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Smoking is a health hazard that can be fatal to smokers.
Smoking is a health hazard that can be fatal to smokers. When people smoke in their 50s, they are more susceptible to cardio vascular accidents compared to people in the same age group. Research has shown that people who smoke in their 50s are more likely to experience Cardio Vascular Accident (CVA) compared to people who are nonsmokers are likely to experience the same at67 years or later. According to a scientific research conducted by Sophie Hill, smokers who are in their 50s experience a risk factor of 16 % for Cardio Vascular Accident (CVA) that is considered a red zone for cardiovascular diseases such as heart attacks and strokes. This risk factor is similar to what a 67 year olds people experience (Hill, 2010, pg. 7). When discussing Cardio Vascular Accident (CVA), the red zone is the danger zone where people are vulnerable to this health complication. Sometimes people miss the extent of the danger. Although the incidence of 16% may appear to be noticeably lower, the typical likelihood is still half that for other people, meaning that the danger is double for someone in that age range, which is still pretty significant. With age, the susceptibility factors tend to become more prevalent. A person has more time to modify their way of life with a five-year risk timeline than with a ten-year timeframe.
People who have high blood pressure are also susceptible to Cardio Vascular Accident. People who also have increased cholesterol levels in their body during their middle age or adult lives are also more likely to experience a Cardio Vascular Accident. According to Mark O’Doherty, a study discovered that elevated blood pressure (> 140/90) was the cause of 58.9% of CVA patients in Norway, 6.7% of which also exhibited high cholesterol levels (> 200 mg). Blood pressure increases as a result of cholesterol accumulation in blood vessels (O’Doherty, 2016, p. 4). According to the findings of the study, age plays a significant role in the amount of cholesterol in the human body. As people age, their cholesterol levels are more likely to increase as their physical activeness decreases and consumption of fatty foods increases. As more cholesterol accumulates in the body, it clogs the blood vessels and as a result, the area for normal blood flow reduces forcing the heart to pump blood faster to force it through the vessels which in return increases the blood pressure. Increased blood pressure can be managed by ensuring that the cholesterol level is fewer than 200 mg as this can help keep the blood pressure low hence minimizing instances of strokes.
SmartVoice Project
SmartVoice Project
Contents
TOC o “1-3” h z u Background/ Current Situation PAGEREF _Toc377227317 h 1Overall Objectives PAGEREF _Toc377227318 h 1Communication Objectives PAGEREF _Toc377227319 h 1Target Audience PAGEREF _Toc377227320 h 2Key Messages PAGEREF _Toc377227321 h 2Second Situation PAGEREF _Toc377227322 h 3Third Situation PAGEREF _Toc377227323 h 3Communications Mix PAGEREF _Toc377227324 h 4Communication Improvement PAGEREF _Toc377227325 h 5Backup Plan PAGEREF _Toc377227326 h 5References PAGEREF _Toc377227327 h 6
Background/ Current SituationSmartVoice project of developing voice recognition software, supporting Total Software corporate strategy solutions, and improving their productivity in their both work environments and home is in its tenth week. This is the month near the implementation of the project a there are some issues that need solutions for the success of the project. They include a member of the technical team request for transfer following project team conflicts, one of the members requested for a weeklong vacation, and virtual members of the team feeling of isolation. It is necessary to address these issues since they are critical to the development of the project and the realization of its success (Binder, 2007).
Overall ObjectivesThe overall aim of the project is the examination of the level of effectiveness of the SmartVoice initiative. It will involve a number of initiatives that will ensure the success of the program. The initiatives will include the establishment of the latest voice recognition in the research and development within the company. There will also be the examination of the effectiveness of the new technology for application by clients. Determination of the promotional and the advertisement platforms necessary in the launching of the project is the final initiative.
Communication ObjectivesThe project is in the implementation month is facing a number of challenges. As stated earlier in this document, key issues challenge the success of this project. It involves the crisis of a member of the technical team seeking transfer due to conflicts arising from the project team. The other challenge is the fact that one of the members wants a weeklong vacation in a crucial project period. Complains from the virtual team is the other challenge. Addressing issues within a project using effective communication strategy is vital (Binder, 2007). This document seeks to explain the implications of the issues arising from a number of ways that will assist in addressing these problems. It will communicate to the stakeholders and the team members on the amicable way of addressing the issues.
Target AudienceThe target audiences of the document are the stakeholders of the project (Xavier, 2004). Total Software Solutions is the primary stakeholders of the project. Project team and SmartVoice are the other stakeholders of the company. This document seeks to address issues arising within the project and affect its success.
Key MessagesFirst Situation
One of the members, the technical team, requested for a transfer following conflicts with the other project team members. Losing one of the technical team members means that the team will have to vet for another credible candidate. This will be time consuming and will result to wastage of time that is beneficial for the completion of the project. In addition, conflicts will mean that the team will have low member turnover. Such a scenario would cost the team valuable labor and time, which would result to delays and problems in meeting the deadline.
Arbitration is the process that would assist in providing a solution to the problem (Binder, 2007). There will be an independent arbitrator approved by the aggrieved member and the team. The arbitrator agreed upon will oversee the solving of the existing problem. There will be an agreement that the decision made by the arbitrator will be final, and both parties will abide to the decision. Talks and mediation will commence as soon as possible and short take the shortest period possible without affecting the proceedings of the project. This way, the project team, will deal with the problem caused by this situation amicably.
Second SituationOne of the members requested for a weeklong holiday during the period of the project. Indications are that this will be the period when the project deadlines are imminent. Project team faces the challenge of not completing the project within its timeline or having a crisis with the team member. The latter will decrease the morale of the team member while the former will result to a crisis with the client Total Software Solutions. Such scenarios would be setbacks to the project and may derail or deter the success of this project (Xavier, 2004).
There will be discussions with the member of the team seeking vacation and the management. The discussions will be on the issue of vacation and the importance of the member on the team (Xavier, 2004). Management will seek to explain to the team member their importance to the team and reasons that his or her vacation may result to the failure of the project. It will further offer the member a vacation with added advantages, but it will be after the successful completion of the project. Successful discussion will be once the member agrees to postpone the vacation until a time when it will be beneficial to both teams. This will mean the eradication of a possible crisis.
Third SituationVirtual teams of the project report that they feel isolated by the other team. This will lead the destruction of collaboration and coordination within the teams decreasing the level of trust, teamwork, and focus. Traditionally virtual teams have difficulty in the structure of organization, and their feeling of isolation could magnify the situation. Project manager has the responsibility of ensuring that all differences, assumptions of challenges, defusing potential conflicts to ensure the smooth operation of the project. The feeling of isolation within the virtual team means that the above-mentioned responsibilities of the project will increase in difficulty.
Solving the indicated problem will require that the project manager improves the communication with the virtual team. Mutual involvement on the project management issues across the boundaries of the organization is another method that will increase the activities of the virtual team (Willis, 2010). This means that the promotion of information across the boundary and challenging any barriers of information that are unnecessary provides effective solutions. There is the risk of conflicts arising with the virtual team and ways of conflict resolution will be pivotal to deal with the issue before hand (Willis, 2010).
Communications MixCommunications mix applicable in this scenario includes both external and internal communication mix. In the external communication mix, the company will use press releases, online sites such as Panda, TV, advertising, and print including brochures. Internal communication mix, on the other hand, will include face-to-face meetings and conferences calls in cases of virtual team. This will ensure that there is effective communication within and without the organization on the issues that affect the project. There will be careful determination of ways to solve any crises arising in the course of the project and communication mix that will ensure effective results (Willis, 2010).
Communication Improvement
Lack of the proper mechanism of communicating to individual members of the project might be the cause of the problems experienced. The member of the team requested for a transfer would have resulted to such a resolution due to lack of proper communication (Morris, 2008). Realization of the fact that arbitration is possible would have prevented the occurrence of such cases. The feeling of isolation by the virtual team may be because of the lack of proper communication mechanisms. Improving communication will increase the involvement of the virtual team in the process of the project. This will increase their feeling of participation and decrease that of isolation. The team member seeking to have a weeklong holiday may not be aware of the fact that it will be a crucial period for the project. Proper communication would have ensured that he or she has the right information concerning that week reducing their probability of seeking a holiday. Evidently, improving communication will be a proactive measure to a score of crisis.
Backup PlanDespite the fact that there will be efforts to ensure the success of the procedures, it is only realistic to realize the possibility of failure. This means that it is vital to have a backup plan in case of failure (Campbell, 2009). If the team member insists on a transfer, there will be a member chosen to be on the acting capacity before the determination of the best candidate for the position. In case, the member requesting for a weeklong holiday disagrees with the management there will the decision of the team to work ahead of schedule. A member with equal qualifications may represent them during their absence. Virtual members of the team may indicate dissatisfaction, which may require a backup plan. This will be having a face-to-face meeting with the members of the virtual team to discuss their proposal.
References
Campbell, G. M. (2009). Communications Skills for Project Managers. New York: AMACOM.
Binder, J.C. (2007). Global Project Management Communication, Collaboration, and Management. California: Gower Publishing.
Xavier, M. (2004). Project Management. California: SAGE publishers.
Willis, K. R. (2010). Essential Project Management Skills. London: Taylor & Francis Publishers.
Morris, A. R. (2008). Project Management that Works. New York: AMACOM.
Smartphone Market in New Zealand.
Smartphone Market in New Zealand.
The use of smart phones has become a new trend among many people around the world. In this essay New Zealand will be our region of focus. The New Zealand smart phone market has grown over the years with 30 percent of the nation’s population using smart phones and with Horizon research statistics within the next five years the population using smart phones will rise by 20 percent. But that is just a general overview, through intense calculations; the population assumed to be using these kinds of phones is close to fifty percent of the population. Out of the 4.5 million phones in the market eight hundred thousand consist of smart phones categorised as follows; two hundred and fifty thousand are iPhones/ iPad, one hundred and fifty thousand are Android Phones, the rest of the four hundred thousand being blackberry, widows and Nokia N series (Safko, 2012). The country is considered the second highest smart phone using nation in the world. The market segmentation strategy used by the selling firms in New Zealand is the dividing of the population in terms of age, income, occupation and location. Statistics also show that the range between the age that uses smart phones is 25-34 years and that the use of smart phones declines as age increases (Safko, 2012). This indicates that the largest percentage of the population that uses smart phones are the young adults and middle aged people who are mostly working and earn an average income of a hundred thousand to a hundred and fifty thousand dollars per annum. The major advantage of this product is that is supports thousands of applications have better look and design and has a large memory capacity; to some extent it is seen as a sense of class owning one. The purpose of this discussion is to study the how smart phone companies achieve their goals paying particular attention to factors such as, market segmentation, specific value offered and the competitive edge they have; this will be illustrated through statistical data available online and observations made.
Market segmentation is a marketing strategy that is used to disintegrate the market into different consumer groups all with the same common need, then coming up with ways to satisfy their common needs and desires through advertisement and delivering the products the consumers want (Pickton, 2001). Companies that sell smart phones in New Zealand decided to segment their market into four categories, based on the age of the population, the income level, the occupation and finally the location of the population. Many of the jobs in the world today demand use of information technology and use of internet. Communication is a key thing a business or any organization or individual cannot do without. Through the providence of a phone that holds large amounts of information and applications that support easy communication with easy internet access capabilities, the firms are able to deliver a device that satisfies the wants of the working customers who need a phone with all those features so as to conduct their daily business.
From statistics, most people using smart phones are aged between 25 and 34 (Safko, 2012); generally this is the working population of New Zealand. The firms have also decided to use age as a way to segment their smart phone market. The range given constitutes of young people with the basic knowledge about Information Technology. This age too constitutes of people who are already working, hence they have the necessary income to be able to purchase the product. Firms have strategized to target this age group since if they are working they require a device which can support various applications that can be used in making their work easier, as well as to enable effective communication via email, whatsapp, and other social networks which only smart phones can support. This age group is also the earning portion of the population, so they can afford to purchase the phones. Statistics indicate that close to forty four percent of the working population that use smart phones are found within this age range. Hence the companies have been able to achieve their goals by targeting this age group and satisfying their wants.
Getting to know the average income of your market share as a company is very essential so as to enable the marketers to determine if the value and price of the smart phones is relevant to the income the market segment earns. In New Zealand around and above sixty percent of the working population are average income earners; so the smart phone companies have been able to attain their goal by selling a quality, portable and efficient gadget to people who can afford it.
The basic function of mobile phone is to call and send short messages, but in the word today use of mobile phones for internet access has increased. In New Zealand Horizon statistics indicate that, twenty seven percent of the mobile using population use it to access the internet spending more than five hours a day online. Forty two percent of these internet users use smart phones to download applications and to do researches; it can be assumed then that forty two percent (Safko, 2012) of the mobile phone users use smart phones to access the internet and the rate at which these types of phones are being used is growing from none in 2007 to eight percent by year 2012 (Safko, 2012). Internet is in conjunction to location, firms target and segment their market according to regions with good network and internet coverage hence with good internet access people can purchase the phones; this way they are able to attain their goals.
Competitive edge in a company refers to the things a company does or the strategies it holds that make it outstanding and have a better chance of attracting more customers compared to other companies that sell the same product (Marshall, 1996). What gives New Zealand smart phones a competitive advantage over other phone companies. Through targeting the young population which includes people aged 18 and 24 who also, apart from the majority 25-34 range, use smart phones (Safko, 2012); the companies know that people around this age are swiftly changing from using other kinds of phones to smart phones. However this age group does not earn hence making them price sensitive; through lowering the prices of smart phones to a considerable price has given the firms a competitive edge since besides the quality and exciting features that smart phones have, they are now affordable. Technology is on the rise and people need to embrace it; with a smart phone which can hold over a thousand applications which provides the user with educational, business and entertainment services, almost as having a mini computer in your pocket, people will most likely get attracted to it. This gives the companies a competitive edge over other phone companies because they have quality features. Based on gender and the different tastes people have, smart phone companies have tried to come up with different varieties, such as HTC, Nokia, Samsung and Blackberry each with its own unique features and different designs all to suit the consumers’ needs. Businessmen, engineers and I.T specialists require a portable gadget that would help them in their line of duty; firms have considered this hence giving them the competitive edge over other companies.
Firms also have used quality and effective advertisement in order to give customers information about the products, how they are and how much they go for. Through advertising firms are able to promote their products and this increases sales and attracts more and more customers giving them the advantage over other competitors hence maximizing their chances of achieving their objectives (Morgan, 2005).
Firms have also created a good and user friendly customer firm relationship. Through customer relationship management, most firms are able to build a good relationship between themselves and the customers; attracting more customers and maintaining those that they have already acquired. Smart phone firms have improved their customer firm relationship by bringing the product and the firm close to the customer making both services and product easy for the customer to access. Through 24/7 customer care services and through websites customers can consult and gain information about their product of desire (Safko, 2012). Through building such a healthy relationship companies are able to attract customers since they feel comfortable with ready information availability. Through quality and variety products, effective advertisement and fair pricing firms in New Zealand have been able to grow outstandingly in the phone market.
Value proposition is another method used in marketing of smart phones so as to have the competitive edge. Value proposition is the promise that companies give to the consumers of the value that the phones will have to them and the belief that the customers will receive that the same value provided to them (Ferrell, 1999) . Value proposition is widely used to enhance a company’s market share. This is done mostly when introducing new products into the market. It increases the chances to grab a large market share at the beginning of the product introduction or increase the market share of an existing product. Developing of a value proposition is a process that involves a review and analysis of some factors. These include; benefits, cost and value that the organisation can deliver to its customers, potential customers and other groups affiliated to the company both internal and external. The New Zealand companies promise to offer products which meet the consumer’s needs. For example when introducing a new product, firms advertise and give information about the product, inclusive of the agreement is a two year warrant on the product. This tends to enable the customer to put trust on the company’s product.
New Zealand’s smart phone company is constantly rising and reaching the levels of other foreign countries such as America. Through competitive advantage, market segmentation and value proposition they have been able to rise and take over the phone market in the nation; which is part of achieving their goals.
References
Safko, L. (2012). The social media bible: tactics, tools, & strategies for business success (3rd ed.). Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley.
Pickton, D. (2001). Integrated marketing communications. Harlow: Financial Times Prentice Hall.
Marshall, K. P. (1996). Marketing information systems: creating competitive advantage in the information age. Danvers, Mass.: Boyd & Fraser.
Ferrell, O. (1999). Marketing strategy. Fort Worth, TX: Dryden Press.
Morgan, M. J., & Summers, J. (2005).Sports marketing. Southbank, Vic.: Thomson.