Publix Case Essay Example for Free

Publix Case Essay This list of items changes from region to region and even from store to store. The items on the theft-prone list are locked up for safe keeping. It is essential that Publix continue to take the necessary actions to prevent the likelihood of theft. While a company cannot prevent all attempts of theft, it can certainly do its due diligence to ensure that the number of cases of theft is minimized. Additionally, Publix employees play a major role in reducing the amount of legal costs the company incurs. All employees are expected to work to ensure store safety on a consistent basis. By being proactive with these types of training programs and locking away commonly stolen merchandise, Publix is lessening the amount of time and money it spends on legal issues. Economic Factors With the recent downturn in the economy, many customers are now looking for the lowest price retailer to purchase from. Publix has built its brand based mostly on the quality of products and the shopping experience, not the lowest price. Retailers that consumers generally equate to low prices include Wal-Mart and bulk buying retailers like Costco and Sams Club. With that in mind, in times like these, Publix seems to be at a major disadvantage. Publix understands that there is strong competition in the supermarket industry(Weinstein, pg 272). Publix, like many other grocery chains, is having a difficult time competing with low cost supercenters. Even in a recession, the average American consumer is still spending a large portion of their income on food. Although U. S. food spending is on the rise, supermarkets are not capturing their fair share (Weinstein, pg 274). Consequently, Publix has to now change the consumer focus on price to one of value. Publixs goal is to make every customer feel personally valued in such a way that they see themselves as one in a million(Weinstein, pg 269). If Publix is able to continue to differentiate its products value for the consumer, it may be able to convert the supercenter shopper into a loyal customer. Social/ Cultural Factors At Publix, everything revolves around pleasing the customer, which is why it has enjoyed much of the success it has had since the 1930s(Weinstein, pg 269). Superior customer value and quality of products are cornerstones in the Publix culture. Publix depends on the fact that a more educated consumer is willing to pay a slightly higher price for great service. The average Publix customer is well-educated and lives within a 5 mile radius of the store in which they shop. Publix understands that it is far easier to maintain a current customer than to attract a new one. Thus, Publix associates are [also] encouraged to use their daily observations, customer feedback, survey evaluation, and other data to improve their jobs, better serve their customers, and make Publix a better place where shopping is a pleasure'(Weinstein, pg 280). Technological Factors An industry study revealed that by 2007, about 20 million households in the United States will purchase groceries, food, and other household items online†¦However, to date, none of the major grocery chains have mastered the online arena(Weinstein, pg 281). Publix is working towards how to profitably master implementing the technological processes that its customer is demanding. In an attempt to enter the online grocery market, Publix launched PublixDirect in 2001. This service came to an end in 2003 despite all the proper planning that went into its conception. It is imperative that Publix finds a way to control its costs in an effort to compete with the few successful online grocers that currently dominate the market.

Creation’s Contest with Evolution Essay -- Argumentative Persuasive Ed

Creation’s Contest with Evolution It began in Dayton, Tennessee-1925. A high school teacher by the name of John Scopes was charged with teaching evolution, which was illegal at the time in Tennessee. The court found Scopes guilty, and he was fined one hundred dollars. However, the Scopes trial immediately sparked one of the largest controversies in today's public school systems: should creationism still be taught in public schools? In the trial, Clarence Darrow argued that teaching creationism in public schools defies the separation of church and state (which is pulled from the first amendment). Darrow moved on to say that evolution does not disobey the first amendment. The trial denied all public schools the right to teach creationism-a belief that humans were created by a higher being-although evolution may be taught. However, Darrow's claim is being challenged. Many believe evolution disobeys the first amendment. Others believe that excluding creationism in classrooms shows an unfair bias and, therefore, gives the allusion that the evolutionary theory is a fact. This, once again, disobeys the first amendment (according to Darrow). If the only theory of origination taught in schools is evolution an unfair bias and anti-God philosophy is instilled in the students. For these reasons, both evolution and creation should be taught in public schools. Prior to the year 1925, all public schools in the United States taught creationism (Evolution Conspiracy). This widely accepted notion of God creating man was challenged by a British naturalist by the name of Charles Darwin in 1859 with the publication of On the Origin of Species by Natural Selection. In the book, Darwin proposes that, ... ...s say is legitimate. That kind of censorship and unprecedented bias has the potential to force students to believe in evolution for the sheer reason that they are not exposed to the opposing view. This in itself directly conflicts with Clarence Darrows' argument. If creationism disagrees with the first amendment, as Darrow explained, then it would only make sense that humanism disagrees with the first amendment as well. It is unfair for the students not to learn both theories of origin so Darrows' argument is proven illegitimate. The only fair way to teach the theory of origin is to explain both. Doing this will not instill Christian beliefs in the students, but rather keep the students' minds open to both sides of the two contradicting theories. As a result, students can come to their own conclusion and that is the true definition of science.

Risk Assessment & Safe Systesm Of Work

Whitelee Wind Farm is a Scottish Power facilities situated on Eaglesham Moor, some 17 miles from Glasgow city centre. This is the largest wind farm in Europe boasting 140 wind turbines. Scottish Power have introduce a guided tour of this site, where visitors are shown the turbines and the many ponds that a spread throughout the site. Some of the water from the ponds is used to supply the surrounding area with drinking water. Scottish Water who previously owned the moor stipulated that pollution of the water course was not acceptable, and if Scottish Power were to introduce a tour then a pollution free method of transport was required. Scottish power purchased one of three electric buses which were built for Strathclyde Public Transport (SPT) by Smiths Electric Vehicles. SPT never made full use of these buses. The bus used on the Whitelee site is powered by 54 lead acid gel batteries, arranged in two parallel banks of 27. These batteries are located within the bus chassis. Mechanically the bus is a standard design, with the typical front wishbone and rear trailing arm suspension. The braking system is air over hydraulic, incorporating an air activated spring loaded fail safe parking brake. It is the power-train that is powered by the lead acid gel batteries and the ancillary systems are powered by two 12V heavy duty commercial vehicle batteries which connected in series will give the required 24V to power the ancillary systems, Table 1 shows the power requirements and consumption rates of these components. Risk Assessment The following pages incorporate a hazard checklist, risk assessment and safe systems of work for the use of the bus at the Whitelee facility. The hazard checklist was completed to form a qualitative risk assessment highlighting the where and why an incident was likely to occur. The information gathered from the checklist was then used to compile the risk assessment. The risks were classified according the likelihood of occurrence and the severity of the possible injury. The risks were scored from 1 to 25, where 1 shows there is no inherent risk involved in the task, and 25 shows this task to be highly dangerous and could result in fatal or debilitating injury. The risk register has a copy of the scoring mechanism at the bottom of the page. From this a Safe System of Work was complied to sever as an aid memoir. This highlight the salient points of the risk register to ensure risk of injury is kept to a minimum. Safe System of Work In compiling any Safe System of Work, the following steps give a good example of what points need to be reviewed. * The task o What is the work being carried out o What specialist tools are used o Who will do the task * Hazards associated with the task o From tooling o From plant and other equipment o From substances * Risk Assessment o Assess risks arising from the task * Define a safe method of work o Break task down into individual parts o Specify safe method o Produce documented work instructions * Implementation & operation o Ensure members of staff carrying out the task are adequately trained o Record training o Carryout regular checks and re-assess as appropriate In the case of the bus, I have identified two different tasks, the first being the daily maintenance, the other being the actually driving of the bus on the tour. The hazards associated with the tasks are dependent on which task is being carried out. The following pages are exemplar Safe Systems of Work for the daily maintenance of the bus and for driving the bus on a tour.

The Yellow Wallpaper By Charlotte Perkins - 937 Words

In January of 1982 Charlotte Perkins published â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper†. This story was written based mainly on feminism, and how men controlled women during that time. Perkins was very active in women’s rights. In her story she is telling us the story of her real life, and it is based off of the events that happened to her throughout her marriage and the depression she suffered. Perkins was put on a â€Å"rest cure† for her depression where she was to stay in bed until she was better, but as she went through this treatment she feared it was not helping her (USA Today1.) As a result, â€Å"She decided to end the treatment and her marriage. Soon after she and her husband separated, Charlotte wrote The Yellow Wall-Paper during a heat wave in Pasadena, Calif., in the summer of 1890. She took two days to complete the 6,000-word manuscript† (USA Today1.) In Perkin’s short story, she included very many different literary elements for example, she uses setting, characterization, and theme throughout the story. These elements are important in this story because it shows the readers how women were treated when Perkins wrote the story compared to how women are treated in today’s world. In â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† there are two different types of setting for the story. For example, outside of the house it is sunny, bright, and beautiful, but on the inside of the house, the feeling is creepy, dreary, and sad. In this story John has his wife in a room where she has to stay most of the day. SheShow MoreRelatedThe Yellow Wallpaper By Charlotte Perkins1189 Words   |  5 PagesAubi-Ann Genus Ms.Vedula 4 December 2015 â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† a Feminist Story â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† by Charlotte Perkins Gillman focuses on the oppression of women in the 19th century. The story introduces us into the awareness of a woman who is slowly going insane over the course of the summer. She recently just gave birth to a baby and is most likely suffering from some type of depression. Analyzing this story, we see the frustrations of women during The Victorian era. Women were manipulatedRead MoreThe Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins653 Words   |  3 Pagesâ€Å"The Yellow Wall Paper† is the story about a journey of a woman who is suffering from a nervous breakdown, descending into madness through her â€Å"rest cure† treatment. The woman is not allowed to read, write or to see her newborn baby. Charlotte Perkins Gilman captures the essence of this journey into madness by using the first person narration. The story plot’s is by taking the reader through the horrors of one woman’s neurosis to make strong state ments about the oppression faced by women in theirRead MoreThe Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins1162 Words   |  5 PagesA New Beginning In The Yellow Wallpaper, Charlotte Perkins Gilman discusses the oppression men have towards women through the story of a nameless narrator during the 19th century. In the story, the unknown narrator, a woman, is telling her struggle for freedom and her fight to escape from the subordination in her marriage with a physician. In the story, the narrator suffers an illness that prevents her from doing things she likes such as writing. Throughout her illness, the narrator slowly becomesRead MoreThe Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins722 Words   |  3 PagesIn this short story â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† Charlotte Perkins uses the story to describe statements about feminism and individuality. He does so by putting the reader through the horrific terrors the woman was going through neurosis, as her mental thoughts with the wallpaper in the room. Gilman tries instead to show a message of individual expression and he achieves it perfectly by recoding the progress of the illness she had, through the state of the wall paper. It is obvious in this story thatRead MoreThe Yellow Wallpaper By Charlotte Perkins Gilman846 Words   |  4 PagesHumans are flawed individuals. Although flaws can be bad, people learn and grow from the mistakes made. Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s short story, â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper†, gives one a true look at using flaws to help one grow. Gilman gives her reader’s a glimpse into what her life would have consisted of for a period of time in her life. Women were of little importance other than to clean the house and to reproduce. This story intertwines the reality of what the lives of woman who were considered toRead MoreThe Yellow Wallpaper By Charlotte Perkins Gilman885 Words   |  4 Pagesbeen a stigma around mental illness and feminism. â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† was written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman in the 1900’s. â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† has many hidden truths within the story. The story was an embellished version her own strug gle with what was most likely post-partum depression. As the story progresses, one can see that she is not receiving proper treatment for her depression and thus it is getting worse. Gilman uses the wallpaper and what she sees in it to symbolize her desire to escapeRead MoreThe Yellow Wallpaper By Charlotte Perkins Gilman1547 Words   |  7 PagesCharlotte Perkins Gilman s career as a leading feminists and social activist translated into her writing as did her personal life. Gilman s treatment for her severe depression and feelings of confinement in her marriage were paralleled by the narrator in her shorty story, The Yellow Wallpaper. Charlotte Perkins Gilman was born in 1860 in Hartford, Connecticut. Her parents, Mary Fitch Perkins and Fredrick Beecher Perkins, divorced in 1869. Her dad, a distinguished librarian and magazine editorRead MoreThe Yellow Wallpaper By Charlotte Perkins Gilman1362 Words   |  6 Pagesas freaks. In the short story â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, both of these elements are present. Gilman did a wonderful job portraying how women are not taken seriously and how lightly mental illnesses are taken. Gilman had, too, had firsthand experience with the physician in the story. Charlotte Perkins Gilman s believes that there really was no difference in means of way of thinking between men or women is strongly. â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† is a short story about a woman whoRead MoreThe Yellow Wallpaper By Charlotte Perkins Gilman999 Words   |  4 Pages â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† is a story of a woman s psychological breakdown, which is shown through an imaginative conversation with the wallpaper. The relationship between the female narrator and the wallpaper reveals the inner condition of the narrator and also symbolically shows how women are oppressed in society. The story, read through a feminist lens, reflects a woman s struggle against the patriarchal power structure. In the â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper†, Charlotte Perkins Gilman uses the wallpaperRead MoreThe Yellow Wallpaper By Charlotte Perkins Gilman Essay1208 Words   |  5 Pagesthat wallpaper as I did?† the woman behind the pattern was an image of herself. She has been the one â€Å"stooping and creeping.† The Yellow Wallpaper was written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. In the story, three characters are introduced, Jane (the narrator), John, and Jennie. The Yellow Wallpaper is an ironic story that takes us inside the mind and emotions of a woma n suffering a slow mental breakdown. The narrator begins to think that another woman is creeping around the room behind the wallpaper, attempting