Tuesday, May 26, 2020
The Roman Medicine - 991 Words
ââ¬Å"Mens sana in corpore sanoâ⬠(Juvenal 10.356). A healthy mind in a healthy body, the Ancient Romans lived by this motto. The Ancient Romans believed that the health of the people was key to success in war and in creating a prosperous empire. Roman texts that have been gathered overtime have greatly influenced modern medical practices and without them, modern medicine would not be as advanced as it is today. The Ancient Romans learned numerous details about the human body and applied their knowledge in ways that were superior compared to other cultures occupying the time period. Roman medicine was advanced for its time because the Romans adopted advanced methods from Ancient Greek medicine, they organized architecture for the sake of public health, and because of their vast knowledge of disease, herbs, and medical tools. The Romans would not have acquired an interest in medicine if it werenââ¬â¢t for early Greek influence. Around 500 BC, the Romans and the Greeks first came in contact with each other and by 146 B.C. a large portion of Greece had become a province of the Roman Empire. With the exposure to Greek traditions, the Romans began to obtain information from the Greeks, but only based their own ideas on Greek findings. Greek ideas were considered to be impractical and inferior to Roman ideas, which were always centered on bringing success to the empire. Once the Roman Empire expanded into Greece, many Greek doctors travelled to Rome. The Greeks brought with them newShow MoreRelatedThe Understanding of Medicine of the Ancient Romans1364 Words à |à 5 Pages In our world today, many of our medicine and medical treatments have been brought down from generation to generation, starting from cultures from several centruies ago, being passed down to our hospitals today. Some of our practices s tarted from Ancient Rome.The understanding of medicine from the Ancient Romans evolved from the many ââ¬Å"medical methods of the Greeks, the Etruscans, the Egyptians, the Persians, and other conquered peoples (Crystallinks, ââ¬Å"Medicine and surgeryâ⬠, Source 1).â⬠They mainlyRead MoreAncient Romans And The Egyptian Medicine953 Words à |à 4 Pagescirculation and the cardiovascular system, the ancient Egyptians were the first to believe that the heart was central organ of the human body, however Egyptian medicine cannot always be separated from mysticism, and therefore canââ¬â¢t entirely be acknowledged as a ââ¬Ëdiscoveryââ¬â¢. It did however pave the way to the foundations that the ancient Romans and Greeks built their ideologies from (1). The first major milestone was made by a man known as of Alcmaeon of Croton. He was a natural philosopher and a medicalRead MoreThe History Of Medicine During The Roman Empire1768 Words à |à 8 PagesThe history of medic ine is an extensive and distinguished one, as healers sought to alleviate illnesses and fix injuries since the dawn of humanity. Shamen and pagan priests would visit the sick and injured in their homes. They used a blend of rituals and medical techniques, to cure these ailments. Herbs, acupuncture and prayer were commonly used for the healing process. The ancient physicians also stitched wounds, set broken bones, and used opium for pain. (Shuttleworth, 2010) (Gormley, 2010) AsRead MoreEt tu Penicillium?984 Words à |à 4 PagesThe ancient Greeks and Romans are known for many things, their government, their leaders, and their great empires that our society draws many traditions from. One thing that our society most certainly has in common with these ancient peoples are our use of fungi for medicine and our knowledge about how certain fungi can be detrimental to our health. Dating back these people were believed to have already use mushrooms and molds as medicine, and also learned how deadly they could be. These greatRead MoreComparing Military Medicines Of Ancient Rome And Medieval And Renaissance1284 Words à |à 6 Pages When comparing military medicines of Ancient Rome and Medieval and Renaissance, a soldier in Ancient Rome had a better chance of surviving injuries than a soldier in later eras. Due to Ancient Romeââ¬â¢s outstanding medical innovations, their hygienic practices, precise surgeries and medicines. When discussing about ancient times a general assumption would be that people back then didnââ¬â¢t live a sanity life, especially soldiers due to them being in various battles and being afflicted withRead MoreThe Civilization that Contributed the Most to the Development of Medicine and Health in Ancient Times889 Words à |à 4 PagesContributed the Most to the Development of Medicine and Health in Ancient Times All three of the civilisations named above have contributed immensely to the medicine we practice today and the things we do in modern life to keep healthy. Without any one of these, our understanding of the human body, medicine and health would be very primitive. Some people believe the Egyptians were the first of the three to help further our knowledge into medicine. This is purely because of the Read MoreAncient Greeks And The Ancient Romans1150 Words à |à 5 Pages The Romans had one of the most innovative and influential ancient civilizations. Although arguments can be made for the Ancient Greeks and the Ancient Egyptians, it can be seen that the modern world had adopted many of the values and ideas of the Ancient Romans. The achievements, ideas, and values of the Ancient Romans have had a lasting impact on the modern world. The majority of people donââ¬â¢t know that many of the things they take for granted came from Ancient Rome. Architecture One of theRead MoreThe Roman Empire1551 Words à |à 7 PagesStep 1: Plan What kind of technology in the Roman Empire affect its growth the most? I will be investigating from the start of the Roman Empire in 753 BCE to when the Western Roman Empire fell in 476 CE. This investigation will have a broad scope while investigating and include things from the Roman Legion to aqueducts and concrete. This investigation will not include technology that was not widely used to better the Roman Empire. The research question will answer my question by conducting researchRead MoreAncient And Medieval World Of Eurasia1678 Words à |à 7 Pagesestablishment of these land and sea trade routes, began a cultural exchange between the east and west through the diffusion of goods, technology, medicine, and religion. The two most vital networks of trade in the ancient and medieval world of Eurasia were the Spice Routes and the Silk Road. The Spice routes were a network of sea routes running from the Greco-Roman world, through North Africa, to the subcontinent of India, and eventually to China and Southeast Asia. The commerce of this maritime routeRead MoreThe Importance Of Neoclassical Architecture In Europe1077 Words à |à 5 Pagesmany ancient Roman forums. Another advance was the scientific progression of medicine, and how legalising human dissections, improved the understanding of human anatomy which then enhanced health of the population. The advancement of neoclassical architecture during the Renaissance benefit the development of Europe. In the early 15th century, the style of the Renaissance architecture originated, and after spreading throughout Europe replaced the Medieval Gothic style. Many ancient Roman forums such
Friday, May 15, 2020
Wednesday, May 6, 2020
Essay about Consumer Behavior Case Study Do Our Avatars...
Case Study: Do Our Avatars Learn? 1) According to the text, classical conditioning occurs when a stimulus that elicits a response is paired with another stimulus that initially does not elicit a response on its own. As time passes, the second stimulus is able to cause a similar response because of the fact that we associate it with the first stimulus. An example of classical conditioning would be one that was demonstrated by Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov. He conducted research on digestion in dogs. Pavlov was able to induce classically conditioned learning when he paired a neutral stimulus (a bell) with a stimulus that was known to cause a salivation response in dogs (he squirted dried meat powder into their mouths). The powderâ⬠¦show more contentâ⬠¦The difference between instrumental conditioning and classical conditioning is that instrumental conditioning deals with the modification of ââ¬Å"voluntary behaviorâ⬠or operant behavior. Operant behavior ââ¬Å"operatesâ⬠on the environment and is maintained by its consequences. On the other hand, classical conditioning deals with the conditioning of reflexive behaviors which are elicited by antecedent conditions. Behaviors that are conditioned via a classical conditioning procedure are not maintained by consequences. This is a learning process that we most closely associate with the psychologist B.F. Skinner. Skinner demonstrated the effects of instrumental conditioning by teaching pigeons and other animals to dance, play Ping-Pong, and perform other activities when he systematically rewarded them for desired behaviors. Due to the fact that responses in classical conditioning are involuntary and fairly simple, we make those in instrumental conditioning deliberately to obtain a goal, and these may be more complex. The desired behavior might be learned over a period of time as a shaping process rewards our intermediate actions. From all of this research about instrumental conditioning, we conclude that a consumer who purchases a new outfit for his avatar on a virtual world would be modifying the occurrence and form of the avatarââ¬â¢s behaviorShow MoreRelatedThe Theory Of Incidental Learning Essay2117 Words à |à 9 Pageswithout even realizing. Incidental learning is just another way that huma ns learn about information, but in a natural way. We have marketing strategists and advertisers placing their products in every area they can. From sidewalks with benches covered in ads, to commercials on television, and even banners running across the screens of our computers; if itââ¬â¢s out there, we re going to see it. Incidental learning is the process of our brains recognizing something, even if we have never payed it much mindRead MoreEffects of a Role Playing Game on the Anxiety and Confidence Levels among College Sophomores3168 Words à |à 13 PagesThe main focus of the present study will be to observe the effects of a role playing game on the anxiety and confidence levels among college sophomores enrolled in the CUNY institutional system. Specifically, this study will observe the effect of World of Warcraft on studentsââ¬â¢ perceived levels of anxiety and confidence. 200 CUNY sophomores enrolled in a Calculus II course will be measured by the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale 7 at weeks 1, 7, and 13 and by the Self Confidence Inventory atRead MoreSocial Media Business Model Analysis - Case Tencent, Facebook, and Myspace34799 Words à |à 140 Pagesl Social Media Business Model Analysis - Case Tencent, Facebook, and Myspace Logistics Master s thesis Xiaoyan Hu 2011 Department of Information and Service Economy Aalto University School of Economics ABSTRACT The term of social media is becoming increasingly popular presently, the amount of social media users is growing dramatically, and the monetization of social media has been discussed in publications but not in details. Nowadays, the most frequently used approach to make money forRead MoreSocial Media Business Model Analysis - Case Tencent, Facebook, and Myspace34799 Words à |à 140 Pagesl Social Media Business Model Analysis - Case Tencent, Facebook, and Myspace Logistics Masters thesis Xiaoyan Hu 2011 Department of Information and Service Economy Aalto University School of Economics ABSTRACT The term of social media is becoming increasingly popular presently, the amount of social media users is growing dramatically, and the monetization of social media has been discussed in publications but not in details. Nowadays, the most frequently used approach to make money forRead MoreSexism in the Video Game Industry4263 Words à |à 18 Pagesalso look at why society views men as innately better at games and technology and how this leads to the gender divide in game development and rampant sexism in gaming culture- especially during professional industry events. Finally, I will use a case study of the Grand Theft Auto series to highlight its use of sexualization and gender stereotypes in Grand Theft Auto 5 and the Hot Coffee controversy, the legal ramifications, and what responsibility gaming developers and industry leaders have to womenRead MoreEffects of the Social Media on Relationship Trends of University Students9686 Words à |à 39 PagesSocial Network | % of sample | Facebook | 68 | Twitter | 25 | MySpace | 3 | Other | 4 | Abstract The research focus for this study is the Effects of the Social Media on Relationship Trends. The main focus is to determine the different relationship trends influenced by the use of the social media by USIU students. The study endeavoured to evaluate the changes of relationship trends and done a comparative analysis on the previous relationship trends before the new media ageRead MoreWord of Mouth10606 Words à |à 43 PagesMichael Trusov, Randolph E. Bucklin, Koen Pauwels Effects of Word-of-Mouth Versus Traditional Marketing: Findings from an Internet Social Networking Site The authors study the effect of word-of-mouth (WOM) marketing on member growth at an Internet social networking site and compare it with traditional marketing vehicles. Because social network sites record the electronic invitations from existing members, outbound WOM can be precisely tracked. Along with traditional marketing, WOM can thenRead MoreMedia Consumption Habits7878 Words à |à 32 Pagesresearch is the fine way to analyze this issue, research with the youngsters who are accounted to large no in the total viewership. By doing the research we can identify which important factor drives them to make decisions in media consumptions such as behavior, flavor, environment, technology, and modernization economic growth. By comparing the result with current scenario we can find out some interesting conclusions, which will help us to understand the media business well. 1 INDEX S.No 1 2 3Read MoreCase Study on Ebay18810 Words à |à 76 PagesQuestion Paper Integrated Case Studies - I (MB3J1): January 2009 Case StudyâËâ" (100 Marks) â⬠¢ This section consists of questions with serial number 1 - 5. â⬠¢ Answer all questions. â⬠¢ Marks are indicated against each question. Read the case carefully and answer the following questions: 1.Till 2005, eBay EachNet was the leader in the Chinese e-commerce market, controlling more than half of it. But eBay EachNet soon lost its market leadership position to Taobao.com (Taobao). In this context, analyze theRead MoreCafe Coffee Day Case Study13069 Words à |à 53 Pages1.2 Scope and Area of the project. | | 1.3 Limitations of the study | | CHAPTER II | | 2.1 Industry Profile | | 2.2 Coperate Profile ââ¬â Cafà © Coffee Day | | CHAPTER III | | 3.1 Introduction of the project. | | * ASPD | | * Other factors considered. | | 3.2 6 Pââ¬â¢s at CCD | | 3.3 Underatanding Consumer Behaviours | | 3.4 CCD ââ¬â Sector 28 (Chandigarh) | | 3.5
Tuesday, May 5, 2020
Corporate Social Responsibility and Corporate Reputation @Dissertation
Table of Contents 1. Introduction1.1 Background of the company1.2 Aims of the research1.3 Objectives of the research1.4 Research questions1.5 Rationale of the study2. Research methodology2.1 Research philosophy Post positivism2.2 Research approach Deductive approach2.3 Research design descriptive design2.4 Data collection procedure Primary and secondary data2.5 Data techniques Qualitative and quantitative methods2.6 Sampling method- Random probability method2.7 Ethical considerations3. Data analysis and interpretation3.1 Quantitative analysis for customers3.2 Qualitative analysis for managers4. Results of the research4.1 Stakeholder theory4.2 Utilitarian, managerial and relational theories of corporate social responsibility4.3 Classical theory of profit maximisation4.4 Corporate reputation on firms market value4.5 Phases of Corporate social responsibility5. Conclusions and recommendations6. Framework for evaluation6.1 Time frame of the research6.2 Limitations of the studyReference listAppendixApp endix A: Quantitative questionnaire for customersAppendix B: Qualitative questionnaire sample for managers Afraid of Drafting Lengthy Dissertation Papers? Submit a Remarkable Dissertation Paper by Availing Dissertation Help from Our Experts. 1. Introduction In the present global scenario people demand the companies to be socially responsible in their activities. Various stakeholders of British Gas, UK, has now demanded the use of sustainable and environment friendly business process (Kotchen, 2009). The company has introduced the Energy 360 approach that offers a complete package of products that will help the stakeholders and the users of the British Gas products to reduce the energy consumption by 10%. According to Kitzmueller and Shimshack (2012), the adoption of CSR has now become a major issue for the companies because by enhancing the corporate position of the company the CSR activities also brings in a support from the community, minimises the risk of any crisis and finally initiates employees engagement for the company. 1.1 Background of the company Founded in the year 1997, British Gas is a subsidiary of the Centrica group and is now the leading provider of energy resources in UK. The company offers a wide range of energy products like the electrical home appliances and also services in terms of energy safety policies like Boiler service and safety, gas safety certificate, Kitchen appliances repairs service etc (www.britishgas.co.uk, 2014) Currently the company is building a high valued CSR activity segment so that it can gain the rust of the stakeholders. The major initiative taken by the company in this respect is to produce energy with lower carbon emission, treating the customers fairly by effectively pricing the services and communicate effectively with the various stakeholders. 1.2 Aims of the research The main aim of the researcher is to focus on the CSR activities undertaken by British Gas and its influence on the different external and internal aspects of the company. The researcher will try to analyse the positive and the negative impact of CSR activities and also cost and the problems faced by British Airways in order to implement the CSR activities accordingly. 1.3 Objectives of the research To analyse the effectiveness of CSR activities of British Gas To evaluate the challenges faced by British Gas in order to implement the CSR activities To recommend the better CSR activities for British Gas 1.4 Research questions How effective are the CSR activities of British Gas? What challenges are faced by British Gas in order to implement the CSR activities? How can British Gas upgrade their CSR activities? 1.5 Rationale of the study The biggest UK energy supplier British gas, serves around twelve million households by supplying energy resources in UK. The company incorporates the normal CSR activities like the reduction of the greenhouse gas emissions, cost effective energy process and use of the legal regulations to showcase energy certificates for the stakeholders satisfaction (Barnett and Salomon, 2012). The major issue faced by British Gas is the ineffective CSR activities that are adopted by the company. The lack of high quality CSR activities are impacting on the goodwill of British Airways (Lyon and Maxwell, 2011). Apart from this British Gas also faces the problem of high cots in implementing the CSR activities within the company. The researcher has highlighted this as an issue because in the present context the customer and the employees are having high demands from the companies in respect of a sustainable environment (Kitzmueller and Shimshack, 2012). Hence British Gas is forced to adopt the CSR techniques in order to enhance their corporate reputation. In the present scenario this is an alarming issue for the company because the revenue of the company has decreased by 1.2% due to the loss of the goodwill. The lack of the well formulated CSR activities is making the company lose its market share to local energy companies (Kim and Lyon, 2011). Moreover the company has to incur high operating costs for the implementation of the CSR activities and in return it is not benefiting form the adoption of these activities. The research will help the management of British Gas to analyse the ways in which the company can enhance the level of its corporate social responsibility. This will also shed light on the degree of effectiveness of the present CSR activities of British Gas (Muller and Krussl, 2011). 2. Research methodology The researcher in this part of the project has highlighted the various approaches and the philosophy adopted for conducting of the research project. The selection of the post positivism philosophy, deductive approach and descriptive research design will help the researcher to complete the project effectively. 2.1 Research philosophy Post positivism The researcher here has adopted the post positivism philosophy while making the data analysis of the given project. According to Mertens (2010), the post positivism approach shows that the researcher of a project should include both scientific analysis as well a common sense analysis in order to arrive at a fruitful conclusion. Hence the use of the post positivism philosophy will enable the researcher to collect the data from the respondents in a scientific manner and then analyse them using common logical sense. 2.2 Research approach Deductive approach The two major approaches used for research projects are namely deductive and inductive. The researcher here will use the deductive approach so that the researcher is able to derive conclusions based on the proposed theories and observations. Greene and Hall (2010) opined that the inductive approach is used when a researcher aims to generate a new idea in the context of the research topic. In this research the researcher is focused on analysing the effectiveness of the present CSR activities hence the use of the deductive approach is suitable for deriving at the conclusions rather than establishing a new concept with the use of the inductive approach (Lo, 2009). 2.3 Research design descriptive design Generally three types of research designs are used for framing of the research project namely the explanatory design, exploratory design and the descriptive design. Both explanatory and exploratory designs are used in situations where the researcher is not able to ascertain the particular objectives of the research. Lo (2009) opined that use of the descriptive design is generally seen in cases where the researcher has certain pre determined objectives and are willing to conduct the research project using the predetermined objectives. Hence in this case the researcher will use the descriptive research design so that the researcher is able to conduct an in depth analysis of the CSR activities of British Gas and arrive at the conclusions with the help of statistical as well as scientific tools. Moreover Teddlie and Tashakkori (2010) opined that use of descriptive data helps the researcher to collect primary data from a huge range of respondents thereby improving the quality of the research. 2.4 Data collection procedure Primary and secondary data Two types of data are majorly collected in a research process namely Primary data and secondary data. McLeod and Thomson (2009) opined that primary data is collected by the questionnaire survey of the respondents and the secondary data is collected from the information published in the company websites, academic journals and other social blogs and news releases. In this research the researcher will focus on both primary as well as secondary data collection methods for the purpose of collection of data to analyse the effectiveness of the CSR activities on the corporate position of British Gas. The researcher will collect the primary data by conducting interviews of the customers and the managers of British Gas (Bledsoe and Hopson, 2009). The secondary data will be collected by the researcher form the various published academic journals on the CSR activities of British Gas and also from the official website of the company. 2.5 Data techniques Qualitative and quantitative methods The researcher will use both qualitative as well as the quantitative research techniques to collect and analyse the primary as well as the secondary data collected (Mertens and Wilson, 2012). For the purpose of good quality of the research project the researcher will use the quantitative technique for analysing the responses of the customers. The researcher will take the interview of 20 customers and the interview of 3 managers. For the purpose of analysing the recorded response of the managers the researcher will use the qualitative technique and for the purpose of analysing the responses of the customers the researcher will use the statistical tools under the quantitative techniques (Teddlie and Tashakkori, 2010). 2.6 Sampling method- Random probability method The researcher generally uses two types of sampling methods namely Probability sampling and non probability sampling. According to Hollway (2009), in probability sampling the researchers elects the respondents randomly without following any certain type of selection pattern however in non probability sampling the respondents are selected on a purposive basis. The researcher here has adopted the random probability method in order to select an customer or manger from the entire target population. This gives the respondents in the target population an equal opportunity of getting selected (Mertens and Hesse Biber, 2013). 2.7 Ethical considerations The researcher here notifies that during the process of data collection and completion of the research project the researcher has abided by the ethical norms pertaining to the research project. The researcher has ensured that confidentiality of the respondents personal information as well as the primary data is maintained in the research project. Moreover the researcher also confirms that the interviews were not collected against the will of the interviewers. The researcher further confirms that the analysis made was according to the guidelines of the university (Teddlie and Tashakkori, 2010). Moreover the researcher also ensures that the responses collected from the respondents are unambiguous and no kind of mental or physical harassments are done to influence the response of the respondents. 3. Data analysis and interpretation 3.1 Quantitative analysis for customers How often do you avail the services of British Gas? Options No of respondents Total respondents Response (%) Once in a week 6 20 30% Once in a month 2 20 10% Once in a year 8 20 40% Very rare 4 20 20% Interpretation The researcher focused on this question to analyse the number of times the customers avail the services of British Gas. Around 40% of the customers are of the opinion that they avail the services of British Gas only once in a year. This shows that the company is losing its customer base due to the fact that the companys CSR activities are not up to the standard. Around 30% of the customers generally avail the services of British Gas especially in case of the energy safety policies of British Gas. Do you agree that the CSR activities of British Gas are effective in promoting high corporate reputation? Options No of respondents Total respondents Response (%) Strongly agree 3 20 15% Agree 4 20 20% Neutral 2 20 10% disagree 5 20 25% Strongly disagree 6 20 30% Interpretation The researcher used the above question in order to understand the satisfaction level of the customers ion respect to the CSR activities implemented by British Gas. The result shows that around 30% of the total respondents believe that the CSR activities of British Gas are not effective in promoting the corporate reputation of the company. Do you feel that British Gas should increase the quality of standard of their CSR activities? Options No of respondents Total respondents Response (%) Strongly agree 9 20 45% Agree 2 20 10% Neutral 2 20 10% disagree 4 20 20% Strongly disagree 3 20 15% Interpretation The researcher posed this question in front of the customers to judge the satisfaction level of the customers with respect to the standard of quality of the CSR activities implemented by British Gas. The responses show that 45% of the customers strongly agree that British Gas should increase the quality of their CSR activities. They are of the opinion that the present CSR activities are not suitable enough to enhance the goodwill of the company. 20% of the customers agree to the point that the quality of the CSR activities implemented by British gas are not as per the standards of the other companies implementing the same CSR activities. However a change in the opinion is also noted in case of around 25% of respondents who feel disagrees to the above point. They are of the opinion that the CSR activities are quiet appropriate and British Gas doesnt need to increase or make any changes in the quality of those services. 10% of the respondents are neutral in case of their opinion about any kind of CSR activities implemented by British Gas. How would you rate the CSR activities of British Gas? Options No of respondents Total respondents Response (%) Poor 3 20 15% Fair 7 20 35% Good 5 20 25% Very good 3 20 15% Excellent 2 20 10% Interpretation On being asked about the rating of the CSR activities implemented by British Gas the above responses were recorded by the respondents. The researcher used the 5 Point rating scale to record the responses of the customers. On a scale of 1 to 5 where 1- poor, 2- Fair, 3- Good, 4- very good and 5- excellent, around 35% of the customers rated the CSR activities of British Gas as Fair and 25% rated the activities as Good however the other customers are of the opinion that the activities are not up to the standard. Only 10% of the customers are of the opinion that the services offered by the company are excellent are fruitful for the society and the community. Which of the following CSR activities do you think British Gas should implement in future years? Options No of respondents Total respondents Response (%) Communicate company performance and CSR activities to all stakeholders 8 20 40% Improve environmental impact of product and services 4 20 20% Develop new products to reduce to reduce environmental problems 5 20 25% Reduce green house gas emission and waste 2 20 10% Apply control over the suppliers to maintain product quality 1 20 5% Interpretation The researcher used this question to analyse the opinions if the customers in relation to the future growth of British Gas. The researcher in this question asked the customers to give their opinions about the types of CSR activities they think should the company adopt in future so that they can enhance the corporate goodwill. The researcher for the ease of the responses provided the customers with some of the general activities that are undertaken by other competitor companies. Around 40% of the total respondents are of the opinion that the company should make the CSR activities public. That is the company should notify the stakeholders like the customers, employees, shareholders and the suppliers about the individual CSR activities adopted for the respective groups. 25% of the customers are of the opinion that British Gas should generate more range of products that would be environment friendly and that would reduce the pollutions and the environmental problems. Again 20% of the cus tomers are of the opinion that British gas should improve the product designs so that they can produce those products that will improve the quality of the environment. Only 5% of the customers opined that the control over the suppliers product quality s necessary for the maintenance of a sustainable environment. 3.2 Qualitative analysis for managers What according to you are the advantages faced by British Gas in respect of implementing the current CSR strategies? The three managers on being asked about the advantages that British Gas incurs by implementing the CSR strategies gave the following responses. They were of the opinion that the use of the strategies helps to win the trust of the customers and hence increase the number of customers for availing services of British Gas. One of the mangers was of the opinion that the CSR activities help the company to enhance the relationship with the suppliers, employees and customers as well. Further the manager added that British Gas by implementing the different policies like the Energy 360 approach are able to produce energy products from the plant energy which is giving the company a competitive advantage over its competitors. The third manager opined that the use of the sustainability within the products has helped British Gas to generate innovation and also save money on the energy producing goods and help to mitigate risks for the production of the energy products. The third manager also opined that with the introduction of the CSR activities British Gas has recently been able to generate a positive publicity within the community and this has increased the revenue of the company. Moreover the mangers are also of the opinion that the use of the CSR activities has helped British Gas to get easy access to the capital and the credit requirement for financing of the long term projects. What according to you are the challenges faced by British Gas while implementing the CSR activities? On being asked about of the challenges faced by British Gas for implementing the CSR activities the manger focused on the following problems. The first manger is of the opinion that the company generally has to suffer from financial problems in case of implementation of the CSR activities. The use of the plant resources to produce the electric products has made the company incur high cost of production for these products. Hence the manger is of the opinion that the budget incurred for the CSR activities are excluded from the direct operating expenses of the company and are regarded as an extra expense for the company. The second manger added that another disadvantage faced by British Gas is that the focus of the company shifts from the main concerns of the business. The higher authorities and the employees become more focused on making CSR strategies for the sustainability creation of the company. This makes the long term and the short term goals of the company unachievable. The third manger highlighted various small issues that British Gas faces in terms of implementation of the CSR activities. One of the issues is that the company has to recruit more employees for the implementation and the CSR strategy formation. The employment of extra staffs indicates that the company has to incur high administration costs. The manger further added that British Gas has to price the products in accordance to the cost of producing the products. The adoptions of sustainable production process increase the cost of production and hence the price eventually increases. Further the mangers added that British Gas is also facing problems because of the lack of the knowledge and lack of institutional assistance for implementing and generating fruitful CSR activities. What factors do you feel will improve the current CSR activities of British Gas? The mangers are of the opinion that to improve the current CSR strategies British Gas needs to focus on the demand of the customers and the communities. Instead of spending on the energy resource plans the company should concentrate on making policies for the energy conservation. The company can also make more sustainable products which are environment friendly as well as more profitable in terms of costs for the company. The mangers mentioned certain number of points in this respect that they feel should be adopted by the British Gas so that they can improve the CSR activities. Introduction of safety and health activities policy for the customers and employees Reducing the amount of Carbon emissions in case of production process Introduction of a responsible care activity plan Introduction of a system of accounting with respect of environmental accosts and profits Development of products that contribute to the environment quality enhancement 4. Results of the research The researcher in this part of the research has established a link between the proposed academic theories and the research results. 4.1 Stakeholder theory According to Fernndez and Souto (2009), the use of this theory will help the organisations to identify the individuals who would be affected by the functions and products of the company. Hence the company will need to generate responsible services for these categories of individuals. Carroll and Kareem (2010) opined that by satisfying the internal and the external stakeholders the company can eventually increase the profits. The incorporation of the stakeholder ethics will help British Gas to enhance the corporate goodwill. The main aim of the theory is to make the organisations approach towards the human welfare and in turn increase the profit of the company. The survey of the managers and the customers, two of the major stakeholders of British Gas was done to understand their satisfaction level in relation to the current CSR activities (Borzaga and Becchetti, 2010). By analysing the results it can be concluded that the company needs to implement welfare activities like the safety programmes, reduce working hours, development of hazard free product of the welfare of the stakeholders. This will thereby create a positive influence as well as increase profit of the company. 4.2 Utilitarian, managerial and relational theories of corporate social responsibility This theory focuses on the impact of the CSR activities on the overall performance of the business. The Utilitarian theory focuses on the influence of CSR activities on the social costs of the organisation. Taylor and Williams (2009) opined that the managerial theories determine the corporate social performance, social accountability, auditing and reporting and also the social responsibility of the organisations. The relational theory focuses on the business and society, stakeholder approach and social contact theory. The adoption of this theory helps the organisations to separately concentrate on each segment of the business and frame the CSR strategy separately for the target audiences. However Arevalo and Aravind (2010) opined that a business with a profit maximisation concept will not be able to apply the theories to establish the correct CSR policies (Reinhardt And Stavins, 2010). The social performance accountability and reporting will enable the companies to make a systematic assessment of the accounting policies in accordance to its influence on the social impact of the company (De Cremer and Trenbrunsel, 2011). In this respect the companies are expected to follow three models of accountability namely Sustainable model Safety labour based model Soft encouragement model Gain with the help of the corporate relationships the company can determine the type of community it is meant to serve and thereby can generate and formulate the CSR policies in accordance to the community welfare needs. 4.3 Classical theory of profit maximisation According to Taylor and Williams (2009), the classical theory of the profit maximisation states that the modern economic system is made of three components namely market, firms and state. Hence the firms major motive should be profit maximisation. However to maximise the profit the firms need to first adopt social responsibility towards stakeholders. In the present scenario the firms are seen to adopt different CSR strategies for different types of stakeholders. However Karaibrahimoglu (2010) opined that the classical theory states that the focus of the firm should be on the minimal use of the resources to generate activities in order to increase profit. Muller and Krussl (2011) opined that by following this theory the companies are required to carry out social responsibilities only for the shareholders and not the other groups of stakeholders. However Griseri and Seppala (2010) argued that in the current circumstances the application of this theory will lead to a loss of the reputat ion of the company and this may reduce the customer base and also make the company undesirable in community. 4.4 Corporate reputation on firms market value The corporate reputation is directly related to the market value of the firm. Hence to enhance the reputation the organisations are taking the help of the community services in shape of CSR activities. De Cremer and Trenbrunsel (2011) opined that the corporate reputation has a direct impact on the investors portfolio and the investors before taking decisions generally analyse the CSR report of the companies. The effective management of the corporate governance and social and environmental risks will make the reputation of the companies positive for the investors. Muller and Krussl (2011) opined that it is essential for the companies to grow the corporate reputation by implementing CSR strategies because the corporate reputation also affects the customer purchase intention. An effective CSR report will help the company to evaluate the customers needs and satisfaction levels. 4.5 Phases of Corporate social responsibility The organisation in the present scenario has to follow a multiple stage model for the effective implementation of the CSR activities. De Cremer and Trenbrunsel (2011), opined that the following of the six stages namely mission driven approach, product driven approach, cultural approach, individual advantage, communicational advantage and organic partnerships will help the companies to effectively implement the CSR activities. In case of the mission driven approach the company will focus on the brand promotion through the incorporation of the CSR activities. The core value of the company will be judged in order to implement the strategies. The product driven approach encourages the companies to develop sustainable products which are good for the society and also develop products that will reduce the pollution of the environment. Carroll and Kareem (2010) further added that the adoption of cultural approach will help the company to generate the CSR strategy keeping in mind the cultural diversity of the employees. The major model that should be adopted by all companies is the individual advantage model where the company will be able to generate a strategy which is unique to the companys activities like the adoption of the Global Reporting Initiative, UN global Compact etc. With the adoption of the communications model the company will be able to generate CSR strategies in the communications department of the organisation. To maintain this organisation will have to develop new department like corporate communications, community relations and professional relations. Finally the use of the organic partnership will help the company to develop a separate branch for formulating the effective CSR strategies (www.unido.org, 2014). 5. Conclusions and recommendations The researcher here focuses on issues that British Gas is facing in implementing the CSR policies within the organisation. The researcher after analysing the collected primary data and with the help of the secondary data has reached to the conclusion that British Gas is not implementing standard CSR activities. The rating of the customers shows that the company is not following a suitable strategy for the social benefit of the customers both in terms of products as well as services. Keeping in mind the ratings and the opinion of the customers and the manager the researcher has tried to formulate some of the recommendations for the higher authority of British Gas. Development of Sustainable products: The Company should pay attention to the development of more innovative range of sustainable products with the help of the plant and biodegradable energy resources. This will help the company to not only produce the products in a costs effective manner but also help British Gas to reduce the waste and the other bio degradable products. Adoption of social accounting system: The Company should adopt the social accounting system under the Global Initiative reporting system so that the related stakeholders like the employees, shareholders, investors and customers are kept informed about the CSR activities of the company. British Gas will be able to enhance the corporate reputation by presenting a public CSR report for the NGOs, Charities and the government agencies. Use of social media to enhance sustainability: British gas has introduced the new concept of reducing the prices of the energy bill for the poor and deprived part of the population. This is a positive social activity adopted by the company. However due the lack of the awareness of this initiative the company could not benefit from the CSR activity. Hence it can be recommended that the company should use the social media websites like the face book, twitter and blogs in order to promote its CSR activities. Development of safety policies for the employees and the customers: One of the major stakeholders that are affected by the CSR activity of British gas is the employees. Hence the company should first see to the satisfaction levels of the customers. For this the company can introduce various forms of safety policies in accordance to the workplace safety regulations. The safety policies should ensure rules relating to the machineries used in the energy production, the safety legislation policies for the gas and other energy products handling. This will make the employees and the customers dependable on the services of the company and will also enhance the goodwill of the company. 6. Framework for evaluation 6.1 Time frame of the research The time frame of the research will help the researcher to complete the study timely and in a cost effective manner. Hence the researcher at the beginning if the research project sets out the Gantt chart for the simplification of the research process. In the present research the researcher has adopted the cross sectional study and applied the Gantt chart that helped in segregating the tasks as the structure of the study and helped the researcher to complete the project on time in an easy manner. The Gantt chart below shows that the researcher will take the appropriate weeks for the completion of the different tasks under the research project. 6.2 Limitations of the study The research study is subjected to various limitations in its process that hampers quality of the analysis of the research. These are generally the non avoidable limitations that the researcher has to face in the process of the completion of the research project. Here are some of the major limitations that were encountered by the researcher in order to complete the research project. Lack of respondents co operation: The researcher faced problems in getting responses from the managers as well as the customers of British Gas. It was difficult for the researcher to take the interview of the managers of British gas because they were not co operative in the process. Hence the responses thus recorded were of poor quality. Time constraint: The researcher had proposed to take interview of around 50customers in a 10 mile radius and 20 managers in a 5 mile radius. However since the researcher was required to complete the project on time hence the keeping in mind the time constrain the researcher had to reduce the number of respondents to 20 and 3 respectively. This affected the quality of the primary data collected. Appendix Appendix A: Quantitative questionnaire for customers Name : Age : Contact no: Location : Email Id : How often do you avail the services of British Gas? Once in a week Once in a month Once in a year Very rare Do you agree that the CSR activities of British Gas are effective in promoting high corporate reputation? Strongly agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly disagree Do you feel that British Gas should increase the quality of standard of their CSR activities? Strongly agree Agree Neutral disagree Strongly disagree How would you rate the CSR activities of British Gas? Poor Fair Good Very good Excellent Which of the following CSR activities do you think British Gas should implement in future years? Communicate company performance and CSR activities to all stakeholders Improve environmental impact of product and services Develop new products to reduce to reduce environmental problems Reduce green house gas emission and waste Apply control over the suppliers to maintain product quality Appendix B: Qualitative questionnaire sample for managers Name : Age : Designation: Department: Contact no : Email id : What according to you are the advantages faced by British Gas in respect of implementing the current CSR strategies? What according to you are the challenges faced by British Gas while implementing the CSR activities? What factors do you feel will improve the current CSR activities of British Gas?
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