Music Composition Sheet Essay

At the turn of the century, music was characteristically late Romantic in style. Composers such as Gustav Mahler, Richard Strauss and Jean Sibelius were pushing the bounds of Post-Romantic Symphonic writing. At the same time, the Impressionist movement, led by Claude Debussy, was being developed in France. The term was actually disliked by Debussy: â€Å"I am trying to do ‘something different—in a way realities—what the imbeciles call ‘impressionism’ is a term which is as poorly used as possible, particularly by art critics† —and Maurice Ravel’s music, also often labelled with this term. Many composers reacted to the Post-Romantic and Impressionist styles and moved in quite different directions. The single most important moment in defining the course of music throughout the century was the widespread break with traditional tonality, effected in diverse ways by different composers in the first decade of the century. From this sprang an unprecedented â€Å"linguistic plurality† of styles, techniques, and expression. In Vienna, Arnold Schoenberg developed atonality, out of the expressionism that arose in the early part of the 20th century. He later developed the twelve-tone technique which was developed further by his disciples Alban Berg and Anton Webern; later composers (including Pierre Boulez) developed it further still. Stravinsky (in his last works) explored twelve-tone technique, too, as did many other composers; indeed, even Scott Bradley used the technique in his scores for the Tom and Jerry cartoons. After the First World War, many composers started returning to the past for inspiration and wrote works that draw elements (form, harmony, melody, structure) from it. This type of music thus became labelled neoclassicism. Igor Stravinsky (Pulcinella and Symphony of Psalms), Sergei Prokofiev (Classical Symphony), Ravel (Le tombeau de Couperin) and Paul Hindemith (Symphony: Mathis der Maler) all produced neoclassical works. After World War 2, composers sought to achieve greater levels of control in music in their pieces (e. g. 12 tone technique and later serialism). The twelve tone technique is a technique ensuring the use of all 12 notes in the chromatic scale, this prevented the unbalanced emphasis on individual notes. In the 1940s and 50s composers, notably Pierre Schaeffer, started to explore the application of technology to music in musique concrete (Dack 2002). The term Electroacoustic music was later coined to include all forms of music involving magnetic tape, computers, synthesizers, multimedia, and other electronic devices and techniques. From the early 1950s onwards, Cage introduced elements of chance into his music. This has resulted in various musical techniques such as indeterminacy, aleatoric music, music, intuitive, and free improvisation. In the 1970s and onwards, new technology was available and used in classical music. This new technology was experimented with and improvised that same key qualities of basic classical music, but had newer and broader styles and techniques (e. g. 12 tone technique). This component in section A of the piece conveys a short list of variety in the musical concepts (bars 6-7). The vivid sway motion throughout this section is due to its branch of late Romanticism (early 1900s). Romanticism was an emotional and expressive period of time where many different cultures, art, architecture and music was impacted by the social status of this time. Music in general was driven by this emotion and hardship that underwent at the time i. e the French revolution. This emotion gave the composers much more expression and diversity, with less formality and structure (a characteristic of music of the classical period). With this new contemporary classical style of music, the ideas and implementations of previous styles and periods had an effect on the way this music was played, i. e. the sway motion and range of mixed dynamics. In this section is phrasing slurs are used to join the notes together to build its melody into being more ‘sway like’ giving it a legato motion. In the harmony a short part of an arpeggio is played and graduated into a whole chord finishing the scale. This repetitive motion of the harmony in the left hand has created a slight question and answer between the melody and harmony in this section. This component from section B of the piece is a variation of the first part, with added techniques, dynamics, notes, and variety to build more expression into the piece (bars 14-15). The expression of the composers of this time period in post-1945 was shown through the sorrow and despair of World War II. Through the devastation and war experienced by the composers at this time, the change in variety and diversity of pitch was minimal, but the feeling experienced were immense. These immense feelings portrayed in the massive output of dynamics and expressive techniques used in these contemporary classical styles, and further developed this category of music. This section uses broken chords in the harmony to build the tempo and texture from the section A. whilst the melody is still similarly structured but further developed in the use of notes values. This component shows the transition of section B into the new section C. In this transition the dynamic change gradually to fit the expression and use of whole (triad) chords in section C. The use of the Crescendo into forte, portrays a wide variety in dynamics throughout the piece (the previous sections were piano and mezzo-piano, from above). Forte in the next section conveys the composers’ anxiety and anger in this time of war, and conveys to the responder through this wide range of dynamics the emotions and distress people went through during this time. This component conveys the transition between section C and section D. Through this transition the dynamics change from a forte (loud) to a pianissimo (very soft), these dynamics give the piece a wider range in terms of dynamics and convey a lot more expression to the responder. The melody however is similar but in a higher octave, this give the piece a sequence and conveys the idea of repetition throughout the piece. The density of section D get thinner, as the harmony is reduced to one note played with longer note values, i. e. semibreves. Composers during this period of post-1945 used a wide range and variety of dynamics to expressive themselves with the troubles and hardships they went through after the war. This variety is vivid in this piece as this section contains that branch from forte to pianissimo. Throughout this composition the ideas, implementations and characteristics of contemporary classical music have been vivid throughout this composition. I believe the use of the six concepts have been diverse through this piece and have truly illustrated the sound and tone of contemporary classical music. Throughout the piece, the dynamics have changed rapidly and shown a large variety of expression and emotion in the composition. The use of one instrument in the composition has shown the audience that the composers for Contemporary Classical music have independence on lots of instruments and thick density, as this does not convey emotion as easy of thin density pieces. The structure of theme and variation, a common structure used in contemporary classical, often used to build and gradually strengthen the motif or chord progression of the piece, this creates suspense and other emotions to the listeners. The techniques used were quite minimal but, strong i. e. the legato, slurs, broken chords. The duration of the notes and piece were quite wide in range, and diverse in created a multiple of different variations of the melody. The tone colour of the piece was very emotional in the way of being sad, spooky, and dark but happy in the sense that the sound was evolving into something brighter with a hint of darkness. Overall this composition created for the ‘annual Young Composers Symposium’ has conveyed the aspects and characteristic of Contemporary Classical music to the audience, and has successfully illustrated the musicological context of the style in developing the use of the 6 concepts in the composition.

Modern Day Human Sex Trafficking - 1151 Words

Modern Day Human Sex Trafficking With the advances in technology society now mainly uses cellphones and the internet as means of communication; traffickers see this as an opportunity, by using technology as a tool to reach victims from all around the world, as well as buyers. However, as traffickers are adapting to the online market for trafficking, technology is also creating ways in which we can identify traffickers and victims. Sex trafficking has been around for centuries, however in this day and age it is â€Å"the second fastest growing criminal industry; sex trafficking â€Å"accounted for 83% of all reported human trafficking incidents†. Sex trafficking is a global problem; traffickers are utilizing the advances in technology to their advantage. They are taking advantage of the loopholes in technology that can leave their marks untraceable which enables them to conduct business discreetly. What people do not realize is that sex trafficking is a major problem in the states as well. Large n umbers of victims come in from areas such as Ukraine, Russia, and various parts of Africa. This wide variety of locations of victims furthers the difficulties faced in trying to stop it due to victim’s unfamiliarity with the system. To start, sex trafficking is illegal in all states, except in Nevada where prostitution is legal in counties with a population of 700,000 or greater, 10 out of 17 counties in Nevada have licensed brothels. Prostitution is legally definedShow MoreRelatedSlavery : A African American Slave1518 Words   |  7 Pageseconomic, and racial factors that influence slavery, even in modern time. Of course, we know that slavery in the 1800’s was extremely racial in that only blacks were enslaved. However, looking at the statistics as we talk about slavery, it has become widely apparent to me that slavery is largely associated with specific races as well as economic status. In today’s world there are also other types of slavery, such as child t rafficking, forced labor/debt bondage, criminal exploitation, ect. And eachRead MoreSex Trafficking : A Common Issue For A Long Time1394 Words   |  6 Pages Sex trafficking can happen everywhere. People do not even realize when it is happening. Someone could be living their life, just as they normally do, and decided to go to the mall. Sometimes they may not even know that a little kid is going to be kidnapped, and later raped. This is what sex trafficking is. Sex trafficking is commonly defined as when violence, drugs, lies, or any other form of coercion is used to force another person to have sex against their will. (Sex Trafficking in the U.S, 1)Read MoreThe Slavery Of The United States1603 Words   |  7 PagesIntroduction The history of enslaving humans for the benefit of labor, sex, and financial gain runs deep and parallel to the existence of civilization. While a small portion of the history of slavery reflects a more humane and less brutal treatment of those in servitude, such as the Babylonian slaves of 18th century BC who were permitted to own land; contrastingly, most slavery practices historically have been established in a foundation of violence and control, such as the slaves of ancient GreeceRead MorePersuasive Essay On Human Trafficking851 Words   |  4 Pagesbetter lives resort to human trafficking as a result. It is a worldwide issue that can be defined as the trading of humans, most commonly by force, sexual slavery, or commercial. It is one of the top leading crimes in the world today that puts not only women, but also men in danger. Human trafficking is a worldwide issue that has been going on for decades, and all the issues of the trafficking would make one wonder, how can it be st opped? Human trafficking has become the modern-day slavery, it can beRead MoreHuman Trafficking Outline Speech919 Words   |  4 Pageswith me as soon as possible. Would you still accept the job? B. (thematic statement): Today I will be talking about human trafficking and how this horrible thing started. C. (establish significance): Human trafficking is a modern – day form of slavery of the 21st century. According to www.humantraffickinged.com an estimated of 27 million people are in modern day slavery across the world. Anywhere between 700,000 to 2 million people are trafficked across international borders each yearRead MoreThe Issue of Human Trafficking1512 Words   |  7 Pagesfamilies each day. That’s 2,880 eighty children who should be playing outside and enjoying childhood. Instead they are torn from everything they know and forced into slavery, sometimes to never come out. Slavery was not fully abolished in 1865. Over 27 million men, women, and children are enslaved at this very moment (â€Å"The Cost of Coercion†). That number is close to the population of Florida and Georgia combined who would be enslaved today. What most people today call â€Å"modern-day slavery† is theRead MoreHuman Trafficking Is A Global Phenomenon1054 Words   |  5 P agespresent day most people think of it as something that has passed, something that happened a long time ago. It was a tragic historical event that involved the capture and exportation and exploitation of human beings who were forced into labor with no freedom of movement or choice. However, the reality of the situation is that slavery still exists today, and on an even greater scale than it did many years ago. That form of slavery is human trafficking. It is commonly referred to as modern-day slavery†Read MoreSex Trafficking : An Important Social Issue That Affects Vulnerable People1482 Words   |  6 PagesLastName 1 Firstname Lastname Professor Maritato Introduction to Speech - Comm V01 Sex Trafficking General Purpose: To inform Specific Purpose: By the end of my speech, the audience should be able to explain what sex trafficking is and how it takes place domestically and abroad. Central Idea: Sex trafficking is an important social issue that affects vulnerable people. Introduction: When K. was 14 years old, she fell in love with her horseback riding instructor. She dreamed that they would be in loveRead MoreSex And Sex Trafficking1310 Words   |  6 PagesThe Effects Poverty has on Sex Trafficking Suffering from poverty makes life unbearable at times and is hard to escape from. Most individuals that live in poverty are vulnerable and have little hope to improve their lives. Being vulnerable and having no hope for life can often leads to desperation. Sex trafficking and become a means of survival for these individuals. Low income is a major cause for sex trafficking. Sex trafficking can become a reason for a single mother to feed her children or canRead MoreHuman Trafficking in the United States Essays927 Words   |  4 PagesStates. Over a century has went by since this day, and yet somewhere behind the mask of freedom that our country holds with such pride lingers a hidden trade. This is the trade of modern day slavery that remains prevalent in our country. Despite the freedoms we are granted as a citizen of the United States,- human trafficking is an enormous issue that is often overlooked. In fact very little light is shown on this topic, but the awful reality is there. Ev ery day women, children, and even men are kidnapped

The Bible By The Poisonwood Bible - 981 Words

Midterm Movies and books about missionaries haven’t portrayed missionaries in a positive light. Fiction writers and movie producers have led people on to believe, that missionaries are self-serving and as having specific intentions. One of the prime examples of misrepresenting a missionary; is the book called The Poisonwood Bible. I had to read The Poisonwood Bible in an English class. The Poisonwood Bible is the story of a missionary named Nathan Price and his family. Nathan was Reverend and he was mean to his wife and children. Nathan and his family lived in the Congo. He was disrespectful to his wife and his children were terrified of him. I remember reading the book thinking, how does he represent God? Missionaries are sent out to cross cultural barriers and spread the gospel. Missionaries are not sent too foreign countries to destroy or to break the people down. Missionaries have faced scrutiny, because of the negative of missionaries in movies and in books. There some positive movies made about missionaries. Jesus was the perfect missionary. Jesus went to different places and taught the word of God. Jesus drew people unto him. Jesus told his disciples, that if they follow him, he would make them fishermen of men. Jesus taught anywhere. Jesus delivered the word so profoundly. Jesus was from the lineage of Abraham. God made a covenant with Abraham to make him the father of many nations. According to Matthew Jesus was the Messiah for all people. When Jesus became angry,Show MoreRelatedThe Poisonwood Bible2189 Words   |  9 Pagesin the Congo. These countries may have not been aware of their influence at the time, but the outcome nonetheless was drastic. Cultural misunderstandings were the ultimate catalyst for the Congo’s destruction. In Barbara Kingsolver’s novel The Poisonwood Bible published in 1998 she exposes how cultural ignorance creates problems. With her chosen syntax, point of view, and time gap of each narrator Kingsolver exposes how close mindedness creates unfulfilled results because individuals can not adaptRead MoreThe Poisonwood Bible, And The Movie1399 Words   |  6 Pagesadversity which are sacrifices. In this independent study unit, Barbara Kingsolver’s novel, The Poisonwood Bible, and the movie â€Å"In America, † demonstrates the difficulties of being an immigrant as a result of different cultures, fear and frustration, and starting a new life. Both the book and movie shows newly immigrants confronting adversities of adapting to a new, unfamiliar culture. In Poisonwood Bible, not being accustomed to the culture in Congo, this surprises the Price family, as Rachel PriceRead MoreSummary Of The Poisonwood Bible 1318 Words   |  6 PagesAP Literature and Composition Summer Reading Assignment The Poisonwood Bible Analyzed by: Shraddha Patel contents: 6 essays  â€Å" Imagine a ruin so strange it must never have happened First, picture the forest. I want you to be its conscience, the eyes in the trees.† The effect of the above directive on the reader is that it takes us into the world that is so disparate from anything that we, the reader, could have ever imagined. It propels the reader to continue reading and disclose the mysteryRead MorePoisonwood Bible Analysis920 Words   |  4 Pages No one is truly understood until they are described from many points of view .In Barbara Kingsolver’s The Poisonwood Bible, she uses Nathan Price to create her conflict between the cultures of America and the Congo. However, she never gives Nathan a voice. Rather, he is described through his wife and four children. Kingsolver fully develops the character of Nathan Price and his interactions with his family and his environment by using all five of the women’s voices, therefore driving the plot ofRead MoreThe Poisonwood Bible Analysis903 Words   |  4 Pages as it is idealized in the western world, it is in different forms than what westerners are used too, but unwillingly, individua ls are forced into the westerns way of teaching, compelling them to believe it can fix all their problems. In The Poisonwood Bible, Barbara Kingsolver criticizes the way religion affects an individual’s arrogance, political stance, and guilt, due to a belief that religion can fix dilemmas, and this conflicts the main characters and their own beliefs. In this novel, the PriceRead More Poisonwood Bible Essay1937 Words   |  8 PagesPoisonwood Bible Barbara Kingsolver is the author of many well-written pieces of literature including The Poisonwood Bible. This novel explores the beauty and hardships that exist in the Belgian Congo in 1959. Told by the wife and four daughters of a fierce Baptist, Nathan Price, Kingsolver clearly captures the realities this family and mission went through during their move to the Congo. The four daughters were raised in Atlanta Georgia in the 1950’s therefore entering the Congo with preconceivedRead MoreAnalysis Of The Poisonwood Bible1093 Words   |  5 PagesTitle of Work: â€Å"The Poisonwood Bible† Author: Barbara Kingsolver. Date of Publication: 1998. Genre: Historical Fiction. Writing Style: five narrators to show different perspectives of the events that occur. Orleanna creates vivid images of her past and uses descriptive language, Rachel talks informally, Leah uses a lot of dialogue and is informed, Adah uses palindromes, has a sarcastic tone, uses descriptive language as we ll, and Ruth May’s style is simple and playful. Point of View(s): first-personRead MoreThe Poisonwood Bible By. Kingsolver Essay1369 Words   |  6 PagesThe theme of â€Å"The Poisonwood Bible,† starts with the cultural selfishness of the Cogeneses people toward the western power. Most of the perspective of novel turns to feminist of four Price daughters and their mother. In the novel people of the Kilanga wants to adopt a religion which will protect them from natural disaster and starvation. Nathan Price wants to change the ancient tradition values of Congo with his own beliefs of worshiping the god. This part of Africa is ruled by the Western PowersRead MoreAnalysis Of The Poisonwood Bible1548 Words   |  7 Pages Barbara Kingsolver s novel The Poisonwood Bible captures a white southern families struggles through cultural collision and avid yet destructive faith. Kingsolver utilizes personal narratives to highlight the effect of western presence in Africa, not only pertaining to the natives but to the intrusive westerners themselves. The Price women display an array of different reactions to their quest in the Congo— each character contributes a different perspective which furthers the plot. Leah PriceRead MoreTheme Of Independence In The Poisonwood Bible967 Words   |  4 Pagesindependence. In the beginning of the Poisonwood Bible, Orleanna only follows her husband Nathan. Even when they went to Africa for his sake, Orleanna never expressed her opinion of not wanting to go. After having kids, she felt like her will was lost and she could never leave him. With Kingsolver’s use of literary devices, you can see her change of character. She starts to find her own independence and do what she wants to do and express herself. In the poisonwood bible, Orleanna says, â€Å"If you think my

Business Analysis Cummins India - 1453 Words

Cummins India Introduction: Cummins is a leading company that manufactures, markets, distributes diesel engines, generator set and related equipment. It was founded in 1919 by Clessie Cummins, J. Irwin Miller in Indiana, Coloumbia. Cummins entered India in 1987 with Fleetgaurd filters private ltd. and later emerged as Cummins India with presence in power, industrial, automobile, distribution and exports sector and made into fortunes listed 500 companies Vision: Making people s lives better by unleashing the Power of Cummins. Mission: †¢ Motivating people to act like owners working together. †¢ Exceeding customer expectations by always being first to market with the best products. †¢ Partnering with our customers to make sure that they succeed. †¢ Demanding that everything we do leads to a cleaner, healthier, safer environment. †¢ Creating wealth for all stakeholders. †¢ In align with the mission â€Å"Motivating people to act like owners working together† In align with the mission â€Å"Exceeding customer expectations by always being first to market with the best products†, industrial engine business sector has an in-house facility to design value package systems and Six Sigma, Kaizen, ERP processes type quality standards helps in developing high class products. In align with the mission â€Å"Partnering with our customers to make sure that they succeed†, they have established a 50-50 joint venture with Tata motors, India’s largest automobile manufacturer and their partnered customer.Show MoreRelatedSupply Chain Management : Cummins Inc.2260 Words   |  10 Pagesone operation that was on every list of top supply chains was Cummins Inc. Cummins was a company that nearly never took off as it was during the time of the Great Depression that founder Clessie Cummins first took notice of the diesel engine. Clessie was born in Indiana and from an early age had a mechanical mind. According to, Cummins History. (n.d.), â€Å"In 1919, with backing from banker William G. Irwin, Clessie founded the Cummins Engine Company in Columbus, Ind. Together, the two men built aRead MoreGrowth of Diesel Generator Business in India833 Words   |  4 PagesGrowth of DG Business According to some market research, there is a demand-supply gap of about 17% in power generation. This has thrown open huge market opportunities for the power backup providing companies. The power backup market in India is growing at an annual rate of 15-20%, varying within the three different segments – generators, UPS and inverters. Major players like Kirloskar Oil Engines Ltd (KOEL), Mahindra-Powerol, Cummins India, Greaves Cotton, Ashok Leyland, Eicher, Caterpillar, MTURead MoreImpact of Capital Structure on Firm Value2752 Words   |  12 PagesCompany allotted 52, 20,861 equity shares upon exercise of stock options by the eligible employees under the Employee Stock Option Schemes. During the year under review, the Company on 8th October 2009 raised Rs. 1,873 crore in India through the Qualified Institutions Placement route for general corporate purposes. The Company also issued unsecured Foreign Currency Convertible Bonds (FCCBs) of USD 200 million to international investors. The FCCBs are convertible into equity sharesRead MoreFinance Department Of Ashok Iron Works Plant II Essay1552 Words   |  7 Pagescomputers and internet. SWOT ANALYSIS STRENGTHS ïÆ'Ëœ AIW plant has good infrastructure, physical assets, innovations in manufacturing process in the terms of components produced. ïÆ'Ëœ The company is capable of relative faster development of new components in comparison with its competitors. ïÆ'Ëœ It has sophisticated production facilities which can produce range of items. ïÆ'Ëœ It has highly rated customer profile of Cummins India ltd. Mahindra and Mahindra tractor ltd., Simpson coRead MoreManagerial Economics Paper2648 Words   |  11 PagesExamination Paper Semester I: Managerial Economics IIBM Institute of Business Management Semester-1 Examination Paper Managerial Economics Section A: Objective Type (30 marks) †¢ †¢ †¢ This section consists of multiple choices Short notes type questions. Answer all the questions. Part one carries 1 mark each Part two carries 5 marks each. MM.100 Part one: Multiple choices: 1. It is a study of economy as a whole a. Macroeconomics b. Microeconomics c. Recession d. Inflation 2. A comprehensive formulationRead MoreIndi The Top For Any Mnc Expansion2357 Words   |  10 PagesIntroduction India has always been among the top for any MNC expansion. Being one of the leading economies in the world, India has emerged as the winner even in the global meltdown of 2008. This has made the country a safe haven for the potential investors in the last couple of decades after the country opened up for the global world after liberalization in 1991. Table 1.1 shows various characteristics of the country from various sources. This table will give the reader a background or introductionRead MoreGrand Strategy3490 Words   |  14 Pagesinternal environmental factors, analysis of the strategic factors and generation, evaluation and selection of the best alternative strategy appropriate to the analysis. Identification of various alternative strategies is an important aspect of strategic management as it provides the alternatives which can be considered and selected for implementation in order to arrive at certain result. At this stage, the managers are able to complete their environmental analysis and appraisal of their strengthsRead MoreEssay about Operations Management Tata Motors5379 Words   |  22 Pagesmanagement of India’s leading and the largest automobile manufacturer â€Å"Tata Motors†. In today’s business environment Operations management plays an important role in deciding the success of the company .Operations management uses the input resources to produce output to fulfil the market requirement. This report discusses the operation strategy adopted by Tata motors used in the manufacturing of its vehicles in India and its strong value chain which has led to the innovation of new developments, one of whichRead MoreManagement Information System Tata Motor3694 Words   |  15 PagesAnalyzing Business Informationof Tata Motors INTRODUCTION Tata Motors is Indias largest automobile company, with consolidated revenues of Rs1,65,654 crore (USD32.5 billion) in 2011-12. Through subsidiaries and associate companies, Tata Motors has operations in the UK, South Korea, Thailand, Spain and South Africa. Among them is Jaguar Land Rover, the business comprising the two iconic British brands. Following a strategic alliance with Fiat in 2005, it has set up an industrial joint venture withRead MoreProject Report on Ratio Analysis on Omax Autos Pvt. Ltd.15967 Words   |  64 PagesA Summer Training Project Report On â€Å"RATIO ANALYSIS† Of OMAX Autos Pvt. Ltd. Submitted in partial fulfillment for Post Graduate Diploma in Management Shekhawati Business School, Sikar. 2009-2011 Affiliated to All India Council Of Technical Education SUBMITTED TO: SUBMITTE BY: S.K.Bisnoi Ravi Kumar H.O.D. (Department of Management) PGDM 3rd Sem. SHEKHAWATI BUSINESS SCHOOL PREFACE Difference in academic life amp; practical life is revealed

Cisco Products and Specific Customer Groups Free Essays

string(325) " in the enterprise voice marketplace\); Cisco’s Catalyst 6500, a highperformance modular switch that converges data center, campus, and wide-area network in a single system, surpassed \$20 billion in sales; and Cisco’s enterprise customer installed base recently surpassed the 3 million wireless access points milestone\." In August of 2001, just months after Cisco System reported its first loss a a public company ($ 2. 7 billion), John Chambers, president and CEO, announced a major restructuring that would transform Cisco from a decentralized operation organized around customer groups to a centralized one focused on technologies. This restructuring not only risked destabilizing the large, complex organization during an economic downturn, but more importantly, threatened Cisco’s ability to remain customer-focused, a hallmark of the company’s culture and success since its first product was created in 1986. We will write a custom essay sample on Cisco Products and Specific Customer Groups or any similar topic only for you Order Now In order to maintain communication and stimulate ongoing collaboration among the newly independent functional areas, Cisco introduced coordination mechanisms that enable the companies to remain customer-focused. Introduction John Chambers became president and CEO of Cisco Systems in 1995. Over the course of the next several years, the decisions he made and the changes he implemented challenged traditional business practices, and resulted in incredible growth for the company. When Chambers first started, Cisco was generating annual revenues of $2. 2 billion; just six years later, the company was generating annual revenues of $22.3 billion. All of those results, however, were threatened in the 2001 market downturn. Earlier in the year, the explosive growth in the sales of hardware supporting the Internet began to show serious signs of slowing down, and Cisco Systems, like the rest of the technology industry, was facing the repercussions of the demise of the Internet boom and the first economic downturn in more than a decade. Start-ups, which had enjoyed the benefits of a buoyant stock market, and telecommunications companies began cutting back their overextended IT and network budgets. As a result of the falling demand, Cisco announced its first loss as a public company ($2. 69 billion) in the fiscal quarter ended April 28, 2001 and cut 18% of its workforce. In August, Chambers announced a major organizational restructuring that would transform Cisco from a decentralized operation focused on specific customer groups to a centralized one focused on technologies. While recognizing that a centralized, functional structure was necessary to avoid product and resource redundancies, Chambers also realized that it risked making the company less customer-focused. At the time of the announcement, Chambers asserted that Cisco’s customer-centric culture would offset this drawback, but he knew that more needed to be done to ensure that an organization as large as Cisco would remain customer-focused—technology companies simply could not afford to lose 1 sight of the customer. Chambers knew then that he needed to implement a formal, crossfunctional structure that would keep the company in touch with its customers. Chambers found himself considering an ambitious idea that, if executed, could transform both his company and conventional organizational strategy. He asserted that if Cisco implemented a crossfunctional system of executive-level committees, or councils, that fostered a culture of teamwork and collaboration that the company could scale beyond what anyone else thought possible. The benefits were clear—the cross-functional councils would bring the leaders of different functions together to collaborate and focus on the needs and issues of specific customer groups. Cisco could enjoy the benefits of being a functional organization while retaining its customer-centricity. Still, implementing such a system would be difficult. Many other companies had previously failed at facilitating collaboration across functions, especially large organizations such as Cisco. Chambers began asking himself questions. Would Cisco’s employees, many of whom were accustomed to a command-and-control system, accept a more collaborative model? Could they function in such a system, even with training? Would a cross-functional system work in such a large functional organization? Furthermore, if Cisco moved forward with this idea, how many councils should be formed? How large should they be? Who would sit on and chair them? Where would the decision making power reside? And finally, how could a system be implemented without creating a matrix organization that would impede decision making and generate conflict? These were all important questions, many of which for Chambers did not yet have answers. They were also questions that would discourage most executives from taking the chance. Still, Chambers understood Cisco’s employees and knew what they were capable of. He also knew that if they could succeed, the company would become even stronger financially and organizationally. With 2002 approaching, and the organizational restructuring already being implemented now was the time to act. Market Transformation Despite the challenges presented by the 2001 market downturn, Cisco overcame the sudden drop in product demand. In fact, the company became even stronger after the downturn. By the end of July 2007, Cisco was generating more than $30 billion in revenue and employing 61,535 employees worldwide. Cisco’s total revenue for FY 2007 ($34. 9 billion) was an increase of approximately 23% over FY 2006 revenue’s of $28. 5 billion. Net Income was $7. 3 billion GAAP and $8.4 billion non- GAAP, while Earnings per Share was $1. 17 GAAP (increase of 31% year over year) and $1. 34 non-GAAP (increase of 22% year over year). Part of Cisco’s post-downturn resiliency and success was the result of a transformation in its market focus and product offerings. Signs of this transformation were evident shortly before the downturn, when Cisco invested in its first comprehensive advertising campaign, including television and print, that asked the question, â€Å"Are You Ready? † with the goal of raising consumer awareness of its networking-equipment business and its plans to connect Internet users with its routers and switches. Because Cisco realized that it could not solely rely upon existing demand, the company began diversifying the products it offered and who it was selling those products to. By 2007, Cisco had successfully expanded into advanced technologies such as unified communications, wireless local area networking, home networking, application networking services, network security, storage 2 area networking, and video systems. These advanced technologies resulted in the growth of Cisco’s enterprise (large business) and service provider segments. For instance, by 2007, more than 8 million unified IP phones had been installed worldwide (Cisco was the market share leader in the enterprise voice marketplace); Cisco’s Catalyst 6500, a highperformance modular switch that converges data center, campus, and wide-area network in a single system, surpassed $20 billion in sales; and Cisco’s enterprise customer installed base recently surpassed the 3 million wireless access points milestone. You read "Cisco Products and Specific Customer Groups" in category "Papers" 3 Cisco was also able to successfully integrate the aforementioned advanced technologies with its core routing and switching technologies in products such as its Integrated Services Routers. Additionally, Cisco announced in June 2007 that it had shipped 900 of its Carrier Routing System (CRS-1), which provided continuous system operation to telecommunications service providers and research organizations, since its introduction in 2004. Cisco claimed that customers understood the leadership, total cost of ownership, flexibility, and investment protection advantages they would receive when they installed a Cisco product, which was designed to allow customers to easily and cost-effectively add marketleading voice, data, security, wireless, and other capabilities to their existing Cisco networks. This strategy differentiated Cisco from many of its competitors, which are usually present in only one or two product categories or customer segments, and often do not integrate their products from an architectural perspective. In a conference call discussing Q4 and FY 2007 financial results, Chambers commented on the importance of this balance and integration: â€Å"We believe that there are a number of factors that are unique to Cisco’s ability to grow. First is our unique balance across over two dozen product areas, four customer segments, and across major developed and emerging countries†¦From a product perspective, we approach the market with an end-to-end architecture where the products are first loosely then tightly integrated together, rather than focusing on individual routers, switches, security, wireless, storage, unified communications, or other standalone products. In addition to diversifying its product and service offerings, Cisco transformed its market focus by finding new growth opportunities in developing economies. Because Chambers knew these opportunities would not get the attention they needed from standard geographic sales coverage, he created a new sales â€Å"theater† called Emerging Markets, which included 138 countries around the world, regardless of location. Instead of every theater having several emerging markets in their portfolio viewed as low priorities, all the emerging markets were unified into one theater with the same resources and expectations of the other theaters. While several sales leaders functioned throughout the emerging markets, one sales senior vice president (SVP) was ultimately responsible for each theater. Members of the Emerging Markets sales team met with government and business leaders in various countries to discuss â€Å"how Cisco could help their countries develop a stronger economy through Internet access to education, healthcare, and business opportunities†. These and other efforts throughout the theater paid off—growth for FY 2007 in Cisco’s Emerging Markets theater was 40%, the highest growth rate of all five theaters (e. g. North America; Europe; Asia Pacific; Japan; and Emerging Markets). This performance made Chambers even more confident about the value of emerging markets. â€Å"Our architectural strategy in emerging markets is working extremely well,† he said in the conference call. â€Å"Barring some major economic or political surprises across many of these emerging countries, I would expect this theater to have the potential to grow more than twice the average growth rate of the other four theaters, if we execute effectively. † 3 2001 Organizational Restructuring Cisco also transformed and expanded its market focus through acquisitions. Before the downturn (1993–2000), Cisco was known for its acquisitions; it acquired 71 start-up companies that specialized in both its core and advanced areas, with 41 of those acquisitions occurring between 1999 and 2000. While emerging markets and acquisitions were key in helping Cisco survive the downturn, the company’s 2001 organizational restructuring played an even more important role. In its early days as a start-up, Cisco Systems was organized as a centralized engineering organization. As the company grew rapidly after going public in 1990, it adopted a business unit structure that was organized around primary product groups. This structure lasted until 1997, when the company reorganized itself around three semi-autonomous lines of business, each focusing on a distinct customer type: service providers, large enterprises, and small and medium-sized businesses, which Cisco characterizes as the â€Å"commercial† segment. Within this structure, each of the three lines of business developed and marketed its own products to its specific customer groups. This decentralized organization was created to meet the differing requirements of service providers and SMBs, two groups of customers that were growing rapidly at that time. By creating separate business units, Cisco attempted to meet the needs of each without compromise. However, as the market downturn brought about slowing demand and falling revenues, the negative aspects of the segment-centric grouping became clear. Organized behind lines of business focused on the different segments, redundancies in technological development were certainly not surprising—coordination across all technologies relevant to a customer group came at the expense of replicating technology development across customer groups. Still, redundancies became more noticeable at Cisco in the harsh economic environment faced by the company. Each business unit designed and sold its own products to customers in a particular industry, even though each business line produced some similar, if not interchangeable, products. Moreover, differences between customer segments had begun to blur: some enterprise business products suited service provider needs, but the service provider business lacked knowledge of, and access to, them. In some cases, each line of business had a different technology or solution for the same problem. By summer 2001, for example, Cisco had eight different teams developing technology to transmit telephone calls over Internet protocol (IP) networks. As one manager stated, â€Å"Before, we had a service provider customer, enterprise customer, and SMB customer, and we built a complete product line for that customer set. What that did cause was a great deal [of] redundancy of engineering and innovation†¦we had to build the same thing three times over and make things that are 80% the same three times over to satisfy the three requirements. † Facing the realities of the market downturn, Cisco made a change. On August 23, 2001, the company announced a major restructuring that, CEO John Chambers enthused, would bring Cisco closer to its customers, encourage teamwork, and eliminate product and resource overlaps. Cisco shifted from a decentralized operation focused on specific customer groups to a centralized one focused on technologies. Engineering was reorganized around eleven technology groups: Access, Aggregation, Cisco IOS Technologies, Internet Switching and Services, Ethernet Access, Network Management Services, Core Routing, Optical, Storage, Voice, and Wireless. Although the product groups were divided based on 11 technologies, Cisco retained three sales groups based on customer type. Between the technology and sales groups, a central marketing organization was installed to integrate products and technologies into solutions for the customer. A cross-functional â€Å"solutions engineering team† was charged with bringing the 4 different technologies together in a lab, testing them to ensure integration, and then creating blueprints that the customer would use to implement the solution. Marketing and engineering—previously segmented by customer type—were centralized under the chief marketing officer and the chief development officer, respectively. Cisco also expected the new structure to promote more rapid technical innovation by eliminating overlap in RD. The old structure inhibited the exchange of ideas because engineers worked in separate silos—a solution in one area might have suggested a solution in another, but, claimed one executive, â€Å"You might not hear about it for six months if you are in another business unit.† Implementing the Reorganization While a centralized, functional structure would help Cisco avoid product and resource redundancies, it also carried the risk of making the company less customer-focused because the company was organized around product, and not customer, groups. Whereas before each of the three lines of business developed and marketed its own products to its specific customer groups, each functional unit was now committed to a specific technology, which entailed the risk of dismissing the customer. Despite this risk, however, Cisco moved forward, trusting that its customer-centric approach would offset the effects of a functional structure. Customer advocacy had been imprinted on the company during its founding, when Cisco engineers were building customized products for end users with fairly idiosyncratic needs: â€Å"When we started, we made routers, which were basically software devices, and the sales people would literally go out, talk to the customer, the customer would say ‘I need this protocol,’ and they’d say, ‘We’ve got that. We’ll get the code to you in a week. ’ They would go back, tell the engineering guys that they had to develop it, and the engineers would do it,† said a senior manager. â€Å"That kind of stuff really sets the culture of the company; your job is to figure out what problem you are solving for the customer. And what you do everyday, setting up your activities, your tasks, your programs, your projects, your priorities, is in alignment with that notion of solving the customer’s problem.† The goal was to try and preserve this customer-focused culture that had been engrained in Cisco ever since its founding. However, managers realized even at the time of the 2001 reorganization that maintaining the same level of customer focus would become increasingly difficult as Cisco grew larger in size. Because the reorganization threatened to push the company away from the customer and towards a more functional structure, Chambers knew that Cisco could not lose its customer-centricity. When asked in 2007 how Cisco was able to maintain its customer focus through the reorganization, he said, â€Å"[Customer focus] has been deeply embedded in our DNA since I came here almost seventeen years ago, and while I’m a very collaborative leader, there are certain aspects of our culture, our vision, our strategy, which are non-negotiable, and customer focus is one of them. † To ensure that this culture would not change, Cisco responded in various ways during the reorganization. How to cite Cisco Products and Specific Customer Groups, Papers

Sleep is important free essay sample

What a good night’s rest says about a person. † People need their sleep when it comes to critical thinking. The average teenager is on a late to bed, late to rise cycle. Medical researchers found this cycle is part of the maturation of the endocrine system. The endocrine system is the system of glands that produce endocrine secretions that help to control bodily metabolic activity. Lack of sleep can also lead to depression. In 2005, people who were diagnosed with depression or anxiety were more likely to sleep less than six hours at night. The most common sleep disorder, insomnia, has the strongest link to depression. In fact, insomnia is often one of the first symptoms of depression. Lack of sleep can also age your skin. Most people have experienced thin skin and puffy eyes after a few nights of missed sleep. When you don’t get enough sleep, your body releases more of the stress hormone. We will write a custom essay sample on Sleep is important or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Sleep also plays a big part in one’s growth pattern, especially for a teenager when they are in their most crucial stage of growth. â€Å"It’s during deep sleep that the growth hormone is released,† says sleep expert Phil Gehrman, PhD. Sleepiness can also make us forgetful. That is why it is so strongly advised to get a good night’s rest before big events such as test or projects. There was a study done in 2007 by American and French researchers that determined that brain events called â€Å"sharp wave ripples† are responsible for storing memory. Sharp wave ripples occur mostly during the deepest levels of sleep. Interestingly enough, sleep deprivation can actually make you gain weight. The longer you are up and awake, the more energy you are burning up. If you are not on a good sleeping schedule, your mind will begin trying to fill the energy needed with food when what it really needs is sleep. When you continue doing this, it becomes second nature. Your body will begin to adapt to these new eating habits. Once you sleep, the food in your system will just sit and you will not have been able to work off any of the extra weight you may have just gained by just doing your day to day activities such as even just walking. This is a big problem that often times leads to obesity. Sleep is also in most cases, the number one cure to an illness. When you are in a deep sleep, your body is at its most relaxing state. Blood flow is increased, resulting in the cleansing of the body. The infected cells in your blood get pushed out, with new healthy blood cells to take thier place. Also when you are in a nice rested place, all of your energy can be focused on the recovery of your body. In conclusion, sleep is the most important part of living. Sleep grants us the ability to think, walk, talk and maintain our health. Without our sleep it is pretty safe to say, our lives would be a complete disaster. We need our sleep for everything we do, not to mention just the little day to day things we take for granted like walking or even talking. Sleep gives us the energy that a drink or a pill cannot.

Sleep is important free essay sample

What a good night’s rest says about a person. † People need their sleep when it comes to critical thinking. The average teenager is on a late to bed, late to rise cycle. Medical researchers found this cycle is part of the maturation of the endocrine system. The endocrine system is the system of glands that produce endocrine secretions that help to control bodily metabolic activity. Lack of sleep can also lead to depression. In 2005, people who were diagnosed with depression or anxiety were more likely to sleep less than six hours at night. The most common sleep disorder, insomnia, has the strongest link to depression. In fact, insomnia is often one of the first symptoms of depression. Lack of sleep can also age your skin. Most people have experienced thin skin and puffy eyes after a few nights of missed sleep. When you don’t get enough sleep, your body releases more of the stress hormone. We will write a custom essay sample on Sleep is important or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Sleep also plays a big part in one’s growth pattern, especially for a teenager when they are in their most crucial stage of growth. â€Å"It’s during deep sleep that the growth hormone is released,† says sleep expert Phil Gehrman, PhD. Sleepiness can also make us forgetful. That is why it is so strongly advised to get a good night’s rest before big events such as test or projects. There was a study done in 2007 by American and French researchers that determined that brain events called â€Å"sharp wave ripples† are responsible for storing memory. Sharp wave ripples occur mostly during the deepest levels of sleep. Interestingly enough, sleep deprivation can actually make you gain weight. The longer you are up and awake, the more energy you are burning up. If you are not on a good sleeping schedule, your mind will begin trying to fill the energy needed with food when what it really needs is sleep. When you continue doing this, it becomes second nature. Your body will begin to adapt to these new eating habits. Once you sleep, the food in your system will just sit and you will not have been able to work off any of the extra weight you may have just gained by just doing your day to day activities such as even just walking. This is a big problem that often times leads to obesity. Sleep is also in most cases, the number one cure to an illness. When you are in a deep sleep, your body is at its most relaxing state. Blood flow is increased, resulting in the cleansing of the body. The infected cells in your blood get pushed out, with new healthy blood cells to take thier place. Also when you are in a nice rested place, all of your energy can be focused on the recovery of your body. In conclusion, sleep is the most important part of living. Sleep grants us the ability to think, walk, talk and maintain our health. Without our sleep it is pretty safe to say, our lives would be a complete disaster. We need our sleep for everything we do, not to mention just the little day to day things we take for granted like walking or even talking. Sleep gives us the energy that a drink or a pill cannot.