japanese occupation :: essays research papers

The American occupation of Japan   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Fifty years after the end of the second World War, it is easy to look back on the American occupation of Japan and see it as a mild nudge to the left rather than a new beginning for the country. We still see an emperor, even if only as a symbol. Industry, when it was rebuilt, was under much of the same leadership as before the war. Many elements of the traditional lifestyle remained–with less government support and in competition with new variants. The Japanese people remained connected to a culture which was half western and half Japanese. Nevertheless, it is irrefutable that the surrender in 1945 had a major impact on the lives of the Japanese. Political parties, elected by the populous, became a great deal more influential in the government. This changed the dynamics of Japanese industry, even if the zaibatsu were sill the foundation of the economy. Financial success took on a new character; the production of high tech goods for sale to the world’ s most developed countries was now a better source of income. The affluence of the upper class was more evenly distributed. On a broader scale, for the first time, America had more influence than European powers. The prevention of the formation of a military put the focus of the government on trade, the United Nations, and the cold war rather than an empire in Asia. Simultaneously, social attitudes and lifestyle were more independent of the government and consumer led.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The American military occupation of Japan was the driving reason for all of the changes in postwar Japan. Its first task, determined even before the surrender was to disarm Japan and to remove the wartime leaders from their influential government positions. This was part of America’s plan to demilitarize and democratize. The goal was to purge the government, media, and education system of war criminals. Once this was accomplished, the American focus shifted to reform. The American plan for reform was based on the idea that Japanese aggression had developed because of fundamental faults in the government, (not, as the Japanese said, from a temporary deviation from the course set during the Meiji period) and that these faults had to be corrected before Japan could ever become a respected member of the developed world. Democratization was what America wanted.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The first steps in the reforming process were obstructive to America’s goal of democracy.

Bussiness Proposal

Describe how the current market conditions will affect the planning or operating decisions involving the product. Market Structure The market structure in this instance could fall into one of two types, oligopoly or monopoly (McConnell, Bruce, & Flynn, 2009). The rationale behind oligopoly is that several large retailers currently provide this service and control the availability, use, and other aspects of the programs (McConnell, Bruce, & Flynn, 2009). The rationale behind monopoly is that the program is limited to each organization (McConnell, Bruce, & Flynn, 2009).For example the program used at my organization is call the Shop Your Way Rewards program, it is only available at Smart and Sears, it cannot be used at other retailers and is exclusively controlled by Sears Holding Inc. Ultimately The market structure is a combination of a monopoly and oligopoly. Price Elasticity of Demand Price elasticity of demand has little effect on this product as the product is a free program prov ided by the organization. Despite this fact price elasticity does have an effect on the use of the program in that the customers can earn points on purchases and in turn spend those points on other researched.In this instance, as prices rise or fall within the store the use of the product increases or decreases as a result. If for instance a products price rises at the store level, the number of points earned during purchases using the product increases as well. Likewise as the prices increase it requires customers to have more points available to make purchases. Though the rewards card is a free program an increase in product prices would translate to an increase in demand for the rewards card.In looking at the determinants of price elasticity of demand, substitutability is first. The only way to substitute this product would be to shop at a competitor using the rewards program there such as a Kroger Plus card. Another substitute would be to use coupons instead of the card; however enhance them. The next determinant is proportion of income, again this would tie into the selling price of products and how the rewards program would offset any increases in price therefore increasing the amount of funds available to purchase products.Next is the luxury versus necessity determinant, the rewards card applies to both and is neutral in this area as it can be used for either luxuries or necessities. The last determinant is time, as more consumers become familiar with this product the demand will increase as the benefits are realized. Profit-Maximizing Quantity This program essentially gives the customer a percentage of his or her purchase price back in the form of points that can be redeemed during a transaction Just like cash.The program also generates coupons based on purchase levels and membership levels for additional dollars or percentages off purchases. Through data analysis, the company has determined that customers enrolled in the program average three addition al shopping trips per onto than non-members, the data also reveals that members purchase on average $13 more per transaction than non-members. Points are earned one point at a time based on one percent of every $1 . An example of this would be a purchase of $100 would translate to gaining 10 points.Every 10 points equal one penny, 1,000 points equals $1, 10,000 points equals $10, and so forth. By increasing the frequency of customers return trips along with the average dollar amount of those purchases the company is essentially paying for the program by enrolling new members. As membership increases so do sales and in turn profits. Price and Non-price Strategies Because the program is free, no price is placed upon the product. A non-price strategy is currently underway in which the benefits of membership are expressed by checkout operators during the customer checkout experience.The company has also set enrollment and usage goals for each location within the company as well. Through the increase in verbal communication with every customer the company will realize the goals set and will be able to increase the goals as they are met. Production Costs The production costs associated with this product are the production of plastic cards for consumers to carry for purposes of using the program and redeeming points. This has been reduced over the last year and a half of the programs existence by encouraging customers to use their mobile phone number to access the account.The company also has an internally produced website specific to the program that allows customers to update information and review purchases and current point amounts. This required only a small outlay in web design as the hardware and software was already in place to support the aerogram. The company also is reducing costs on receipts as part of the program is to allow customers to receive electronic receipts via e-mail instead of printed paper receipts. The costs of the program also include the po ints issued to customers. These costs are offset by the increases in purchases.The following is a hypothetical cost break started the program by mass producing credit card-sized plastic rewards cards along with multicolumn, trip-fold brochures. The company's initial investment was $1 million for the printing, distribution, and advertisement of this program. The initial program an for 12 months prior to the first cost reduction initiative. The program had recurring costs of $100,000 per month to continue production and distribution of materials. This initiative was to eliminate the plastic card and eliminate the need for informational brochures.This was accomplished through the use of customer phone numbers and email addresses as identifiers instead of physical cards. The next reduction was made through the implementation of a website where the information regarding the product could be accessed by customers. This resulted in a net reduction of costs by $75,000 per month. The costs a ssociated with points accumulated and spent by customers is variable and changes month to month, the amount has been steadily increasing since the program's inception and will continue to do so.To curb expenses associated with this part of the program the suggestion is to limit the number of points that can be redeemed in any transaction as well as place an expiration date on accumulated points. This will prevent customers from saving up a large number of points and eroding profit margin. Current Global Economic Conditions and the Local Macro Economy The current global economic conditions eave led to increases production costs of products sold by Smart and Sears as a result these increased costs have been passed on to consumers in the form of price increases on the products.The rewards program will offer consumers a way to offset these increased costs by earning rewards points that will allow them to reduce the total amount of their purchase. The program will also issue member-only coupons to these consumers which will further reduce his or her costs. By doing this the company will see an increase in brand loyalty and revenues. Recent economic trends in the United States include new growth in the housing market, as consumers arches homes and contractors build new homes the demand for products offered by both Smart and Sears will increase and as a result the demand for the rewards program will increase as well.The company is seeking a 75% penetration rate across all avenues of the business, including brick and mortar stores and online outlets. Local Economies Current Stage in the Business Cycle The local economy is currently in an expansion period as businesses are slowly starting to rebound from the recession. This is evident by the increase in home sales and the resulting increase in mortgage rates, along with the decrease in unemployment. As a result the demand for the product will increase as people begin to have more disposable income and seek out purchase s for both luxury items, such as televisions and necessity items such as food.The product uniquely will set Smart and Sears apart from the competition in fighting for this increase in disposable income by allowing customers to access a virtually limitless amount of products through Internet shopping sites and affiliate marketplaces set up on those sites. The current market conditions for Smart and Sears are still in a period of struggle as individuals are still recovering from the recession. As individuals recover the company must fight to regain market share from new competitors such as Dollar General, Family Dollar, and Dollar Tree.These three companies capitalized on the recession by offering low price products that undercut many big box retailers such as Smart, Target, and Wall-Mart. As the economy recovers it will be important for Smart and Sears to pursue actively the consumers lost to these competitors and a way to do that is with the rewards program. Conclusion The program p rovides a unique experience for customers as the points are redeemable on virtually any product carried either in tore or online.The program also generates sales and profit with a low amount of investment from the company. Customers will have generated roughly three to four times the amount of profit needed to cover the issuance of the points to each customer. Management should have a solid understanding of how effective and beneficial this program is and how the continued success of the program directly translates to the success of each business unit. Reference McConnell, C. R. , Bruce, S. L. , & Flynn, S. M. (2009). Economics. Unknown, NY: McGraw-Hill Company.

Emerging Adulthood Developing Adults Experience Alcohol

Da Yu Engineering 10, Section 2 Oct. 9, 2015 Emerging Adulthood Paper Outline I. Introduction A. Thesis: While college is a great time for emerging adults experience alcohol, the abuse of alcohol can be consequential to the development of a proper and healthy adult. B. Emerging adulthood is a period of development that coincides with college, around years 18-25 (Arnett, 2000). At this stage, young adults fully learn about themselves, their roles, and who they are. C. In this context, we will use binge drinking to describe the abuse of alcohol. Wechsler and Nelson (2001) defines binge drinking as for drinking 5 or more alcoholic drinks at one time in the span of half a month for men and 4 or more drinks for women in that same time frame.†¦show more content†¦B. Study 1: Weitzman, Nelson, and Wechsler (2003) sought to identify some of the factors that may lead to students’ binge drinking during their college years using questionnaires. 1. One good social indicator for binge drinking was the attitudes of their parents towards alcohol. More students that did not partake in binge drinking reported that their parents did not approve of drinking when they were growing up than students who did binge drink. C. Study 2: Borsari and Carey (2001) also studied social factors in college aged binge drinkers, mainly through the use of questionnaires, but also through student recorded logs of their alcohol usage. 1. Borsari and Carey (2001) suggests that one factor towards the increase in drinking during college years is the temporary removal or slight reduction in parental pressure against drinking. As a result, their peers influence them much more. 2. In addition, they also suggest that the environment that college provides creates a much more alcohol friendly space. In order to create new friend groups, students may partake in social gatherings where alcohol is available. These new friend groups may rely only on drinking and partying to stay together and can lead to excessive drinking in student. D. Social factors are not the only factors that may result in college student binge drinking. Some other