Tacit collusion Essay Example

Tacit collusion Essay In any oligopoly structure there is a conflict between individual incentives and joint incentives. In Bertrand competition, for example, each firms individual incentive is to capture the whole market by setting lower price than its rivals. That leads to pricing at marginal cost and zero profits earned by all the firms. This equilibrium is not desirable by any of the firms their joint incentive is to earn positive profits by fixing price at some other, higher than marginal cost level. Because of this Prisoners Dilemma nature of any oligopoly structure, in equilibrium firms earn lower total profits than they could if they acted as a single monopolist. By behaving as a monopoly they could maximise total profits. It is therefore natural for the firms to establish agreements between them to enforce alternative solution such that all firms are better off than in equilibrium (Luis and Cabral (2000), p127). This type of behaviour is referred to as collusion. Collusion is an agreement among a group of firms designed to limit competition among the participants. If all firms follow the agreement, buyers will face higher prices, giving the firms profits above the normal competitive level. From the welfare point of view collusion is not desirable. The optimal outcome that maximises total welfare is for the firms to price at marginal cost. Collusion allows companies to deviate from pricing at marginal cost and to transfer some consumer surplus into producer surplus. As a side effect dead weight loss occurs that reduces total surplus. In fact, this is the main consideration of regulators and policymakers against collusion in whole and price fixing in particular (Luis and Cabral (2000), p144). We will write a custom essay sample on Tacit collusion specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Tacit collusion specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Tacit collusion specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer In this work we shall consider different forms of collusion, which can be implemented by firms in practice. Each of the forms of collusion considered in this work can set the objective to control any aspect of production: buying or selling price, quantity supplied, advertisement expenditure, level of quality, each firms territory or the level of competition with the firms that are out of the agreement. Starting with the strongest, the most powerful and most stable ones, each form will be discussed in connection with legal remedies restricting its use. Particularly, an assumption will be tested that more powerful and stable forms of collusion are more difficult to enforce and use in practice because of greater antitrust restrictions. Forms of collusion There are three main forms that collusion between firms can take: cartels, secret agreements, and tacit collusion. Each type will be discussed here one by one. Cartels Oxford dictionary provides the following definition of a cartel: a national or international association of independent enterprises formed to create a monopoly in a given industry1 There are many varieties of cartels. Full cartel is behaving very much like monopoly, controlling all aspects price, output, investment, product mix and profits. Less complete cartel, often called the marketing cartel controls all its members sales and revenues (Shepherd (1979), p307). The most well known example of cartel is the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). It is an international organisation consisting mainly of oil-rich Middle East Arab countries2. It has a significant power in determining the world oil prices by controlling its members joint oil production. It first achieved success in 1973 by raising the world oil price from $3 to $11, and then to about $30 in 1979. The Diamond Cartel, DeBeers, is another well-known example. It has a significant power of control over world diamond industry. Now more than 80% of the worlds diamonds are processed through DeBeerss Central Selling Organization. In 1981, it flooded the diamond market to punish one of its members for defecting from the cartel and managed to reduce the price form $3 to $1.80 3 Among all types of collusion cartel is the strongest and most stable one. It is the most powerful in terms of determining the price or any other aspect a cartel controls. For this reason cartels are largely illegal (in Europe by Article 85 of the Treaty of Rome; by Sherman Act in the United States). So, if firms want to communicate directly, they may do so secretly. Secret agreements Secret agreements are illegal also, but these agreements are less obvious than cartels. It takes a great deal of effort to detect if a price change, for example is a result of agreement between companies or it is just due to the demand change. Secret agreements are easier to implement than to form a cartel. For this reason, firms have an incentive to make secret agreements to fix the price that would maximise their joint profits or to control any other aspect like quantity, advertisement etc. One recent example of secret agreements is a case of credit card firms colluding to compete against debit card rivals. Visa and MasterCard actively discouraged the use of rival debit cards to push the use of their own more expensive versions, raising costs for merchants and customers (see Appendix 1). If this anticompetitive behaviour is proved, firms will be heavily penalised. Another recent example of illegal secret agreement is commission fees fixing by two well-known auction houses. A fine of à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½20.4 million has been imposed by The European Commission on the auction house Sothebys for colluding with its rival Christies. The EU case against the auction houses follows action in the United States where Sothebys was sentenced to pay $45 million. Christies escaped both EU and US fines because it provided evidence to European and American investigators that enabled them to prove the existence of the agreement.4 Secret agreements are very risky in the sense that once the existence of such agreements is detected and proved, it may result in fines or jail time. In real world, a lot of firms seeking to collude do not want to bear such a risk. Therefore, they have to find some other ways to communicate with each other.

Free Essays on Virgina Satirs Humanistic Therapy Theory

Virginia Satir differed from other family therapy theorists in that her methods focus on the positive or healthy aspects of the family rather than the â€Å"problem†. She believed that the â€Å"problems† that arose within a family were based upon the healthy intentions of its members, which were not expressed in an authentic manner. This resulted in a variety of communication breakdowns in the family and the inability of the family members to express their feelings in an authentic manner. Satir used therapy to build self-esteem and to allow the clients to grow in a healthy way through various therapeutic techniques (Lawson & Prevatt, 1999). In Satir’s model there are four communication styles that are adopted by family members when they are afraid to voice their true feelings. She labels these as poses and it is the therapist’s job to allow the family to feel comfortable enough to be able to recognize the poses and show their authentic feelings. The poses are placating (weak, dependent), blaming (superior, accusatory), computing (cold, analytical), and distracting (refuses to acknowledge situation). Gentle, guiding techniques are used in this therapy (Lawson & Prevatt, 1999). To help the family members recognize the poses they assume and help them to discuss their authentic feelings, Andreas (1991) reviewed and identified seven main themes for a therapist to follow when using Satir’s approach: 1. Focusing therapy on the positive outcome rather than the traumatic past event or problem. 2. All people are inherently good and most intentions are positive even if they appear not to be; thus the therapist needs to develop a gentle and comforting relationship with the clients. 3. Look to develop healthy interactions between family members rather than fixate on destructive behaviors. 4. Therapists are more like life coaches than authoritative dictators in therapy. The more gentle the therapist, the more comfortable the cl... Free Essays on Virgina Satirs Humanistic Therapy Theory Free Essays on Virgina Satirs Humanistic Therapy Theory Virginia Satir differed from other family therapy theorists in that her methods focus on the positive or healthy aspects of the family rather than the â€Å"problem†. She believed that the â€Å"problems† that arose within a family were based upon the healthy intentions of its members, which were not expressed in an authentic manner. This resulted in a variety of communication breakdowns in the family and the inability of the family members to express their feelings in an authentic manner. Satir used therapy to build self-esteem and to allow the clients to grow in a healthy way through various therapeutic techniques (Lawson & Prevatt, 1999). In Satir’s model there are four communication styles that are adopted by family members when they are afraid to voice their true feelings. She labels these as poses and it is the therapist’s job to allow the family to feel comfortable enough to be able to recognize the poses and show their authentic feelings. The poses are placating (weak, dependent), blaming (superior, accusatory), computing (cold, analytical), and distracting (refuses to acknowledge situation). Gentle, guiding techniques are used in this therapy (Lawson & Prevatt, 1999). To help the family members recognize the poses they assume and help them to discuss their authentic feelings, Andreas (1991) reviewed and identified seven main themes for a therapist to follow when using Satir’s approach: 1. Focusing therapy on the positive outcome rather than the traumatic past event or problem. 2. All people are inherently good and most intentions are positive even if they appear not to be; thus the therapist needs to develop a gentle and comforting relationship with the clients. 3. Look to develop healthy interactions between family members rather than fixate on destructive behaviors. 4. Therapists are more like life coaches than authoritative dictators in therapy. The more gentle the therapist, the more comfortable the cl...

Last Names or Surnames in Spanish

Last Names or Surnames in Spanish Last names, or surnames, in Spanish arent treated the same way as they are in English. The differing practices can be confusing for someone unfamiliar with Spanish, but the Spanish way of doing things has been around for hundreds of years. Traditionally, if John Smith and Nancy Jones (who live in an English-speaking country) get married and have a child, the child would end  up with a name such as Paul Smith or Barbara Smith. But its not the same in most areas where Spanish is spoken as the native language. If Juan Là ³pez Marcos marries Marà ­a Covas Callas, their child would end up with a name such as Mario Là ³pez Covas or Katarina Là ³pez Covas. How Do Spanish Last Names Work? Confused? Theres a logic to it all, but the confusion comes mostly because the Spanish surname method is different than what youre used to. Although there are numerous variations of how names are handled, just as there can be in English, the basic rule of Spanish names is fairly simple: In general, a person born into a Spanish-speaking family is given a first name followed by two surnames, the first being the fathers family name (or, more precisely, the surname he gained from his father) followed by the mothers family name (or, again more precisely, the surname she gained from her father). In a sense, then, native Spanish speakers are born with two last names. Take as an example the name of Teresa Garcà ­a Ramà ­rez. Teresa is the name given at birth, Garcà ­a is the family name from her father, and Ramà ­rez is the family name from her mother. If Teresa Garcà ­a Ramà ­rez marries Elà ­ Arroyo Là ³pez, she doesnt change her name. But in popular usage, it would be extremely common for her to add de Arroyo (literally, of Arroyo), making her Teresa Garcà ­a Ramà ­rez de Arroyo. Sometimes, the two surnames can be separated by y (meaning and), although this is less common than it used to be. The name the husband uses would be Elà ­ Arroyo y Là ³pez. You may see names that are even longer. Although it isnt done much, at least formally, it is possible also to include grandparents names in the mix. If the full name is shortened, usually the second surname name is dropped. For example, Mexican President Enrique Peà ±a Nieto is often referred to by his countrys news media simply as Peà ±a when he is mentioned a second time. Things can get a bit complicated for Spanish-speaking people living in places such as the United States, where it is not the norm to use two family names. One choice many make is for all family members to use the fathers paternal family name. Also quite common is to hyphenate the two names, e.g., Elà ­ Arroyo-Là ³pez and Teresa Garcà ­a-Ramà ­rez. Couples who have been in the United States a long time, particularly if they speak English, are more likely to give their children the fathers name, following the dominant U.S. pattern. But practices vary. The practice of a person being given two family names became the custom in Spain largely because of Arabic influence. The custom spread to the Americas during the years of Spanish Conquest. Spanish and Mexican Last Names With Celebrities You can see how Spanish  names are constructed by looking at the names of several famous people born in Spanish-speaking countries. Fathers names are listed first: The full name of singer Shakira is Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll. She is the daughter of William Mebarak Chadid and Nidia del Carmen Ripoll Torrado.The full name of actress Salma Hayek is Salma Hayek Jimà ©nez. She is the daughter of Sami Hayek Domà ­nguez and Diana Jimà ©nez Medina.The full name of actress Penà ©lope Cruz is Penà ©lope Cruz Snchez. She is the daughter of Eduardo Cruz and Encarnacià ³n Snchez.The full name of Cuban President Raà ºl Castro is Raà ºl Modesto Castro Ruz. He is the son of ngel Castro Argiz and Lina Ruz Gonzlez.The full name of pop singer Enrique Iglesias is Enrique Iglesias Preysler. He is the son of Julio Josà © Iglesias de la Cueva and Marà ­a Isabel Preysler Arrastia.The full name of Mexican-Puerto Rican  singer Luis Miguel is Luis Miguel Gallego Basteri. He is the son of Luis Gallego Sanchez and Marcela Basteri.The full name of Venezuelan President Nicols Maduro is Nicols Maduro Moro. He is the son of Nicols Maduro Garcà ­a and Teresa de Jesà ºs Moro.The full name of singer and actor Rubà ©n Blades is Rubà ©n Blades Bellido de Luna. He is the son of Rubà ©n Darà ­o Blades and Anoland Dà ­az Bellido de Luna.

Has Persuasion Become a Key Function of Democratic Governments Essay

Has Persuasion Become a Key Function of Democratic Governments - Essay Example This essay stresses that a great deal of understanding of the processes of the psychology and processes of persuasion has taken place. Communication is moving from mass media to narrowcast, which is becoming increasingly possible through developments in mobile telephone, internet, wireless and interactive technology. The development of narrowcasting requires action by the individual, even something simple like opening and reading an email, and this personal involvement gets them involved in the frame being presented and therefore more likely to accept it. The use of frames and framing in message design form part of the methodology by which this is achieved. This is evidenced by the large amounts of money spent by governments on public relations firms, and the creation of special government agencies vested with the brief of framing and presenting persuasive, legally defensible messages that clearly differentiate the government’s position from that of its opponents. This paper makes a conclusion that the claim that the practice of persuasion is a key function of government and that it has changed the very nature of democracy is true. The threat to democracy occurs when the focus is on winning the elections or gaining from political power rather than maintaining the democratic form of government. Negative political persuasion has increased over the years. A set of rules to be formulated and followed strictly by the candidates alone can help restore the democratic system.

I enjoy running Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

I enjoy running - Essay Example This is because running has had such a tremendous effect on my life in all spheres, it has, in a nutshell completed me wholly. Running has provided me with many precious opportunities, sticking to many different paths always took me to different places, that translated to many different faces. I would jog until i find a dead end, and so I would humbly scan for any person around for directions, often times a simple enquiry for directions would result in a twenty minutes talk as we’d discuss various issues as pertained the occasion, also, through running I have been able to develop my social skills with other joggers and also acquired great communication and interpersonal skills which are needful in one way or another in organizing jogging events or even sharing our personal opinions on our hobbies. Nowadays I find that am a lot talkative than I was earlier since there is always a fire within me that seeks to express myself to others with hope that I shall get to hear what drives them as well. I have also realized that it has become so easy for me to create rapport with other people as compared to my e arlier years. In consequence, running has had such a wonderful effect on me, it has enabled me to appreciate people as they are and respect them for who they are, jogging alongside people of all ages early in the morning before rushing to class has taught me how to appreciate company, do it with a team. Another effect that running has had on me is the development of perseverance and commitment, since I have always set imaginary goals on all my jogging activities, I have always tried so hard to reach my targets, though I have failed severally in the past, I have come to know that nothing is impossible for a dedicated person who is committed to achieving his/her goal. I have smashed my jogging record severally in a bid to astonish myself. I

Coffee Marketing in Mana Woreda

Coffee Marketing in Mana Woreda 4.5.1. Market Places Market is an important factor that affects household decision-making in agricultural activities. Access to markets is a distance measured in kilometers to reach the nearest market. The study revealed the infrastructure in Mana woreda is generally satisfactory. There is an availability of market places near to villages with easy road access and proximity to larger towns. This has assisted farmers to reduce their transport cost and enlarge their market surplus and margins. The access has further supported to increase coffee production by the farming households. According to the survey result, it is confirmed that the average distance from the main road is at about 2km and from a rather close average distance from the main village market is at about 3.7 Km. Sample households are also located at a distance of 4.2km from cooperatives. The main market center is in Yebbu town, which is the woreda capital. 4.5.2. Market Participants Coffee passes through several stages before it reaches the ultimate consumers. These stages are local collection station, processing, storage, transportation and grading, exporting and domestic distribution. Both governmental and private enterprises are participating in collecting, processing, wholesaling and exporting activities (Elias, 2005). This study identified different coffee market participants in the exchange functions between farmers and final consumers. The major coffee market participants in the study area include coffee farm households, local collectors, wholesalers (suppliers) and Cooperatives. Coffee growers are the primary actors who cultivate and supply coffee to the market. They do not have adequate, reliable and timely market information than traders which forced them to sell their produce at low selling price. Local collectors are farmers or part time traders in assembly markets who collect coffee from farmers in village markets for the purpose of reselling it to wholesalers and consumers in the main market center. They use their financial resources and local knowledge to collect a bulk of coffee from the surrounding area. Wholesalers are known for purchase of coffee in a large amount with better financial and information capacity. They purchase coffee either directly from farmers or local collectors. They distribute large amount of coffee to the regional market (Jimma) and to terminal markets (Addis Ababa). Service Cooperatives (primary societies) made up of different local peasant associations play an important role in organizing farmers. They own washing stations a nd warehouses. They purchase coffee from the farmers and distribute to unions. 4.5.3. Marketing Channels Generally, four marketing channels were identified in the study area where coffee was passing from producers to consumers. The first channel was passing coffee from producers via coffee primary cooperatives to export through secondary cooperatives (Unions). In the second channel producers sold dried coffee to collectors who were selling to primary cooperatives to be exported directly through the Union. The third channel is a principal marketing channel with larger number of marketing agents through which sun dried coffee is passed from the coffee growers to coffee collectors and dry processed coffee is passed from coffee wholesalers to export market. In the last channel, coffee growers sell their coffee to wholesalers to export through exporters. The coffee marketing channels of the study area can be sketched like this: Therefore, the structure of coffee marketing system in the study area was characterized by the presence of individual coffee farmers to the production side and coffee primary cooperatives, local collectors and wholesalers (suppliers) to the marketing side. The Oromia Coffee Farmers’ Cooperative Union and private exporters were the members of the coffee marketing structure outside the study area. 4.5.4. Place and Price of Coffee Sale As the starting point for the distribution of coffee from producer to final consumer, farm respondents were asked where they were selling their different forms of coffee. According to the sample respondents, the major market places for selling both red cherry and sun-dried coffee were the nearest local markets for collectors, primary cooperative associations and Yebbu town (main market center of the woreda) for wholesalers and other marketing agents. With respect to whom the sample farm households are selling their coffee among the different marketing agents (intermediaries), they responded differently with regard to red cherry and sun-dried coffee. Farmers sell their coffee in the form of red cherry during harvesting and in sun-dried form after storing for some months. For the red cherry coffee, the majority (about 72.3%) of the farm household were sold to the Cooperatives. The remaining 19.2% and 8.6% were sold to Local collectors and Wholesalers respectively. Local collectors purchase the bulk of coffee in the case of sun dried (70.8%) from farm households where as the remaining 22% and 7.2% of sun-dried coffee bought by coffee wholesalers and cooperatives respectively. As indicated in the above table 4.10, from the total production of coffee, the sample farm respondents are producing more of sun-dried coffee (63%) than that of red cherry (37%). The red cherry coffee will be sold immediately after harvesting mostly for cooperatives which have washing stations and hand pulpers. According to the survey result, the principal cost of the farmers was cost of transporting coffee to the market followed by labor cost. Regarding with price, there is a difference in the price between red cherry and sun-dried coffee. The price of sun-dried coffee was higher than that of red cherry. All of the sample farm respondents in the study area reported that the average price for red cherry was nearly 6 Birr/kg during the last harvest season whereas for sun-dried coffee the mean price was 24.4 Birr/kg. But the prices of both types of coffee were fluctuating from time to time. Farmers sell their coffee for cooperatives as well as local traders. They preferred to sell their coffee to cooperatives because most of the sample farm households are members of the cooperatives and the prices of cooperatives for red cherry and sun-dried coffee were better than the other local traders. But, cooperatives were not active participants in the early and late seasons and favored to buy red cherry. During this time farmers were forced to sell their coffee (especially sun-dried) to local traders at a lower price due to limited bargaining power. According to the survey result, the sample respondents replied that there is no uniform coffee price at the market place. The reason for difference in the price of coffee was color difference (2.6%), quality difference (89.7%) and Farmer’s negotiating capacity (8.7%). Prices were exclusively determined by traders negotiating with farmers during time of transaction. Majority of farmers responded that they were price takers. Price setters were mostly local traders (81.7%) and only 18.3% of the farmers were in a position to decide on coffee price. Regarding with the terms of payment, 76.2 percent of the respondents stated that they were selling their coffee on cash basis and received the price as soon as they sold. According to the survey result, 71.3 percent of the respondents replied that the trend of coffee market is apparently decreasing across time. The reason behind this is the fluctuation and volatility of coffee price. Hence, the benefits earned from the production of coffee are significantly deteriorating because of the declining prices of coffee in the market.

Human Resources Functions at Next Essay

Introduction: Next is one of the UK’s largest fashion and home retailers. Their ongoing success is built upon a passion for the Next brand that is shared by the whole organisation. This involves a commitment to providing excellent product in well run stores and through an attractive Directory. Head Office Located in an award-winning complex near Leicester, their Head Office in Enderby is home to a multi-skilled population. There you’ll find a comprehensive infrastructure including Product, Sales and Marketing, Finance, IT and HR teams. Stores At Next they have over 340 stores spread throughout the United Kingdom and Ireland. Over 20,000 people work in these stores which are heavily supported by their Head Office and a network of warehouses. These stores range from stand-alone units to much larger flagship stores offering the full Next range. Next Directory The Next Directory provides a facility for people to shop from home and has over I million customers and 1,000 employees. The Next Directory customer services call centre is situated at two sites close to Leicester City Centre. Warehouses Next warehouses are among the most modem in Europe and employ around 2,200 people. Located principally in West York and distribute stock to stores and Directory customers right across the United Kingdom and Ireland. E1 * Human Resources Planning: At Next they undertake human resource planning to determine a course of action which helps them to function more efficiently by having the right labour, in the right place, at the right time and cost. This requires accurate forecasting: organisations need to forecast their manpower needs, both in terms of the number of employees needed and the types of skills and qualities required. It is also important for them to monitor and assess the productivity of the existing and available workforce and recognise the impact of technological change on the way in which jobs are carried out. Human resource planning at Next takes place over different time frames, though for simplicity they can consider is two time horizons: there is planning to meet short-term needs and planning to satisfy long-term intentions. Short-term plans are referred to as tactical plans and usually contain precise, detailed, measurable objectives. Short-term planning is carried out at lower levels in an organisation like Next, at middle manager and supervisor levels. Long-term plans are not as detailed or measured as short-term plans. The longer the time horizon of the plan, the less certain managers can be about outcomes. They are usually made at higher levels of management Long-term plans are also known as strategic plans. Next has to plan carefully to ensure they have the right number of suitable employees for their needs. To do this Next need a good understanding of the labour market in the areas where they operate. Next need to be able to consider the effects of the following labour market factors for human resources planning in a business: * Employment trends * Skills shortages * Competition for employees * Availability of labour (internal and external; to the business). HR palnning also involves looking at how labour is organised within the business. You need to understand the need for businesses to take account of a arrange of factors when making decisions about their internal staffing. Such factors include: * Labour turnover (stability index, Wastage rate) * Sickness and accident rates * Age, skills and training * Succession. You need to know how to use statistics to analyse these factors when appropriate. * Recruitment and Selection: Next’s human resource planning team also needs to be able to identify and analyse the factors influencing and shaping the labour markets from which the organisation recruits staff to satisfy its manpower needs. Human resource specialists have to work in Next within these labour markets to acquire sufficient resources to meet the productive needs of the organisation. At Next Head Office you’ll find an environment, where each employee’s personnel contribution is encouraged. They believe strongly that, although qualifications can give you a head start, its initiative and self determination is what makes all the difference. This is why they don’t always insist on degree qualifications. If you can show that you have good experience and great potential in a relevant discipline, you’ll be considered. People do well at Next and seize the opportunities presented to them. This is why they look for motivated graduates with drive, commercial acumen and a passion for fashion. Individuals who will thrive in an open and creative environment where teamwork is valued. It is a fast-paced environment and it can be demanding. But the people that work there at Next take real pride in their work, and it’s their commitment that has made them what they are today. In return, they offer generous rewards and bonuses. For e.g. Staff Shop access and cut price clothing. Not to mention training and development. Businesses such as Next recruit staff for a variety of reasons. The reasons for why and how they recruit staff are: * The growth of the business * Changing job roles withtin the business * Filling vacancies created by resignation, retirement, dismissal * Temperorary staff holidays * Internal promotion The recruitment process can be very costly, in terms of resources devoted to the recruitment process and costs associated with recruiting poorly performing staff, due to the lack of motivation. It is important therefore to accurately select the right candidates for the interview or you could lose the right one before even the first process. Next are often straight to he point and make it very clear about the requirements of the job and about the person they are looking for. The way in which they do this is through: * The preparation of personal specifications and job descriptions * Carefully planning how, where and when to advertise * Identifying the strengths and weaknesses of job applications curriculum vitae and letters of application * Shortlisitng candidates. * Training and Development: To join Next as a Trainee Buyer, you’ll need either a fashion/clothing/textile/design related degree or HND. They prefer relevant retail experience with strong evidence of fashion awareness. For Trainee Merchandisers, you’ll need a business related or numerically biased degree/FIND or relevant retail experience as a Trainee Fabric Technologist or Trainee Garment Technologist, you’ll also need a relevant degree or an HND in textiles, fashion or clothing design. It is important to have these qualifications due to the demanding customers Next have. Computers have become an integral part of modem day life and are becoming increasingly important as teaching and training tools. In the work place and many other educational institutes computers and networks have become commonplace. This allows companies such as Next and educational establishments to utilise many possible computer training and education techniques. Today the use of computer based training and education covers a very broad spectrum of uses. Many companies now use computers in staff training and education. Computers are used as both a resource to present information and as a tool to develop practical expertise in staff. Computers can be used as a resource to present information because of presentation programs such as Microsoft PowerPoint. This presentation package can be used for basic training such as an employee induction; the presentation could give information about the company and what the employees will be doing. Computers can also be used as tools because they can help develop employees practical skills e.g. an employee who would be working with the companies database would probably be trained on a â€Å"dummy database† this would allow the employee to build up practical skills. Among the many benefits of computer-based training the major benefit to an employer is the reduced cost. As they do not have to send people away on courses which mean they don’t have to pay for travel or accommodation. So the investment in a suitable training scheme often pays for itself, as the computers are already available. The only drawback is that the computer based training courses can be impersonal and the employee may have to be a computer literate to do the course. One of the other advantages is that staff can train when they like at there own desks on the computer. The downside to this is that they are being taught by a computer, which cannot explain to the employee what they did wrong when they make a mistake, although some training packages may be able to do this to an extent. The major benefit to the people being trained close to Next is the convenience as they do not have to travel away and can learn in there own time. They can also get immediate feedback on how well they are doing. The only real disadvantage to using computer-based training is the impersonal touch of being taught by a computer. * Performance Management: A need to manage the performance of its employee’s effectively if Next is to remain competitive. This means that they must use effective management control exercised at both individual and organisational level. A range of processes and techniques need to be in place which allow individual employees to know how well they are doing and for managers to be able to monitor how well their subordinates are performing. At Next they monitor their employees whilst they are working. For e.g. they monitor your call with a customer if you are working in the directory and they observe you when you are serving customers on the shop floor. They do this because they wish to maintain the high standards people think they are at and their value in the market would increase.