The Importance of Employee Engagement

Change is a constant in today? s modern business activity. As Harvard Business School Professor John Kotter wrote in Fujitsu? s `Fit for Change? report, â€Å"the current rate of change within businesses is faster than the rate at which organisations are improving†¦many organisations just can't keep up with the speed of change. † (www. theinformationdaily. com, 2012). This more and more complex and competitive environment inflicts a greater pressure on the employees; given that the employees are the heart of organisations not approaching them appropriately is one of the main reasons of corporate failure (Argenti, 2009).Although there is not a lot of research done in this field as it is a relatively new concept (Saks, 2006), understanding the importance of employee engagement and implementing a well-developed internal communications plan is crucial for success, especially during change (Dolphin, 1999). The organisation should be guided by experts through all this complexit y if it wants to overcome all the tension that originates from the dynamics of change and survive. THE IMPORTANCE OF EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT Many authors claim that an organisation? accomplishments, financial performance and employee outcomes may be predicted by the levels of employee engagement. However, it is surprising that even if it is a logical assumption, it appears that employee engagement is waning and that disengagement among the majority of today? s workforce is costing huge amounts of money to organisations in productivity loss (Saks, 2006). At present, workers are well educated, have greater expectations than those of past generations, and aspire to have a better understanding of the company they work for (Argenti, 2009).According to Argenti (2009), most companies? senior managers exclude lower-level employees from taking part in most decision-making. According to Dolphin (1999), employee communication is too often conducted by in-experienced and junior personnel. Therefore , it could be said that organisations do acknowledge the importance of employee engagement to some degree but are not following an appropriate and effective two-way communication strategy that will engage their staff. ORDER AND CHANGEEvery organisation has a culture and identity of its own and these should be consistent, coherent, and clear. When an organisation suffers a big change, it might have the need to acquire a new identity and/or alter or even create a whole new corporate culture (Dolphin, 1999); to be able to direct this change effectively, there must be a well-defined vision. Most of the definitions of vision in this context make reference to an ideal or a future to which the organisational change should lead to (Palmer, Dunfard ; Akin, 2006).Without a firm vision and effective internal communications, the â€Å"changes introduced by managers may seem arbitrary and unneeded†¦ vision helps to motivate staff in working towards the change and engaging in what may appea r to be daunting or risky actions† (For Kanter et al. , as cited in Palmer et al. , 2006, p. 245). Sutton and Khan (1986 as cited in Jimmieson et al. , 2004, p. 12) argue that when a deep change is about to happen, workers â€Å"go through a process of sense-making in which they need information to help them establish a sense of prediction and understanding of the situation†.Palmer, Dunfard and Akin (2006) insist in the importance of having their employees well informed about the situation and about what is expected from them, To the extent that the strategic intent is not complemented by clarity as to expected actions, the chances increase employees will fail to convert a change initiative into supporting action at their level of organisation. The Key point here is that the lack of supporting action is not due to overt resistance or even apathy; it is due to the lack of clear understanding of what such supportive action would â€Å"look like. (Palmer et al. , 2006, p. 149) Organisations must therefore aim to achieve a balance between order and change. For instance, they can only operate efficiently if members execute their roles consistently, perform everyday operations, and uphold ordered structures, but they also need to stay open and agile enough to react to and anticipate the fluctuating stresses of today? s changing commercial environment. (Jacobs, 2004, p. 382). Carl Weick (1979, as cited in Jacobs, 2004, p. 82) highlights in his relational perspective the role of communication when dealing with the tension that arouses between these two elements and suggests that organisations are in essence the outcome of communication collaborations. Lewin? s Three Stage Model of Change (Carnall,2007, p. 70) can be used to help the organisation better understand this process. It consists of three stages: 1. Unfreezing. It is related to cultural change.Identifying both present behaviours and required behaviours necessary to achieve the organisation? s mi ssion and common goals and analysing the differences, with the participation of the company? s members, is the first step of â€Å"unfreezing† actual change. 2. Changing/Moving. Identifying the procedures and changes in the structure that will enable the execution of the new behaviours and the implementation and examination of accomplishments. 3. Refreezing. Instilling the new behaviours, attitudes, and values in the group.This is usually done by rewarding new behaviours, carrying out policies, implementing an effective communication, and educating members in order to support the new culture and behavioural principles; commitment to change is attained in this stage. However, as organisations and their environments are ever more uncertain and dynamic, many changes may occur at once and when one area is refreezing another might be unfreezing or moving. This has led Clark and Clegg to believe that `successful management in the future must be based on intelligence and creativity and the capacity to question and learn? â€Å"executives must learn how to combine continual change with the ability to sustain `business as usual? † (1998, as cited in Carnall, 2007, p. 78-79). An organisation is dynamic, it is persistently reinventing itself, and therefore must be monitored constantly. THE RISKS OF CHANGE AND THE IMPORTANCE OF ORGANISATIONAL SUPPORT A possible reason for failure could be that organisations simply do not dedicate enough time or attention to understand the psychology of change. Employees? xperience is a critical factor that should be considered; it is how people adapt and react to change that makes a difference. Firstly, changes in an organisation are not linear by nature and thus uncertainty is the most common psychological condition that emerges as a result (Callan et al. , 2004); â€Å"much of what we refer to as resistance to change? is really ‘resistance to uncertainty’ meaning that the resistance originates from the proces s of dealing and handling change, not from the change itself (Carnall, 2007, p. 3). Secondly, Palmer, Dunfard and Akin (2006) argue that people? perceptions of how they believe that change will affect their personal interests will influence their readiness for it. People have a tendency to support changes that do not seem threatening to their interests and resist those that appear to be harmful. (Palmer et al. , 2006, p. 149). Managers should understand the potential risks of letting employees face changes on their own without a consistent support on behalf of the organisation. Doubt and uncertainty should be dissipated and substituted by safety, and mutual interests should be addressed to avoid feelings of threat.According to Argenti (2009) effective internal communications not only requires facilitating employees with relevant and sincere information but it should also reinforce their belief that they are significant assets to the company and that subsequently their matters are to o. Listening to them and allowing their participation in conversations regarding organisational change will keep them â€Å"excited about their work, connected to the company? s vision, and in a position to further goals of the organisation† (Argenti, 2009, p. 84). An example that describes poor attention to how stakeholders react to change (whether they are predisposed to welcome it or reject it from the beginning) is Kodak? s announcement of its reduction in workforce to its staff, and of its dividend cut to its investors. They ignored the importance of setting an adequate strategy to promote a positive response prior to change and this basically resulted in resistance to change from both groups which led the merger with Compaq Computers a failure (Palmer et al. , 2006, p. 1) REASSURING EFFECTIVENESS IN COMMUNICATION Before any action is taken, the organisation must have a sense of the present effectiveness of its internal communications. Argenti (2009) reveals that an exce llent way to measure the effectiveness of its actions is by executing communication audits and systematic temperature checks to discover the employees? attitudes towards the organisation itself, their opinion about the quality of the communications they are getting, and whether the messages are being understood.Once this is done, an internal communication framework can be implemented to work on solutions to any communication deficiencies and satisfy those requests. The Strategic Employee Communication Model and Best-practice Definitions (Appendix A) can be used in a change programme as â€Å"benchmarks against which to measure a company? s employee communication strengths and weaknesses as well as a model of effective change†. According to Barrett (2004), both the model and its different elements were inspired by research done in numerous Fortune 500 companies on what actually works in employee communication.The best companies integrated many of these definitions in their pra ctice scheme. This model links all principal factors involved in employee communication between them and to the company? s manoeuvres and strategy; it analytically breaks down communication into distinguishable and manageable portions and illustrates how interconnected and inter-reliant each portion is when employee communication is placed strategically within the organisation, a must in order to make change feasible. What moves this model from a tactical level to a strategic one is the direct connection to the firm? â€Å"strategic objectives and business planning process plus the overlay of supportive management with on-going assessment of individual and company communication. † (Barrett, 2004, p. 22). An example of a good communication in practice is what CEO Gordon Bethune did in Continental airlines. Every month, he held an open-house in his own office where employees were welcome to go and talk to him about any issues, suggestions, or complaints, and in numerous occasio ns he would go himself to meet the employees at their workplace.This platform for open, informal, and sincere discussion was his trait of leadership. He has been recognised for having significantly improved employee spirit and productivity as well as enhancing the global culture of the firm. This is illustrative of what should be done to have the organisation prepared in the eventuality of change. THE LEARNING ORGANISATION. FROM INDIVIDUALS TO A TEAM In order for the organisation to move as a whole it should behave and act as one.Organisations should provide the ground for individuals to move out of their sense of self, be flexible, and connect with and contribute to the group consciousness. Many authors emphasise the need of creating learning cultures within organisations in order to achieve success during change. â€Å"Teams, not single individuals, are the key to successful organizations of the future and†¦ individuals have to learn in the context of the team† (Append ix B). Hurst (1995, as cited in Carnall,2007, p. 65) for instance exposes that a performance organisation should evolve into a learning organisation when it faces complexity; â€Å"tightly defined tasks, control systems and rigid structures† should be replaced by â€Å"recognition, networks and teams†. His ecocycle model of eight stages points toward renewal through which the company reinvents itself, more explicitly, â€Å"in which people rethink what they seek to achieve, with whom and how, and thereby recreate the organisation†¦ it is certainly a learning process†. The complexity theory can throw some light on this perspective.As Darwin, Johnson and McAuley (2002, cited in Carnall,2007, p. 84) note, the basic idea that lies beneath the relevance of the complexity theory within the literature regarding organisational behaviour is that of a multifaceted adaptive organism described as a coherent network of agents interacting in parallel with no ? command an d control framework? and who are ? adaptively intelligent? (Appendix C). This view links to the idea of ? self-organisation? (Carnall,2007, p. 84). Emery (2004, as cited in Carnall, 2007,p. 85) also presents â€Å"an analysis of open-systems theory-based action research as an enabler of learning and change†.She starts off by stating that learning is fundamental for viable change and then argues that practitioners must deal with all individuals at every level of the corporation and all practical areas must be implicated in some kind of practise that will enable them to take part in this learning process. However, she highlights that there are certain obstacles that might get in the way such as certain attitudes of the elite members, fail to use a common language throughout the organisation, and diverse framework and priority schemes.Another issue to tackle is the fact that individuals have different learning rates and they learn in different ways (Carnall, 2007). That is where the role of internal communications plays a significant role. Professional practitioners should be able to identify where communications fail and target unlike audiences with different techniques to be able to engage them appropriately. We therefore can determine that the objective of education in the long-run would be to create a â€Å"strong sense of listening and of responsiveness [that will] permeate(s) the organisation† (Macleod, p. 9) by: -Forming engaging managers that will know how to communicate cultures and values and treat their personnel with respect. As MacLeod ((Macleod, p. 79) ) states in his report, managers who engage â€Å"facilitate and empower rather than control or restrict their staff; they treat their staff with appreciation and respect and show commitment to developing, increasing and rewarding the capabilities of those they manage. †. -Giving employees a voice and tools to address management with their concerns.They must feel â€Å"they are l istened to and see that their opinions count and make a difference†¦ [And that they are able to] speak out and challenge when appropriate† (Macleod, p. 79) CONCLUSION Employee engagement levels can predict an organisation? s accomplishments and performance as it is claimed by many authors. However, due to today? s complex environment it is more than necessary to build up a strong internal communications strategy. Employees should not be isolated from the organisation as a whole and should be informed and involved in it. The corporate culture should be coherent and the vision should be clear.If organisations fail to communicate all this properly and engage its employees into believing that change is not synonym of threat, resistance will appear. Resistance may lead to a break in the internal homeostasis and the consequences will show up as a failure when trying to move the organisation forward. REFERENCES Argenti, P. (2009) Corporate Communication. 5th ed. Singapore: Mc Gr aw Hill. Carnall, C. (2007) Managing Change in Organisations. 5th ed. Essex: Prentice-Hall. Dolphin, R. (1999) The Fundamentals of Corporate Communications. Butterworth-Heinemann. Jimmieson, N. t al. (2004) A Longitudinal Study of Employee Adaptation to Organizational Change: The Role of Change-Related Information and Change-Related Self-Ef? cacy. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology , 9 (1), p. 11-27. MacLeod, D. and Clarke, N. (2009) Engaging for Success: enhancing performance through employee engagement. [report] Department for Business Palmer, I. et al. (2006) Managing Organizational Change: A Multiple Perspectives Approach. s. l. : Mc Graw-Hill Saks, A. (2006) Antecedents and Consequences of Employee Engagement. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 21 (7), p. 00-619. www. theinformationdaily. com (2012) Making your organisation fit to change. [online] Available at: http://www. theinformationdaily. com/2012/12/21/making-your-organisation-fit-to-change [Accessed: 4 Mar 2013]. J acobs, G. (2004) Corporate creative thinking. In: Oliver, S. M. ed. Handbook of corporate communications and public relations. London: Routledge, pp. 382-384. Barrett, D. J. (2004) A best-practice approach to change communication. In: Oliver, S. M. ed. Handbook of corporate communications and public relations. London: Routledge, pp. 22-24. . APPENDICES Appendix A. Figure 2. 1 Strategic employee communication model (Barrett, 2004, p. 23) *Appendix B. Senge? s five disciplines: 1. Systems thinking: everyone must learn how to view things as a whole and that one set of events has impact on others 2. Personal mastery: ? the discipline of continually clarifying and deepening†¦ personal vision, of focusing†¦ energies, of developing patience, and of seeing reality objectively.? 3. Mental models: ? learning to unearth†¦ internal pictures of the world, to bring them to surface and hold them rigorously to scrutiny? 4.Build a share vision: leadership is the key to creating and co mmunicating the vision†¦ the leader creates vision but is prepared to have it reshaped by others 5. Team learning: teams, not single individuals, are the key to successful organizations of the future and individuals have to learn in the context of the team (Senge, 1990, as cited in Carnall, p. 164) *Appendix C. Darwin, Johnson and McAuley (2002, Carnall, p. 84) describe a multifaceted adaptive organism: 1. It is a network of ? agents? acting in parallel, often interconnected, ways but without any ? ommand and control? framework 2. These agents are ? adaptively intelligent? ; constantly seeking and making sense of patterns, testing ideas, evolving and learning. 3. Change is achieved through learning, evolution and adaptation. 4. Control of the system is dispersed throughout the system. 5. Coherence within the system arises out of competition and cooperation among the agents as they see advantage in alliances and other arrangements for mutual support. This view links to the idea of ? self-organisation?. (Darwin et al, 2002, as cited in Carnall, p. 84)

Computer Hacking is Ethical

Austin Areas English Ill Honors Mrs.. Mills 14 December 2012 Computer Hacking is Ethical Computer hacking is a term that most everyone in today's society is familiar with. When the average person hears news about computer hacking, most likely they think about cyber-crimes, website defacement's, or knocking various websites offline. This inaccurate description is Just the image that today's media creates. In reality, true hackers are much different. Computer hacking is not the only type of hacking in today's society.Hacking actually originated from partaking, which is the art of racking a telephone network (â€Å"A Brief History of Computer Hacking†). Hacking is seen as being blackball, or wrong, when hacking can also be beneficial to the world. There are different types of computer hackers: â€Å"Hastiest,† ones who hack to express a political opinion, â€Å"Hobbyist† hackers, those who hack for enjoyment, and â€Å"Research hackers,† those who hack to lea rn about security and fix vulnerabilities (â€Å"License to hack? Ethical hacking†). As mentioned before, the first computer hackers were not people who were hacking to earn some quick cash. In 1878, two years after the telephone was invented y Alexander Graham Bell, a group of teenagers who worked to maintain the New York switchboard were fired because they were interested in seeing how the phone connections were made and how the calls were distributed to specific locations. Their actions were essentially the equivalent of early computer hackers.These boys were trying to break into the telephone system to understand and see how the switchboard worked (â€Å"Timeline: A 40-Year History of Hacking†). Computers were not always in the easy to use, graphical interface they are today. Along the time period of the ass, mainframe computers were very popular. Most universities and companies would have rooms dedicated to containing these mainframe computers, which were essentia lly a large chunk of metal locked away in a controlled environment. Due to the prices and exclusivity, users had to fight for time to obtain access to these slow- moving machines.Since these mainframe computers were so expensive and resource intensive, meaning they required time, knowledge, electricity, and money, computer programmers went out on a ledge to learn and create ways to speed up processes and modify hardware to increase performance speed (â€Å"Computer hacking: Where did it begin and how did it grow? ). In return, the machine would be able to complete more tasks and operations in a shorter time period. Hiring a hacker to modify one's machine in the ass and ass would definitely increase business functionality (Parks).The term â€Å"Hacker† did not earn the definition it has in today's world until the sass. Users discovered that they could apply their knowledge of the inner workings of a computer for their own gain. This was the time period when viruses, mallard, and other nasty cyber infections were created to earn their coder or hacker money (â€Å"Timeline: A 40-Year History of Hacking†). In the early sass, a man named John Draper discovered that he could recreate the pitch a telephone used by using a whistle obtained from a box of cereal.By using this whistle, Draper could recreate the 2600-hertz audio tone and score some free long-distance calls. Draper's actions were one of the first illegal actions committed by a hacker, which earned him the nickname â€Å"Captain Crunch. † Later in the sass, devices called â€Å"Blue Boxes† were invented by a computer club in California. These boxes were used to help change a tone to match the tone created by a telephone, thus making telephone tampering easier to use. These boys went by the names of Steve Jobs and Steve Woozier, the creators of Apple Inc. â€Å"Timeline: A 40-Year History of Hacking†). Attention towards partaking was created during this decade, resulting i n a few computer and telephone hacking magazines being created. These magazines would benefit those who wanted to become partakers and computer hackers, by teaching them techniques, and giving access to those who had already accomplished these illegal acts (â€Å"Timeline: A 40-Year History of Hacking†). Another effect from the huge amounts of attention towards hackers was a new law being passed, called The ComprehensiveCrime Control Act, giving the Secret Service Jurisdiction over cases including credit card and computer fraud (â€Å"INCURS Abstract†). Later in 1987, a seventeen-year-old hacks into AT's computer network, which led to his arrest. This boy was caught because he did want most teenage boys do, he bragged on an online bulletin board about it. Federal authority says he committed the hacking from his bedroom, and was one step away from breaching into AT&T's switching system, the system that controlled most of the nation's communication access fine (â€Å"Ti meline: A 40-Year History of Hacking†).In the year 1988 the first self-replicating virus was created by a twenty-two year old graduate named Robert Morris from Cornell University that was designed to take advantage of an exploit in UNIX-based systems. The Morris-worm, named after the creator, infected nearly one tenth of machines connected to the internet. Morris was arrested for releasing the virus and was sentenced to three years of probation, 400 hours of community service, and a $10,000 fine (â€Å"Zen and the Art of the Internet†).No other major hacks occurred until the mid to late ass, when two hackers known as Data Stream hacked into computers and systems owned by institutions such as NASA and Korean Atomic Research Institute. One of the two was caught by detectives form Scotland Yard and was discovered to be sixteen years old (â€Å"The Case Study: Rome Laboratory, Griffins Air Force Base, and NY Intrusion†). The year after, Vladimir Levin allegedly used his laptop to transfer funds from Citibank's computer network to various accounts across the world. Eventually Levin was extradited to the US, sentenced to three years in prison, and ordered to pay Citibank $240,000.The exact amount of money stolen is unknown, but is estimated to be around $3. -$10 million, not all of which has been recovered (â€Å"How To Hack A Bank†). Later that year legendary computer hacker Kevin Nitpick was arrested in Raleigh, North Carolina, and accused of breaking security violations, such as copying computer software, breaking into various networks and stealing information, including close to 20,000 credit cards. He spent four years in Jail without trial and was released in early 2000. Nitpick was accused of crimes dating back to the mid-sass (â€Å"Timeline: A 40-year history of hacking†).After the year 2000, many to most cyber- attacks or hacks have been caused by mallard users unknowingly downloading them onto their PC. Most newly created enamelware bypasses anti-virus scans, which means no one is ever one hundred percent safe on the internet. The graph below displays the type of virus or mallard threats received on various US computers (â€Å"Microsoft Security Intelligence Report†). Every computer hacker is powered by a motive or several motives. Usually malicious hackers are motivated from self-gain, either money or fame.Malicious programmers create mallard programs to do their bidding; such software can log every key one presses, steal sensitive data such as passwords for personal and banking websites, r add one's computer to a ring of infected computers that can be used to Dos websites (â€Å"Ethics in Computing†). A Dos attack is when packets of data are sent to a Webster that eventually overload the server with data to the point where the server crashes, therefore knocking the website offline. More recently, Anonymous has taken credit for Dosing major banking websites offline (â€Å"Bank of Amer ica Hit By Anonymous Dos Attack†).There are many different types of Dos attacks; the most common is a JODI Flood, which sends a JODI packet to random ports on a server. When a packet is sent to a port where there is no application listening on that port, the server replies with a Destination Unreachable packet, so the server has to respond to every single JODI Packet with an Unreachable; the part that crashes the server is when the Unreachable Packet is sent (â€Å"UDP Flood Attack†). Hackers sometimes will sell their bootee, which is the term that describes a ring of infected computers.When a hacker sells or rents his bootee, the infected PC's are transferred over to the buyer for their use, which is usually for more illegal Dos attacks. There is extremely easy money when it comes to selling information attained from hacking, whether it is selling hacked website accounts for popular websites like Youth or websites that require a monthly subscription. Most of the transa ctions are made online and are close to untraceable. Finding a competent hacker on the internet is the equivalent of going to Iraq and looking for AY Quad.Hackers know how to hide, where to hide, and how to stay safe (â€Å"Hackers Selling Cheap BOOTEES and DOS on Forums†). Even though hackers know how to hide, that does not mean they cannot get caught. Hacker Jon Paul Soon illegally hacked into his previous employer's network with malicious intent. This network was a medical network that contained health records, names, addresses, and provided services to seventeen different clinics in San Diego. Soon was punished with five years in prison and a combined fine of over four hundred thousand dollars, along with a ban from using a computer (â€Å"Hackers: Crimes and punishments†).Teenage hackers usually get off easier, with punishments like time in a Juvenile center, a ban from computers, community service, or very light prison sentences depending on age. FBI informant Ma x Butler was a hacker who was charged in 2001 with possession of stolen passwords, computer intrusion, and thirteen other counts. He risked going to prison for forty years because he decided to stop helping the FBI catch other hackers. These are Just a few cases of the risks hackers take for the thrill or self-gain from hacking (â€Å"5 Of the World's Most Famous Hackers & What Happened to Them†).With such strong consequences, one might wonder why an individual would want to become a computer hacker. Internet users become hackers because they know how to work the system; they know how to yap's the law and do close to anything they want (â€Å"The Hacker Work Ethic†). Hackers are purely cyber thieves who terrorize innocent users using their superior knowledge of how computers and the internet work. There are indeed an abundance of hackers who have malicious intent, but there are those who hack for a higher purpose (Roberts).Identifying what type of hacker one is dealing with is extremely easy; all one must do is look at the end product and ask a few questions. Is this hacker trying to steal information? Is the hacker trying to infect systems? If so, then that hacker is malicious. Other hackers hack for the learning experience. They want to learn more about computers and how systems change when modifying specifications. Hacker Sarah Flannels describes the work she put into her encryption algorithm as, â€Å"l had a great feeling of excitement †¦ Worked constantly for whole days on end, and it was exhilarating.There were times when I never wanted to stop. † Pursuing knowledge has been the fuel for many computer users since the first computers were created in the sass. These people live by the idea that the best way to learn is to take a hands on approach (â€Å"Types of computer hackers†). Contrary to black hat hackers, a type of hacker exists known as the white hat hacker. White hat hackers are the people who help infected users on the web. Many black hat hackers such as Kevin Nitpick, Kevin Paulsen, and Mark Been have turned white hat after serving time in prison or on probation (â€Å"12 â€Å"White Hat† hackers you should know').Not only to white hat hackers try to reverse the effects of black hats, but they also hack websites. Many businesses hire penetration testers, A. K. A. White hat hackers to try to penetrate the businesses' servers or databases to test how protected the businesses' websites are. Penetration testers, commonly referred to as Pen Testers, report back any exploits they have covered while hacking their employer's website or database, and then they patch the exploit, thus making a safer internet.Companies believe that if a white hat hacker can penetrate their security, then so can a mischievous black hat hacker (â€Å"tithe hat' hackers in demand†). An example of a famous white hat hacker is computer analyst and expert Touts Samurai, who police used to track down and appr ehend Kevin Nitpick in 1995 after Nitpick had evaded the FBI for years, and caused well over $100,000 in damage to systems belonging to Motorola, Monika, Sun Microsystems, and NECK (â€Å"The trials of Kevin MitoticThis is Just one example of a hacker being caught by another hacker. Police computer security analysts and hackers to look decipher cyber evidence that is related to crimes under investigation, along with cyber-forensics to break down crimes and solve them quickly (â€Å"The Kevin Nitpick/ Touts Samurai affair†). Hollywood has also tried to portray computer hacking in movies such as Hackers, from 1995, and War Games from 1983.The movie Hackers is about two computer hackers named Crash Override and Acid Burn, who seemingly fight each other with silly fonts and awful homepage graphics. Later on in the movie, he US Secret Service is involved when another associate of Overrides hacks into a school's mainframe and downloads a garbage file. This file actually contained a computer virus that could apparently capsize the company's oil tanker fleet. After a few other friends are arrested, everyone is cleared of their charges and the movie ends happily.In reality, all of these hackers would have been in prison, and would not had their charges dropped, not to mention the fact that a company had the code to a computer virus that could control their entire oil tanker fleet on a garbage file in their easily hackle mainframe (â€Å"Hackers†). Legitimate hackers later defaced the movie Hacker's website to express how they felt about the silliness in this movie (â€Å"Hacked Movie Site†). Nothing really big happened, only some text was changed and a few pictures were defaced with satirical pictures drawn over them.The website still has the hacked version of their website mirrored, meaning it is still accessible to the web. Included in the text of the defaced website were lines describing how Hollywood misunderstands technology and will never be able to comprehend the hard work and time needed to perform some of the acts that hackers accomplish. No en can tap a few keys on a keyboard and hack into a company's mainframe, website, or database.Hackers included a scene where someone managed to access a supercomputer with Just the password â€Å"GOD† and has the UNIX operating system replaced with some other three dimensional interface does not represent the real world in any manner (â€Å"Episode – Hackers†). The movie Live Free or Die Hard also butchers computer hacking in the sense that the computer hacks in it are so good at hacking that they can control entire cities, including quotes like â€Å"Okay, I want you to hack into that traffic light and make it red.Almost all of the incredible feats provided by Hollywood in movies is practically impossible, or would require months of research to perform. Many hackers believe that Hollywood will never portray legitimate hackers correctly (â€Å"Hollywood Ha cking – Television Tropes & Idioms†). Computer fanatics are compelled by the mystery of the machine. When Mr.. Hake, the Computer Applications teacher from Erwin High was asked why he was so fascinated by computers when he first had access to them, he replied with, â€Å"They were new and exciting; no one really knew where we were going to go with amputees, but everyone seemed to want to use them. † Mr..Hake described that people were compelled to study computers due to their mysteriousness and interesting possibilities (Hake). Switching from being a computer fanatic to being a computer hacker can happen really quickly when one may see how easy earning, or stealing money actually is on the internet. Or maybe the thrill of breaking past security will push the moderately to advanced computer user to turn to the dark side of computer hacking. Malicious hackers will always have a hard time as long as the be is full of white hat hackers to make their Job, or hobby mor e difficult (â€Å"Meaning of Hacking and the Different Kinds of Hackers†).In conclusion, not every person who knows their way around a computer's boundaries is unethical. While there are many intelligent and malevolent hackers loose on the web, it is still a safe place. Today's media does not accurately portray hackers or the hacker's philosophy, and neither do cut-rate Hollywood movies. Media websites control how civilians see cyber criminals, due to that factor, most innocents see hackers has people who are out to no good. The white knights of the internet are never given the appreciation they deserve, because of them we are as safe as we are now.White hat hackers have patched countless exploits caused by bad-natured hackers. Governments can Jail as many hackers as they want, but they can never Jail a philosophy. Hackers will always exist; they will always be out to gain something out of their exploits. Society needs to understand that hackers also hack to prevent collater al damage, or to catch the worst of the worst hackers. There are good hackers and bad hackers, Just as there are good people and bad people; not all hackers are unethical.

Questions On Feminist Identity And Reactions Of Gender...

MCS*3500 – Reflection 1 – Threats to Feminist Identity and Reactions to Gender Discrimination Tyler Ciprietti – 0786162 – tcipriet@mail.uoguelph.ca 1. Describe the context (why it was done, the general interest and what the researchers wanted to find out) of the research and research question (what is the hypothesis). /10 The goal of the study was to identify factors that shape women s responses to in-group members who protest gender discrimination. The participants were all undergraduate females that were all given the same information prior to the start of the study. The one difference was the scenario (manipulation) in which the female lawyer was being discriminated. The researchers told some participants of the study that the lawyer†¦show more content†¦To examine these hypotheses, the researchers had the female participant group read about an unfair hiring decision in which a law firm chose not to grant the deserving candidate a position, and hired a less experienced male candidate instead. 2. Describe dependent, independent, and moderating variables. How these variables were measured and manipulated in this study. 10 Independent = Condition either protest or no protest Dependent = many of them; Outcome measures in case.....(4) We are only replicating the evaluation of target.†¨Moderating = Pervasiveness of gender discrimination. The variables in the study helped to differentiate the participant’s opinions on the female lawyer. In this case, the researchers are only replicating a small part of the study. There were 4 possible dependent variables that were measured. 1) Anger Toward the Target – this was measured through statements like â€Å"I feel angry at Catherine†. The higher the score, the greater the amount of anger was expressed. 2) Evaluation of Target – participants evaluated the likeability of Catherine by measuring statements like â€Å"I admire Catherine,† â€Å"I would like to be friends with Catherine†. 3) Evaluation of Target’s Response – This measure addressed evaluations of the target’s response to the decision. Participants

Drug Addiction And Drug Abuse - 1401 Words

An Essay on Drug Addiction and Drug Abuse Introduction: The terms drug addiction and drug abuse are often used interchangeably. However, they are in fact two separate situations. Drug abuse generally leads a person down the path toward drug addiction, but not every individual who abuses drugs becomes an addict. The definition of drug abuse continues to change because the term is subjective and infused with the political and moral values of the society or culture one lives in. An example of this is the drug caffeine. It is physically addicting but is not considered an abused drug because it does not generally trigger anti-social behavior in users. Illegal Drugs: There are many illegal drugs that are being abused by our society†¦show more content†¦Cocaine and crack cocaine come from the leaves of the coca plant which grows primarily in South America. Cocaine is processed into a white powder which people snort or melt and inject. Crack is further processed into a substance that can be smoked. Cocaine is a Schedule II controlled substance. It is illegal to grow, process, sell or use cocaine or crack. Cocaine has limited use in medicine as an anesthetic. Ecstasy (MDMA) is a synthetic drug with both hallucinogenic and amphetamine-like properties. It is chemically similar to two other synthetic drugs, MDA and methamphetamine, which damage the brain. Ecstasy is mainly taken in pill form but users have been known to crush and snort or inject the drug. Opium is the dried milk of the poppy plant and contains morphine and codeine. From morphine it is a short step to the production of heroin, a powder over twice as potent as morphine. Opium can be eaten, smoked and drunk. Morphine can be injected or taken orally. Heroin can be smoked in tobacco, heated on aluminum foil and inhaled, injected under the skin or into the muscle/ vein. Meth is a powerfully addictive stimulant that dramatically affects the central nervous system. The drug is made easily in clandestine laboratories with relatively inexpensive over-the-counter ingredients. These factors combine to make meth a drug with high potential for widespread abuse. Effects: Drug abuse affects people of all income levels,Show MoreRelatedDrug Abuse And Drug Addiction1257 Words   |  6 Pages Drugs had been existing since the early 15th century and society has confronted drug abuse and addiction ever since. In the modern world, drug abuse has become a problem for many individuals do to traumatic experiences, mental disorders, peer pressure and personal problems. For every addiction there is always a solution, professional assistance can help a drug addict get control of his/her life once again. Drug rehabilitation programs can be essential for drug addicts only if the victims are committedRead MoreDrug Addiction : Drugs And Drug Abuse Essay1615 Words   |  7 Pages this drug is extremely addictive and has been illegal in the United States for many years. Although many individuals seem to discover a way to obtain this very lethal drug. Even though, heroin is highly addictive and used by choice by an individual with a drug addiction; the number of deaths from Heroin is escalating daily, to the point where more than 26 overdoses in one day maybe even more. This epidemic n eeds to be put to a halt. Despite the fact the focus was on prescription addiction increaseRead MoreDrug Abuse And Addiction : Drugs977 Words   |  4 PagesDrug abuse/addiction Jeremy Graham May 11, 2015 Period, 5 Drug abuse and addiction Drug abuse/addiction is a major problem in Indiana that affects many individual. Several solutions such as rehab and drug classes have been tried. Yet, the best solution is taking drug classes. Many people do not understand why people become addicted to drugs or how drugs change the brain to foster compulsive drug abuse. They mistakenly view drug abuse and addiction as strictly a socialRead MoreDrug Abuse And Drug Addiction775 Words   |  4 Pages Drug Abuse Treatment 6.15 6.23 6.49 6.73 7.21 7.55 7.66 7.85 7.89 8.83 Percentage of Total Funding 30.9% 30.2% 29.9% 30.8% 29.0% 30.7% 31.4% 32.0% 31.3% 35.0% Drug Abuse Prevention 2.04 1.96 1.93 1.84 1.95 1.56 1.48 1.34 1.28 1.28 Percentage of Total Funding 10.3% 9.5% 8.9% 8.4% 7.8% 6.3% 6.1% 5.5% 5.1% 5.1% Total Demand Reduction 8.19 8.19 8.43 8.57 9.16 9.11 9.14 9.19 9.16 10.10 Percentage of Total Funding 41.2% 39.7% 38Read MoreDrug Abuse and Addiction851 Words   |  4 PagesDrug Abuse and Addiction, Problems amp; Solutions in Turkey Drug Abuse and Addiction, Problems amp; Solutions in Turkey Abdullah Furkan Kaya Ä °stanbul Åžehir University 30.4.2012 Drug abuse is an addiction, which has different substance types and can ruin people’s life or even cause death. People use it for variety of reasons such as getting away from their bothers or getting high. Approximately 200 million people abusing drugs, most of them are addicted in the world. This number isRead MorePaper Drug Abuse Drug Addiction1403 Words   |  6 PagesKeisha Ellis Drug Abuse Drug Addiction SOC 203 Social Problems Instructor Ely May 11, 2015 Numerous individuals do not comprehend why individuals get to be dependent on drugs or how drugs can change the mind to cultivate enthusiastic drug abuse. They erroneously view drug misuse and dependence as entirely a social issue and may describe the individuals who take drugs as ethically powerless (Alving, Matyas, Torres, Jalah, Beck, 2014). One extremely regular belief is that drugs abusersRead MoreDrug Abuse And Addiction1261 Words   |  6 PagesDrug Abuse and Addiction Individuals are well on the way to begin drug abuse including alcohol, tobacco, marijuana and many more drugs which are illegal. It has been seen that most affected category falls under the effect of drug abuse is adolescence and young adulthood. The percentage of senior students during their high school, who will have tried alcohol is 70 percent in the ratio and 40 percent of them start smoking and nearly 20 percent of them start taking prescription drugs. (National InstituteRead MoreDrug Abuse And The Consequences Of Drug Addiction1593 Words   |  7 PagesDrug addiction has become prevalent in our societies today such as the use of heroin. Using Marc, Lewis (2011) text â€Å"Memoirs of an Addicted Brain: A Neuroscientist Examines his Former Life on Drugs† this paper focuses on drug abuse, heroin, and the consequences that the users face as they battle their addiction and related problems. In the text, chapter 8 provides a significant background and overview of Heroin as a drug, hence major section of this paper will rely on facts provided within this chapterRead MoreAddiction : Drug Abuse, Tolerance, And Addiction2246 Words   |  9 PagesAddiction is a worldwide disease that is not discriminatory against whom it affects. People take drugs because they want to change something in their lives; â€Å"They thinks drugs are a solution. But eventually, drugs become the problem† (â€Å"Truth About Drug Addiction†). This leads people to wonder, What is addiction? Are there treatments for addiction? There are four common steps on the pathway to addiction: drug abuse, tolerance, dependence, and last but not least addiction. (Advert: Substance AbuseRead MoreDrug Addiction And Substance Abuse1808 Words   |  8 Pageshas taken over their life? Addiction includes biological, psychological, and behavioral factors. It is very dangerous emotionally, psychologically, and physically. Drug addiction or substance abuse is an ongoing uncontrollable nee d to use drugs, despite the harmful or negative consequences it causes. The person depends on drugs to keep functioning normally as the natural chemical balance of the brain is altered. No matter the reason a person starts abusing drugs, either for excitement, escape

Effects Of Dementia On Alzheimer s Disease - 1849 Words

â€Å"Dementia is characterized by chronic, global, non-reversible deterioration in memory, executive function, and personality. Speech and motor functions may also be impaired† (Butler and Radhakrishnan, 2011). As defined by Butler and Radharkrishnan, dementia is a disease that affects a person for their whole life. In the next part of this paper, I’m going to talk about the dementia and the effects it has on a person live whether it is with the symptoms, overall experience with it, and what exactly it does to the body. Dementia isn’t a fun disease to have or deal with. According to the World of Health Organization, over 35 million people have dementia (Robitaille, Garcia, McIntosh, 2015). I’m mainly going to talk about the specific type of dementia Alzheimer’s. â€Å"Alzheimer’s disease is defined as a type of dementia characterized by an onset and slow deterioration, and involves impairments in memory, speech, personality, and executive function†(Butler and Radharkrishnan, 2011). Memory loss isn’t just the only thing that happens with dementia. They also experience impairments in language, communication, focus, and reasoning (Ellis, 2013). When getting diagnosed with Alzheimer’s dementia, a person is given a life expectancy of about 6 years, but many live way longer than that (Butler and Radhakrishnan, 2011). Alzheimer’s disease is a disease that a person takes to the grave with them. Once a person is diagnosed, it a pretty much a death sentence. There is not yet a cure for it.Show MoreRelatedThe Effects Of Dementia On Alzheimer s Disease And Vascular Disease1803 Words   |  8 Pages The Effects of Dementia Alex Guthrie University of Tennessee Chattanooga Introduction Dementia is a chronic illness that effects millions of Americans annually with increasing numbers. The general understanding of dementia is that it affects the mind, and while it does affect the mind, entangles much more than just that. Dementia engulfs a patient s mind, family, a level of caregiving, and an involvement in research of the disease. The Mind Adults age 65 years and older makeRead MoreAlzheimer s Disease : The Most Common Form Of Dementia1427 Words   |  6 PagesDementia, known as one of the world s current pandemics, is estimated to be the fourth most common cause of death in the developed country, second only to cardiovascular, cerebrovascular diseases and cancer. With the aging population, dementia has gradually become a serious threat to the health of the elderly people in Australia. Alzheimer s disease is the most common form of dementia. Alzheimer s disease usually occurs in a primary degenerative encephalopathy in senile and pre senior periodRead MoreAlzheimer s Disease Is An Ongoing Condition That Destroys The Connection Of Cells1689 Words   |  7 PagesAlzheimer s disease is an ongoing condition that destroys the connection of cells in the brain. According to the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America (AFA), it is estimated that as many as 5.1 million Americans have Alzheimer s disease today. Alzheimer s disease was discovered by a German physician named Alois Alzheimer. In 1906, Dr. Alzheimer saw changes in the brain tissue of a woman who died from what he presumed to be a mental illness. He described her symptoms as memory loss, language complicationsRead MoreThe Disease Of Alzheimer s Disease1677 Words   |  7 Pagesone thing Alzheimer s cannot take away, and that is love. Love is not a memory - it s a feeling that resides in your heart and soul.â €  (Fade to Blank). The human brain is a remarkably complex organ that processes, stores, and recalls information. â€Å"Alzheimer s disease (AD) is a slowly progressive disease of the brain that is characterized by impairment of memory and eventually by disturbances in reasoning, planning, language, and perception. Many scientists believe that Alzheimer s disease resultsRead MoreAmerica s Elder Population Is Living Longer936 Words   |  4 PagesAmerica s elder population is living longer. Current data trends show that 46.2 million people living in America are age 65 and older (Millennials Outnumber Baby Boomers ,2015). Research shows the life expectancy of the average American woman is 81.2 years of age. Although advancements in medicine continue to evolve there remains one condition which impedes the quality of life for this growing population. Dementia, an Alzheimer s related condition which hinders the quality of life for 3.2 millionRead MoreDementia And It s Types Essay 1429 Words   |  6 PagesDementia and it s types Dementia is a syndrome caused by multiple progressive illnesses that affects memory, thinking, orientation, behaviour, comprehension, calculation, judgement, learning capacity, language, and loss of motivation and emotional control. The syndrome is characterized by Alzheimer’s disease, dementia with lewy bodies, vascular dementia, and frontotemporal dementia. Dementia mainly affects older people. Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia. Prevalence 44.4Read MoreAlzheimer s And Alzheimer Dementia991 Words   |  4 PagesSome alternate names for Alzeheimer s include Alzheimer dementia (AD), Alzheimer dementiia, syndrome, and sclerosis. The name of the disease was chosen after Dr. Aloysius Alzheimer was credited with discovering the first case of presenile dementia. This would later be called Alzheimer s disease in honor of Dr. Alzheimer s discovery. In the year of 1901, Dr. Alzheimer was studying a 51-year-old patient named Auguste Deter. The patient was suffering from strage behavioral patterns of symptoms. OneRead MoreAlzheimer s Disease : A Progressive Disease1663 Words   |  7 Pages Alzheimer s disease is a progressive disease that destroys memory and other important mental functions. At first, someone with Alzheimer s disease may notice mild confusion and difficulty remembering. Eventually, people with the disease may even forget important people in their lives and undergo dramatic personality changes. Alzheimer s disease is the most common cause of dementia — a group of brain disorders that cause the loss of intellectual and social skills. In Alzheimer s disease, theRead MoreAlzheimer s Disease And Its Effects1188 Words   |  5 Pages Alzheimer s disease is a cognitively degenerative disease with irreversible side effects. The disease was first discovered in 1901 by the late German psychiatrist Alois Alzheimer while he was working with a fifty year old patient by the name of Auguste D. Since the disease s discovery, scientists, psychiatrist, and many other medical professionals have worked diligently to learn more about the disease s effects and poten tial treatments to hinder its rapid progression. Alzheimer s disease isRead MoreThe Effects Of Alzheimer s And Dementia Among Elderly Populations1709 Words   |  7 PagesAlarming statistics project that by the year 2050, an estimated 115 million people globally will be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. In 2011, the cost of Alzheimer’s care in the United States exceeded $130 billion (Trivedi, Bijal, 2012). Approximately 90% of older nursing home residents are estimated to have a psychiatric disorder which includes Alzheimer s disease (Curlik, SM, et al, 1991). In 2003, the report on the President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health, Achieving the Promise:

Sometimes Referred Female Genital Cutting †Myassignmenthelp.Com

Question: Discuss About The Sometimes Referred To As Female Genital Cutting? Answer: Introducation Female genital mutilation which is abbreviated as FGM is sometimes referred to as female genital cutting is the process by which clitoris of girls is cut so as to restrict their desire for sex and reserve their honor sexually before they get married. This procedure is done by removing total or partial exterior genitalia or additional damage to the organs of females for either cultural reasons or reasons that are non-therapeutic. The FGM may involve the removing clitoris, removing labia minora partially, and stitching the labia majora at the same time leaving a minute opening for menstrual and urine movement. The FGM is a practice which is dominant in Muslim communities and its results are serious bleeding leading to death, infection of the wound, and traumatization. The few girls who survive from this manipulation suffer serious effects of health during pregnancy and marriage. The FGM have been classified into the following four type by the World Health Organization: Type 1: This involves partially or totally removing clitoris or/and prepuce (clitoridectomy). It can be classified into: Removing the prepuce only Removing the clitoris and prepuce. Type 2: This involves partially or totally eliminating the clitoris and labia minora with or without the elimination of the labia majora. It can be categorized into: Removing only labia minora Partially or totally eliminating the clitoris and labia minora Partially of totally eliminating clitoris, labia minora, and labia majora. Type 3: This involves the process of narrowing the orifice of the vagina with the formation of seal cover through positioning and cutting the labia majora and/or the labia minora, without or with clitoris removal(Bettina Shell-Duncan, 2010, p. 269). It can be classified into: Apposition and removing of the labia majora Apposition and removing of the labia minora Type 4: This type is not classified but involves removal or pricking of the labia or clitoris, cauterization through the burning of the clitoris, or introducing a substance or herbs which are corrosive into the vagina. The present estimation shows that 90% of cases of Female Genital Mutilation involves types 1 or type 2. The FGM is normally done on females between 5 years and 12 years of age for some traditions while others perform it at adolescence or before marriage(Bettina Shell-Duncan, 2010, p. 184). Background Information The practice of Female Genital Mutilation which is rooted deeply that is performed in 28 African countries, a few Asian countries, and the Middle East. An estimation shows that 100 million girls to 140 million women have undergone the FGM as well as 3 million women are at threat of experiencing the exercise yearly. The research done by the Foundation for Womens Health, Development, and Research in 2007 shows that 66000 girls who went through the FGM are staying in Wales and England while 33000 women below the 15 years old of age are at a threat of being endangered to FGM or may have experienced the mutilation(Burrage, 2013, p. 167). The Female Genital Mutilation can be traced to have started back three centuries ago. Numerous myths and reasons have been provided to explain the continuation and existence of the practice. However, Sometimes Referred Female Genital Cutting he major motive that has been suggested include aesthetic purposes, prevention of rape, religion, provision of income source for the circumciser, and safeguarding virginity before marriage. The FGM is usually observed as a rite of passage which should be done for a woman to belong to a given community or have a sense of identity in the community or culture. There is a group which believes that the practice promoted cleanliness in women(Center for Reproductive Law Policy, 2011, p. 158). A woman that has been circumcised is usually considered as being pure spiritually and have the ability to persevere all sufferings that are faced by every woman for a given community. A woman who is not circumcised is believed to be shameful and unnatural by both women and men in the society, hence not fit to get married and have children. The majority of communities and women that perform the FGM have faith that they are doing the best for their children, hence they do not consider the practice as being any form of child protection issue or child abuse. The majority of societies believe that the practice is a religious obligation. Nevertheless, this practice is not pointed out in Bible or Koran(Karanja, 2014, p. 247). Numerous academics and Muslims in the West insist that the FGM is not embedded in religion but reasonably in culture. However, in some villages, those who carry out the practice believe it to be a religious mandate. Religion is theology as well as a practice. The FGM has been an important agenda for Non-governmental Organization and agencies of United Nation for approximately the three decades. In early 1958, the United Nation Commission on Human Rights embraced a resolution reproving the act. The International momentum against the FGM built when the World Health Organization was invited by the Economic and Social Council to study the persistence of the tradition endangering women to this ritual operation(Karanja, 2014, p. 169). In the year 1979, there was the denouncement of the practice by the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and the Convention on the Childs Rights pointed out in 1989 that FGM is a harmful custom practice. The program of Health Survey and Demographic which was a scheme sponsored by the UN Agency for International Development to help in mission on reproductive and medical health surveys found out that 130 million girls are 28 countries in Africa have undergone the practice showing that the practice the FGM is expanding rather than diminishing(Burrage, 2013, p. 214). Activist and Anthropologist categorize the FGM into three major types which include the Pharaonic circumcision which involves the removal of the whole clitoris, the media and labia majora are cut with both sections of the organ sewed together to allow just a small opening. Clitorectomy needs the removal of the whole clitoris together with a section of labia minora. The Sunna circumcision which in majorly practiced in Islamic countries involves the elimination of the prepuce of the clitoris. Numerous experts have suggested that the FGM is an African Practice since half of the presented cases in the official statistics happened in Ethiopia and Egypt which highest prevalence being in Sudan(Momoh, 2011, p. 187). There have also been reports on the presence of the practice in the Middle East. The recent findings from the Northern part of Iraq show that the practice is hugely in the regions that are outside the African continent. The majority of the women questioned denoted that the practice to be religious and traditional obligations. The war against the Female Genital Mutilation has been going on in the past and is still ongoing in the present societies by numerous organizations nationwide. This practice is deeply rooted in some societies despite the modernizations in the present world(Bettina Shell-Duncan, 2010, p. 154). Reference Bettina Shell-Duncan, Y. H. (2010). Female "circumcision" in Africa: Culture, Controversy, and Change. Paris: Lynne Rienner Publishers. Burrage, H. (2013). Eradicating Female Genital Mutilation: A UK Perspective. Colorado: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. Center for Reproductive Law Policy, R. (. (2011). Female Genital Mutilation: A Practical Guide to Worldwide Laws Policies. New York: Zed Books. Karanja, D. N. (2014). Female Genital Mutilation in Africa. New York: Xulon Press. Momoh, C. (2011). Female Genital Mutilation. Michigan: Radcliffe Publishing. Skaine, R. (2010). Female Genital Mutilation: Legal, Cultural, and Medical Issues. London: McFarland.

Southwest Airlines Case Analysis Essay Example

Southwest Airlines Case Analysis Essay Southwest History 1966: Rollin King marched into Herb Kelleher’s law office with a plan to start a low-cost/low-fare airline that would shuttle passengers between San Antonio, Dallas, and Houston. Thought of this idea because businessmen were complaining about the commute. 1967: Kelleher filed papers to incorporate the new airline and submitted an application to the Texas Aeronautics Commission for the new company to serve Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio. 4 year legal and regulatory battle from rival airlines 1971 (January): Lamar Muse brought in as the CEO to get operations under way. Boeing supplied three new 737s, discounted price by $1 million (5gt;4) and financed 90% of the $12 million deal. 1971 (June): Southwest initiated its first flights with a schedule that soon included 6 round-trips between Dallas and San Antonio and 12 round-trips between Houston and Dallas. Disappointing results despite only $20 fare compared to rivals $27-28. Their funds stretched thin and they were putting fuel on Muse’s credit card. Employee morale was high. 1971 (November): Muse came up with idea to offer $10 fare to passengers on the Friday-night Houstongt;Dallas flight. The flight sold-out without advertising. Muse came up with a two-tier on-peak and off-peak pricing structure. BEGINNING OF THE NO-LAYOFF POLICY, they have never laid off or furloughed any employees. 1972: Moved flights in Houston from the newly opened Houston Intercontinental Airport to the abandoned Houston Hobby Airport (for money and location reasons). 1973: Reported its first-ever annual profit in 1973. Introduced a profit-sharing plan for senior employees (first in the airline industry) -Rest of the 1970s consisted of legal battles- 1977: Listed on the NYSE 978: Muse resigned; Howard Putnam became CEO after Kelleher turned down the offer. 1979: First route outside Texas (New Orleans) 1981: Putnam resigned; Kelleher became CEO. Southwest had 27 planes, $270 million in revenues, 2100 employees, and 14 destination cities. Kelleher did not run from his office but among the troops. 1983: 3 additional Boeing 737s purchased; Southwest flies more than 9. 5 million passengers. 1984: Sout hwest is ranked first in customer satisfaction among the U. S. airlines for the fourth straight year. 1985: Service begins to St. We will write a custom essay sample on Southwest Airlines Case Analysis specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Southwest Airlines Case Analysis specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Southwest Airlines Case Analysis specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Louis and Chicago Midway. Southwest named the Ronald McDonald House as its primary charity (a pilot lost his daughter to leukemia). 1986: Southwest flies more than 13 million passengers. 1988: Southwest becomes the first U. S. airline to win the Triple Crown (best on-time record, fewest reports of mishandled baggage, and fewest complaints per 100,000 passengers) for a single month. 1990: Revenues reach $1 billion; only major U. S. airline to record both an operating and a net profit. The Culture Committee was formed to promote â€Å"Positively Outrageous Service. † 992: First annual Triple Crown; second-year running they were the only major U. S. airline to record both an operating and a net profit. 1993: Begins operations on the East Coast and wins second annual Triple Crown; revenues exceed $2 billion and profits exceed $100 million. Third consecutive year of being the only U. S. airline to record both an operating and net profit. 1994: Introduced ticketless travel in four c ities; third Triple Crown; acquires Morris Air (Salt Lake City) 1995: Ticketless travel becomes available system-wide; fourth consecutive Triple Crown. 996: Service to Florida begins; fifth consecutive Triple Crown; ~$740,000 to RMDH 1997: Service begins to Southwest’s 50th city; more than 50 million people fly Southwest. 1998: Named by Fortune as the best company to work for in America 1999: Service is added to three more cities. 2000: # of passengers exceeds 60 million; revenues surpass $5 billion; 28th consecutive year of profitability; 9th consecutive year of increased profits; becomes the 4th largest U. S. airline in terms of passengers carried. 2001: 30th Consecutive year of profitability; only U. S. airline to report a profit; record 64. million passengers 2001 (June): Kelleher stepped down as CEO but stayed chairman of the Board. James Parker and another trusted protege became CEO. 2002: Ranks second among companies across all industry groups (first in airlines) on Fo rtune’s 2002 list of most admired companies. Began changing the look of its planes. 2004: Parker retired unexpectedly. Gary Kelly appointed CEO. 2005: Becomes 2nd largest U. S. airline in terms of passengers carried. First significant blemish on Southwest’s safety record (overshot runway in Chicago). 2006: A record 96. 3 million passengers fly Southwest. 007: Becomes the largest U. S. airline in terms of passengers carried; profitable for the 35th consecutive year; named to Business Week’s first ever â€Å"Customer Service Champs† list and is voted â€Å"Overall Best Airline in the U. S. They introduced the Business Select fare to attract economy-minded business travelers. Did an â€Å"Extreme Gate Makeover† to improve experience. Ticketless travel accounted for more than 95% of all sales. Operation Kick Tail (customer service initiative) launched. 2008: More people were flying Southwest than any other U. S. airline and they were the only U. S. Air carrier that was consistently profitable and had been since 1973. Southwest did not choose to use a la carte pricing like other airlines; they stuck with an all-inclusive fare. Mission statement was revised to highlight customer service commitment. Belated Aircraft Inspections further tarnish Southwest’s reputation (placed three employees on leave). 2008 (May): Kelleher resigned as chairman of the board. Kelly assumed chairman of the board, president, and CEO. Southwest Financial and Statistical Background Key Financial Ratios | 2005| 2006| 2007| 2008| Gross Profit Margin| 31. 2%| 30. 54%| 26. 63%| 22. 07%| Operating Profit Margin| 9. 56%| 10. 28%| 8. 02%| 4. 07%| Net Profit Margin| 6. 38%| 5. 49%| 6. 54%| 1. 61%| Return on Total Assets| 3. 46%| 3. 71%| 3. 85%| 1. 27%| Return on Stockholders Equity| 7. 25%| 7. 74%| 9. 29%| 3. 59%| Earnings Per Share| 61. 00%| 63. 00%| 85. 00%| 24. 00%| Current Ratio| 94. 07%| 90. 09%| 91. 84%| 94. 55%| Quick Ratio| 90. 18%| 89. 37%| 87. 34 %| 88. 80%| Working Capital| -$228| -$286| -$395| -$153| Routes and Flight Data May 2008 serves 52 U. S. cities. Currently serves 69 U. S. cities. Top 10 Airports: May 2008| Current| Las Vegas| Las Vegas| Chicago Midway| Chicago Midway| Phoenix| Phoenix| Baltimore/Washington| Baltimore/Washington| Oakland| Denver| Houston Hobby| Houston Hobby| Dallas – Love Field| Dallas – Love Field| Los Angeles| Los Angeles| Orlando| Oakland| San Diego| San Diego| Aircraft Fleet: | May 2008| Current| Total A/C: | 527| 544| Total Seats:| 71,824| 74,153| †¢Southwest tested Wi-Fi on four of there airplanes, and in late 2009, made the decision to begin installing satellite-delivered broadband from their Wi-Fi provider, Row 44, on the rest of their fleet. Southwest estimates that heir entire fleet will be Wi-Fi enabled in the 2013 timeframe. Number of Domestic Passengers by Air Carrier | 2000| 2005| 2006| 2007| Q1 2008| Southwest| 15. 32%| 19. 63%| 21. 68%| 21. 95%| 23. 21%| American| 14. 42%| 17. 16%| 17. 29%| 16. 48%| 16. 64%| Delta| 20. 68%| 17. 22%| 14. 29%| 13. 26%| 13. 43%| United Air| 15. 30%| 12. 25%| 12. 88%| 12. 14%| 11. 61%| US Airways| 11. 96%| 8. 22%| 7. 18%| 11. 17%| 11. 26%| Northwest| 10. 23%| 10. 36%| 10. 16%| 9. 43%| 9. 09%| Continental| 7. 73%| 7. 32%| 8. 05%| 7. 99%| 8. 18%| Jet Blue| 0. 24%| 3. 21%| 4. 07%| 4. 42%| 6. 59%| America West| 4. 11%| 4. 63%| 4. 41%| 3. 6%| 0. 00% *| * America West data is included with US Airway starting in 2007 due to merger. Operating Revenues of Selected US Airlines, 2000-2007 (in billions) | 2007| 2006| 2005| 2004| 2003| 2002| 2001| 2000| American| 1st$22. 9| 1st$22. 5| 1st$20. 6| 1st$18. 6| 1st$17. 4| 1st$15. 9| 2nd$15. 6| 2nd$18. 1| United| 2nd 20. 1| 2nd19. 3| 2nd17. 3| 2nd15. 7| 3rd13. 4| 2nd13. 9| 1st16. 1| 1st19. 3| Delta| 3rd 19. 2| 3rd17. 5| 3rd16. 5| 3rd15. 2| 2nd14. 3| 3rd12. 4| 3rd13. 2| 3rd15. 3| Continental| 4th 14. 2| 4th13. 1| 5th11. 1| 5th9. 9| 5th7. 3| 5th7. 4| 6th8. 2| 5th9. 4| Northwest| 5th 12. 5| 5th12. 6| 4th12. | 4th11. 3| 4th10. 1| 4th9. 2| 4th9. 6| 4th11. 0| US Airways| 6th 11. 7| 6th11. 6| 7th7. 2| 6th7. 1| 6th6. 8| 6th6. 9| 5th8. 3| 6th9. 2| Southwest| 7th 9. 9| 7th9. 1| 6th7. 6| 7th6. 5| 7th5. 9| 7th5. 5| 7th5. 6| 7th5. 7| America West| *| *| 8th3. 4| 8th2. 5| 8th2. 2| 8th2. 0| 8th2. 0| 8th2. 3| Total| 110. 5| 105. 7| 96| 86. 8| 77. 4| 73. 2| 78. 6| 90. 3| *America West merged with US Airways in 2005. Major U. S. Airlines Fuel amp; Oil and Total Operating Expenses Per Passenger Revenue Miles Southwest Airlines had the 4th lowest fuel cost in 1995, 2nd lowest in 2000, and the lowest fuel cost from 2006 to Q1 2008 Southwest Airlines had the 2nd to the lowest total operating expenses in 1995 and the lowest from 2000 to Q1 2008. | 1995| 2000| 2005| 2006| 2007| Q1 2008| Fuel amp; Oil| | | | | | | America West| 1. 40| 2. 18| 3. 32| 3. 85| 3. 87| | American Airlines| 1. 53| 2. 04| 3. 67| 4. 15| 4. 34| 5. 75| Continental Air Lines| 1. 67| 2. 18| 3. 42| 3. 82| 3. 97| 5. 26| Delta Air Lines| 1. 70| 1. 73| 3. 68| 4. 18| 4. 32| 5. 67| Northwest Airlines| 1. 73| 2. 35| 4. 01| 4. 56| 4. 47| 5. 94| Southwest Airlines| 1. 56| 1. 95| 2. 44| 3. 37| 3. 71| 4. 54| United Air Lines| 1. 51| 1. 98| 3. 53| 4. 11| 4. 26| 5. 5| US Airways| 1. 59| 2. 44| 3. 89| 4. 30| 4. 45| 5. 63| | | | | | | | Total Operating Expenses| | | | | | America West| 10. 57| 12. 15| 14. 50| 16. 15| 15. 58| -| American Airlines| 14. 25| 14. 48| 15. 18| 15. 55| 15. 98| 18. 18| Continental Air Lines| 12. 87| 13. 70| 16. 38| 16. 51| 16. 56| 18. 81| Delta Air Lines| 13. 53| 12. 85| 16. 68| 17. 50| 17. 63| 20. 95| Northwest Airlines| 12. 77| 12. 99| 17. 40| 16. 20| 15. 90| 19. 25| Southwest Airlines| 10. 91| 10. 91| 11. 21| 12. 03| 12. 53| 13. 85| United Air Lines| 12. 58| 14. 65| 15. 35| 16. 07| 16. 27| 19. 13| US Airways| 17. 73| 19. 8| 18. 49| 20. 03| 20. 14| 21. 45| Operating Expenses per Average Seat Mile (Available Seat) | 1995| 2000| 2005| 2006| 2007| Compensation| 33. 95%| 36. 35%| 40. 62%| 37. 39%| 35. 38%| Fuel amp; Oil| 14. 29%| 17. 34%| 19. 63%| 26. 25%| 28. 02%| Maintenance| 8. 49%| 8. 15%| 6. 46%| 5. 80%| 6. 81%| A/C Rentals| 6. 65%| 4. 27%| 2. 36%| 1. 93%| 1. 76%| Landing Fees| 6. 22%| 5. 69%| 6. 58%| 6. 02%| 6. 15%| Depreciation| 6. 08%| 6. 08%| 6. 83%| 6. 36%| 6. 15%| Other Expenses| 24. 33%| 22. 12%| 17. 52%| 16. 25%| 15. 71%| 1. Is there anything that you find particularly impressive about Southwest Airlines? One of the most impressive facets about Southwest Airlines is the foundation the airline was built on and how that foundation remains present after 40 years, â€Å"true grit. † Southwest Airlines fought to be in existence, remain in existence, and today fights to remain a lean and fearless competitor by providing a low-cost, low-price and no-frills product. Southwest Airlines’ tenacity is very distinctive and they are proud to show it through their marketing campaigns, such as, â€Å"Nobody Is Going to Shoot Southwest Airlines Out of the Sky for a Lousy $13. † The value Southwest Airlines has for its employees is impressive. The low employee turnover rate and large number of applicants is a strong indicator that this value is real and not lip service. Another interesting fact in regards to employees at Southwest is that in 40 years there have only been four CEOs, with 20 of those years being one individual, Herb Kelleher. 2. What grade would you give Southwest management for the job it has done in crafting the company’s strategy? What is it that you like or dislike about the strategy? Does Southwest have a winning strategy? In respect to Southwest’s efforts in crafting the company’s strategy, we feel that the company deserves an A for its relentless efforts to stay true to its low-cost provider strategic intent and for its ability to be able to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. As customers, we feel like the low prices are an extremely likeable aspect of the strategy. It is also important to mention that their customer service level is strong and leaves each passenger feeling a connection with the Southwest brand. However, we dislike the lack of creature comforts and the cattle-like approach to boarding. Southwest does maintain a winning strategy. One of the most important concepts that Southwest developed and grasped in their strategy was that it was not enough to be a low-cost provider; they needed to have a sustainable competitive advantage. The company addressed this by stressing that through the low-cost provider strategy, customer service, and customer satisfaction, they are able to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage, which is demonstrated in their financial and statistical data. A manager from Southwest stated â€Å"our fares can be matched; our airplanes and routes can be copied. But we pride ourselves on our customer service. † Although no strategy is without fault or mistake, Southwest has managed to significantly make its strategy into one that can thrive in both a short and long-term vision. With its focus on ways to keep cost low for customers, from paperless tickets to special programs for frequent flyers, the company has been able to effectively provide service to their customers and hold true to their mission. 3. What are the key policies, procedures, operating practices, and core values underlying Southwest’s efforts to implement and execute its low-cost/no frills strategy? Southwest has many key policies, procedures, operating practices and core values that help to implement and execute its low-cost/no frills strategy. Fare Structure: Southwest employs a relatively simple fare structure featuring low, unrestricted, unlimited, everyday coach fares, along with even lower fares available on a restricted basis. Route System: Southwest did not use the hub-and-spoke route systems like their rivals; instead their route system was carefully designed to concentrate on flights between pairs of cities 150-750 miles apart where there was enough passenger traffic that Southwest could offer a sizable number of daily flights. Relationship with Boeing: Southwest operates only one type of aircraft (Boeing 737s) to minimize the size of spare parts inventories, simplify the training of maintenance and repair personnel, improve the proficiency and speed with which maintenance routines could be done, and simplify the task of scheduling planes for particular flights. With their loyalty to Boeing they were able to acquire new aircrafts at favorable prices. Ticketless Travel Option: Southwest was the first major airline to use ticketless travel which eliminated the need to print and process paper tickets. They were also the first to allow customers to make reservations and purchase tickets at their website; this allowed them to bypass the need to pay commissions to travel agents for handling the ticketing process and reducing staffing requirements at reservation centers. Congestion Avoidance: Southwest de-emphasized flights to congested airports which helped them produce better-than-average on-time performance and reduce the fuel costs associated with sitting in line on taxiways or circling waiting for clearance to land. It also allowed them to avoid the higher landing fees and terminal gate costs at such high-traffic airports. No Reserved Seats Policy: To economize on the amount of time it took terminal personnel to check passengers in and to simplify the whole task of making reservations, Southwest stopped assigning seats. No Cleaning Crew: Southwest flight attendants were responsible for cleaning up trash left by deplaning passengers. No First-Class: Southwest does not entertain a first-class section in any of its planes nor do they entertain frequent fliers at fancy clubs in terminals. They also do not serve meals in order to make reprovisioning planes simple and quick. Bags Fly Free: Southwest does not charge a baggage transfer service fee. Passengers pick up their luggage themselves. Software Updates: They implemented use of new software that significantly decreased the time required to generate optimal crew schedules and help improve on-time performance. Cloth to Leather: Southwest concluded that an all-leather interior would be more durable and easier to maintain, more than justifying the higher initial costs. Fuel Hedging: Southwest was a first-mover to fuel hedging and derivative contracts to counteract rising prices. Their fuel hedging strategy had produced savings of about $3. 5 billion since 1998. Vertical Winglets: To enhance the performance and efficiency of the fleet, they added vertical winglets on the wing tips to reduce lift drag, allow aircraft to climb more steeply and reach higher flight levels quicker, improve cruising performance, extend engine life and reduce maintenance costs, and reduce fuel burn. New Technology: Southwest is investing in technology and software to replace its ticketless system and its back-office accounting, payroll, and human resource information systems. This will enhance data flow, operational efficiency, and customer service capability. 4. What are the key elements of Southwest’s culture? Is Southwest a strong culture company? Why or why not? What problems do you foresee that Gary Kelly has in sustaining the culture now that Herb Kelleher, the company’s spiritual leader, has departed? The key element of Southwest’s culture is the total employee benefit package, from compensation to training and development to promotion to retirement. Southwest’s operative principle states, â€Å"employees come first and customers come second. Management believes that by placing a high priority on employees, it would result in those employees being passionate about their jobs, but also lets the employees know that Southwest is concerned for their general well-being and would provide them with job security. It is important to note that Southwest Airlines has never laid off or furloughed any of its employees since beginnin g operations in 1971. Southwest’s simple thesis is as follows: Keep employees happy—then they will keep customers happy. CEO Gary Kelly even said, â€Å"Our people are our single greatest strength and our most enduring long-term competitive advantage. † Southwest is a very strong culture company. By placing their focus on employees first, they are ensuring that their customers will be well taken care of. They hire employees based on their attitude and then train them for skills. Herb Kelleher stated â€Å"We can train people to do things where skills are concerned. But there is one capability we do not have and that is to change a person’s attitude. So we prefer an unskilled person with a good attitude†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Southwest has the belief that superior, hospitable service and a fun-loving spirit flowed from the heart and soul of employees who themselves were fun-loving and spirited, who liked their jobs and the company they worked for, and who were also confident and empowered to do their jobs as they saw fit. Southwest also has the lowest employee turnover rate in the industry with pay scales above the industry average (sometimes even near or at the top of the industry). Another important part of their culture is their no-layoff policy. Kelleher stated â€Å"Nothing kills your company’s culture like layoffs†¦you want to show your people you value them and you’re not going to hurt them just to get a little more money in the short-term. † Southwest has two core values: LUV and fun. LUV turned into the code word for how to treat customers, with dignity and respect and demonstrating a caring, loving attitude. LUV and red hearts appeared on posters at company facilities to remind employees of the behavior that was expected towards customers and other employees. Fun at Southwest includes pranks and jokes, dressing up on holidays, charity benefit games, entertaining behavior of employees while on the job, and more. CEO Gary Kelly explains that the â€Å"Southwest Way†, which includes having a Warrior Spirit, Servant’s Heart and a Fun, Loving attitude are the three things that have defined their culture for 36 years. In 1990, a Culture Committee was formed to nurture the Southwest Spirit. The committee sponsored and supported hundreds of ways to promote the Southwest Spirit by using the red hearts and LUV to embody the spirit of caring and other things such as serving employees pizza. Southwest’s monthly newsletter, LUV Lines, spotlights experiences and deeds of certain employees, reprinted letters of praise from customers, and company milestone celebrations. There are also occasional meetings called Culture Exchange in which they share similar information as the LUV Lines. All of these culture-building exercises have helped Southwest be a profitable company with loyal employees and happy customers. Gary Kelly may still encounter problems after taking over as CEO. Herb Kelleher instituted practices and support systems that promoted operating excellence which were a source of company pride. He devoted many years and a great amount of effort to find the best and most effective ways to operate every aspect of the company, from aircraft maintenance to efficient baggage transfers. CEO Gary Kelly has been following Kelleher’s lead in pushing for operational excellence. Kelly may not be the â€Å"original spiritual leader,† but he is doing his part to keep the company the way Kelleher left it. Kelly has strong strategic objectives; one being that Southwest would be â€Å"the safest, most efficient, and most reliable airline in the world. Both men believed that having a strong balance sheet and profitability were important financial aspects of the company. Kelleher’s vibrant, fun and caring attitude will be hard for any other CEO to match. He was known for his Hawaiian print shirts, making jokes and tricked out motorcycle. He was well known not only inside the company, but also outside for his combativeness. In 1990, he had a message penned in the Dallas Headquarters Office that stated: â€Å"The people of Southwest Airlines are the creators of what we have becomeand of what we will be. † Kelly will never be the same person as Kelleher and it may take longer for employees to warm up to his different management style. Kelly is less of a â€Å"culture pusher† than Kelleher, which could hurt Southwest in the long run, since their whole company is based on promoting a fun, caring atmosphere. Although Kelleher spoke very highly of Kelly when he took over as CEO in 2004, that doesn’t mean that Kelly will be as highly respected in terms of a spiritual leader to employees than Kelleher was. In addition, the Kelleher era at Southwest seemed to always be in a dogfight to build and become what they are today. As the employees who fought that fight with Kelleher retire, a piece of the â€Å"warrior spirit† goes with them. This may make it hard for Kelly to keep the warrior mentality alive with new employees who didn’t have a dog in the fight and may feel they don’t have as much invested to ensure they stay on top. 5. What grade would you give Southwest management for the job it has done in implementing and executing the company’s strategy? Which of Southwest’s strategy execution approaches and operating practices do you believe have been most crucial in accounting for the success that Southwest has enjoyed in executing its strategy? Are there any policies, procedures, and operating approaches at Southwest that you disapprove of or that are not working well? During a difficult time within the airline industry, Southwest made its entrance in 1971, despite the endless attempts from rivals to collapse the company before they could get started. Southwest emerged and made its first flight in June 1971. Since then Southwest’s management team has done a monumental job in implementing their strategies. By using a differentiation approach Southwest was able to stand out amongst its competitors. Low fares, entertainment, more flights to the same locations, the gradual expansion into new geographic markets, adding flights in areas where rivals were cutting back service using first-mover strategies, and flight turnaround times around 25mins (compared to 50-60 minutes from its competitors) all contributed to a grade A for Southwest’s management. Southwest’s overall strategy has transitioned from the 1971 to 2010. When the airline first started, they were serving a market niche in the Golden Triangle (Houston, San Antonio, and Dallas). They moved towards a Focused Low-Cost Provider as they expanded their service by expanding into new geographic markets and adding flights in areas where rivals were cutting back service. Southwest is now moving towards becoming a Best-Cost Provider by upgrading the quality of the customer experience (i. e. leather seats, business-focused areas, family-focused areas, etc). The low-cost, low-price, and no frills strategies have worked very well for Southwest. The company took a two-tier fare approach which gave customers a choice between a low unrestricted, unlimited, everyday coach fare and one which was restricted that was even lower cost. Despite its highly effective strategy, Southwest has some aspects that may not be working as well as others. Their infamous cattle call (procedure for boarding) can make customers feel like animals rather than people when they are fighting for a seat. Many customers may choose to forgo the lower airfare to enjoy a more peaceful boarding experience. Another issue to be addressed is the maintenance policies and procedures that ultimately led to the fairly recent media debacle. Reports of lax aircraft inspections surfaced and Kelly admitted the wrongdoing of the company. He limited the bad media exposure by ensuring the public his airline was one of the safest to fly with. Despite his public apology, this matter needs to be aggressively approached to ensure customers feel safe flying Southwest. 6. What weaknesses or problems do you see at Southwest Airlines? 1. Public perception of safety after airline inspection issue 2. Lack of creature comforts such as pre-assigned seating and on-board meals. 3. There is no first class for customers, so those wanting a more luxurious experience may fly with competing airlines. . It also offers no baggage transfers to other airlines, which may be a complaint from passengers needing to catch another plane in a short amount of time. 5. Cattle-call boarding procedure 7. What recommendations would you make to Gary Kelly? 1. Establish a more aggressive maintenance inspection program, especially with the older aircraft in their fleet. 2. Offer premium services for a fee. For example: seat selection, leg room, seat size, baggage transfer, and boarding first. 3. Provide a few more creature comforts on longer flights. Doing without comfort is fine on short flights. 4. Sell even lower cost tickets to spontaneous travelers who truly decide at the last minute to get away for a short weekend vacation when there are vacant seats available. 5. Continue hedging fuel to save money in that aspect. 6. Explore increasing the number of destination cities so they can grow their customer base. 7. Southwest should continue learning about the types of customers that tend to fly with Southwest so they can make changes to better serve their clientele. 8. Explore international flight options.