, Issue 4, Winter 1990, Pages 271-292 Susan Haka and Peter Chalos UK AUDITORS PERCEPTIONS OF INHERENT RISK, The British Accounting Review, Volume 28, Issue 1, March 1996, Pages 45-72 CHRISTINE HELLIAR, BOB LYON, GARY S. MONROE, JULIANA NG and DAVID R. WOODLIFF Melville, R., (2003)  The contribution of internal audit to corporate strategy.  International Journal of Auditing Volume 7Issue 3Page 209 November 2003 M. Page and L. Spira, The Turnbull Report, Internal Control and Risk Management: The Developing Role of Internal Audit, The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland, Edinburgh (2004) The project management audit: Its role and conduct Engineering Management International, Volume 2, Issue 4, July 1984, Pages 279-286 Arnold M. Ruskin, W. Eugene Estes Sawyer, Lawrence B.  Sawyer’s internal auditing: the practice of†¦enlarged/Lawrence B. Sawyer, assited by Glenn.E. Sumners  3rd edition, retitled, rev and enl Altamonte Springs, Fla: Institute of Internal Auditors, 1988   Sawyer, Lawrence B.  Elements of management oriented auditing   Institute of Internal Auditors Inc 1983 Sawyer, Lawrence B.  The practice of modern internal auditing / Lawrence B.Sawyer  2nd ed. Rev. and enl Altamonte Springs, Fla: Institute of Internal Auditors, 1981  www.cass.city.uk

piagets early adulthood stage :: essays research papers

Marshall is a twenty-three year old male in the early adulthood stage of development. He has been married for almost a year now and has a 6-month-old child. He and his wife have recently bought their first home. He us almost finished with his bachelor’s degree in banking and finance. He is taking a few classes while also working a high stress full-time job.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As far as physical development, he is in good health. He may be a few pounds overweight because he has become more sedentary since he has been in school full-time and working full-time. He has no substance problems in fact, he has never smoked a cigarette, drank alcohol, or tried any drugs is his life.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In his cognitive development, he has attended five years of college and will graduate this may with a degree in banking and finance. According to John Holland, Marshall is a person of conventional personality. Holland says that Marshall’s personality type like well-structured tasks and values material possessions and social status, which are traits well suited for his finance career. He seems to be some like the conventional personality but mostly his personality falls more in the enterprising category. He is adventurous, persuasive, and a strong leader. So he is definitely a blend of these two personality types.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In emotional development, Marshall seems to have mastered Erikson’s intimacy versus isolation conflict. He has a healthy marriage, and many other close relationships such as friends, family, and coworkers. Marshall also follows Levinson’s early adulthood stage with dreams for his life. His dreams are mostly individualistic and he sees his wife as a supporter of his goals and a primary caregiver for the children. Marshall’s marriage is considered a traditional marriage according to the text, where his wife does the housework and cares for him and the children.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Marshall had made the transition to parenthood quite well. He had some maturing to do and realizing that his needs no longer came before someone else’s.

Elementary Teachers Essay

Did you know that teachers take on the role of mothers, fathers, friend, adviser, psychologist, and nurse? Teachers are the keys to every door of success. Elementary teachers, however, builds the foundation for the home of your dreams. Most people believe and view elementary teachers as â€Å"babysitters† and â€Å"caregivers,† but truth be told, they are truly God sent heroes dressed in suits that walks around with an extra arm and leg making the world a better place. They are not people that you send your children to just so you can have a break at home. It is a disgrace that parents’ have that mentality and modern parents’ continues to think so. Many do not understand the sacrifices and hard work it takes to mentally raise not one, not two, not three, but hundreds of children. Three very important things you need to know about elementary education are as follows; first and foremost, you must familiarize yourself with the duties and responsibilities of an elementary teacher, secondly, you must know how to become one, and lastly, if you value hard-earned money and the sweat of your hard work, you would want to know how much an elementary teacher earns. I asked a question on the beginning of my introduction to give you a feel and picture of what an elementary teacher goes through everyday. Parents complain and leave all the problems to the teachers to figure out when really, that is not their job. Their job is to make sure that your child receives the best education possible. Not to babysit and try and break their bones teaching them wrong from right. The question on the beginning of the essay creates a conversational tone and will allow readers to search for the answer or read along searching for whether the answer is true or false. U.S Department of Education Secretary, Arne Duncan stated, â€Å"I really believe that teachers are the HEROES of our society. † Being a teacher is not an easy job. Teachers make it look easy but in actuality, teachers are miracle workers. They are able to take care of a classroom full of active curious George’s, and not just anyone can do that. Teachers have many duties and responsibilities. They provide the main source of knowledge for children, ensure that values are being taught well, and create and prepare lesson plans for whatever subject they are teaching whether it be math, English, science, or etc. A teacher knows her students best so they evaluate one’s achievements, abilities, weaknesses, strengths, and challenges them to overcome obstacles that are hindering them. They prepare students for standardized tests and most especially, for future grade levels. Besides in-class teaching, they spend over 20 hours outside of class grading papers, organizing extracurricular activities, and worrying about their students. Remember that being an elementary teacher is not the same as being a regular teacher. Dealing with children is much harder than dealing with teens and young adults because children are not accustomed to the English language and their minds are not as focused as older students. Teachers, other than parents, are people you can turn to when all else fails and the world seems like a dreadful place. Now that you are familiar with the duties and responsibilities of an elementary teacher, you are now wondering how to become one. The steps and procedures needed to achieve this goal. Depending on what school you are applying to and whether it is a private or public school, the process differs. Most if not all schools requires at least a bachelor’s degree in elementary education, a state-issued certification or license, and other required trainings and tests. Some private schools do not require a bachelor’s degree or certifications but they do evaluate your experiences. Because you are working with young children, you must know how to adapt your teaching methods to the students’ levels. You are going to come across students who are not as fortunate as others, students that are slower or faster than others, students that are different colored than the others, and just some students that are much more active than the others, but it is your job to adapt and learn how to deal with whatever situation you are in. You must have great communication skills, patience, instructional skills, and creativity. Like I have mentioned earlier, requirements on how to become a teacher depends on what school you are applying for and whether it is a private or public school. It is always best to do some research on the specific school you desire. Lastly, with all the steps and procedures to become an elementary teacher, how much they actually make is the sad part. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U. S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2012-13 Edition, Kindergarten and Elementary School Teachers, statistics states that The median annual wage of elementary school teachers was $51,660. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $34,390, and the top 10 percent earned more than $80,140. Public school teachers make an average of $50,000-$70,000 annually. Private school teachers make an average of $50,000-$60,000 annually. Thus implying that public school teachers makes more than private school teachers because private school teachers’ salaries depends on how many students are enrolled and tuition fees whereas, public school teachers’ salaries depends on certifications and degrees. The higher your degree is the higher your pay is raised. Despite how much the average teacher makes, many people, especially teachers, feel they are underpaid. They work more than 50 hours a week, sometimes works on the weekends, and spends most of their time doing unpaid tasks at home. Many teachers quit their jobs in 5 years because of the low paid salaries. In conclusion, despite the low paid salaries and take home work teachers deal with, it takes a true hero to care for someone else is child and guide and teach them the basics of education. They spend most if not all of their time at home grading papers, worrying about their students, and finding different ways and techniques to help a child in need. They are the eyes, the ears, and the brains of students. Without them, education would not be possible. They deal with different types of students that go crazy because someone just stole their pencil, or she broke a nail, or he is going on a vacation with grandma, or her birthday is coming up. They have these special powers that can tell when something bad is happening, or something is wrong, or something just does not feel right. Most teachers do what they do not for how much they make or the credibility but for their students and because they care. I was raised by a teacher and living with her and seeing first hand how hard it takes to be a teacher and how all she wants is to see her students succeed is one of the best rewards anyone can ever receive. I have used the technique â€Å"summarize† for my conclusion to recap and restate the main points of my essay. In doing so, it allows readers to go through what they read but in one whole summary. We do have heroes in the world, after all. Source list: http://www. kimskorner4teachertalk. com/writing/sixtrait/organization/conclusions. html http://www. campusexplorer. com/careers/DE17C02B/elementary-school-teachers/ Bureau of Labor Statistics, U. S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2012-13 Edition, Kindergarten and Elementary School Teachers, on the Internet at http://www. bls. gov/ooh/education-training-and-library/kindergarten-and-elementary-school-teachers. htm.

Eharmony Case Study Essay

Question 1: The first general environment that is most relevant to this case is the demographic segment. This segment focuses on population size, age structure, geographic distribution, ethnic mix, and income distribution. This segment is relevant to eHarmony because there main focus is to match their customer’s with potential partners. They need to take in account the matches age, income, ethnicity, and income. In the case, they discuss how they require customers to answer questions about how old they are, where they are from, where they are living, where they work†¦ etc. They take all this information and match it with another customer. The second general environment that is most relevant to this case is the sociocultural segment. This segment focuses on the society’s attitude and cultural values. This segment is relevant to eHarmony because when they match their customer’s, than they have to take an account what their cultural values are and what their attitudes are toward the social norms. The United States is a melting pot of different cultures. Some customers are high on culture and some are not. Demographic segment represents an opportunity for eHarmony because they can expand their company to other countries. The article â€Å"Are You Ignoring Trends That Could Shape Up Your Business† made an interesting point that â€Å"ignoring trends can give rivals the opportunity to transform the industry.† If eHarmony does not go into international markets than they would give Match the advantage of getting more customers on their site. eHarmony wants to be on the top, and the only way they can do that is by entering a new market. Sociocultural segment represents an opportunity for eHarmony because customers want to have partners that work and have the same cultural values that they have. It is all about being compatible with your partner. In the article, it talks about how social trends can change the way people perceive the world around them. By showing customers different matches from different countries but the same values, can open their eyes to their new life partn er. Question 2: When online personal firms entered the market in 1992, they didn’t do well  because people thought the desperate use it. Which caused the online personal market to grow very slow. Everything changed in 2005, because people’s mindset changed and found it acceptable to use online personal site to find their partners. Not just young people use the site but also the middle aged group use this site. According to the article, of the 2.2 million marriages that took place, about 120,000 of them were because of online personals site. It took awhile for the market to accept this new industry to help people hook up and find a suitable person to marry. The strengths of the power of suppliers is that they can increase their prices of their products so they can exert their power over there competitors. Thats what eHarmony is doing over their competitors. There are some drivers that drive the bargaining power of suppliers, which are: (1) there are few of them, (2) they purchase a large amount of total output from the industry, (3) products or services they purchase are homogenous and undifferentiated, (4) switching costs from one product or service to another are low, and (5) there is a realistic threat they could backward integrate into the industry itself. eHarmony does have service that no other company was able to copy well and be as successful as eHarmony. The strength of rivalry among existing competition is that when a company has a big rival then they are determined to beat their competition. They would do anything to make sure that their company is on top. The biggest rival that eHarmony has is Match. eHarmony tries to give services to their customers that Match cannot give. There are some drivers that drive the intensity of rivalry among competition, which are: (1) there are many competitors of roughly equal size, (2) the industry has slow or no growth, (3) exit barriers are high, (3) existing firms are committed to staying in the industry, and (3) there are few bases of competition beyond price. Match and eHarmony are almost equal into size and they intend to grow even more. Match is determined to beat eHarmony for the top position in the industry. The two opportunities that would reshape the industry structure are shifting threat of substitution and new bases of rivalry. Shifting threat of substitution is when a substitute becomes more or less threatening because of the advances in technology that creates new substitutes. New Bases of  rivalry is when mergers and acquisitions introduce new ways of competing, or technology innovation can reshape rivalry. Question 3: eHarmony competitive advantage is that it uses a scientific developed questionnaire based on Dr. Warren’s 29 dimensions. Another advantage is that they are the first online personals site centered around marriage minded individuals. The last advantage is that they are exclusive on who they allow to use the site. The competitive advantage is sustainable because they satisfy the four criteria in sustaining competitive advantage. The first criteria is valuable capabilities and they satisfy this criteria because the founder created this extensive questionnaire that he uses to determine which person they are compatible with. The second criteria is rare capabilities and they satisfy this criteria because the founder has a PhD in psychology and he did is practice in marriage and love. He was the one who created the questionnaire and he was the one who created the algorithm on how to match the customers together. No other company was able to imitate that. The third criteria is costly to imitate and they satisfy this criteria because no other company was able to create the algorithm that the founder was able to create to match their customers together. The last criteria is non substitutable and they met this criteria because there is nothing that substitutes it. Question 4: I believe that eHarmony should choose the last option, which is the rapid geographic expansion. They should take this option because they want to beat their competition and get more clients. They have already got their place in the US market, now its time to expand the business and become global. In the case, it says that in European Union nations, online dating is very popular. eHarmony does not realize that besides the US, there are other countries where online dating is popular. The downside of expanding is that they are not sure how these other countries might react with online dating. The countries would either accept them or decline them. They would loose a lot of money. Another downside is that they are not sure if their questionnaire and there algorithm would work in other countries. They would need to think about the social and cultural norms of each country. I did not choose the third option, which was that eHarmony wanted to create sites that focused on key life stages such as wedding, pregnancy- fertility care, and elder care. I feel that eHarmony is known for the match making place and not known for doing life stages. I feel that they should first master one side of the company before they start jumping into new industries. Question 5: eHarmony has an effective strategic leadership because Greg Waldrof, the CEO has all the qualities of a level 5 executive. Mr. Waldroff wanted to make sure that his company is the top company in the match making industry. He created a questionnaire and a formula on how to interpret the results. He made sure his staff understood it and used it correctly. The second reason why eHarmony has an effective strategic leadership is because the leaders of the firm made sure that the organization culture was kept in tact. Their culture was to create good matches for their customers. The leaders made sure everyone understood that. The last reason why eHarmony has an effective strategic leadership is because of their ethical practices. In eHarmony, they screen their customers before they can create a profile and buy the packages. They don’t allow married customers on the site because they want their customers to feel that the people on this site are looking for marriage.