Doman Name Expansion Solution Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Doman Name Expansion Solution - Essay Example The organization is tasked with the responsibility of identifying and setting minimum standards for which they must adhere to performing their functions as registrars. In furtherance of its duties ICANN also gives recognition to persons as well as entities that meet these standards ‘and to enter into an accreditation agreement that sets forth the rules and procedures applicable to the provision of Registrar Services’ (ICANN 2012a). Since its inception, ICANN has been gradually increasing the suffixes attached to domain names or generic top-level domains (gTLDs). This has been done in response to problems encountered by various groups including businesses and customers. The original domain suffixes include .com, .org and .net. The first set of changes took place in 2001when ICCAN increased the number of gTLDs to 22 to include suffixes such as: .uk, .au and .en. They include the original .com, .net and .org. In addition to that, there are 254 domains that are specific to c ountries and regions – 120 of these are country code domains and 134 At-Large Structures (ALSes) from all geographic regions (ICANN 2012b). The country code domains are represented by the Country Code Names Supporting Organisation (ccNSO). In spite of that increase, a great demand continued to exist for internet names. On June 20, 2011 Internet minders voted unanimously to expand the number of domain names based on company brands, entertainment and political causes. According to The Associated Press (2011) this is the greatest change since the debut of .com in 1984. With this change organisations are now able to make application for gTLDs that contain virtually any word in any language or script (Alex Hall 2011). This change is expected to benefit individuals, companies, cities and regions. It is also expected to reduce the number of disputes that requires resolution. 2.0 Reasons for expanding domain name suffixes Several reasons have been given for the move to expand indefin itely the number of domain name suffixes.  

Non-profit organizations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Non-profit organizations - Essay Example The problem in human health that arose from the disaster is a major concern worth analysis and discussion. The health deterioration in the coastal region and the island is an issue of concern because the earthquake destroyed the sewage system. The lack of a proper sewage system has triggered the outbreak of waterborne diseases such as cholera in the country. Therefore, there is a need to intervene and restore the order as fast as possible. Restoring the system will help reduce the deaths that are occurring in the region because of cholera. GoodLife’s vision is built towards making the lives of people in the country better and enjoyable. We, therefore, establish our camp on regions enduring difficulties due to lack of adequate resources or government intervention. Moreover, the organization intervened in the situation being led by the following principles that form our vision. Considering these objective principles, the vision of the GoodLife is clear. Our ambition is to work with the community and to recuperate their life. Our long time goals are to lead non-governmental organisation in providing help to the needy communities in the country. Our position to the vision statement is driven by credible research that moves the community to enquire about their problem. The organization analyze problem and outline the possible measures that can be used to remedy it. Our specific objective in this mission to solve the problem of the sewage system in the coastal region and the Mentawai Islands. Our specific objectives aims are disconnecting the main cause of cholera in the country. Goodlife aims to reconstruct the sewerage system and build new toilets and latrines. The communities have experienced the problem of sewerage with little support from the government. There are a number of activities that are to be carried out in order to hit our objectives. Goodlife seek qualified contractors to be involved in the construction of waterways. This canal will ensure

Use of Alumni Tracer Study to Maintain Curriculum Relevancy

Use of Alumni Tracer Study to Maintain Curriculum Relevancy Distance education can play a crucial role in the professional development of a developing country like Indonesia by meeting human resource requirements. It caters to the requirement not only those who are unemployed but also of those who are on the job. Their knowledge can be updated through continuing education programmes. In-service teacher education is an investment in human capital, which brings benefits in the form of enhanced educator productivity, and higher levels of output. One of the most important functions of the education sector is to provide knowledge and skill to various sectors of the education area. It is widely argued that the structure and pattern of education, especially at the elementary and secondary stage, has to be purposefully re-oriented towards new national standard to join together with the projected future pattern of graduation requirements. Currently, most of the countries of the world, especially Indonesia, has given due importance to in-service teache r education to provide diversification of educational opportunities so as to enhance individual professionalism, reduce the gap between urban and rural area of skilled teacher and provide an alternative for those pursuing higher education. Distance and online learning in the Open University of Indonesia (UT) has been greatly developed as a methodology for providing education for those who formerly may have found further education inaccessible for various reasons. In the purpose of accreditation process, UT put a finest on compliance and included some reporting requirements in tracer study that necessarily lead programs toward excellence or increase in-service teacher students impact on their schools and distance learning. In writers opinion, Universitas Terbuka can responsively maintain curriculum relevancy and usefulness for professional development. Ornstein and Hunkins (2009, p.15) argue that curriculum development includes how a curriculum is planned, implemented and evaluated, as well as what people, processes and procedures are involved... Curriculum models help designers to systematically and transparently map out the rationale for the use of particular teaching, learning and assessment approaches. They suggest that although curriculum development models are technically useful, they often overlook the human factor such as the personal attitudes, emotions, values involved in curriculum making. Therefore they are not a method and should not be a substitute for using professional and personal judgement on what is a good approach to develop student learning. UT organized alumni tracer study in 2009 and got more than 10.000 responses but in this paper the writer only use 200 responses to be analyzed randomly. Tracer study encourages UT to solve complex problems confronting professional development. It is also common for higher educational institutions to have their graduates make an evaluation of their learning experience and the quality of learning which they received. This evaluation process often takes the form of graduate or alumni surveys, which are sometimes referred to as tracer studies. It is focused not only on measuring teacher and program performance, but also other alumni and other aspects. UT should know the fortunes of their graduates in order to make a complete assessment of how the educational process has impacted their graduates. With the tracer study result, UT is able to make development and modifications on their programs that could enhance their students chances of achieving success. In this paper the use of the trace r study will be discussed as an effective method of evaluating the success of distance and online programmes to provide and maintain curriculum relevancy for professional development in UT. THE OPEN UNIVERSITY OF INDONESIA UT which was established in 1984 is a national university constituted under the Presidential Decree of the Republic of Indonesia Number 41 Year 1984 and has the same legal and academic status as any other national university in Indonesia. UT is quite unique as it is the only university in Indonesia that is dedicated to distance learning. The academic programmes of the UT are specifically designed to enable persons who have graduated from senior high school to pursue a higher education. The programmes of the university enable students to join in at the level of the qualifications they possess and are structured from certificate and proceed to diploma, bachelor degrees and graduate degrees. At present with a total student enrolment of around 639,049 (http://www.ut.ac.id/ut-dalam-angka.html, 2010), UT has the largest student bodies in the country. The students are enrolled in more than 30 programmes of study out of which 96 per cent of the students are employed and around 82 per cent are teachers. The completion of programmes by students become more difficult for students who enrol at Open Universities as they are compelled to study while working and attending to their normal family responsibilities. It is pertinent therefore, to examine the alumni satisfaction after they graduated from UT. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN UT The Characteristic of UTs students UTs students are similar with the other ODL students. Its characteristics are classified as non-traditional students (Easton, 2003): have internal motivation to seek higher education and self-discipline to undertake study. One of the motivations is they can study while working for people who for some reasons cannot attend face to face education, for example people living in rural areas, in isolated islands, who cannot move to the cities where there are universities. UT differs from other open university on two accounts. It requires formal entrance qualifications and it has both full-time as well as part-time students (Hiola Moss, 1990).   The lack of time and funds promote students to apply in UT. Potential UTs students are not a captive market. UT can at least rely on a student intake derived from the geographical location in which they are approximated. Proximity and subsidized fees through scholarship often make nearby institutions the first option for students. For those who cannot physically attend, UT provides education from certain places on the world by ODL. The prospective distance education student can therefore join in UT for the type of programme they wish to pursue which are congruent with their professional and personal goals. UT has many competitors around the world, because the demand for ODL has grown extensively. Many private and public universities have increased their student intake by offering online programmes. With the large number of institutions participating in ODL it has become a highly competitive market for providers. Distance education has taken on the characteristics of a service industry, with students becoming the loyal customers for the education product. The need for customer satisfaction therefore increases the necessity to have students evaluate the product (Millington, 2008). Student responses on these matters can gauge the level of satisfaction with the course itself and institutional planners can implement improvements where dissatisfaction has been expressed. However, this form of evaluation does not measure the outputs and outcomes of education. Furthermore, UW-Stout conducts surveys on all its alumni one and five years after their graduation. Bosshart, Wents, and Heller (2009) state these surveys provide critical information for assessing and determining the effectiveness of programs. These results may then be utilized for program improvement. Schomburg (2003, p.25) identifies the outputs as attributes such as knowledge and skills, and outcomes as transition to employment, work experience and service to society. He suggests the use of the tracer study by institutions as a method for knowing the destiny of their graduates and the relationship between their study and their professional reward. (p.29). Tracer Study and Curriculum Development Although the usual end of the course evaluation can ask for the student to assess whether they have gained the knowledge and skills necessary for fulfilling their personal objectives, there is really little proof of this until the student has completed the entire course of study and has entered the workforce. By surveying a cohort of graduates from: a specific institution; profession; discipline; graduation date; level of education; or a combination of these for comparative analysis, Schomburg (2003) presents examples of issues which can be addressed in tracer studies. Biographical data on Where are our graduates now may supply information on income, job title, nature of employment, and years of employment. He also believes that surveys should also include information about the kind of work task the relationship between study and work, and professional values and job satisfaction. The use of tracer studies to provide and maintain curriculum relevancy for professional development have been conducted by Harald Schomburg and his colleagues at the Centre for Higher Education and Work, University of Kassel, Germany, have done considerable research on conducting tracer surveys, constructing effective tracer study questionnaires and their statistical analysis. They have conducted survey projects such as the CHEERS (Career after Higher Education-a European Research Study) which investigated the links between higher education and graduate employment in Europe. They have done similar research in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Zembere and Chinyama (1996) tried to find out what factors are important for professional success of graduates taking into account personal factors and identify key aspects of the continuing professional education of graduates in University of Malawi. Another tracer study is conducted in Nigeria (Ugwuonah Omeje, 1998) with the results as follows: Link and match in both the industries and higher education profiles. Broad based and trans-disciplinary curriculum planning and development Collaboration between higher education institution and industries. Tracer study conducted for open and distance learning (ODL) is not many. One of them is done by the Staff Training and Research Institute of Distance Education (STRIDE) at the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU). In addition, tracer study also completed by the Nigerian Institute (NTI) which launched its Nigeria Certificate in Education by ODL in 1990 in response to urgent need to train more teachers. The findings of the study were that the performance of ODL graduates was as effective in the classroom as that of their peers who had studied in the traditional way. Based on the tracer study result, the Institute itself had improved its management and monitoring systems (Umar, 2006). ALUMNI TRACER STUDY FOR MAINTAINING CURRICULUM RELEVANCY AND USEFULNESS Provision Of a Working Definition Of The Tracer Study Concept For the purposes of this discussion tracer study will be taken to mean: A period when institutions of learning set up regular intervals of time to venture into the field and follow their past graduates to find out what they are doing with the training they received and find out from them how best they think the institutions who trained them will be able to help them upgrade their acquired knowledge and skills through the reform and innovation of curricula and course programmes including school-based or work-based professional development to live up to the expectations of the constantly changing technological and scientific working environment and employer demands (Boaduo, Mensah Babitseng, 2009). In educational research, according to Schomburg (2003), tracer study is a survey of graduates from institutions of higher education since its target groups is the alumni. The ILO Thesaurus 2005 defines a tracer study as an impact assessment tool where during evaluation the impact on target groups is traced back to specific elements of a project or programme so that effective and ineffective project components may be identified. Schomburg (2003, p.36) notes that graduate surveys are popular for analysis of the relationship between higher education and work. They provide quantitative-structural data on employment and career, the character of work and related competencies, and information on the professional orientation and experiences of their graduates. The alumni tracer study in UT has objectives to build strong bonds between the institution and its graduates, because the alumni are the excellent source of advice for improvements of institution and to measure the extent of professional and academic careers pursued by the graduates after gaining knowledge and skills through academic institutions. Many questions were designed so that appropriate answers could be ticked off. Some open-ended questions were developed to get suggestions, comments, explanations and clarifications. Immediate supervisors or employers were requested to provide views on UTs graduates in their employment, in terms of theoretical knowledge, practical experience/skill, job performance, strengths, weaknesses and suggestions for improvement. Assuming that peers can be the most important appraisers of their fellow UTs graduates, as they are very close to them in many respects, peer groups were asked to state the strengths of UTs graduates. A scaling technique was applied to measure the relevancy and usefulness of tracer in professional and academic development of UTs graduates. Some questions were featured in a tabular format to assess job profile that UTs graduates considered before and after their studies at UT. This was done to get information on the number of positions held, year of starting and ending j ob, title and level of the positions, influential positions, name of the employers organization, type of employers, major responsibility, and awards, rewards or promotions. The position levels in categorically divided into three stages such as survey organization, data collection, data analysis and report writing. Curriculum Relevancy and Usefulness for Professional Development in UT The alumni tracer study consists of many aspects. Some of them are impact study that seeks to determine graduates satisfaction with the institution especially with curriculum relevancy and usefulness. Another one is professional development study to determine the extent to which the curriculum has developed them qualified in their career. As the writer said that the majority of learners are already working, they need to develop their competencies and skills to stay relevant and useful. The attributes that would be developed in the distance education in the future are knowledge and skills, perspectives, contextual problem solving, networking and competency-based outcomes (Boettcher, 2006). UT should have planning to accommodate these new emphases and provide curriculum relevancy for its alumni to incorporate their education and professional competencies. Academic curriculum as a tool used to develop the skills, roles as a vehicle, which attributes can be transferred during the learning process (Fallows Steven, 2000). In the academic curriculum dimension for 2009, both of items are majority rated satisfactory (Table 2.). It is shown that alumni are generally satisfied with the curriculum developed by UT. In writers assumptions, one of the contributors of the curriculum relevancy is the rich composition of participants in academic curriculum development, which consists of lecturers, students, curriculum specialist, professionals and experts in certain fields from government parties or private industries. Another contributor is the use of information and communication technology in learning process. According to Listyarini, Ratnaningsih and Yuliana (2010), alumni and stakeholders perceived that alumni had improved in their knowledge and skills of ICT and learning media. Strategy to Provide and Maintain Curriculum Relevancy Earlier in this paper it was suggested that the findings of tracers studies could be used to reform ODL programmes. As seen in the African studies graduate dissatisfaction with resources, technology and the need to enhance teacher competence in audio-visual technology points to where institutional investment and reform could be targeted. The Malawi study revealed the importance of interpersonal skills and proficiency in English. This information could be used by curriculum planners for the incorporation of these skills into training and course content. The Nigerian study indicated a need for greater linkages with the industrial sector to make programmes more relevant to the manufacturing industry, especially for engineering. Most importantly, the fact that tracer studies can show that the quality of ODL graduates is comparable (as with the NTI) with those of traditional education suggests that they should be an integral tool for evaluating ODL. Tracer studies of ODL graduates can provide the information needed to reform educational programmes to bring about the fit between the requirements of the employment world and study. Surveys do have their disadvantages: it is sometimes difficult to locate alumni and have them complete questionnaires. Schomburg (2003) warns that the graduate might not always be able to identify the relationship between the knowledge acquired during study and their professional lives and that research findings are valuable inasmuch as planners can turn the findings into concrete reforms. However, this paper suggests that the tracer study can be an information provider as well as an evaluation tool. The success of graduates can be used, as a maintaining strategy to develop curriculum. UT can use the information gathered to adapt their courses to the demands of professional development and modify programmes to expand professional advancement through ODL. Zhou, Varnhagen, Sears, Kasprzak, Shervey (2007) examine the role of technology in continuing professional development and learning. They investigate whether online delivery of professional development is a successful alternative to other forms of professional development. This study provides a rich account into the challenges and tensions as to how leaders in higher education create and facilitate a shared, communal vision in the context of online curriculum delivery. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS This paper has provided documentary analysis about the need to use tracer study paradigm for the enhancement of the quality of courses offered in UT in Indonesia to be able to meet the demands of the changing educational demands of the new century. A working definition upon which the whole discussion was based has been provided. It is important to indicate that tracer study is a means of gathering important information about past graduates of higher institutions to be able to identify what they are doing with the training they obtained and what could be done to add to their expertise through these institutions to be able to reform their course programmes to keep up with the needs of the rapidly changing technological and scientific age. The result confirmed that UT is making a significant contribution to its distance learner by providing opportunities to improve their knowledge and skills, not only to perform better in their careers but also in providing the opportunity to pursue their studies to a higher level. This reflects the success of UT in providing the culture of lifelong learning among its learners. The most important thing is that the majority of alumni indicated that they would recommend their colleagues to study at UT for professional development purposes. It must be indicated that tracer study survey is a very tedious and complicated exercise. Extensive efforts should go into tracking and contacting individual graduates and alumni. There is need to step up the process of providing regular opportunities for alumni to register and create a forum electronically and through the web. Furthermore continuous efforts should be made to collect data progressively before and after graduation which will contribute to the improvement of the analysis of future tracer studies. Additional data can be collected for the type of institutions, nature of work, and ranks of the past graduates. The following recommendations are provided as a means to help improve tracer study in the future: (1) database developing for all higher education institution in Indonesia, (2) Establishing network between UT and its graduates, and (3) developing a committee of alumni tracer study for the whole higher education institution in Indonesia.

Dyslexia: What It Can Teach Us :: Biology Essays Research Papers

Dyslexia: What It Can Teach Us What is a learning disorder and what can knowing more about learning disorders tell us about our own learning? Scientific research has acknowledged that many learning disorders are really just the edge of what is the normal spectrum in human capabilities.(1) Children with reading disabilities differ from one another and from other readers along a continuous distribution.(2) The aptitude to read depends upon fast and precise understanding and decoding of single words.(2) A disabled readers IQ tells very little about their skills. Disabled readers with varying IQ can display exactly the same progress, and neurobiological symptoms. This tells us that the IQ is not a suitable indicator of disability in basic reading skills. That is just one example of the many things that we can learn from people with learning disabilities that we can apply to all people. We will also see that by studying students with dyslexia we can see some of the important brain functions in reading. For a long time, research in the scientific community in respect to learning disabilities was slim. One problem in recent decades is that scientists have spent a lot of time searching for the basis of the disorder as opposed to the solution. This has created a chasm between the scientific and the educational worlds. Teachers were experiencing frustration with the influence that PhD's and MD's have on their curriculum.(2) Some teachers feel that when help is provided it can be in a non-helpful manner. Researchers don't always take into consideration what it was really like to be teaching. When we think about learning in a broad scale we think about it as repetition of memorization. On a cellular level learning is the result of change in the strength of a connection due to synaptic activity.(3) At larger levels Hebbian ideals can't really be taken much farther than simple behaviors. We can use Hebbian learning to explain repetitive actions that allow us to learn, say a piece of music. A musician plays a piece of music over and over again, until he/she knows it really well. At this point the synapses that were being used in the musicians brain have physically and chemically changed so that there is now a stronger connection. Can we explain learning disorders with Hebbian theory? Surprisingly we can. It turns out that dyslexics fail to increase activation in order to make the connections between phonologic structures and sounds.

A History of Pakistan Essay

â€Å"Believe it or not, India and Pakistan were once a solid and unified country: the citizens of the Indian border states of Rajasthan and Punjab were almost looking similar to the citizens of Pakistan† (Paul, 2005). â€Å"So when India became free from the British colonizers in 1947, conflicts between the India and Pakistan started to become intense. Since then, India and Pakistan have continuously been angry and uninterested towards each other—in fact, they have already participated in three major wars—and even during periods of peace, the two country’s relationship had always been on the line† (Jaffrelot, 2005). â€Å"Inspired by their conflicts regarding territories† over the region of Kashmir, anger and hatred developed between the two countries over the years. For Pakistanis, the Kashmir dispute has become a symbol of broken pledges and Indian duplicity, and they are constantly attempting to raise the issue whenever possible, thus drawing strong reactions from India; on the other hand, India considers Kashmir as a vital part of the country, and attempts of the Pakistanis are viewed as an act to smear India’s image (Conboy, 1992). Read more:  Current Political Situation of Pakistan Up to this day, Kashmir remains the world’s largest and most highly militarized territorial dispute. Worse, as the years passed by, many issues have coupled the long-lived dispute over Kashmir, such as: the linked issues of the Siachen Glacier, the Wular Lake Barrage, and the current Kashmiri struggle; communalism and the plight of the minorities; nuclear developments; periodic domestic troubles; the Afghanistan crisis; and the involvement of outside powers (King, 1998). The Benefits of Pakistan Partition â€Å"Economic programs in Pakistan after the period of its partition emphasized on core planning. The Pakistani government established objectives for controlling private industries. The partition was established in order to improve domestic businesses and reduce dependence on foreign trade. These efforts led to the stability of its economic development in the 1950s† (Jones, 2003). However, excellent results stopped coming in the two straight decades. By the early 1970s Pakistan had succeeded in conquering its goal of stability in terms of food availability, â€Å"although this food was not really available to all Pakistanis because of the flawed distribution and shortcomings in the harvest†. In the late 1970s the Pakistani government began to decrease its power over the economy, which led to slowed development toward this goal. By 1991, however, the Pakistani government still controlled or managed many industries, including mining and financing, manufacturing and construction. Economic development enhanced during this time, at least gradually as a result of economic programs supported by foreign loans (Jones, 2003). A financial crisis after the partition stimulated Pakistan to institute major economic reforms. Because the partition resulted into an incredible surge in oil prices, Pakistan was haunted by a barrage of payments problem. To gather loans from well-regarded funding organizations, Pakistan made up its mind to implement programs in order to free its economy. These economic programs eliminated many strict government policies on investment, and established tariff systems that maintained trading at a manageable level. â€Å"Also, reform deregulated many industries and privatized many public enterprises. These reforms continued through the mid-1990s, although at a slower rate because of political changes in India’s government. In 1993 Pakistan permitted Pakistan-owned private banks to be established along with a minority of foreign banks† (Holliday, 2000). â€Å"With the reforms, Pakistan incredibly made a smooth transition from a closed and very restrictive economy to one that is open and free to the world. By 1996 to 1997, foreign investment had grown to nearly $6 billion, up from $165 million in 1990 to 1991. Exports and imports also improved significantly at the same time. Economic growth since the 1980s has brought with it an expansion of the middle class, which was estimated to form 20 to 25 percent of Pakistan’s population in the mid-1990s. As a result, the demand for consumer goods has expanded rapidly† (Mittmann, 1991). In Pakistan, the upsurge of innovative activity seems to have had more to do with the advent of partition than with the Silicon Valley phenomenon. The partition has dramatically changed the market and supply conditions, from being shortage and seller driven to being buyer and competition driven. To survive and grow, firms have to focus on improving their competitiveness. They are realizing that the real source of industrial competition today lies in innovation and the rapid technological change taking place throughout the world. Technology is now a key determinant of strategic change in Pakistani firms. Industrial development based on indigenous technology development is still an elusive dream, but the ‘process’ of technology acquisition and assimilation is now very much a strategic process, aligned with firms’ need to build competencies (Kudaisya, 2001). The partition has stimulated the rapid growth of innovation-driven industries such as information technology (IT), communications technology, biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries. This has led to a new type of business enterprise known as the knowledge enterprise and a new sector of the economy known as the knowledge economy. This sector is now a significant component of the national economy and accounts for a large portion of economic growth. The partition created renewed interest in innovative entrepreneurship as a key driver for the rapid diffusion of innovation in business and industry. Entrepreneurship occupies centre stage in the wealth creation process in the knowledge economy (Cohen, 2004). References: Cohen, S, 2004. The Idea of Pakistan. Brookings Institution Press. Conboy, K, 1992. Elite Forces of India and Pakistan. Osprey Publishing Holliday, T, 2000. Insight Guide Pakistan. Insight Guides; 3rd edition Jaffrelot, C, 2005. A History of Pakistan and Its Origins. Anthem Press; New edition Jones, O, 2003. Pakistan: Eye of the Storm. Yale University Press; 2nd edition King, J, 1998. Lonely Planet Pakistan. Lonely Planet Publications; 5th edition Kudaisya, G, 2001. The Aftermath of Partition in South Asia. Routledge; 1st edition Mittmann, K, 1991. Culture Shock! : Pakistan. Graphic Arts Center Publishing Company Paul, T, 2005. The India-Pakistan Conflict: An Enduring Rivalry. Cambridge University Pres

Retail Strategic Planning Essay

Organized retailing in home and building sector was expected to face stiff challenge from the existing small, independent, and powerful local retailers. Many international retailers like Home Depot, IKEA and Lowe were also eyeing the Indian market which was untapped by organized retailers. They provided all the product categories and services that were required to build a new home or for home improvement or renovation under one roof. Muebles belonging to Casa Moblaje group was a pioneer in this segment. Homepro was the first building mall, which offered a wide range of building materials, home improvements products, and furnishings. They provided information about land availability and selection, and housed offices of architects, designers and financiers. The Home Store and Zeba were in home furnishing segment; Gautier dealt in furniture; and Johnson Tiles was in the sanitary ware sector. Identify Strategic Alternatives Ansoff’s Matrix Muebles had captured a large market of the home building and construction business in Ahmedabad as well as the home improvement business of the surrounding cities and towns. The ideal strategy for Muebles would be to develop the market. The areas surrounding Ahmedabad like Baroda, Surat etc is highly industrialized and lot of construction takes place in these areas. Muebles can target these cities and can increase the size of the market to get larger sales. Retail Mix Variables Product The store stocked products under five major categories Kitchen accessories: Appliances, Crockery, Glassware, Ovens etc Furniture and furnishing: Sofa set, bed, linen etc Bathroom: Tiles, Sanitary ware, Fittings, Taps, and accessories Hardware visible: Door, Window, Safety equipment, Gardening Tools, Washing Machines Electrical equipments: Lights, Luminaries, Chandeliers, Switches, Fans, Generators etc They mainly stored branded products. The store policy was to use the number one brand or the aggressive second. If this was not possible the company entered in to contracts to with smaller players who provided with in store brands. The store stocked approximately 12000 SKUs and had 120 suppliers. As the store move upward in the retail wheel, it took the invisible and les involved products out of the shelf. The visible and high involvement products replaced the invisible. They also increased the share of storing impulse goods in the relevant home decoration and furnishing category. Price The pricing policy of the store varied across the product categories. Pricing was competitive and benchmarked against the traditional hardware and home building material stores in product categories which were usually available in traditional hardware stores . In the destination product categories, the store charged premium price. Store Layout The store was laid out in a grid format. It was functional in nature and was based on a do-it-yourself model. Thirty percent of the shop space was given to 12 partners (vendors) who complete freedom of operation. The store atmosphere was attractive. The format of the store aided the customer to find the right the product. Some products like kitchen fittings were merchandised in simulated conditions to give the customer a feel of the complete range of the store’s offering. Promotion In order to increase the levels of awareness, they were communicating by using a mix of me. dia for brand and tactical advertising. They used the Gujarati and English media to reach out to their target segments. They developed two communication packages, one for the lay consumers with low comprehension of Muebles’s value proposition, and another for the professionals (home builders) who had a relatively higher awareness of the concept. In order to increase the sales of the invisible products, Muebles decided to educate the home builder. The home builder package consisted of developing a critical mass of professionals by rewarding their purchase and then working towards giving them accreditation through a professional course so that they would buy all the materials from Muebles. The apartment package consisted of using direct mails and tie-ups with companies like Electrolux, Pergo, and ICI to give special deals to five different apartment owners. Muebles targeted the HR departments in various companies and offered special deals. The problem in this deal was the acquisition of database of apartment owners. Customer Service Muebles policy was to satisfy the customer. Managers were supposed to visit the shop floor 3 hours a day to understand shopper’s behavior and needs better. Each category had 4 personnel. The total floor level employees were around 20. The floor employees tracked the customer right from the entry to the store and observed them carefully from a distance. The motive was to help the customer in the selection without interfering. The staff was instructed to respect the privacy of the customers. Muebles provided a unique shopping experience to the customer. Consumers were provided a wide range and assured quality, competitive prices, and world class service. They provided value added services to the consumers like * Comprehensive design assistance by a panel of professionals and design consultants * Apartment Packages * Installation service and support * Info mediation through website * Home loan consultancy and loans * Certification programmes for electricians, masons, plumbers and carpenters * Educational programme on do-it-yourself techniques and procedures * Customer loyalty programmes