Analysis of the film “We Need To Talk About Kevin”

â€Å"We Need to Talk About Kevin† is a movie adaptation of Lionel Shriver’s novel with the same title. The story revolves around a family of four, but the main focus is on the relationship between the mother (Eva, played by Tilda Swinton) and the son (Kevin, played by Rock River, Jasper Newell and Ezra Miller). The movie goes back and forth in time to show different points in Eva’s life. The use of flashbacks and the clever combination of the ‘past’ and ‘present’ scenes illustrates the contrast of what her life was like with her family and without, certain details in both let us know what Eva was thinking and feeling. There is a great significance to details in this film. For example the use of the colour red, this could represent fear, blood and the tense relationships Eva had not only with Kevin but also Franklin, her husband. At the beginning of the movie we see people in a pool of red, this makes us think of violence, a massacre, but really it’s just a tomato festival filmed from a distance. This scene seems strange and out of place, but it sets a certain mood and is also a way of introducing Eva’s occupation. Eva is a well-paid travel guide author, she is absoloutly in love with her job and gets to travel around the world. Her husband and her are passionatly inlove with one another, however Franklin prefers her at home. Franklin wants a child and after some time, once Eva is pregnant it is quite clear that she isn’t thrilled about this, however details such as little ballerinas running around suggest she wishes for a girl. Also you can read Analysis July at the Multiplex She eventually gives birth to Kevin, and we can tell from the very beginning that something isn’t right when he cries all the time except when he’s with his father Franklin. The movie lets us follow through the growing up of Kevin, the way he manipulates with his family and uses genius and cruel ways to get what he wants. As a baby he clearly prefers Franklin, but he’s always working while Eva stays at home with Kevin. This makes Eva exhausted and it doesn’t get much better with time. As a toddler, Kevin continues to be disobediant. He doesn’t communicate with Eva or respond to any of her actions, so she takes him to the doctor thinking he has autism. The doctor confirms that there isn’t anything wrong with him medically, which seems to break Eva’s heart as this means that to Kevin there is something wrong with her. She admits she was much happier before, but she never gives up on Kevin. She possibly sees Kevin as a challange that she can later add to her accomplishments or maybe she realizes it’s her duty to always be there for him, no matter what. Kevin is a very troubled and difficult character, from an early age he seems to do everything he can to make Eva miserable and he takes pleasure from this. He starts playing violent videogames and as a teenager he collects computer viruses. He continues to use nappies until about the age of 6 and once Eva gives birth to her second child Celia, the first thing Kevin does is splash some water in her eyes. However, there are some scenes which let us know that despite Kevin’s ‘cool’ act he is interested in his mum, that instead of his usual ‘whatever’ to everything, he does have prferences, and that he isn’t emotionless and behind the ‘mask’ he could be a normal boy. Kevin has a way of making sure everyone does what he wants. He blackmails Eva, pretends to be a sweet little boy infront of Franklin and uses the fact that Celia adores him to order her around and express his violent ways on her, knowing she’ll never betray him. Kev in seems to live only for his mother, he doesn’t really care about Franklin and Celia, they’re just his tools, the end of the movie proves this point. The peek of the story, as well as the borderline between ‘past’ and ‘present’ is a massacre carried out by Kevin, where he kills a number of people. He plans this for some time and commits the crime just before his 16th birthday. This is his grand finale of making Eva’s life a living hell, knowing that this time it’s permanent. He is very succesful in doing this as not only does the whole town now hate her but she hates herself too, blaming herself for what Kevin’s done. She punishes herself with a boring new job, tiny house and the memories. After the massacre she pays visits to Kevin in the juvenile prison, he continues to annoy her at every chance he gets until a few days before his 18th birthday (also the 2 year anniversary of the massacre) he finally seems to have realized that this wasn’t just a joke. Read also  Case 302 July in Multiplex The end of the movie is open to interpretation. To me it shows Eva ready to move on with life and accept her son the way he is. I don’t think she forgave him or ever will, but she possibly realized that having him as a reminder of everything is punishment enough and there is no reason not to continue living. I liked the movie, I thought the acting was incredible and the choice of actors, especially for Kevin was great too, he looked like the same person throughout all the stages of his life. I think the viewers have a lot to think about as the story unfolds, I like that there was no definite answer to anything, just like in everyday life, we have to try and understand things ourselves.

Traditional Gender Views and the Exceptions

Gender is an factor of an individual’s being that permeates all aspects of his or her life. From the moment a person is born into the world, he or she is classified either as a female or a male. The way society treats and reacts to this person is then treated accordingly to that initial categorization. What is it then that epitomizes the masculinity and the femininity of an individual. How does American society view a feminine individual and how does this differ from how the same society views masculine individuals? Masculinity refers to a human’s personal level or degree of manliness. Chafetz (35-36) describes masculinity as being distributed over seven areas: physical, functional, sexual, emotional, emotional, intellectual, interpersonal, other personal characteristics. A masculine individual is said to be virile, strong, able to provide for his family, sexually aggressive and experienced, unemotional, practical, dominating, free, demanding, and success-oriented. Thus an individual who is more able to take risks and who is better able to exhibit a sense of confidence and independence is considered to be more masculine. Physical attributes such as facial hair, toned muscles, and large body frames are also more characteristic of individuals who are considered to be masculine. Femininity, on the other hand, is directly linked by the 1996 Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language to traits   such as gentleness, kindness, and patience (708). Feminine characteristics are usually associated with nurturing and life-giving characteristics. The woman’s traditional role as a mother and wife are the most emphasized qualities of a feminine individual. Thus a female who is demure, obedient, and able to display physical attributes that are favored in the life-giving process, such as large breasts, wide hips, and full lips, is considered to be more feminine than most. Studies have shown that a man’s traditional view of a female or feminine individual is based heavily on masculine ideology, which focuses centrally on the sexual aspect of a woman’s breasts and bodies. The propagation of these masculine ideologies were even more stressed by the fact that media continues to portray females as beings whose primarily roles are focused on their sexual bodies. (Ward et al, 712) Many can see, however, that the barriers of traditional gender roles are being broken by modern American males and females. More and more females are found in the workplace, becoming the breadwinners for their family. Females are also seen engaging in extreme and traditional sports. Women’s roles in American society were seen to drastically change in the late twentieth century as a result of the new opportunities given to them (Mackey & Immerman, 271) There are also men who have opted to become the stay-at-home parents. It is has become more acceptable for men to show their emotions. And a new breed of men have come to be called metrosexuals, males who indulge in their physical appearance in the same way that was previously only attributed to feminine individuals. The breaking of stereotypes of masculinity and femininity has become rampant in the United States and this may well prove to be the beginning of the end of the reign o traditional views of masculinity and femininity in American society. Even though sex and gender are clear categorical divisions established upon birth, the long-established ramifications of being male or female and the parameters that these traditions set can be overcome. Works Cited Chafetz, Janet S. Masculine/feminine or human?:an overview of the sociology of sex roles. IL: F.E. Peacock Publishers, 1974 â€Å"Femininity† Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language. 1996. Mackey, Wade, C., & Immerman, Ronald S â€Å"The fertility paradox: gender roles, fertility and cultural evolution† Mankind Quarterly 45(2005):271- Ward, Monique L., Merriwether, Ann, & Caruthers, Allison. â€Å"Breasts are for men: media, masculinity ideologies, and men’s beliefs about women’s bodies.† Sex Roles 55(2006): 703-714

English for Special purposes program design Assignment

English for Special purposes program design - Assignment Example In terms of learning the language it is a big group. Specific teaching strategies should be applied to the students of such a quantity in order to make the learning effective. Specialization of the group that the present program is designed for is Information Technologies, particularly Informatics and Programming. The level of English is Low to Intermediate. The students are supposed to have basic language proficiency prior to the study of English for Science and Technology (EST). A student should also be trained into handling skills, abilities and proficiency that clearly belong to the domain of general English. The only source of grammar that this program is designed to use is "English Grammar In Use with Answers and CD ROM: A Self-study Reference and Practice Book for Intermediate Students of English (Grammar in Use) (Paperback)", a book by Raymond Murphy. Another course book that will be used during the program of EST is "Technical English" by Comfort, Hick and Savage. This book is aimed to assist students in learning English for use in technical areas. The students will use this book after completing and passing the test on Murphy, the previous text book. The reason to use the books one by one is due to the fact that "Technical English" is meant to be used with previous knowledge of the language. However this book requires understanding basic English, it is designed specifically for EST purposes and that is why even in case the students will not pass the grammatical test, it will not hinder the learning of the technical English. Besides, special vocabulary is designed for students with Information Technology specialization so that they would be proficient in their field. The targeted students need to know specific vocabulary and that is the reason that a list of thousand words has been developed to introduce students to the subject. English for Science and Technology (EST) requires specific teaching strategies and learning activities to deliver the knowledge to students. Practically, EST eliminates teaching informal language and does not encompass the whole range of language requirements that a regular learner of ESL has. For purposes of current program, a student should be able to read literature pertaining to his subject, to discuss it with his colleagues, to give lectures and write his own articles in English. However the level of English would be basic, that would let the student to reflect his or her ideas without applying rich vocabulary, but with a knowledge of scientific words.Here are a few of specific terms that the vocabulary will include: total quality management, total quality control; total productive maintenance; design to cost, life cycle cost; concurrent engineering ; project management; productivity improvements; modeling; how enterprises adjust to environmental issues; expert systems; multi-te chnology systems etc. (3) a number of teaching strategi

Roles of Heinrich Schliemann in Trojan War and Modern Archaeology Essay

Roles of Heinrich Schliemann in Trojan War and Modern Archaeology - Essay Example However, due to his determination and enthusiasm, he made many significant discoveries. Heinrich never attended university, but was a self-made person whose believe in historical reality of the myths about the Trojan War transformed the nature of his believes. Having harnessed huge amounts of wealth from gold rush in California as well dining with the president, this great man travelled the world a lot. His conversance with thirteen good languages acted as an added advantage in his work. With this zeal and passion for archeology, Heinrich presented a fictional place called the Trojan empire, which remained fictional until he discovered it. His work provided a base of archeology since he wrote and left documentaries. Upon reading Iliad and Odyssey both written by Homer, Heinrich with the help of these readings, found the ruins of Troy. This paper will seek to establish and discuss his roles in the Trojan War in conjunction with the modern archeology (Nickel 56). Backgrounds that broug ht Schliemann to antiquity The steps of Ulysses Studies document that, Heinrich’s retirement date ranges between 1858 and 1863. This period is significant according to this paper since he handed tools down in order to concentrate in his wish for finding Troy. In the midst of 1860s, Heinrich enrolled at the Sorbonne and focused on faculty of Antiquity and Oriental Language in Paris in order to further his knowledge. His archaeological part of life commences in Small Island in the Ionian Sea called Ithaca where this was of capital importance in Homeric myth. Many writers put down this place believing that it was Ulysses’ dwelling location prior and after Heinrich’s Trojan adventures (Wood 75). In spite of the idea that the existing landscape holds no record of how Homer described this place, Heinrich’s claims show that he found some significant sites from the Odyssey in this location. His retirement acted as part of the backgrounds that brought Heinrich to antiquity. Hisarlik Since he seemed a different man who could not settle for calmness and enjoyment and live an eventless life, Heinrich disserted retirement and the short-lived Ithaca satisfaction and intensified his search for more archeological discoveries. At this point, he joined forces with Frank Calvert who had prior excavations from the Hissarlik site. Having seen Charles McLaren’s identity of 1822, Heinrich became sure that this was the Troy’s former location. Backing his claim are tourists Julius Caesar and Alexander the Great who already expressed belief that this place was the Trojan’s War site (Wood 101). This is because, besides being located alongside both of the Dardanelles and Aegean Sea, this place depicted close resemblance to the description given by Homer. His cognitive deposition with finding Troy was also part of the type of background that led to his antiquity. The Priam’s treasure After they fell out, Heinrich’s counterpart Calvert argued that, the former’s claim regarding discovering Troy could be just mere hopes and imagination as opposed to either scientific or historical facts. However, filled with suspense Heinrich disregarded such arguments and continued to dig and take every single discovery or finding as proof that he actually did excavate Paris city. For example, when he discovered some precious artifacts including a stack of gold in May 1873, he alleged that it was the treasure

Strategic Management Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Strategic Management Assignment - Essay Example What this study found was that firms in the restaurant industry varied in their responses to such outside pressure depending on their levels of susceptibility or vulnerabilities based on multi-theoretic models. The findings provide important lesson for strategic management on how to respond to such external pressures for organizational change. Special interest groups (SIG) are not entirely new but they are becoming more activist in their demands to get what they want. Companies cannot avoid their influence as they are forced to respond in order to preserve legitimacy, goodwill and public image. The first theory is institutional perspective in which business firms are pressed to conform to certain norms depending on their degree of visibility. The next, resource-dependence theory, organizations can be particularly vulnerable to pressure if they are dependent on vital external inputs and are therefore more likely to make certain accommodations or concessions to outside demands as they are afraid of disruptions in resource or input inflows. The third resource-based theory looks at the firms internal capabilities in how it can predictably respond to such outside pressures. Those firms with dynamic capabilities are better able to resist such pressure as they can efficiently and quickly alter their ways of competing through innovative skills. The flexibility allows them more rapid responses. The last theory is organizational cognition in which firms are considered interpretive systems based on their top managers sense of urgency and

Unit 2 Discussion Board Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Unit 2 Discussion Board - Essay Example The dynamic pricing strategy of Air Deccan is to use price as a function of demand and supply, wherein the earlier the booking is done the lesser is the price (About Us). To enable this pricing model made use of Information Technology to the full extent by setting up an Internet-based Centralized reservation system that centralized customers reservations through distribution channels through the Internet, call centers or travel agents. This enabled fares to be controlled by a group of computers using linear programming for revenue management. From the time a flight is opened for booking pricing is tracked and changed based on demand. The system uses a fare buckets for a given flight and fares change by the date, day of week and time of day (Sampler, 2006). The price of an air ticket booked early on Air Deccan compares favorably with an upper class rail ticket and is a boon to the more than 300 million middle class segment of society in India, which has happily accepted this means to affordable air travel. This advantage that Air Deccan offered with its dynamic pricing policy has caused a dramatic growth in the use of Air Deccan, whereby within three years since its starting, it has flown more than 5.8 million passengers and garnered a market share of 21.2 percent to become the second largest carrier in the country, pushing the national carrier Indian to third position (Air Deccan overtakes Indian in market share). Air Deccan faces two disadvantages as a result of its dynamic pricing strategy. It is facing threats to its market share from the full-service carriers in the country as well as new low-cost carriers. The full-service are lowering their airfares in the face of threat from Air Deccan and the other low-cost airlines, while the new entrant low-cost airlines are expected to use price as an entry strategy. There is no more flexibility available in pricing strategy of

Mid-Term Exam Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Mid-Term Exam - Essay Example Moreover, it is also defined as influence of knowledge concerning the response of the consumers to the brand marketing. Therefore, brand equity is a function regarding to the choice of consumers in a target market. In fact, the concept of the brand equity occurs though the choices made by customers concerning the products and services, and familiarization of customers with the brands, whereby they have a favorable perception towards distinction of the brand. Maintaining Brand Equity The effort of maintaining the brand equity involves focusing on brand awareness in order to increase the probability of customers familiarizing with the availability of products. In fact, this increases the degree of consumer association with the commodities offer by a certain company. Moreover, there is need to measure the ratio of the marketing niche, which relates to former knowledge concerning the brands. Therefore, creating brand awareness is a substantial way of maintaining the brand equity and bran d recall. The other effort is to facilitate brand recognition of the products by consumers through their prior knowledge. Moreover, there the brand is associated with the deep customer mind concerning the brand, whereby establishing a positive perception about the brand. The other initiative related to the effort to foster brand loyalty, whereby the customer has fear of consuming commodities from other brands, thus they end up remaining loyal to a specific brand which contributes to maintenance of brand equity. Product Life Cycle Concept Introduction stage: this stage involves introduction of the product into the market with an aim of building a clarified identity though promotion to create awareness (Kotler & Keller, 2012). This is the stage before the products are offered to the customers, whereby the product undergoes development process that entails prototyping and various tests. Substantial cost is incurred in at this stage due to the additional distribution expenses. Moreover, there are few customers with the awareness of the products; thus, the sales volumes are low and the profits might have a low or negative figure due to the high cost and the low sales. Growth Stage: at this stage, the sales volume and profitability commences to increase due the appropriate organization of the products, whereby customers from a habit of consuming the products. The company focuses on brand preference the attaining the set objective that involve a set market share. Competition increases at this stage forcing the company to focus on advertisements in order to ensure that customer are convinced to buy the products, though the profits reduces at the end of the growth stage. Maturity stage: there is a continued increase in sales, though there is a decreased rate compare to the past due to competitors offering the same products in the same market. Therefore, the business focuses on maintaining their market share through an extension of the product life cycle, instead of foc using on profits. Decline stage: At this stage, there is a reduction of the sales volume and an alteration of trends due to the inauspicious of economic conditions. There are reduced sales volumes, while market saturation increases due the technical obsolescence and chances in customer tastes and preferences. Profitability is maintained when there is development of brand loyalty, though there are increases in the unit costs and reduced production resulting to constant profits. Innovations in Interactive Television and Online

Rewrite Extended Research Report 4-3-2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Rewrite Extended Research Report 4-3-2 - Essay Example This paper is very important since it talks about a very important subject area of performance evaluation which can as well be implemented at the workplace. Performance evaluation is primarily concerned with measuring progress as well as effectiveness of the human resource which is very important for any organisation. Performance evaluation is also concerned with establishing good communication link between the management and employees. Basically, performance evaluation is meant to create mutual understanding among the members of an organisation in order to improve productivity as the ultimate goal. Performance evaluation is very significant for every organisation since it is meant to contribute positively to the growth and development of business through human efforts towards the attainment of set goals. It is imperative for organisations to ensure that their employees are highly motivated as a way of increasing productivity. Performance evaluation is helpful in that it allows each organisation to identify the areas that need attention and it also allows organisations to set goals that are achievable (Cfstaffing, 2007). Over and above, it can be noted that the main reason why organisations embark on performance evaluation is that they are primarily concerned with achieving set goals through the efforts of human resources. The process of performance evaluation is very important to every business in that priority is given to the needs of the employees who are the main drivers of any given organisation. Motivated workers are productive which positively contributes to the growth of business. Performance evaluations have become an indispensable part of business as a result of their effectiveness in increasing productivity (Abbey, 2007). I am feeling confident that I have a good start for my research report and I believe that I am organizing it in a nice

Fired for Creativity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Fired for Creativity - Essay Example In order to complete a case analysis on his story, initially, before answering six essay questions, this paper will first provide a summary of Lasseter’s experience from a management perspective. According to the Power and Politics in the Fall and Rise of John Lasseter, the creative man’s employment background, the early attraction to animation began in his freshman year of high school and only intensified when he began his formal education in the field. Upon being hired at Disney, Lasseter worked emphatically to progress the animation department to the ways of the future by introducing the idea of films based solely off computer-generated imaging. While his intentions were honorable, Lasseter acknowledges that his drive may have created instances where he seemed like a loose cannon. After a particular meeting where Lasseter was allowed to create a test film to demonstrate the viability of using both hand drawn animation and computer generated imaging, he was immediatel y fired by a supervisor who did not care for him. This instance is where the case analysis can determine a clear problem with management style. The problem with what happened to Lasseter is that his employment termination was obviously personal in nature. It seems ridiculous that an employee of a creative company could be terminated for simply being creative. Furthermore, Lasseter had no outstanding work infractions. For whatever personal reason that this studio head did not care for Lasseter, the employee was fired unjustly. Personal feelings must be worked out in a professional manner versus being dealt with professionally which can often go the wrong way, as we see in this example. Fortunately for Lasseter, this unjust retribution did not last as the young animator was hired by Steve Jobs and helped him in the creation and success of Disney’s Pixar and the outstanding films the company produced. The analysis of this scenario demonstrates that while younger employees can fi nd themselves at a disadvantage when it comes to dealing with their more tenured and older counterparts, there is always hope in the fact that someone else will see them and value their creativity. Questions 1-6 1. What forms of interpersonal power are evident in the case? Within the case of Lasseter and the studio head who did not care for him as a person, the types of interpersonal power being used are those of status and age. As the older, more experienced employee, the studio head knew he had the upper hand in the situation as he had the more advanced job title to effectively be able to have Lasseter fired without due cause. 2. In what ways do the two faces of power appear in this case? The two faces of power in this case are first, the studio head who chose to have Lasseter unjustly fired. By simply using his power to make this happen, the studio head used the power of his position and office politics to have the young artist fired. The second face of power in this case is that of Steve Jobs himself. The actions of Jobs allow him to act as the hero in this story as he is able to see the value in this employee and hire him back on for Pixar. 3. Does the firing of John Lasseter from Disney Studios and the events leading up to his firing demonstrate the ethical use of power? Explain

Why Science and Theologians Should Work Together Research Paper

Why Science and Theologians Should Work Together - Research Paper Example Theology refers to the logical and rational study of religion and its power. It also refers to the study of the nature of religious truths, or the academic profession acquired by completing education in religious studies (Cobb 1). Theology can be studied in seminaries, universities or school of divinities. â€Å"The aim of Science is accepting legitimate relations amongst natural phenomena. Religion refers to a way of living within a bigger framework of sense† (Thyateira 1). This paper will research on the reasons why scientists and theologians should work together and how they are compatible. The article will also research on the similarities and the differences between science and theology. Finally, it will show how science and religion can both function together to be productive. In recent use, the term science regularly refers to the means of tracking knowledge, not only the knowledge taught itself (Cobb 1). It is often taken to be equivalent to physical and natural scienc e (Friberg 1). It is, thus, limited to those branches of study that involve the occurrences of the material world and their principles, occasionally with indirect exclusion of pure mathematics. Augustine of Hippo referred to theology as a discussion concerning or reasoning about God (Thyateira 1). Richard Hooker referred to theology as the science of divine things. The phrase can, however, be applied in a variety of diverse disciplines or forms of discussions. Theologians use diverse forms of argument and analysis to help appreciate, clarify, experiment, critique, promote or defend any of the countless religious issues. These diverse forms of analysis are spiritual, philosophical, historical and ethnographic topics among others (Thyateira 1). Why Scientists and Theologians Should Work Together Theology has two pedigrees. One was the religious beliefs of the inhabitants of Israel as arbitrated to the Gentile world through Jesus and His apostle Paul. The other was the complicated thou ght of the Gentile world, expressed in the Greek beliefs. In contrast with the current era, the sciences are still immature (Cobb 1). But such as it was, they were markedly integrated into beliefs. Hence the exploitation of Greek beliefs was also exploitation of Greek science. Science should reflect on what the Bible suggests because it is all about understanding the future. Scientists have to reflect on the dependability of religion. Studying the Bible will enlighten them on end-time procedures and what they can anticipate. The precise date when these events start is indefinite. In Christian theology, the term rapture refers to the period that Christ will take His followers to Heaven, both those who had passed away and those who are alive. â€Å"Science refers to an attempt of appreciating creation. Biblical belief entails our relation to the Creator. Since we can study about the Creator from his creation, religion can study from science† (Hairston 1). The discussion is comp lex since some theologians referred to as Pre-millennialists claim that the rapture will be carried out before the tribulation. Mid-point theologians believe the rapture will take place at the midpoint of three and half years, and post-millennialists believe that it will be after the millennium. There have to be joint trust in merging their disparities in genuine faith. Bible teachers deem that Christians have the bigger corrections to craft. Some scientists are atheists. Most of them want the truth to triumph and are prepared to believe Biblical affirmations only if they do not infringe on confirmed science. Scientists should observe how God has performed his work in the past to find out how he will function in the future. God is consistent (Cobb 1). If people study accomplished prophecies, they will get confidence when they

Cultural Investigation Essay Example for Free

Cultural Investigation Essay The paper will discuss the main aspect of a Comanche and what their culture is like. The paper encapsulates an interview from such a Native American and this interview will be analyzed with the help of other sources from the Internet. The paper will be followed by first introducing the Comanche tribe with their features and then go about analyzing the interview. The culture of the Comanche will be discussed in the light of how they treat their elders, children and their relatives. The culture also includes some of their important aspects of religion along with the language that they use. The paper will attempt to cover the overall aspect of the Comanche and their effect in the society. Introduction to a Comanche â€Å"The Comanche are a Native American group whose historical range (the Comancheria) consisted of present-day Eastern New Mexico, Southern Colorado, Southern Kansas, all of Oklahoma, and most of Northern and Southern Texas. There might once have been as many as 20,000 Comanches. Today, the Comanche Nation consists of approximately 10,000 members, about half of whom live in Oklahoma (centered at Lawton), with the remainder concentrated in Texas, California, and New Mexico. † (Wikipedia, 2006 ) From the above definition it can be understood that the Comanches are very old inhabitants of the United States of America and have long lived there. There are a number of reasons why the Comanches had left their older origin which is near Wyoming. The tribe had shifted to Arkansas where they are now inhabited. The reason why the Comanche is given a name like that is because it is believed that they like to fight and act as strangers to the other people. The origin of Comanche comes from a Spanish word and this is why it is used. They have always been a separate group and have not mingled much with the other tribes and other citizens of the country. Interview of a Comanche The name of the interviewee was Andrea Pahdocony who belongs to a tribe called Comanche of Oklahoma Lord of the Plains). The following questions and answers provide a summary of what their culture is like and how they live their lives. The questions and answers will then be analyzed along with other material to understand what their culture and beliefs are along with their values.

SWOT Analysis of the Fashion Industry

SWOT Analysis of the Fashion Industry Conducting a SWOT analysis, that is, reviewing the strengths of an organization, its weaknesses, opportunities it can capitalize on for maximum profits, and the threats to achieving its full potential provides very invaluable information to the organization about the market and understanding the industry, as well. The analysis is used to define both the unfavorable and favorable factors and their impacts on goals of the business. The fashion industry, which is very volatile, is not an exception, it too has its own share of strengths and opportunities which once utilized by an organization can help it grow substantially and weaknesses and threats which the organization must strive to minimize to the lowest possible levels. One of the strengths of Oakley as a company in the fashion industry is the growing income levels. The growth in individual incomes increases the amount of disposable income and hence many people are able to purchase their products. Growth of sports through funding by international sponsors is also a major strength as it has led to a significant increase in the number of sportspersons who are the highest consumers of Oakley Inc products like prescription eyewear, watches, shoes and electronics. Despite the downturns, the fashion industry has continued to grow over time and is one of those industries that are far away from reaching their peak. This can be partly attributed to the ever growing population and the increase in the propensity of people to don fashion attire. With efficient management, Oakley Inc has the potential to be the leading multi-national company in the distribution of apparel, sunglasses and footwear. Oakley Inc has built a reputation and a name for itself as being a producer of high quality products and the owner of about 575 patents a figure of about 1100 trademarks. It has successfully worked on creating a large customer base and trade connections. It also has in its possession a large talent of labor which has led to the production of high quality products. This has established it as a market leader enjoying many industrial advantages over its competitors guaranteeing a higher volume of sales compared to other companies in the industry. One of the greatest weaknesses facing the company is the development of some products which do not command a large following. This leads to these products staying in the distribution outlets for a long time leading to stagnation of capital. Losses are incurred as the limited sales made are not able to meet the production costs of the product. To avert this, the company should produce a limited number of products in each line and test its appeal in the market by monitoring the quantity of sales made per unit time and then deciding whether the product is viable to the company. Another weakness in the fashion industry is infrastructural development. The development of infrastructure has been very slow thus unable to keep up the pace of growth of the sector. It is therefore, a bottleneck in the industry as it hinders efficient distribution of company products to some areas. Curving out a niche for itself in the fashion industry has not been an easy ride for Oakley Inc. Building a reputation for itself has been a major weakness as a lot of investment has had to be done in advertisements and market research to determine the best market places and consumer needs. The company has also had a hard time competing with other companies in the same industry due to the low prices attached on these companies ¿Ã‚ ½ products. To survive this, the company has had to lower its prices while ensuring that they are in balance with the returns to avoid losses. Extensive advertising campaigns on quality have also given it an edge over those companies offering their products at lower prices. Oakley, Inc has had to maintain a huge and expensive work force which is spread over an outsized ecological area and which requires constant communication and monitoring. For this to work to its advantage, extensive evaluation of the personnel is required to ensure competence and also the ability of the workers to work under minimum supervision (Montgomery pp.1-2). There are many opportunities that the company can capitalize on to reap maximum profits. Expected investment is one of the opportunities that can benefit the company. The fashion industry is ever growing, and there is an increasing number of stakeholders in the industry willing to invest fashion. The company can take this opportunity to increase its capital base so as to be able to enjoy large economies of scale. The company should monitor international barriers to trade and make a move into new areas once these barriers come down. Abolition of these barriers can also help the company acquire high quality and less costly fabrics. Development of new products and services can lead to a remarkable growth on the profits of the company. Continued introduction of new products and various designs to the market can help ensure a growth in sales. Introducing special price packages for regular buyers of Oakley products would help in retaining these customers and increasing the appeal of the business to customers. Technological advancement and investment in information technology is an opportunity that can greatly help the company to minimize its operation cost. Oakley, Inc can rely on information technology to offer more customers friendly services like informing regular customers of a new design or product. Relying on e-commerce to sell its products online can help grow its geographical market area to cover the entire globe hence higher sales. The Company should evaluate end user response to its services to gain information on what areas of its services to improve. This would go a long way in helping the organization acquire new customers as well as retain its old ones who are satisfied with the services being offered (Johnson pp.D1). The organization should also take the opportunity to expand and cover a larger geographical area. It should grow into the untapped markets and offer its products and services in these regions. Having a large customer base would increase its profits. Acquiring better supply deals, for example, a less expensive textiles supplier would greatly minimize the operation cost of the company. The company can also retain its suppliers but negotiate for better deals with the aim of increasing its profit margin. Linking up with other companies in the industry is an opportunity that should not be ruled out. Linking up with another fashion company would increase the customer volume greatly. There are many threats facing organizations in the fashion industry. Shopping for products like expensive sunglasses and footwear is greatly impacted by the global economy. A downturn in the global economy means that less people are likely to purchase these products. This leads to low income to the company during this period. To minimize the effect of this, the company should devise a mechanism of lowering its operation cost to the minimum possible levels to avert possible losses due to its operating costs exceeding income. Trade barriers are a threat to the company as it has been unable to venture into some markets due to strict market regulations. It has also hindered the company from acquiring low cost raw materials for manufacture of its products which would have increased its profit margin. Shifting trends is also a major threat to the company. A change in the fashion trend may render some of the company products useless and obsolete. The company therefore has to ensure continued development of new products to maintain its sales. Some government legislation can also be a major threat to investors in the fashion industry. Intervention by the government can come with it rules which are very costly to adhere to and also competition from unexpected quarters, for example, from multi-national fashion companies due to liberalization of the market (Leibowitz pp.22). The international sports calendar has a huge impact on the sale of Oakley products which are mainly composed of athletics products. The company should devise a mechanism of maintaining the sales even in off peak seasons. This can be achieved through having a line of brands which are not sports related. Over the next few years, huge investments are expected to be made in the fashion industry. New companies are likely to crop up and this will lead to a strain on the available labor force. This will be a limiting factor to the continued growth of the company. To prevent this, the company should start training its own fashion staff. This would in future give it an advantage over the other companies which would be experiencing a shortage of the same. The company can therefore, transform this threat into an opportunity by selling some of its staff to the other businesses for a profit. The organization also faces the threat of being vulnerable to attacks by its major competitors. It should therefore, have all the mechanisms of counteracting this in standby so that it does not fall to accusations from other fashion companies. The rising fuel prices have become a major hurdle for almost every business in the world. A huge upward surge in fuel prices can destabilize an investment. To counter this, the company should ensure that it has its own fuel reserve so that it is not immediately affected by the changes in fuel prices as it will have time to adjust while relying on its fuel reserves. With its own reserve, it can benefit from this threat by providing that much needed resource to its competitors at a large profit margin.

Concept Of Citizenship To A Global View Politics Essay

Concept Of Citizenship To A Global View Politics Essay Global citizenship aims at bringing the concept of citizenship to a global view. it is a term used to cover political, economic, environmental and social actions of global minded people, as well as communities on a global perspective. It is a concept that is aimed at helping people understand the ever changing world. As a concept, global citizenship has a great appeal. It is thus sought by various institutions in an effort to promote world peace and make people responsible global citizens. Due to its world wide scale, global citizenship has other diverse definitions depending on the area of study. This paper focuses on explaining the concept of global citizenship as used in education and business. Global Citizenship Global citizenship can be explained from various points of view. From a personal perspective, global citizenship involves awareness of self as well as awareness of others. According to McIntosh, global citizenship is the ability to view oneself with regard to ones role in the wider world. Additionally, global citizenship emphasizes on the importance of balancing the awareness of ones self realities with the realities of others who are outside ones perceived self. This is an individual dimension, which focus on gaining a reflective understanding for others as well as showing empathy to them. Therefore, this is the starting point to becoming a global citizen from an individual perspective. Similarly, other scholars have also put emphasis on the importance of understanding ones self in relation to the perceptions of other people in explaining global citizenship (Noddings, 2005). Since global citizenship does not impart on the legal status, it is expressed well associatively in a distinct manner from the expressions of citizenship. This implies that global citizenship is the basis for individuals to work, live and act within transnational ethics that defy national sovereignty and boundaries, as well. Individual efforts to becoming a global citizen are voluntary and are thus based on subjective and fluctuating criteria. An individual may opt to take their role in the global arena out of free will. Besides, from and individual definition and understanding of global citizenship, one cannot be forced to respect and value social diversity that exist and varies from one country to another (Luis, 2010). A global social role has to originate from ones inner self and the desire of the self to pursue and view things from a wider world perspective. Another perspective of explaining the concept of global citizenship in based on the roles assumed by various individuals in the international arena. Such individual roles include global reformers, global business elite, global environmentalists, elite global merchants, political conscious regionalists and transnational activists. Each of these global based groups play an active role in fostering global citizenship. Although their roles may be diverse, their collective efforts are geared towards a global responsibility. The major role of global reformers is driving human kind towards one world. They drive the world as one by promoting peace and intense efforts to eradicate social injustices. Other reformers attempt to reach the entire world through various nongovernmental organizations. One such organization is Oxfam international which is aimed at promoting world peace, minimizing poverty levels and dealing with social injustices. Global reformers maintain that the world will soon become a global village give the pace of technological advancements. On the same point of view, people from different corners o the world can connect with each other via social media. The most common social media are Facebook, Twitter, Skype and MySpace. MySpace helps to view the globe from a business point of view by connecting enterprise and merchants through the internet (Darren, 2003). Another group of people are global elite. In specific terms, the global business elite view global citizenship from a business point of view. In this regard, global business elite are constantly seeking better ways of moving their economic ventures in around the globe. On the contrary, they do not seek to take up active global responsibilities. A major challenge that frustrates global business elites efforts is the wide scope of global corporate responsibility. Global corporate responsibility is discussed later in this paper (Lois, 2010). On the other hand, global environmental managers seek global problem solving collaboration. Such collaborations are aimed at dealing with large global concerns. These concerns include global warming as a result of destruction of the ozone layer. Global environmentalists promote a sustainable global environment by setting standards for industrialization. Industries are understood to be the core pollutants of the environment and destruction of the ozone layer. The ozone layer functions to filter and protect harmful sunrays from reaching the surface of the earth. Its destruction by air pollution allows such rays to each the globe thus causing excessive heating of the earth with extremely high temperatures. This is a world concern. Political global elites seek unexplored global community while transnational global activists assume global causes, which may include environmental and human rights protection (Tan, 2005). Explaining global citizenship limits global participation to the economically able. Global citizenship definition based on individual roles thus excludes the role of the poor and those who struggle to survive. Such explanation excludes a large majority of the world people. Lois (2010) provides a more comprehensive definition of citizenship that incorporates the conceptual categories of awareness, responsibility and participation. He defines global citizenship is the individual ability to b aware, take responsibility of their own action and participate by contributing towards a global unity. Awareness, as well as self awareness of the larger world is essential credentials in explaining good global citizenship. Self awareness is the key contributor to awareness. Similarly, awareness leads to recognition of ones global responsibilities as well as moral obligations, which are beyond ones environment. As a result, awareness of ones responsibility leads to participating to promote the global common welfare (Lois, 2010). Global citizenship explanation based on the above three categories of awareness, responsibility and participation offers a more structured way to approach global citizenship. This approach is thus successful for operationalizing the term in faculty led global programs. On the same note, awareness is the most basic of all the three; besides, it is the most realistic and attainable in the short term. A comprehensive global citizenship involves having an individual identity that cuts through various national borders and boundaries and commitment to the common welfare for all. In education, global citizenship aims at equipping students with the necessary knowledge and skills so that they can impact the world in a positive way. It encourages students to be responsible globally. Education for global citizenship is directed at developing students to become active global citizens. Students are taught to adopt the various different cultures in the world. On the same note, a global citizenship education views a global student as one who is well conversant with the wider world and is willing o take an active role as a global citizen. In addition, a global citizen respects and upholds diversity. The current world is diverse. It ranges from the most ancient cultures and traditional way of doing things to the current cultures, which various nation states have adopted today. Global education holds that for an individual to be a global citizen, they must recognize and appreciate diversity and focus on promoting peace and unity in diversity (Robert Katalin, 2011). On the same note, global education equips pupils at an early age with the necessary knowledge to understand how the world operates in different platforms. Such platforms include economically, culturally, politically, environmentally as well as technologically. Besides, global students are expected to take part in activities within a community with a range from local to global levels. By so doing, they are perceived to contribute in making the world a sustainable place. Outraged social injustice is an important trait portrayed by global minded students. Global citizens are accountable for their own actions. That is, they do not blame others for their own action. They are guided by learn think act approach to global citizenship. An individual is expected to earn from their mistakes and take the respective corrective measures (Janet, 2004). Global education institutions have succeeded in creating awareness of other cultures among students. Nevertheless, most international students have developed necessary awareness needed to be a global citizen. This explains why most international students are coping well in international schools. They develop social and interpersonal skills that help them relate with fellow students. On the point of view, global educational equips students with the basis essential skills to appreciate diversity and adapt to foreign cultures with ease. Corporate global citizenship requires businesses corporations to be accountable often referred to as corporate social responsibility. Corporate social responsibility goes beyond considering the norms of the society within which the organization exist to upholding global world values. Global world values involve conservation of world environment. According to Ramon 2010, various businesses have taken corrective measures to check on air pollution to minimize chances of interfering with the ozone layer. Nonetheless, appropriate measure have been put in place to ensure that industrial waste is treated before dispatched to rivers. This ensures that water pollution is addressed to reduce water poising for both human and wild consumption (Samuel Walter, 2009). However, businesses still struggle with a number of world concerns relating to environment, population, poverty, social justice education and health. These concerns still affect nations wellbeing, effectiveness and the productivity of businesses. They also impact negatively on the quality o the world population. Borrowing from the above mentioned issues, businesses are rethinking on their role as global entities. Some are strategizing on how to redress environmental and human capital challenges. Currently, corporate global citizenship entails an understanding and awareness of the future global trends that can affect the world climate for doing business and the global populations quality of life. The business of corporate businesses has moved form the core driver and desire to maximize profits to upholding societal values. Businesses are now actively involved in fostering a sustainable working environment around the globe. Besides, for all multinational, upholding global values and being socially responsible is the key to surviving in the international market. One of the organizations that promote global citizenship is Oxfam International. According to Oxfam, growth in altitude as well as values is based on empathy for others and respect for diversity. On the same perspective, skill development is concentrated upon conflict resolution and critical thinking. Oxfam international also views global citizens as those who are aware of the wider world. Moreover, a global citizen understands how the wider world operates and knows their position and role in the globe. Oxfam further maintains that a global citizen is one who values and respects the many cultures of the world. Nevertheless, a global citizen, in both action and thought, does not support social injustice and is willing to participate in actions directed to counter inequity. As a worldwide organization aimed at minimizing poverty levels and eradicating injustice, Oxfam emphasizes on centers for human rights and the respective elements that need to be fostered in order to secure a greater social justice around the globe. Global citizenship is a wide concept that does not have a generally agreed upon definition. Its definition is derived from the various fields of study and defined according to the discipline of interest. Nevertheless, the major values of global citizenship for any entity are awareness, responsibility and participation.

Evils of Monarchy and Society in the Works of Mark Twain Essay

The Evils of Monarchy and Society in the Works of Mark Twain      Ã‚  Ã‚   In the latter part of his life, Mark Twain developed a deep-rooted hatred for society.   His aphorisms often reflect this contempt: "Every one is a moon and has a dark side which he shows to no one" (Salwen n.pag.).   This disdain for humanity eventually seated itself in complete disapproval for what he called the "damned human race."   Twain's criticism for society appeared in many of his works, growing stronger and stronger as time passed.   Hand in hand with his distaste for society went his hatred for the upper class.   In each of his works, Twain creates a theme of appearance versus reality and ultimately brings out his harsh criticism of monarchies.   Through such royal criticism, Twain comments on American civilization, attacks society's ideals, and assaults commonly held beliefs.      Ã‚  Ã‚   The Prince and the Pauper has often been written off as just another children's book.   It is seen as Twain's first experience with historical fiction, which simply led into Twain's more famous work, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court.   However, Twain starts to show his disapproval of monarchies in this book.   Edward, the Prince of England, and a common beggar boy, Tom Canty, switch clothes and identities, throwing each into a social situation with which he is not familiar.   Through the stories of each boy, Twain brings out two themes that reflect his views on monarchy and society.   Underlying the adventures of Tom Canty is Twain's mockery of the idea that clothes determine a man's place in society.   As Twain once said, "Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence in society" ("Clothes" n.pag.).   Tom Canty assumes the role of King of Engl... ...n.   Boston: Twayne, 1988. Lynn, Kenneth S.   "Afterword" to The Prince and the Pauper. "Mark Twain Quotations - Clothes."   [Online] Available: <http://www.tarleton.edu/~schmidt/Clothes.html> (May 22, 1999) "Mark Twain Quotations - Monarchy."   [Online] Available: <http://www.tarleton.edu/~schmidt/Monarchy.html> (May 22, 1999) Salomon, Roger. B.   Twain and the Image of History.   Yale University, 1961.   Rpt. in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism, Vol. 48.   Detroit: Gale,   1993. Salwen, Peter.   "The Quotable Mark Twain."   [Online] Available:   <http://salwen.com/mtquotes.html> (May 4, 1999) Twain, Mark.   The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.   Tom Doherty, 1985. _____.   A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court.   New York: Penguin. _____.   The Prince and the Pauper.   New York: Penguin, 1964.

Analyzing The Advocate Essays -- Magazine Gay Lesbian Essays

Analyzing The Advocate The Advocate is a magazine designed to attract and arouse gay men, lesbian women and to a lesser extent bisexual and transgender people. The September 12, 2000 issue of The Advocate uses advertisements, news topics, popularly recognized celebrities as well as political and philosophical viewpoints that fit its target audience. The target audience for The Advocate is shown on its cover page as "The national gay & lesbian newsmagazine." Also notable is the fact that the majority of persons featured in the publication are not heterosexually oriented, which would be favorable to a non-heterosexual audience. Many articles have some reference to a lesbian or gay political, television, or musical celebrity. Some examples from the table of contents are, " Mary Cheney, Rhona Cameron, Jack Larson, Chris Isherwood and Stephen Gately" (The Advocate 3). This appeals to the large number of people who are attracted to anything that might reveal some delectable tidbit about a public figure. In this sense, The Advocate can appeal to straight, or heterosexual, people as well as the usual audience of gay and lesbian persons. T he main theme of The Advocate seems to be a mixture of news and political issues from around the world, especially those with importance to gay and lesbian people. For example, the main cover story is titled " The Dilemma of Mary Cheney" and is followed by, "Will the lesbian daughter of the GOP vice presidential candidate Dick Cheney be forced to choose between being true to her family and true to herself? " There is the question of whether Mr. Cheney would accept something that would discriminate against his daughter and what Mary Cheney would do in turn. This story has much current releva... ...with a cartoon bubble with the word "fag" written twelve times with the word "bitch" stuck in second to last, for contrast (notes from a blonde. 39). This unusual use of slang and profanity appeals to gay men that have been offended by Eminem as well as those who are attracted to his popularity. An advertisement that also makes use of non-heterosexual notoriety is for the "Rainbow Card" which features pictures of Martina Naratilova in front of a Gay Pride parade (Rainbow Card 31). Martina is somewhat of a gay icon because she publicly embraced her sexuality. These advertisements and articles are targeted specifically for the gay and lesbian audience. The political philosophy of The Advocate covers the wide spectrum of people who identify themselves as not heterosexual. Works Cited The Advocate: The national gay and lesbian newsmagazine. September 12, 2000.

SHIP OF THE HUNTED: A BLEND OF FACT AND FICTION :: essays research papers

Historical fiction is a type of genre that helps paint a more captivating and colourful picture of the past. It combines fact and fiction as it presents mostly fabricated characters set in a definite period of history. Ship of the Hunted, by Yehuda Elberg, defines this genre as it entwines the lives of a fictional family with historical facts and elements such as life in the Warsaw ghetto, hiding to survive, and the Brichah movement of Jews out of Poland. History has recorded that over half a million Jews were crowded into the Warsaw ghetto between October and November of 1940. The squalor, starvation, disease, exposure to cold, and the daily shootings claimed the lives of about 5, 000 to 6, 000 Jews each month. In Ship of the Hunted, the Heshl family struggles to survive this trend. Like so many others living in the ghetto, Golda and her son, Yossel, scavenge the blocks, looking for any items that can be smuggled out of the ghetto in exchange for food. After his father and older sister are deported, Yossel is confronted by Golda, who wants him to stop smuggling. â€Å" ‘This stuff buys food. We have to eat, Mama.’ ‘Yossel, you’re still a child. You know they shoot children for scavenging!’ ‘They shoot mothers for scavenging, too.’ ’’ (Elberg, 17) This conversation demonstrates the desperate measures taken by the Jews to obtain food. The raids in the ghetto also caused their numbers to dwindle. Daily, thousands of Jews were removed from the ghetto and transported to concentration camps. After surviving one such raid by hiding in a bunker, Golda surfaces to find out about another raid on a hospital. â€Å"Liquidated, floor by floor. On foot and by stretcher, they had been sent off – a man with an incision still open; an infant, newly born.† (Elberg, 23) These raids led to deportations, which eventually led to extermination. News spread, and those who refused to be led away to death took part in what would be one of the greatest periods in Jewish history. The Warsaw ghetto uprising began on April 19th of 1943, as the surviving inhabitants of the ghetto resisted the German troops and police who had come to deport them. This battle held out for 20 days till the Germans finally overpowered the lightly armed Jews. In t he novel, Golda is a witness to the uprising and its end.

The American Express Card

9-509-027 REV: APRIL 22, 2011 JOHN A. QUELCH JACQUIE LABATT The American Express Card Marketing is fully integrated into our overall strategy. Our largest investor, Warren Buffett, is very focused on brand health and customer metrics. — Kenneth I. Chenault In April 2008, Jud Linville, president and chief executive officer of U. S. Consumer Services at American Express Company, was preparing for a meeting with Ken Chenault, American Express’s chairman and chief executive officer since 2001, and Al Kelly, president of American Express Company.The purpose of the meeting was to discuss further growth prospects in the United States for the American Express consumer card business while maintaining the brand’s premium positioning. The performance of the American Express card, launched 50 years earlier in 1958, had been remarkable. By 2008, there were 52 million American Express cards in circulation in the U. S. , held by 41 million â€Å"cardmembers† (see Exhibit 1). American Express commanded nearly a 24% share of U. S. credit card payments. 1As Linville prepared for the meeting, he wondered whether he could continue to rely on the same business growth drivers that had served American Express well in the past. With the U. S. economy slipping into recession, the proliferation of cards in the market required American Express to deepen its consumer understanding to provide innovative, value-added products that would attract and retain cardmembers. Company Background The American Express Company was a leading global payments and travel company with revenue net of interest expense of $27. 7 billion in 2007, up 10% from 2006. American Express’s principal products and services included charge and credit card payment products and travel-related services offered to consumers and businesses around the world. American Express was the world’s largest issuer of charge and credit cards as measured by the annual value of purchases charged o n these cards. 3 Yet American Express maintained a â€Å"best-in-class† credit quality, reflecting in part the company’s traditional focus on the affluent segment, its expertise in evaluating the credit risk of individual consumers, and its ongoing commitment to investing in risk capabilities. In 2007, around 70% of American Express’s revenue net of interest expense and 85% of its pretax income from continuing operations5 was generated in the United States. The global diversity of the business included 86 million cards in force worldwide, more than 115 card-issuing or merchant-acquiring ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Professor John A. Quelch and Research Associate Jacquie Labatt prepared this case. HBS cases are developed solely as the basis for class discussion.Cases are not intended to serve as endorsements, sources of primary data, or illustrations of effective or ineffective ma nagement. Copyright  © 2008, 2011 President and Fellows of Harvard College. To order copies or request permission to reproduce materials, call 1-800-5457685, write Harvard Business School Publishing, Boston, MA 02163, or go to www. hbsp. harvard. edu/educators. This publication may not be digitized, photocopied, or otherwise reproduced, posted, or transmitted, without the permission of Harvard Business School..This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN 509-027 The American Express Card arrangements with banks and other institutions, and over 650 American Express network branded products. 6 Fortune magazine ranked American Express the â€Å"Most Admired† megabank/credit card company in its 2008 annual survey. 7 American Express’s roots date back to 1850, when Henry Wells, William Fargo, and John Butterfield founded an express deli very company.The very nature of handling and transporting customers’ assets depended on security and trust, core attributes that had remained at the heart of the company and brand. In the late 1800s, American Express introduced financial products such as money orders and Travelers Cheques. The company later expanded into the travel business to further support its Travelers Cheques customers who were increasingly going abroad. The First Card The first American Express card targeting the business traveler was launched in 1958. The decision to enter this new business â€Å"faced strong opposition within the company with senior leaders evenly divided on the issue. 8 The debate began when the Diners Club card was introduced in 1950. American Express recognized the card as a potential threat to the company as consumers began using this card as a substitute for Travelers Cheques. 9 Some argued that a charge card would cannibalize the Travelers Cheque business, while others believed competing cards would hurt those sales regardless. There was further concern that launching a card would upset the American Automobile Association (AAA), one of American Express’s largest distributors of Travelers Cheques. At the same time, AAA was known to be considering launching a card of its own.Finally, with the economy in recession, many executives argued that it was a risky time to be launching a charge card. Nevertheless, in December 1957, American Express president Ralph Reed decided to launch such a card without further delay, stating at the time: â€Å"All we have to sell is service. † When word of the card’s imminent launch leaked, the company was inundated with calls from potential applicants. Further, the American Hotel Association approached American Express regarding forming an alliance, which gave the company an immediate customer base of 150,000 cardmembers and 4,500 participating merchants. 0 By the official launch date of October 1, 1958, Am erican Express had already issued 250,000 cards at an annual fee of $6 each, $1 higher than the fee for a Diners Club card. The first American Express card11 was targeted at businessmen on expense accounts, offering them a convenient method of payment rather than a means of financing purchases. This American Express card was a charge card that required the user to pay off the balance monthly. It was not a credit card that offered the user the option of paying interest on the balance as if it were a cash loan.The Gold (1966), Corporate (1966), and Platinum (1984) cards followed despite concerns over cannibalizing the original American Express card. This hierarchy of cards with progressively higher annual fees and services offered business travelers the aspirational prospect of being invited to move up from Green to Gold to Platinum. (In 1999, American Express added an unadvertised, byinvitation-only product, the black Centurion card. Equipped with VIP benefits such as a personal conc ierge, the Centurion card was offered by invitation only to a small, elite group of Platinum card customers.Celebrities and the very rich clamored for the right to carry this new card. ) American Express launched its first credit card, Optima, in 1987. The Optima card was the first American Express card to allow customers to carry a balance and pay interest. It was marketed only as a â€Å"companion† card to existing American Express cardmembers. A downturn in the economy in 1991 resulted in unexpected losses as some Optima customers failed to make their payments.As a result, American Express deferred plans to expand its credit card business and tightened its existing 2 This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN The American Express Card 509-027 credit modeling programs and controls. In addition, American Express â€Å"card suppression,à ¢â‚¬  whereby merchants tried to dissuade consumers from using their American Express card, began with the 1991 â€Å"Boston Fee Party. † Boston estaurateurs were upset with what they viewed as American Express’s excessive discount rate, the percentage fee American Express charged merchants on consumer purchases made with American Express cards. This practice of not honoring the American Express card gained momentum and discouraged some consumers from using their American Express cards. Scale was viewed as a key competitive success factor in the payments industry; American Express considered its 16%—and falling—market share of the U. S. payments market in the early 1990s too low.With too few cards in circulation and too few merchants accepting the American Express card, American Express management faced a â€Å"chicken and egg† dilemma in trying to determine which aspect of the problem to address first. Turnaround Harvey Golub’s appointment as chairman and chief executive officer in 1993 set the stage for restoring health to the American Express business and brand. Golub became the â€Å"vocal guardian† of the American Express brand as he outlined his vision for the company: â€Å"To become the world’s most respected service brand. 12 American Express’s purpose was to manage, market, and promote the core attributes of the American Express brand, â€Å"trust, security, integrity, quality and customer service,† through educating employees, incorporating these attributes into card products and services, and reflecting them in all marketing communications. Future chief executive officer Ken Chenault, who was then running the card business, laid down three guiding principles: to provide superior value to customers, to achieve best-in-class economics, and to direct all activities to support the American Express brand.In addition, Golub established long-term goals as the guiding metrics for the b usiness: earnings per share growth of 12%–15% per year, revenue growth of at least 8% per year, and return on equity of 18%–20% on average over time. With a business strategy built on the company’s brand, Golub refocused American Express on the card business. Starting in 1981, American Express had purchased brokerage and financial advisory firms in an effort to become a â€Å"financial supermarket. † This strategy proved to be a distraction.By 1993, Golub had divested American Express of most of its non-core businesses. Concurrently, the U. S. card business underwent a significant review under the leadership of Chenault. He identified three issues: Costs were too high compared to American Express’s most efficient competitors; the division was too slow to change and adapt, particularly in introducing new products; and the organization was not sufficiently flexible to meet the needs of specific, more targeted consumer segments. 13 By 1995, signs of a turnaround were evident in the American Express card business.New card products began to appear with increased frequency, including proprietary and co-branded cards. A co-branding strategy was initially opposed by branding purists who argued that the American Express brand was too precious to be shared with a partner. This had led American Express to turn down an opportunity to co-brand air-miles-earning AAdvantage credit cards with American Airlines in the mid-1980s. The company came to regret this decision as American Airlines and, later, United Airlines both launched co-branded cards with Visa and MasterCard.The launches of the co-branded Hilton Optima card (1995) and the Delta SkyMiles American Express card (1996) marked the company’s new willingness to partner with other strong brands. In future years, agreements were also struck with Costco, Starwood, and JetBlue. In 1996, Golub decided to open the American Express network and invited other banks and institutions to is sue cards on its network. Doing business with other card issuers that were often competitors was a significant shift for the company. But, by carefully choosing the right partners who 3This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN 509-027 The American Express Card would tailor American Express products for their high-spending customers, the company could efficiently supplement its own efforts to grow the number of cards-in-force, cardmember spending, and merchant acceptance. The Global Network Services (GNS) division was formed in 1997 to build these relationships.By 2007, there were more than 750 different American Express cards (including cards co-branded with merchants and banks) available around the world. Exhibit 2 lists the principal American Express card offerings and features in the United States as of 2008. In evaluating prospective produc t offerings, Linville asked whether the company was, first, â€Å"removing friction† from the system— making everyday life easier in some way for consumers such as with a â€Å"contactless† card—and, second, â€Å"providing special recognition,† or badge value, to cardmembers.Linville sought to make the American Express brand available more broadly while ensuring that it retained its premium status. Organization As of 2007, the company was organized into two major customer groups: Global Consumer Services and Global Business-to-Business Services. The Global Consumer group contributed 67% of the company’s revenues net of interest expense and 52% of its income from continuing operations. 14 Its range of products and services included charge and credit card products for consumers and small businesses worldwide, consumer travel services, and prepaid, stored value products such as Travelers Cheques and Gift Cards.Business-to-Business Services con tributed 29% and 38%, respectively, to the company’s revenue and income, and offered business travel, corporate cards, expense management products and services, network services, and merchant acquisition and processing for the company’s network partners and proprietary payments businesses. (See Exhibit 3 for a breakdown of company revenues by operating group and division, and see Exhibit 4 for income statement data on the company’s U. S. card business. ) U. S. Payments Industry Payment SystemsAmerican Express competed against all forms of payments for consumer purchases, a market that exceeded $7 trillion in the U. S. in 2008. 15 Payments could be divided into three broad categories: paper-based payments (checks, cash, money orders, official checks, Travelers Cheques); card-based payments (credit, debit, prepaid, electronic benefits transfer); and electronic-based payments (preauthorized and remote). Consumers were shifting from paper-based payments toward cards and electronic methods (see Table A).Converting even a small portion of the paper market to American Express payments represented a big opportunity. Many of these transactions were cash/check-based because either they were low-value transactions (at mom-and-pop stores) or high-value captive transactions where there was little incentive for the merchant (for example, a utility company or apartment landlord) to accept charge/credit cards and absorb the discount fees charged for the service. American Express estimated that around 25% of the cash/check segment represented high-value transactions such as car purchases, tuition fees, and rent/mortgage payments. This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN The American Express Card 509-027 Credit and Debit Credit cards held a leadership 26% share of the payments market and had grown 45% in dollar terms since the year 2001. Debit cards, which were issued by banks and allowed a purchase payment to be deducted immediately from the cardholder’s bank account, held a 14% share of the payments market and had grown 162% over this same period.Since American Express was not a bank, it did not offer debit cards. The average purchase per debit card in the U. S. was $39 compared to $87 per credit card purchase. 16 While debit card transactions were projected to exceed credit card transactions by 2011, the average purchase per credit card transaction was expected to remain higher. 17 Table A U. S. Consumer Purchases by Payment Type—2006 Method of Payment Paper Checks Cash Other $3,365 1807 1439 119 Cards Credit Cards Debit Cards Other Source: % Change Versus Previous Five Years Market Share -4 % -19 +23 -3 47% 25 20 2 3,048 1,871 ,010 167 +77 +45 +162 +209 43 26 14 3 751 443 307 +177 +136 +270 10 6 4 7,165 Electronic Preauthorized Remote Total Consumer Purchases (billions) +30 100 Adapted from The Nilson Report, Issue 890, October 2007. The average American adult carried 4. 4 payment cards in his/her wallet, be they debit, credit, and/or charge cards. 18 Competitors in the card payments business were either card networks that processed transactions (Visa, MasterCard), card issuers (primarily banks), or organizations that both issued cards and processed transactions (American Express, Discover Financial Services).Charge cards for specific retail chains were declining in importance. American Express aimed to increase its â€Å"share of wallet† by making American Express the payment card of choice for all transactions. This was especially important, as recent evidence showed the average number of cards per wallet falling rather than increasing; 20% of consumers shed payment products in 2007 versus 16% in 2004. 19 Further, only 31% of consumers were adding new payment products to their wallets, a drop from 56% three years earlier. 0 Many American consumer s â€Å"compartmentalized† their spending, using different cards for different types of payments. For example, some long-standing American Express members still used the American Express card just for travel and entertainment, and used a Visa or MasterCard credit card for other purchases. 5 This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN 509-027 The American Express Card Competitive Card NetworksPayment networks operated under two business models. â€Å"Open-loop† payment networks, as employed by Visa and MasterCard, were multiparty. Processing a payment typically involved connecting two financial institutions: one that issued the card (issuer) and one that serviced the merchant (acquirer). The open-loop network managed the information and transfer of value between the two banks. In a â€Å"closed-loop† network, as used by Americ an Express and Discover, the network â€Å"owned† the relationship with both the cardholder and the merchant.Leading payment networks are listed in Table B. Credit Card Networks—U. S. Market Share 2007 Table B Share of Credit Card Purchases Visa MasterCard American Express Discover Source: Share of Credit Card Transactions 42. 2% 28. 7 23. 8 5. 3 43. 8% 30. 5 18. 3 7. 4 Adapted from The Nilson Report, Issue 889, 2007. Visa, Inc. Visa operated the world’s largest retail electronics open-loop payment network. Visa provided financial institutions, their primary customers, with product platforms, including consumer credit, debit, prepaid, and commercial payments (see Table C).Visa operated a data-processing network that transferred transaction data and managed payment flow between issuers and acquirers. Visa generated revenue primarily from financial institutions based on fees calculated on the dollar volume of payment activity on Visa-branded cards (service fees) a nd from fees charged for providing transaction processing (data-processing fees). In 2007, Visa USA generated 82% of its gross operating revenue from service and processing fees combined. 21 U. S. Results for Visa, Inc. , Annual Product Performance (June 30, 2007) Table C Payment TypeConsumer Credit Consumer Debit Commercial and Other Total Payments Volume Cash Volumea Total Volume Total Transactions (in millions) Source: Payment Volume (billions) Share of Payment Volume by Payment Type $ 624 637 188 34% 35 10 1,449 79 382 1,831 21 100% 25,942 Adapted from Visa, Inc. , Form 10-K, December 2007. a Cash volume includes cash access transactions, balance transfers, and convenience check transactions associated with Visa. 6 This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012.For the exclusive use of Y. SUN The American Express Card 509-027 Visa went public on March 18, 2008, raising $19 bill ion in the world’s second-largest initial public offering (IPO). 22 The IPO created a cultural and business challenge: Visa had to shift its focus from delivering benefits to its partner banks toward maximizing profits for long-term shareholder value. 23 As stated in Visa’s 10-K report, â€Å"Many of our employees have limited experience operating in a profit-maximizing business environment. †24 Further, the proceeds of the IPO bought out the interests of the partner banks.As a result, the banks were no longer Visa’s partners and co-owners but were now Visa’s customers. MasterCard MasterCard (MC), which successfully went public in 2006, was a global payment solutions company that was similar to Visa’s open-loop network. MC’s primary sources of revenue were transaction service fees, data-processing fees, and assessments on gross dollar use (purchases, cash disbursements, balance transfers) of MC-based cards. In 2007, transaction fees a nd assessments represented approximately 74% and 26%, respectively, of the company’s net revenues. 5 Discover Financial Services Discover Financial Services (DFS) was the consumer credit and financial services division of Morgan Stanley until it was spun off to shareholders as an independent closed-loop payments network company in July 2007. Founded in 1986, DFS was the only issuer whose wholly-owned network operations included both debit and credit card capability. 26 DFS also offered a range of banking products, such as personal and student loans, certificates of deposit, and money market accounts. DFS’s primary source of revenue in its U. S. ard business was interest income earned on revolving cardmember balances. Other sources of revenue included late-payment, over-the-limit, and merchant discount fees. Like American Express, the company offered a rewards program to cardholders; under the Discover program, card users earned a cash-back discount on the value of thei r transactions. Competitive Card Issuers Competitive card issuers (largely banks) issued credit and debit cards, predominantly under the Visa and MasterCard brands, and were responsible for the pricing, positioning, and marketing of their co-branded cards.The top three banks accounted for more than 60% of outstanding bank-issued credit card purchases, as indicated in Table D. Card issuers competed on the basis of card features and quality of service, including rewards, number of cards issued and quality of users’ credit and spending, number of establishments accepting the card, success of target marketing and promotional campaigns, and the ability of the issuer to manage credit and interest rate risks through economic cycles. The primary revenue source for bank issuers was interest income earned on outstanding credit card balances.They acquired new cardholders by cross-selling cards to the customers of their retail branch networks and, increasingly, targeted high-spending con sumers, offering premium cards with enhanced services such as larger lines of credit, cash rebates, lower interest rates, and co-brand benefits with airline frequent-flyer programs. 7 This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN 509-027 The American Express Card Table D U. S. Credit Card Volumes by Card Issuer in 2007 Volume of Purchases billions) American Expressa JP Morgan Chase Bank of America Citigroup Capital One Discovera U. S. Bank HSBC Wells Fargo GE Money Other Sources: $459 317 263 222 106 90 65 41 37 27 87 Adapted from The Nilson Report, Issue 896, February 2008, except for American Express (American Express Annual Report 2007). a Do not include third-party business. Emerging Payment Networks New entrants offering nontraditional, convenient, technology-based payment methods were growing in number and importance. It was estimated that cr edit and debit cards generated approximately $200 billion in purchase volume from online bill payments in 2006. 7 New payment methods included online â€Å"aggregator† networks, such as PayPal and Google Checkout, and telecom providers that leveraged new technologies and customers’ existing charge and credit card relationships to create mobile payment solutions where the plastic card would not need to be presented to the merchant. PayPal used encryption software to allow consumers to make financial transfers between computers. 28 Similarly, Google Checkout, which accepted and processed existing payment methods such as American Express, Visa, and MasterCard, aimed to offer buyers a fast, safe, and convenient purchase experience.American Express Card Business Model The American Express â€Å"spend-centric† business model (see Exhibit 4) depended on increased cardmember spending. American Express’s primary source of income was â€Å"discount revenue,† revenue earned from fees charged to merchants for processing purchases made using an American Express card. The fee charged represented a percentage of the dollar value of these transactions. In 2007, discount revenue and card fees accounted for more than 70% of U. S. Card Services’ revenue net of interest expense (see Exhibit 5).The average American Express cardmember charged more each year than the average Visa or MasterCard credit card user. In 2007, the annual average purchase volume per American Express card of $8,360 in the U. S. was substantially higher than that for Visa ($2,470/card) or MasterCard ($1,960/card). 29 By accepting American Express cards, merchants benefited from attracting as patrons the higher-spending American Express consumer. As a result, American Express could justify a premium discount rate from merchants over its competitors.American Express invested this price premium in information systems that studied the purchase habits and inclinations of c ardmembers. These insights led to the development of targeted 8 This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN The American Express Card 509-027 promotions, connecting merchants with interested American Express cardmembers who were in turn motivated to spend even more on their American Express cards.In this way, the spend-centric model became a virtuous cycle, benefiting cardmember, merchant, and company alike. From the outset, American Express targeted the affluent, high-spending consumer. â€Å"High-wallet† consumers were defined by American Express in 2007 as those who spent more than $30,000 annually using cards. Affluent consumers represented roughly 10% of card users but accounted for half of U. S. charge/credit card consumer spending. 30 American Express’s target consumer typically liked to travel, liked to be different, and lik ed special access to exclusive experiences.For many years the American Express consumer skewed slightly toward affluent, older men, a reflection of the company’s early targeting of the male business traveler. The company had successfully increased American Express brand penetration of affluent younger and female consumers. Unlike its transaction-oriented competitors, Visa and MasterCard, the American Express card always emphasized an aspirational lifestyle. An early example was the 1985 launch of Departures magazine for Platinum cardmembers who were active, affluent consumers.The Departures editor defined luxury not as status and privilege but in terms of quality and authenticity. Membership in a Lifestyle From the outset, American Express executives emphasized that the company sold not just a card but a relationship. The relationship involved a â€Å"membership† in which the company committed to providing the member with the following: Access (premium and exclusive ac cess and enhanced experiences for cardmembers), Advocacy (in merchant disputes, for example), Accountability (privacy of information, fairness in billing), and Affiliation (a sense of belonging to a community).Every American Express charge card included the â€Å"Member Since† designation on the front followed by the year the consumer became an American Express cardmember. To underscore the membership status of American Express consumers, the company in 1991 launched the Membership Miles program to motivate customer sign-ups, customer retention, and more frequent card usage. At launch, the Membership Miles program gave cardmembers one point for every dollar charged on the card and the ability to redeem points with seven airlines. The program was renamed Membership Rewards (MR) in 1995.Spending on American Express cards linked to MR averaged four times higher than that on cards without rewards activity. 31 Seventy percent of cardmembers used the MR program. Cardmembers enrolle d in the program were found to be lower credit risks as well as more profitable. 32 The company’s â€Å"data-mining† capabilities helped shape the MR program into an industry-leading loyalty program. For these reasons, American Express’s marketing spending on MR had grown at a compound annual growth rate of 24% since 2001, compared to an average 12% increase in marketing and promotion spending. 33 The MR program in the U.S. had more than 160 redemption partners34 and featured 29 airlines among its 250 merchandise brands. Analytics not only helped to determine whom to reach and with what offer, but also how rewards influenced loyalty. In 2005, the MR analytics team analyzed which members were more likely to redeem, in which categories, how many points they would redeem, and at what cost to the company. This research enabled American Express to craft a more appealing mix of reward offers, to predict more accurately the volume of demand for particular offers, and t o negotiate better deals with suppliers.Innovations such as â€Å"First Collection,† a luxury tier exclusively for U. S. Platinum and Centurion cardmembers that included redemption partners such as Tiffany and Lamborghini, and â€Å"Bonus Points Mall,† an online gateway to more than 100 retailers, were 9 This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN 509-027 The American Express Card examples of how American Express increasingly tried to match the nature and the level of rewards to what its members sought and expected.Data-Based Marketing As a card issuer and network provider, American Express had direct relationships with both its cardmembers and its merchants. â€Å"Data-based marketing† became a competitive advantage at American Express. Analyses of cardmember purchases enabled American Express to develop offers that boosted spending with particular groups of merchants. Open-loop competitors Visa and MasterCard could not match American Express’s data-driven capabilities because they controlled access to either the cardholder or the merchant data, not both.The purpose of data-based marketing was to develop insights and offers that would match members’ interests, drive charge volume, and increase loyalty to American Express. 35 The company did not use individual consumer data for marketing purposes but rather clustered cardholders into segments based on personal, financial, and lifestyle characteristics evident in the patterns of their transactions. Cardmember clusters might have greater than average spending in, for example, entertainment, dining, home, fashion, electronics, or automobiles.Cardmembers whose spending showed them to be more â€Å"passionate† about their homes might then receive offers from local homeimprovement retailers. The company also researched correlations across spending categories to identify potential partnerships. For example, research indicated that affluent consumers who owned at least one luxury automobile brand had a strong affinity not only to other luxury brands but also to consumer electronics brands, an above-average tendency to engage in skiing and antiquing, and a strong likelihood of owning a second, more practical vehicle.Data mining also enabled American Express executives to predict how spending behavior evolved through various â€Å"life stages† and increasing levels of affluence. For example, the company’s predictive model indicated that non-affluent cardmembers who made a single luxury purchase, such as a first-class airline ticket, were three times as likely to become affluent. Card upgrade offers distributed following a cardmember’s first luxury charge purchase resulted in response rates over 50% above normal. 36 Emerging ChallengesBy 2005, competitors had begun to imitate American Express’ s lifestyle platform with premium product offerings (e. g. , Visa Signature, MasterCard World Elite), exclusive experiential rewards (e. g. , MasterCard’s Unique Experiences program), and lifestyle advertising. Visa’s â€Å"Life Takes Visa† advertising campaign emphasized the â€Å"brand’s promise to deliver innovative products and services that empower cardholders to experience life and business their way and on their terms. †37 The quality of a card’s rewards program was increasingly important to higher-spending consumers.No longer did they evaluate rewards programs just on ease of earning and redeeming points. The variety and frequency of unique rewards (such as backstage access at a concert) were more and more critical. American Express had an edge over Visa and MasterCard owing to its cumulative expertise in arranging special events, but bidding wars for such opportunities were increasingly common. While continuing to emphasize relation ship and lifestyle over transaction, American Express had to broaden its merchant network to maintain its share of consumer spending.In 1990, 64% of 10 This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN The American Express Card 509-027 American Express U. S. billings came from the travel and entertainment (T&E) sectors and 36% came from retail and other sectors. 38 This reflected the company’s belief that spending could be segmented into â€Å"business† and â€Å"personal. † American Express’s focus on T&E concerned Chenault and Kelly.They believed that, in the interests of scale, American Express had to expand its presence in the â€Å"everyday† retail market. This change in strategy was opposed initially, partly because it would necessitate launching more new products and, in the eyes of some traditionalists, weaken the brand. However, by 2007 the sources of cardmember spending had more than reversed, with everyday retail spending representing more than 69% of U. S. American Express card billings. 39 Marketing Communications Advertising CampaignsAmerican Express had a long history of successful, distinctive advertising that consistently stressed prestige, inviting consumers to join an exclusive club of cardmembers. One of the first TV campaigns, â€Å"For People Who Travel† (1969–1974), demonstrated how the American Express card is â€Å"All You Need† for your travel and entertainment needs. This was replaced by the â€Å"Do You Know Me? † campaign, which that ran for more than a decade, produced 125 commercials, and marked the beginning of the company’s strategy of using famous American Express â€Å"members† to sell cards to consumers. Do You Know Me? † used a variety of celebrities to highlight the special treatment and recognition cardmembers enjoy, the premise being that people with famous names don’t always have equally famous faces; anyone who carried an American Express card would be immediately identified as someone of note. In 1987, American Express premiered the â€Å"Membership Has Its Privileges† campaign, which highlighted the company’s superior service and showed how the card â€Å"not only facilitated the variety and enjoyment of a cardmember’s lifestyle, but that membership is also invaluable when emergencies arise. 40 To complement this television campaign, the â€Å"Portraits† print campaign was launched. Portraits underscored the message that â€Å"superior customer service, security, and convenience† were important American Express qualities that cardmembers relied on. Shot by celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz, â€Å"Portraits† focused on a unique group of high-profile cardmembers. The company’s first global advertising campaign, â€Å"Do Mo re,† was launched in 1996 and emphasized brand attributes such as trust, customer focus, travel relevance, and financial insight.A variety of â€Å"product† commercials highlighted individual card benefits such as no preset spending, purchase protection, and global assist, while talent-driven â€Å"stories,† such as Tiger Woods’s â€Å"Manhattan† commercial in which he plays the world’s toughest â€Å"island† course—Manhattan—were intended to drive emotional relevance. In an effort to encourage everyday usage of the card, the â€Å"Do More† campaign introduced a series of ads showing comedian Jerry Seinfeld using the American Express Card in supermarkets and drugstores. In 2004, a new global campaign with the tagline â€Å"My Life. My Card. featured snapshots of the lives of celebrities, including Robert DeNiro, Tiger Woods, and Ellen DeGeneres. The campaign portrayed American Express cardmembers as exceptional pe ople no matter where they lived or what they did. The campaign was also the first to support both American Express’s proprietary and network businesses. John Hayes, American Express’s chief marketing officer, believed that the company’s history of tastefully portraying the rich and famous had provided it with an edge in attracting A-list talent. DeGeneres purportedly pointed to Seinfeld’s ads before signing on to do her own. 1 11 This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN 509-027 The American Express Card American Express launched its most recent campaign, â€Å"Are You A Cardmember? ,† in 2007. Hayes explained: â€Å"The new campaign continues the tradition of defining the value of belonging to the American Express community by showcasing some of our most exceptional cardmembers and the ways in which membersh ip works for them.But our latest campaign not only reaffirms for existing members why they belong, it also calls on nonmembers to consider becoming a cardmember. †42 See Exhibit 6 for a summary of American Express’s U. S. card advertising campaigns. Expenditures The company’s mix of marketing spending had changed to reflect the growing importance of targeted communication over mass mailings and the emergence of the digital world. Over time, spending on direct mail, while still large, had decreased along with spending on television advertising.Event/experiential marketing and Internet spending had both grown. American Express used direct marketing both to acquire new customers and to motivate existing members to upgrade. Traditionally, American Express sought new customer applications from outbound telemarketing, â€Å"Take Ones† (applications placed in restaurants and other retail establishments), and direct-mail efforts. By 2008, only 40% of successful ne w applicants still came from direct-mail solicitations and response rates had slipped well below 1%.By contrast, a significant portion of applications came from new channels such as the Internet, co-branded partner channels, and consumer-initiated phone calls to American Express customer service. The American Express website had become one of the company’s largest sources of new member applications. It allowed the company to leverage its datamining expertise to provide real-time consumer rewards and offers. The Web simplified the card selection/application process by guiding the applicant through card choices.Based on the applicant’s stated card feature priorities (fees, rewards, payment terms), the American Express website provided card product comparisons and recommended the most appropriate card options from American Express’s portfolio. The growing importance of the digital world was reflected in the company’s shift in media spending, as shown in Tabl e E. American Express Company—U. S. Card Media Spending Table E Share of Media Spend 2003 Media Type Online Share of Media Spend 2007 7% Television 19% 48 57 14 10 Print 23 13 Radio 2 Non Traditional Source: Mediaa Company records. a Non Traditional Media includes billboards, transit, cinema, and other out-of-home media Investing in the website reduced American Express’s costs and built brand presence and prestige. By 2008, 38% of American Express applications, payments, and reward redemptions had migrated to the Web at cost rates 53%, 84%, and 86% lower, respectively, than offline. 43 The Internet allowed the company to attract new customers faster (one application every eight seconds) and more 12This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN The American Express Card 509-027 economically. The website, serving as a virtual service cen ter around the clock, increased the frequency with which the company was in contact with its customers, making it a powerful marketing channel. Claiming the americanexpress. com site â€Å"gets more traffic than the Wall Street Journal online,† the company noted that its members used the Web primarily for checking statements and cashing in rewards.With more than 50% of American Express payments left to migrate online, upside opportunity existed for further cost savings and deeper relationships with customers. Bank and Merchant Partners As of 2008, American Express obtained customers in two ways: through direct company solicitations and communications that resulted in consumers being issued proprietary American Express cards; and through third-party financial institutions that solicited their customers to sign up for American Express cards through them, a business managed by the company’s Global Network Services (GNS) division.Bank Partners American Express’s GNS business was set up in 1997 to build partnerships with banks and other institutions to issue American Express–branded products. GNS products were designed to help issuers develop products for their highest-spending, most affluent customers and to support the value of American Express card acceptance with merchants. GNS enabled American Express to broaden its cardmember base internationally at relatively low cost. By 2008, GNS had over 120 partners in more than 125 markets and accounted for nearly 25% of American Express’s overall cardsin-force.American Express particularly wanted to help each bank design card products for their highspending, affluent private banking clientele, and to benefit from new distribution channels that included each bank’s website, direct-mail capabilities, and retail branch network. For their part, the banks were interested in partnering with American Express because of its superior marketing expertise as a card issuer and the higher-s pending profile of American Express cardmembers. Merchants stood to benefit from more American Express cards in circulation.For American Express, expanding the GNS business required little capital; the banks owned the receivables and therefore absorbed the consumer credit risk. While consumers could choose between American Express proprietary cards and those issued under GNS partnerships, cannibalization of direct sales appeared to be minimal. While GNS began building a healthy international business, it was effectively barred from doing business in the U. S. by Visa and MasterCard’s policies preventing their U. S. member banks from issuing other card brands. In 1998, the U.S. Department of Justice filed suit against Visa, MasterCard, and eight of their member banks, charging anticompetitive practices. The suit charged that Visa and MasterCard prohibited their U. S. partner banks from issuing American Express–branded cards on the American Express network. Discover card s were affected similarly. The legal battle was resolved in 2004 when the U. S. Supreme Court let stand a court ruling that Visa and MasterCard had violated antitrust laws. Visa settled for $2. 25 billion. MasterCard later settled for $1. 5 billion.American Express soon signed Network Card License Arrangements (NCLs) to issue American Express–branded cards with seven leading U. S. banks. MBNA was the first, followed by Citibank, Barclaycard U. S. , USAA, GE Money, HSBC, and Bank of America. Though the banks were licensed to issue American Express–branded cards, American Express owned the relationships with merchants. 13 This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y.SUN 509-027 The American Express Card This meant that GNS earned discount revenue from both the bank issuer and the merchant acquirer, a sum that represented roughly one-third o f total GNS revenues. This design feature underscored the importance of the continued focus on the high-spend segment. American Express developed strong account-management teams to manage the relationships with these major banks. Two major banks that had not yet signed on to issue American Express cards were JP Morgan Chase and Capital One. Merchant Partners In addition to U. S. anks, American Express depended on relationships with merchant partners, seeking always to expand its merchant coverage. These relationships were managed by the Merchant Services Group. Despite American Express’s premium discount rate, American Express believed that merchant coverage was not a function of price alone; if it were, Kmart and Walmart, for example, would not have chosen to accept American Express. Further, the Discover card discount rate was less than American Express’s yet Discover had a much lower merchant penetration. (See Table F for fees paid in 2005 by U. S. erchants to accep t card payments. ) American Express account managers and third-party sales organizations aimed to convince merchants of two benefits to offset American Express’s higher discount rate: that American Express cardmembers would spend more with them than with competitive cardholders and that American Express data mining could target promotional offers that would drive business their way. To persuade reluctant merchants to sign up, the Merchant Services Group might target members who were likely shoppers at a new merchant with double points promotions for an inaugural period.Since 2000, American Express increased merchant acceptance of its cards in many categories, especially quick-serve restaurants, mass transit, and health care. American Express card acceptance also increased in industries where cash, checks, or bank transfers were the predominant forms of payment, including apartment rentals, private jet travel, and destination clubs. By 2008, the American Express card was accep ted at millions of merchants in the U. S.. Management estimated that U. S. ocations where the American Express card was accepted covered more than 90% of American Express cardmembers’ general-purpose charge and credit card spending. 44 Table F Fees Paid by U. S. Merchants to Accept Card Payments—2005 Payment Card Brand Visa/MasterCard Credit Cards Visa/MasterCard Debit Cards American Express Discover Source: Fees Paid (billions) Weighted Averagea $25. 13 9. 76 8. 51 1. 46 2. 19% 1. 75 2. 41 1. 76 Adapted from The Nilson Report, Number 862, August 2006. a Fees vary according to merchant category, volume, and type of card. ConclusionBy the spring of 2008, American Express was strategically focused on the payments and travel businesses, having sold off the last of its banking interests. Michael O’Neill, senior vice president of corporate affairs and communications, explained this transformation: â€Å"We narrowed the business and broadened the brand. † Warre n Buffett, who was the company’s largest shareholder, described 14 This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN The American Express Card 509-027American Express’s â€Å"powerful world-wide brand† as â€Å"an enduring moat that protects excellent returns on invested capital†45 and Chenault as one of the â€Å"giant-company managers whom I greatly admire. †46 In March 2008, Barron’s named Chenault as one of â€Å"The World’s Best CEOs† for having â€Å"positioned American Express well to withstand turbulence. He hasn’t compromised credit standards to gain new cardholders, nor has he cut back on marketing spending to prop up earnings. His loss rates on cards remain among the industry’s best. †47 In the second half of 2007, a U. S. housing downturn and credit crunch slowed U . S. economic growth.American Express issued a profit warning in early 2008. Chenault explained that the slowdown in cardmember spending that had come on suddenly in December 2007 was broad-based and was expected to continue into 2008. â€Å"Now we’ve been through slowing economies before, but none of us can recall such a dramatic drop over such a short time frame, except for the event-driven decline of 9/11. †48 Past-due loans and write-offs also rose, especially in parts of the U. S. that had experienced a housing price bubble. However, superior risk management and credit controls at American Express meant that it was less affected than competitors. 9 It was in this context that Jud Linville prepared for his meeting with Ken Chenault and Al Kelly. How could the American Express consumer card business continue its growth while maintaining the company’s premium positioning? Were there opportunities for his organization to serve U. S. consumers and merchants in n ew ways while continuing to turn in the profits that shareholders had come to expect? 15 This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN 509-027 The American Express CardExhibit 1 American Express Card Business Statistics: 2006–2007 Years Ended December 31 (billions, except percentages and where indicated) 2007 2006 Card billed businessa United States Outside the United States $459. 3 188. 0 $406. 8 154. 7 $647. 3 $561. 5 52. 3 34. 1 48. 1 29. 9 86. 4 78. 0 40. 9 29. 2 37. 1 25. 4 70. 1 62. 5 Total b Total cards-in-force (millions) United States Outside the United States Total Basic cards-in-force (millions) b United States Outside the United States Total Average discount ratec Average basic cardmember spending (dollars)d Average fee per card (dollars) d Source: 2. 56% $12,106 32 2. 57% $11,201 $32 Company documents. a Card billed business inc ludes activities (including cash advances) related to proprietary cards, cards issued under network partnership agreements, and certain insurance fees charged on proprietary cards. Card billed business is reflected in the United States or outside the United States based on where the cardmember is domiciled. b The number of cards that are issued and outstanding. Proprietary basic consumer cards-in-force includes basic cards issued to the primary account owner (â€Å"cardmember†) and does not include additional supplemental cards issued on that account.Proprietary basic small business and corporate cards-in-force include basic and supplemental cards issued to employee cardmembers. Non-proprietary basic cards-inforce includes all cards that are issued and outstanding under network partnership agreements. c Designed to approximate merchant pricing, the percentage of billed business (both proprietary and Global Network Services) retained by the Company from merchants it acquires, prior to payments to third parties unrelated to merchant acceptance. d Average basic cardmember spending and average fee per card are computed from proprietary card ctivities only. 16 This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN The American Express Card Exhibit 2 509-027 Selected American Express U. S. Charge and Credit Card Products: 2008 CARD TYPE SELECTED FEATURES AND BENEFITS CHARGE CARDS Green (1958) Gold(1966) —Preferred Rewards Gold (2002) —Rewards Plus Gold (1994) Platinum (1984) Centurion (1999) One from American Express (2005) 1% of purchases deposited to high yield savings account CREDIT CARDSBlue (1999) —Blue (1999) —Blue Cash (2003) —Blue Sky (2005) —Blue for Students (2001) Optima (1987) —Optima Platinum (1997) City Rewards —In New York City (2004) —In Los Angeles (2005) —In Chicago (2005) Clear (2005) No annual fee, flexibility to pay over time, free additional cards No annual fee, earn up to 5% cash back, unlimited cash rewards No annual fee, earn points redeemable on airline, hotel or cruise services. No annual fee, flexibility to pay over time, Membership Rewards No annual fee, transfer balances for free, Membership Rewards No annual fee, earn Inside points to at, drink and play in New York No annual fee, earn Inside points to eat, drink and play in L. A. No annual fee, earn Inside points to eat, drink and play in Chicago. No fees of any kind, automatic rewards, flexibility to pay over time PARTNER CARDS Airlines —Gold Delta Sky Miles (1996) —Platinum Delta Sky Miles (2002) —JetBlue Card (2005) Hotels —Starwood Preferred (2001) —Hilton HHonors (1995) Costco—True Earnings Card (2004) Lifestyle Cards —The Knot (2005) —The Nest (2005) Earn Sky Miles on every dollar spent, earn double m iles on some purchases Earn Sky Miles, earn 1 companion ticket each yearEarn points towards JetBlue flights Earn points towards free hotel stays, upgrades, even flights Earn HHonors points on every purchase Earn cash back on purchases Membership Rewards, no annual fee, get special offers from The Knot Membership Rewards, no annual fee, get special offers from The Nest FOR CORPORATE CLIENTS American Express Corporate Cards (1966) Business ExtrAA Corporate Card (2003) Comprehensive reporting to track spending and increase compliance Savings through airfare rebates, free travel awards FOR SMALL BUSINESS Business Gold Rewards (2005) Business Platinum Card (1995) Plum (2006)Starwood Preferred Guest Business Credit Card (2001) Business Cash Rebate Credit Card (2003) Source: Membership Rewards, no limit, year-end summary Membership Rewards, access to special events Membership Rewards, access to special events, 5 free additional cards Airport Club access, 24 hour concierge service, by Invit ation Only events Save 3-25% on business expenses at selected partners (e. g. : FedEx, Delta) Access to airport lounges, professional office space, personal concierge Trade terms, pay within 10 days, get 2% off or defer payment Free awards nights at Starwood Hotels, awards flights on over 30 airlines Earn 2. % on all purchases and up to 5% for certain business purchases. Company documents. 17 This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN 509-027 The American Express Card Exhibit 3 Source: American Express Company Overview: 2007 Company records. 18 This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN The American Express Card Exhibit 4 509-027American Express: Spend-Centric Model The American Express spend-centric busines s model focused primarily on generating revenues by driving spending on its cards, and secondarily finance charges and fees, allowing the company to grow market share in the payments industry. Source: Company documents. 19 This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN 509-027 The American Express Card Exhibit 5 American Express U. S. Card Services—Selected Income Statement Data Year Ended December 31 (millions)Revenues Discount revenue, net card fees and othera Cardmember lending revenueb Securitization income Excess spread, net Servicing fees Gains on sales from securitizations Securitization income, net:c 2007 2006 $10,435 4,762 $9,421 3,434 1,025 425 57 1,055 407 27 $ 1,507 $ 1,489 Total revenues Interest expense Cardmember lending Charge card and other $16,704 $14,344 1,518 964 957 767 Revenue, Net of Interest Expense $14,222 $12,620 Exp enses Marketing, promotion, rewards and cardmember services Human resources and other operating expenses Total Provisions for lossesd Pretax segment income Income provision 5,140 3,354 $ 8,494 $ 2,998 $ 2,730 $ 907 $ 4,445 3,227 $ 7,672 $ 1,625 3,323 $ 1,171 Segment Income $ 1,823 $ 2,152 Source: American Express Company Annual Report 2007, p. 53. a Discount Revenue represents revenue earned from fees charged to merchants with whom the company has entered into a card acceptance agreement for processing cardmember transactions. b Cardmember Lending Revenue represents the outstanding amount due from cardmembers for charges made on their American Express credit cards, any interest charges and card-related fees and balances with extended payment terms on certain charge products. Securitization Income, Net includes non-credit provision components of the net gains from securitization activities; excess spread related to securitized cardmember loans; and servicing income net of related dis counts or fees. d Provisions for Losses include credit-related expenses. 20 This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN The American Express Card Exhibit 6 509-027 Major American Express Advertising Campaigns in the United States 1958–early 1960s Good As Gold.The World Around! Establish prestige image for AmEx card and provide application instructions. 1969–1974 For People Who Travel Show how the American Express card is â€Å"all you need† for your travel and entertainment needs. 1975–1987 Do You Know Me? Show celebrities receiving the special treatment and recognition cardmembers enjoy around the world. Tagline, which continued through 1995, is â€Å"Don’t Leave Home Without It. † 1987–1992 Membership Has Its Privileges Introduce notion of â€Å"membership† and showcase the benefits of res pect, recognition, unsurpassed service as well as Global Assist, Buyers Assurance. 996–2000 Do More/Seinfeld Highlight individual card product benefits such as no pre-set spending, purchase protection, global assist. Talent-driven â€Å"stories† drive emotional relevance and recognition benefit. Use Jerry Seinfeld in a larger than life manner to increase awareness and use of the American Express card at everyday spend locations. Sub-campaign uses everyday moments to highlight individual product benefits such as retail protection and roadside assistance. Make Life Rewarding 2002 Relaunch American Express brand post 9/11 using charge card as the face of propriety.Sub-campaign introduced â€Å"revitalized† charge card with membership reward programs built in. 2004–2007 My Life. My Card. Demonstrate the company’s belief that American Express cardmembers are exceptional people no matter where they live or what they do. Featured extraordinary individuals including Robert DeNiro, Tiger Woods, Ellen DeGeneres, and Laird Hamilton, revealing snapshots of their lives. Acclaimed director Martin Scorsese and celebrated photographer Annie Leibovitz were commissioned to lend their vision to elements of the campaign creative.While the creative direction varied from ad to ad, the campaign theme was consistent: achievers of all types choose American Express. 2007–2008 Are You A Cardmember? Entice prospective cardmembers to apply and join the American Express community and reinforce the membership benefits to current cardmembers via showcasing the advantages American Express offers versus competition. Celebrities such as Beyonce Knowles, Ellen DeGeneres, Tina Fey, and Diane Von Furstenberg are featured within a lifestyle and access theme. Source: Company documents. 21This document is authorized for use only by YUJIE SUN in Intensive in American Business taught by Robert Calamai from September 2012 to December 2012. For the exclusive use of Y. SUN 509-027 The American Express Card Endnotes 1 Adapted from The Nilson Report, Issue 902, 2008. 2 American Express Annual Report, 2007, inside front cover. 3American Express Fixed Income Presentation, March 12, 2008, http://media. corporate-ir. net/media_files/ irol/64/64467/DebtInvestorPres. pdf, accessed June 12, 2008. 4 American Express Financial Community Meeting 2/16/2008 K.Chenault speech, texthttp://media. corporateir. net/media_files/irol/64/64467/KCSTalkingPoints020608. pdf, accessed June 12, 2008. 5 American Express Annual Report, p. 110. 6 American Express Fixed Income Presentation, March 12, 2008, ir. net/media_files/irol/64/64467/DebtInvestorPres. pdf, accessed June 12, 2008. 7 American Express Fixed Income Presentation, March 12, 2008, ir. net/media_files/irol/64/64467/DebtInvestorPres. pdf, accessed June 12, 2008. http://media. corporatehttp://media. corporate- 8 Americ